All About Mesa (Phoenix, Tucson, Scottsdale: crime, hotel, neighborhood)

[hg_emily]

Originally Posted by jonna30

I know nothing of your situation, so please forgive my bluntness. I would never ever ever live near the corner of Lindsay & Broadway. Broadway has become increasingly hispanic. And, I mean illegal imigrant, coyote, drop houses hispanic. Many signs for businesses on Broadway are in Spanish. Now, don't get me wrong...I am not a racist. But given the nature of the immigration issues it REALLY is not a safe part of town. Either go farther out east, go north or south to Gilbert, but don't go there. Sorry again.

Oh, don't be sorry at all! I am very glad to hear opinions from those who live in the area/know of the area. Thank you very much for your feedback, it is very helpful! I have a few places in mind and I'm just trying to narrow it down, thank you!

[tamaria08]

I am looking into moving to the Mesa area for retirement (my husband is retiring, he's very old..i am way too young ;0) ) my husband lived in the area for a few months after high school during a cross country trip he and some friends made and he wants to go back. I like the look on real estate websites of Queen Creek area, is this what is considered the "Copper Basin?" Are there good and bad areas of town? Are there other little towns around that are as nice or nicer? Like Apache Junction or Paradise Valley?

[jonna30]

Originally Posted by tamaria08

I am looking into moving to the Mesa area for retirement (my husband is retiring, he's very old..i am way too young ;0) ) my husband lived in the area for a few months after high school during a cross country trip he and some friends made and he wants to go back. I like the look on real estate websites of Queen Creek area, is this what is considered the "Copper Basin?" Are there good and bad areas of town? Are there other little towns around that are as nice or nicer? Like Apache Junction or Paradise Valley?

Pretty much any suburb of Phoenix is really part of one large town - Phoenix. They may each have their own small twist, but still all are very much the same. Almost more important than the actual town is the subdivision that you live in. Each will have it's own unique identity. Copper Basin is a planned community in Queen Creek. I don't know anyone personally who lives out there but I do know that Queen Creek has been hit harder than alot of other areas with the foreclosure crisis. Some streets are like a ghost town. Others perfectly fine. The problem with the outlying areas is getting into Phoenix. The drive from Queen Creek to downtown Phoenix on any given work day would be minimum an hour to more realistically an hour and a half - each way. We don't have extremely well developed freeways here. Anyway, housing prices can vary significantly depending on the neighborhood. If you won't need to work then the drive won't be a big deal. Some "nicer" areas are Superstition Mountains, North Scottsdale (some attitude), Ahwatukee, south Gilbert, South Chandler. Some nice planned communities are: Las Sendas, Peralta Trails, Power Ranch, Red Mountain Ranch, McDowell Mountian Ranch, Verado, Anthem - north, Seville, DC Ranch. Some people absolutely hate planned communities because they tell you what you can and can't do to your house. However, some love them because they provide activities, recreation, security AND maintain your home value. When you ask someone where they live they will most likely tell you the planned community they are in rather than the town.

There are SOOOO many options here in terms of housing. Just remember the area is REALLY important.

[jonna30]

Originally Posted by myhusbandrocks.

what areas of mesa are 'ghetto'/should we steer clear of?

thanks =)

Mesa, like all of the Phoenix area, has lots of pockets of good, bad, mormon, Spanish, white, & black areas. The downtown Mesa area has more crime and spanish speaking people than the outlying areas. Over time the crime, etc. has spread east as the city has grown. North of Brown, East of Gilbert Rd. is generally considered a good part of town. Variety of housing prices from $200k to $4 million plus. The south and east part of town are spotty. Some great neighborhoods right next to some scary ones. We live near Power/Mcdowell in the Red Mountain Ranch/Las Sendas area. There is a Bashas on one side of Power and an Albertson's on the other. The difference between who shops where and the different culture at each store is large. It is difficult to explain - sorry! North Central to East Mesa is generally a very mormon population (old mormon families) and with that comes its own culture. East Mesa/Apache Junction is almost a bit of a rebellious crowd. It all depends on who you are, what you like to do and what you think is acceptable. There are people in the neighborhood next to mine that park (every night) 3 vehicles on their rock in their front yard. It is, of course, against city code to do so. However, that is one of those things that rarely gets enforced. These are things that contribute to Mesa's reputation.

