Is phoenix the next LA??? (Scottsdale, Tempe: crime, taxes, living)

[KurtAZ]

Lord I hope not.

[maverick974]

Originally Posted by KurtAZ

Lord I hope not.

Exactly what I was thinking.

[LBTRS]

Originally Posted by KurtAZ

Lord I hope not.

Exactly what I came to post...if it does turn into LA I'll be the first one headed somewhere else.

[Ponderosa]

Originally Posted by LBTRS

Exactly what I came to post...if it does turn into LA I'll be the first one headed somewhere else.

In Phoenix we fret at becoming LA. When I lived in Tucson, they fretted about becoming Phoenix.

[new2colo]

Originally Posted by Ponderosa

The largest group of residents from other places to Arizona come from California - not Illinois or some state in the midwest. While Phoenix is a retirement destination the notion that it is overrun by geezers is a myth. Arizona is one of the "youngest" states in the country. I doubt Phoenix is the next LA, whatever that means. When people say "LA" I think most of them mean the megalopolis of southern California. In that regard, Phoenix is more LA-like than any other city in the US. The growth and sprawl and the lack of anything remotely resembling an eastern city downtown is a dead giveaway.

California might be the state of origin for most transplants here, but I think that if you were to add up transplants from the Midwest that it would far exceed that of California. I cannot tell you how many people I've met here who are originally from Michigan, Ohio, Indiana, Illinois, Wisconsin, Minnesota, or Iowa. I have met far more people from those areas than I have met from California.

You cannot deny that this area has grown rapidly because of relocating retirees. That's just fact. The Sun Cities, Youngtown, and numerous age restricted communities attest to that. The city of Phoenix might be on the young side due to the birth rate, but the metro area as a whole is not young at all. For instance, the median age in Surprise is 46, in Scottsdale the median age is 42, in Sun City it's 75, in Sun City West it's 73, in Sun Lakes it's 69, in Carefree it's 55...

Phoenix is really not like LA at all. Both areas have palm trees and freeways. That's about all we have in common.

[LBTRS]

It is obvious that California would have the most transplants in Arizona since it is the most populated US state. Combine the people from the Midwest and I'll bet they are a larger group.

[Ponderosa]

Originally Posted by new2colo

California might be the state of origin for most transplants here, but I think that if you were to add up transplants from the Midwest that it would far exceed that of California. I cannot tell you how many people I've met here who are originally from Michigan, Ohio, Indiana, Illinois, Wisconsin, Minnesota, or Iowa. I have met far more people from those areas than I have met from California.

You cannot deny that this area has grown rapidly because of relocating retirees. That's just fact. The Sun Cities, Youngtown, and numerous age restricted communities attest to that. The city of Phoenix might be on the young side due to the birth rate, but the metro area as a whole is not young at all. For instance, the median age in Surprise is 46, in Scottsdale the median age is 42, in Sun City it's 75, in Sun City West it's 73, in Sun Lakes it's 69, in Carefree it's 55...

Phoenix is really not like LA at all. Both areas have palm trees and freeways. That's about all we have in common.

Two can play: Gilbert: 31, Goodyear 35, Chandler 34, Mesa 35, Phoenix 32, Tempe 28. That probably accounts for several times the population of the old folks enclaves you mentioned. And according to city-data, Surprise is 36.8, not 46! For all of Maricopa county it is 33.

[new2colo]

Originally Posted by Ponderosa

Two can play: Gilbert: 31, Goodyear 35, Chandler 34, Mesa 35, Phoenix 32, Tempe 28. That probably accounts for several times the population of the old folks enclaves you mentioned. And according to city-data, Surprise is 36.8, not 46! For all of Maricopa county it is 33.

Play? I want aware this was a game. My only assertion was that this area can attribute much of its historical growth to the relocation of retirees. That is true. You're basically denying the fact that this is a destination for retirees. Are you around when hundreds of thousands of older people snowbird here for almost half the year? What is LA's equivalent of Sun City? Do droves of people snowbird in Riverside or Long Beach? Is there any development like Victory at Verrado bring constructed in LA? No. This area is not like LA and will never be, despite your obvious personal envy and wishes.

We have different histories and our cities are very different places if you get past a superficial level.

[timtemtym]

Sprawl as in large size (like Los Angeles) or sprawl as in unnecessarily spread out (Phoenix, Houston)?

Originally Posted by azdr0710

Phoenicians can learn a thing or three from LA drivers, believe it or not....the notorious freeways and heavy traffic of LA have actually forced drivers in LA to a certain mild level of aggressiveness, so everybody knows the score and acts accordingly....traffic flows in an orderly way (except for the rare and obvious solo hotshot), drivers respect each other, stop at red lights, wait for pedestrians (generally)

I believe Phx drivers are much derided because of a wide variety of driving habits brought here from other places by the highly transient population.....traffic here isn't tough enough to require drivers to adhere to a "standard" driving style

Yes, I definitely agree. I moved to LA area from Houston a few years back. Now when I go home to visit, I hate driving on Houston freeways. No one stays in their lane for more than a few seconds, speeds are all over, aggressive, angry.

Honestly, I think the nice drivers here comes from years of learning to be patient in traffic and years of news stories about shootings on the freeways. If you assume other drivers are armed and crazy, you're much less likely to need to outdo someone. What was that movie, falling down? Where Michael douglas goes crazy in LA traffic.

[Ponderosa]

Originally Posted by new2colo

Play? I want aware this was a game. My only assertion was that this area can attribute much of its historical growth to the relocation of retirees. That is true. You're basically denying the fact that this is a destination for retirees. Are you around when hundreds of thousands of older people snowbird here for almost half the year? What is LA's equivalent of Sun City? Do droves of people snowbird in Riverside or Long Beach? Is there any development like Victory at Verrado bring constructed in LA? No. This area is not like LA and will never be, despite your obvious personal envy and wishes.

We have different histories and our cities are very different places if you get past a superficial level.

I did not deny the numbers of old people here - just the myth that Phoenix and Arizona have an outsized proportion of them. Here's another one for you: LA County median age: 34. Maricopa county median age: 33. Pretty close, but certainly flies in the face of the Phoenix is old people myth. BTW, there is a Sun City in Riverside county. Here's more:

http://www.55places.com/california