East Valley vs. West Valley (Phoenix, Mesa: credit, job market, best school)

[JSizzle225]

Originally Posted by ibarrio

Last year Gilbert had 6X's the murders that Surprise had (and because of that Surprise is a lock to be the safest city in AZ once again)...So yeah, stay in Gilbert...

The only thing surprising about Surprise, is if a decent human being, ever moved there.

[asufan]

Originally Posted by ibarrio

Last year Gilbert had 6X's the murders that Surprise had (and because of that Surprise is a lock to be the safest city in AZ once again)...So yeah, stay in Gilbert...

Surprise is certainly a very safe city in terms of murders, but it's not an apples to apples comparison to Gilbert. Gilbert is a city which residents have a median age of 31, and in Surprise it's 46 (this is as of 2007). It wouldn't surprise me if the average age in Surprise is closer to 50 now, since there have been so many foreclosures the last 3 years, and the retirement communities are the only developments in the area that have been plugging along. Surprise is much like Sun City in that respect. It has just such a high percentage of retired older people.

Gilbert has almost 3 times as many people as well, and is surrounded by other suburbs such as Mesa, Chandler and Queen Creek. Surprise is on an island by itself.

[ibarrio]

Originally Posted by asufan

I'm not a wrestling fan and not a Paul McCartney fan. In the entire time it's been in existence, I have been to the stadium twice --- for the College Football National Championship and for the Fiesta Bowl. I'm an ASU football season ticket holder, and enjoy college sports far more than pro. I enjoy the tailgating, the pageantry and environment of college football. Nothing better than a college football saturday. I also follow ASU Baseball, basketball and even went to a couple softball games last year. I like the close proximity I have to all of that.

Most people that I know don't go to concerts, but if they do, it's once every 3-4 years. I think the last concert I went to was Metallica and Godsmack at AWA about 6-7 years ago, and before that it was Metallica in the 1990's. Since I am a Chargers fan, I go to a couple games a year in SD. When the Cardinals played 6 miles from my home in South Tempe, I went to one pre-season game the entire time. And to answer your question, I took my boy to swim lessons, then to Joe's Farm Grill, and then the next day we went to Chompies and then the park with the little train and kiddy carnival.

I know you're being a little facetious, Ponderosa. At least I think you are.

Is that the same Tailgating and pageantry that Georgia fans made fun of? FYI, ASU has one of the worst tailgating traditions in all of college football.

[asufan]

Originally Posted by ibarrio

Is that the same Tailgating and pageantry that Georgia fans made fun of? FYI, ASU has one of the worst tailgating traditions in all of college football.

Wouldn't that be off topic?

By the way, the hardcore fans like me, that have premium seats, also have access to premium parking, and trust me, there's plenty of tailgating and fun to be had at my tailgates. I'm sure you are aware that most of the action in the Summer months is not on the asphalt, but at the bars/restaurants on Mill Avenue. That is where I go when it is early in the season, and that's where we were when UGA came here.

[ibarrio]

Originally Posted by asufan

Wouldn't that be off topic?

By the way, the hardcore fans like me, that have premium seats, also have access to premium parking, and trust me, there's plenty of tailgating and fun to be had at my tailgates. I'm sure you are aware that most of the action in the Summer months is not on the asphalt, but at the bars/restaurants on Mill Avenue. That is where I go when it is early in the season, and that's where we were when UGA came here.

Don't even try and compare. It gets hot in Georgia and they have 100% humidity...Same with Texas, Florida, and Bama. Even the "boring" fans of Ohio State start they day before or at the crack of dawn...