[markas214]

What can you tell me about Red Mountain High School/Shepard Middle School/?

[as985]

Originally Posted by markas214

What can you tell me about Red Mountain High School/Shepard Middle School/?

I attended Red Mountain High School and Shepherd Junior High. Both schools have a lot of students. I don't have any official facts or figures about the performance of these schools. But I feel like I received a great education- I did very well on my SATs, graduated with honors, and received college scholarships. I would have no problem with my children (when ever I have children) attending these two schools. I have also read that Mesa Public Schools have one of the highest graduation rates in the country.

[markas214]

Originally Posted by as985

I attended Red Mountain High School and Shepherd Junior High. Both schools have a lot of students. I don't have any official facts or figures about the performance of these schools. But I feel like I received a great education- I did very well on my SATs, graduated with honors, and received college scholarships. I would have no problem with my children (when ever I have children) attending these two schools. I have also read that Mesa Public Schools have one of the highest graduation rates in the country.

Do they have a large Mormon population or is it diverse? I don't want my kids ostracised for not belonging to the Mormon Religion.

[oscottscotto]

Originally Posted by Amberyl

I have lived in Mesa for years now and know a lot about it.

... Gilbert is a very pretty, quaint looking city. From what i have seen of it. Mainly if you drive down Gilbert Rd. I like it. I would live there (Gilbert) myself if it had 4 seasons.

No one noticed this? Apparently there are 4 seasons in Mesa but not in Gilbert lol.

[RiverRat1964]

Originally Posted by jonna30

Mesa, like all of the Phoenix area, has lots of pockets of good, bad, mormon, Spanish, white, & black areas. The downtown Mesa area has more crime and spanish speaking people than the outlying areas. Over time the crime, etc. has spread east as the city has grown. North of Brown, East of Gilbert Rd. is generally considered a good part of town. Variety of housing prices from $200k to $4 million plus. The south and east part of town are spotty. Some great neighborhoods right next to some scary ones. We live near Power/Mcdowell in the Red Mountain Ranch/Las Sendas area. There is a Bashas on one side of Power and an Albertson's on the other. The difference between who shops where and the different culture at each store is large. It is difficult to explain - sorry! North Central to East Mesa is generally a very mormon population (old mormon families) and with that comes its own culture. East Mesa/Apache Junction is almost a bit of a rebellious crowd. It all depends on who you are, what you like to do and what you think is acceptable. There are people in the neighborhood next to mine that park (every night) 3 vehicles on their rock in their front yard. It is, of course, against city code to do so. However, that is one of those things that rarely gets enforced. These are things that contribute to Mesa's reputation.

My parents live in the Mesa/Apache Jct area, as does my sister, they all love it there.... We're all from Illinois, I want to move there but my wife (Born in South Dakota, raised in Minnesota) can't do without 2' of snow on Christmas..........Any suggestions on the snow issue close to Mesa?
*Crime rate doesn't bother me, being from a big city in Illinois*

[Great Joy]

Originally Posted by markas214

Do they have a large Mormon population or is it diverse? I don't want my kids ostracised for not belonging to the Mormon Religion.

I recall reading somewhere that there are 2 locations in AZ that have the "sacred LDS temples" like the main one in Salt Lake City, UT. One is in Snowflake and the other is in Mesa. I also remember seeing a mormon population map that showed that the SE quadrant has the largest concentration in the Phoenix area (i.e. Mesa, Chandler, Gilbert, etc). While I'm sure there are plenty of good people (mormons and other religions) in those cities, we would personally never live in an area with a high concentration again, especially with children. We know this from our own experience when we lived in UT. Apparently the LDS influence is strong in the SE area of Phoenix too because I've read recent posts on this website from a poster who lives there and is purposely moving from a high LDS population area to a different and more diverse area in Phoenix because of that. I have a few friends that are mormon, so I know mormons can be great people. I'm just saying I think it is better to live in a more diverse area if you are non-LDS.