Moving to Phx area from WI: Honest Opinion (Phoenix: rain, weather)

[AussieGirl]

Originally Posted by treed9

Our family is considering relocating to Phoenix area from Wisconsin. We are looking for honest opinions, as free from bias as possible from the likes of those who are disgruntled or make money from relocatees.

Honest opinion? Phoenix is an 'anti-city' and it stinks because it is a sh1t-hole! It has no urban character at all, it has high polution, dust, strip malls and cookie-cutter houses, and ugly bland post-1980 construction. People don't walk anywhere because there is nowhere to walk to, and Phoenix is the most car-reliant 'city' that I have ever had the misfortune of spending time in, further adding to the ever-increasing polution that is ingulfing the valley area.

People are not friendly and welcoming to newcomers because of the amount of people that have arrived in the city in recent times, and the crime and polution that has increased along with it. There is a reason that the Phoenix metro area finishes so terribly low in the world's most liveable city list. It is not even the slightest bit close to the equal winning cities of Melbourne Australia, Vancouver BC Canada, and Vienna, Austria, nor the hundreds of other cities that rated higher than Phoenix.

Originally Posted by treed9

We know it is hot and we know that there is crime (where is there not in a large metro area?).

What sort of question is that? Where is there not crime in a large metro area, or the more realistic, where is there less crime in a large metro area? If it is less crime that you are wanting the answer to, then I can name hundreds of cities around the world and in the US that has less crime than the Phoenix metro area.

Phoenix ranks as the 19th most dangerous metropilitan area in the US, and it continues to rise each year. Crystal meth is more of a problem in Phoenix than anywhere else in the world, and it ranks in the top-3 for car theft. Shootings, murder, rape and other violent crime is high, and the cocaine trade between Phoenix, Tucson and the Mexican border is uncontrollable.

By the way it is hot, so hot that the radio announcers will advise you not to look at other drivers in the heat if you don't want to be shot by angry, hot meth-heads. I could go on about the state of the hot, low-pressure water, and other utility problems too, along with the problems of growth and the nightmare that it is for city planners. Phoenix is the poster-child for reasons to not build a city in the desert.

Originally Posted by treed9

And we know there is a commute (again, where is there not in a large metro area?)

The Phoenix metro area is about 4 million counted and 46,000 square kms of repeatitive construction that all looks the same. It is an ugly, sprawling suburban wasteland! To put it into context, NYC metro area is only 40,000 square kms for about 18 million people. Atlanta is around 31,000 square kms for about 5.4 million. Sydney is about 30,000 square kms for about 4.2 million people.

People drive in Phoenix like no other city in the world per capita, and there is not any public transport either.

[HX_Guy]

What is the deal with people hating on Phoenix so much? Wow, if you don't like it...move on, no one is forcing you here. I've never seen such deep hate for a place like I've seen on here.

I'm a huge fan of urban but I also get the other side of the story...that some people are tired of urban and that's why they moved here. If they, you, or me want urban...there are plently of other places all over the US we can live...no one if forcing us to live here.

[AussieGirl]

Originally Posted by Balco9

I am possibly relocating to the Phoenix from Tacoma, WAshington to be closer to family, but it sounds very congested, high crime rate, poor schooling, super hot, and full of cookie cuutter homes with strip malls...
Why would anyone want to relocate to the Phoenix area? I am having second
thoughts now. I been to Phoenix in the past, but it's been 4 years since i been there. How bad is the traffic, is it gridlock?
Thanks

There is no positive reason to move to Phoenix at all. It is not even cheap either. I lived in Seattle for a while so I have been to Tacoma, and you are in a better place now than the dump that is Phoenix.

People may move to Phoenix, but they usually arrive blind because people flee in massive numbers too. The people that move to Phoenix also just get tacked on to the outskirts, so the growth is not even noticeable. Also, for every three that arrive, two leave because they hate it, and that is a damning stat.

Atlanta is in the top two fastest growing cities in the US, and in the top-10 best cities for investment, and people don't leave as they do in Phoenix, and it is much cheaper as well. The Atlanta metro crime is lower than Phoenix metro as well. People can do a lot better than Phoenix, and I have posted my views about that in other threads.

[AussieGirl]

Originally Posted by HX_Guy

What is the deal with people hating on Phoenix so much? Wow, if you don't like it...move on, no one is forcing you here. I've never seen such deep hate for a place like I've seen on here.

I don't live in Phoenix anymore thank goodness, but I like to warn people about it, and that is what this web site is about. You asked for an opinion, and when it is given to you, it seems that you are not appreciative. Would you prefer a dishonest answer?