Even local radio stations make light of the tailgating situation at ASU (KTAR Sports and Extra 910)

[Finger Laker]

it's not the worlds best tailgating - but lets not try and pretend that other places have the combination of intense heat & sun that phoenix has during the start of college football

one of the more miserable moments of my life was sitting through a cardinals game in september when it was 106 with the sun bouncing off those metal bleachers with the only shade to be found way up top on the west stands

you generally don't have september heat like that anywhere else and yes it does have an impact

with that said ASU and most of the schools out here just aren't athletics passion strongholds - WF arena struggles to sell out despite having a pretty good team, ASU tickets aren't hard to come by and the tailgating while fun isn't as vast

i used to go to penn state games and there would be over 100,000 in the stadium and then an additional 100,000 - 150,000 who would show up to just tailgate and party

the big football schools are just different worlds

[asufan]

Barrio, I was born in Baton Rouge, and have family members that graduated from LSU. I am well aware of the tailgating traditions in the SEC, and have attended games in 5 SEC stadiums, including Death Valley and between the hedges. I understand that tailgating in the West coast is nowhere near their level, however, I am one of the fans out here that is a hardcore tailgater at their level and enjoy it. I just wish there were 100,000 more people like me, as there is in Baton Rouge. Sometimes it's difficult to convince the women to play pass in the 100 degree heat when it's hotter out, and we head to some of the restaurants and bars on Mill Avenue. It's a decent alternative.

Still don't know why you and ponderosa insist on going off topic continually, trying to take shots at my education or school

[asufan]

And by the way, I love the back and forth between college fans. They bust us for our poor tailgating, and we joke about their hillbilly traditions, and then we have a beer together. To me, a couple kids coming from UGA and making a video of how bad ASU fans tailgate and ribbing the fans is part of what makes it all fun. It doesn't get as violent as the exchanges between fans at NFL games.

[Ponderosa]

Originally Posted by Finger Laker

it's not the worlds best tailgating - but lets not try and pretend that other places have the combination of intense heat & sun that phoenix has during the start of college football

one of the more miserable moments of my life was sitting through a cardinals game in september when it was 106 with the sun bouncing off those metal bleachers with the only shade to be found way up top on the west stands

you generally don't have september heat like that anywhere else and yes it does have an impact

with that said ASU and most of the schools out here just aren't athletics passion strongholds - WF arena struggles to sell out despite having a pretty good team, ASU tickets aren't hard to come by and the tailgating while fun isn't as vast

i used to go to penn state games and there would be over 100,000 in the stadium and then an additional 100,000 - 150,000 who would show up to just tailgate and party the big football schools are just different worlds

I agree, but it didn't used to be that way. ASU fans, especially were CRAZY back in the Frank Kush days of the 80s. ASU was sold out and nuts on game days. Tickets were fought over in divorces and probate. All you ever heard on the TV was ASU-this and ASU-that. It was a real ASU town then - not Norman OK, but a whole lot different than today. Heck, they started the Fiesta Bowl so ASU could have a post-season berth pretty much guaranteed. I'm not sure when the fever ended - maybe when Kush got fired or the Cardinals came to town, maybe the shift to the PAC-10 where they no longer dominated the conference. I think PHX just filled up with "outsiders" and outgrew college sports.

[SOON2BNSURPRISE]

Originally Posted by zox

ASU Research Park attracted several companies to its campus because of its ongoing research and affiliation with the university. Insight Enterprises host of the Insight.com Bowl and a public traded company was started by an ASU graduate in 1988. There are no major universities in Chandler so your question makes little sense. If you would like an example that pertains to the west valley, look no further than Midwestern University. The area on the 59th and the 101 transformed from orange groves into an upscale shopping and living area. They built to Mark Taylor apartments in the immediate vicinity. Tutti Santi and a Melting Pot arose there. Two large shopping complexes were built on both 59th and Union Hills and 59th and Utopia. A Kaplan testing center is slated to be built there. As of now, there is only one in the entire valley in downtown Tempe. This phenomenon exists elsewhere. Silicon Valley would not exist without Stanford and Berkeley's participation. Their graduates got the venture capital that led to the creation of companies in the immediate area.

Those are great suppost services but I fail to see institutions that produce. You only give limited examples. Also many companies in the Silicon Valley were not started by those that attended the schools in the area or any school in many cases.