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Old 08-09-2016, 04:39 AM
 
61 posts, read 86,300 times
Reputation: 184

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I am visiting my older relatives in Sun City West. They are wonderful, warm, generous people who've lived lives of honest hard work and loving values. But--let's face it: they listen to Fox News all day and aren't very well-informed. They believe America is in serious decline and that liberals are going to ruin it with gay marriage, "foreigners" and iphones.

Over time, of course, younger people will replace the people who now live in Sun City West, and they will indeed bring a new outlook. I am wondering how to predict what kind of changes are in store. Sun City West is an amazing place with great potential, and homes are not expensive. I am thinking of buying a house there, and would like to hear what people think about the following:

1. Will new residents want to live more sustainably? There are a few solar panels on rooftops, but in general Sun City residents don't feel the same way younger people do about the need to manage water and power wisely.

2. Will Arizona gradually transition from being a red state to a blue state, the way Colorado has? It seems certain to me that the kind of people who have moved into Colorado over the past 20 years will eventually want retirement living at a place like Sun City West.

3. Is the Southwest viable at all? Does the lack of water combined with the huge inflow of population mean states like Arizona, Colorado, Nevada and Southern California are on a collision course with nature? Will climate change bring summers so hot the Phoenix area will not be habitable at all?


I could easily be wrong: there may be enough young people with right-wing values to replace the older people who grew up in the 1950's, the air conditioners may continue to run on oil and coal, and Sun City West may remain exactly as it is now.

What do you think?
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Old 08-09-2016, 06:21 AM
 
Location: Sonoran Desert
38,945 posts, read 50,850,868 times
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I think all those old people in Sun City with the conservative attitudes were once the anti-war demonstrating, pot-smoking, free loving hippies. Who knows what got into them, but the same thing will happen to younger people as they get older and the SCs will stay conservative.

Arizona is already transitioning to a "blue" state. Tucson and Flagstaff and the rezzes are deep blue. Much of AZ votes dem but the Phoenix suburbs (and staggering voter apathy on the left) dominate. As the Republicans continue to alienate Latinos you can expect to see more and more gains from Dems.

Older people are tightwads. Many live on relatively fixed incomes. They keep the thermostats higher and try to penny pinch on energy costs. Their motivation may not be saving the planet, but the result is the same. And I see plenty of solar panels on the retirees homes here where I live - not that it has any real positive impact on the environment. Phoenix area is in good shape with respect to water. We have multiple sources and vast reserves. We use far less than we did a few decades ago in spite of the growth as people simply do not use as much water as the agriculture they have replaced. As for heat, it is uninhabitable as it is.
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Old 08-09-2016, 06:58 AM
 
Location: Buckeye
604 posts, read 927,876 times
Reputation: 1395
On the other hand you may find sufficient numbers of left-wing, cliche-spewing zealots to satisfy the need for a more “diverse” community.
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Old 08-09-2016, 08:46 AM
 
Location: Escaped SoCal for Freedom in AZ!!!! LOVE IT!
394 posts, read 340,516 times
Reputation: 502
I'm now questioning my decision to move to Phx and I'm not even moved in yet

You guys/gals are bumming me out
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Old 08-09-2016, 09:24 AM
 
Location: AZ
483 posts, read 660,842 times
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We don't live in Sun City West, but we do live in another large 55+ community in Arizona. I can tell you that of all the people we know...and we know a lot of people here...there is only one couple who supports HilLiary. This is a hugely conservative community...and the bulk of the residents are probably around 60-ish, with younger people moving in all the time.
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Old 08-09-2016, 10:56 AM
 
Location: Arizona
8,213 posts, read 8,530,088 times
Reputation: 27463
Quote:
Originally Posted by AZ_Rookie View Post
I'm now questioning my decision to move to Phx and I'm not even moved in yet

You guys/gals are bumming me out
Northwest Valley is conservative. Look at the vote totals in past elections, local, state and national.
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Old 08-09-2016, 01:40 PM
 
Location: Scottsdale, AZ
2,150 posts, read 5,136,112 times
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I guess first of all I will say that younger people won't be moving to SCW. You still have to be 55+, it will just be the next group of old people. Most retirement communities experience a large turnover of people that retire, live in the retirement community for 5-10 years, then find other living arrangements.

Secondly, people have a tendency to become more conservative with age, they just don't like change.

Third a lot of people move to SCW because it is economical and has activities that they enjoy. It fits their lifestyle. So you may not see them invest heavily in home improvements.

If Arizona does transition to a more liberal state it will be because of people moving here from the east AND a large (and growing) Hispanic population.
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Old 08-09-2016, 01:59 PM
 
1,166 posts, read 748,259 times
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The Sun Cities mainly attract conservative retirees from the Midwest to move to Arizona and I don't see that changing anytime soon.
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Old 08-09-2016, 02:02 PM
 
Location: Sun City West, AZ
576 posts, read 819,298 times
Reputation: 1056
There sure are a lot of experts about SCW that don't live in SCW! LOL!

As someone who lives here, I can tell you that yes, it is very conservative. But at the same time, most of us have activities and clubs we participate in that keep us busy enough not to spend a lot of time thinking about politics. Most people here also respect other's opinions so politics rarely comes up in conversation. I have two neighbors who are political - one is conservative, one is liberal - but neither one rarely talks about it and when they do, I change the subject, since neither one of them is going to change my opinions and vice versa.

It is my opinion that a lot of people tend to become more conservative as they get older, so I suspect SCW will stay right of center for quite some time. If a liberal bend is important to you in the community you want to live in, then I would suggest looking elsewhere. I love SCW, but politics is at the very bottom of my priority list. I cannot understand people who let that dominate their lives, but whatever. To each their own.

Yes, many retirees are on fixed incomes. However, there are many homes that have been extensively remodeled - mine included. In order to invest in something like solar, it has to make economic sense. I ran the numbers on solar when I moved here and the payback was going to be over 20 years. Not practical. As for water, I keep hearing conflicting stories. Everything from we are going to run out of water next week, to we will never run out no matter how many people move here. Unfortunately, politics comes into play in this issue too. Whenever politics are involved, the issue becomes polarized and exaggerated. So the real answer is something in between the two extremes.

Last edited by Dewey59; 08-09-2016 at 02:15 PM..
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Old 08-09-2016, 02:25 PM
 
381 posts, read 340,975 times
Reputation: 779
Quote:
Originally Posted by AZ_Rookie View Post
I'm now questioning my decision to move to Phx and I'm not even moved in yet

You guys/gals are bumming me out

I just moved here to PHX from Orange County. Bought a new home in Vistancia, north Peoria. Where are you moving to?
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