I am Australian, and I have spent time in some of the best cities in the world. My home city is Melbourne, and it has been named the most liveable city in the world many times. I have lived in Sydney which is in the top-10 most liveable cities in the world, and I have also lived in Seattle which is a far better city as well. I have been spoiled, but I know what a good city is all about, and Phoenix is a crime infested, filthy, ugly, dusty, high polution dump. Phoenix is dis-jointed because it is does not have that urban centre or heart, even if people live in the suburbs, a city needs that.

Did it ever cross your mind that people hate Phoenix because it is so bloody awful? Phoenix is for the minority, and it is not for the masses or the majority of people in this country. If someone likes suburban life only and to keep to themselves only without any urban culture or character whatsoever, not even to visit, then Phoenix is for them, but that is the minority of people without a doubt.

Oh, and Phoenix is not only a sh1t-hole because it does not have an urban heart. There are many other reasons to hate it besides that.

[HX_Guy]

Originally Posted by AussieGirl

Did it ever cross your mind that people hate Phoenix because it is so bloody awful? Phoenix is for the minority, and it is not for the masses or the majority of people in this country. If someone likes suburban life only and to keep to themselves only without any urban culture or character whatsoever, not even to visit, then Phoenix is for them, but that is the minority of people without a doubt.

See, that I don't agree with. I think it's quite the opposite.

People who do choose to live in Pheonix do prefer the suburban lifestyle, to keep to themselves, etc. Yes in placed like NYC or Chicago there are probably more people who prefer an urban core, but like I said earlier, a lot of people get tired of that lifestyle after a while and end up in placed like Phoenix. I would guess that in Phoenix, if there was a poll taken, only 15-20% of the population would prefer to live in an urban environement vs. sprawled out. Again I know quite a few people that would never go to a downtown unless they had to, no matter if it's here or NYC...they consider it too crowded, too busy, too much noise.

[HX_Guy]

By the way, what part of Phoenix did you live in while here? With Phoenix as big as it is, you can live in an area and never visit other parts of the city.

If you lived in an older, run down, ghetto part of Phoenix...then I can see saying that it's crime infested and filthy...but other parts of Phoenix are not even close to any of those. The area in which I live in Phoenix, and have since 1992, is nice, clean and crime is low.

[AussieGirl]

Originally Posted by HX_Guy

By the way, what part of Phoenix did you live in while here? With Phoenix as big as it is, you can live in an area and never visit other parts of the city.

If you lived in an older, run down, ghetto part of Phoenix...then I can see saying that it's crime infested and filthy...but other parts of Phoenix are not even close to any of those. The area in which I live in Phoenix, and have since 1992, is nice, clean and crime is low.

I lived in Biltmore near Paradise Valley and Camelback mountain for work for 9 months earlier this year. I have a car so I saw much of the metro area, so I know what is all like. I am aware that some areas are worse than others, but who would possibly want to stay within a few block area without venturing out?

Phoenix has pockets of bad areas scattered throughout unlike most cities where it is kept to one or two areas that are easy to avoid. The bad areas of Phoenix are unavoidable, and most importantly, Phoenix is the 19th most dangerous metro area in the country and crime is growing annually.

[Nea1]

Originally Posted by dusesean1986

Do you like it hot, pleasant, and never cold? Are you ready to fry like an egg on a hot stove five months out of the year. I live in California, but have visited Phoenix many times. I'm 20 years old, attending college and unemployed. The fall, spring, and winter are Paradise. But, may until september are extremely hot. It may be dry heat, but if it's 95 to 105 on an average basis for five months straight, that is not just heat, that's draining. That's the only problem with Phoenix. I'm not trying to alarm you, but I want you to be aware.
These are averages:
average low, average high
may 66-92
june 75-102
july 81-104
August 80-102
September 75-97

Never cold, it is 30 degrees right now, with a high of like 50, sorry but that really isnt swim weather!!!

[Nea1]

Originally Posted by HX_Guy

What is the deal with people hating on Phoenix so much? Wow, if you don't like it...move on, no one is forcing you here. I've never seen such deep hate for a place like I've seen on here.

I'm a huge fan of urban but I also get the other side of the story...that some people are tired of urban and that's why they moved here. If they, you, or me want urban...there are plently of other places all over the US we can live...no one if forcing us to live here.

They have nothing better to do. I live here, it isnt that bad, I have lived in worse. I too did the Urban scene in Seattle ( which is better than most) now I have kids and a husband and a dog, not really meant for urban anymore. This city was built for retired people, so no they wouldnt be interested in that.

[dusesean1986]

Originally Posted by Nea1

Never cold, it is 30 degrees right now, with a high of like 50, sorry but that really isnt swim weather!!!

Very unusual my good friend, there's a cold jet stream across the southwest very uncommon...the lowest average monthly low in phoenix is 42..yeah, I think if your from Wisconsin you can handle that!