Moving to Prescott? (Phoenix, Prescott Valley, Chino Valley: cul-de-sac, rent, low crime)

[StormiNites]

Originally Posted by thedfly

Good luck on the construction jobs....my husband is a Superintendent/Proj Mgr and was laid off in October with one of the larger builders as were the rest of his fellow employees. He is still looking for work.

Many of the tradespeople he worked with are moving out of state to find work, some are commuting to Phoenix for work. Lots of construction companies have gone bust, others are really struggling with the housing production slowdown. I have seen a couple framing and concrete positions of late, but I agree with Gretchen, commercial construction is going strong.

I've heard of an airplane parts manufacturer out there. I had also heard that construction has gone down. The only trades he has are all construction related. This is something that's going to hurt us greatly when we get there.

[collected_eve]

Jobs here are scarce. I know from personal experience. I do have a job now, that I scored back in July 2006, but I have been trying to get out of it for over a year now.
I am an Office Assistant/Administravtive Asst. & out of about 40 resumes/apps. that I've put out there in the last 8 months I've had 2 interviews & no job.
So good luck.

[LBear]

Originally Posted by StormiNites

Hey guys,

A few of my questions are:
-Prescott seems to be a white dominated area.. Is this true? (That would be such a change from here. Probably something hard to adapt too.)

Here is my take on the area:

The PRIMARY issue of Prescott / The Tri-City area. JOBS AND PAY. Most of the people living in Prescott are wealthy retirees, that is a fact. The workforce is "piped" to Prescott from PV and Chino Valley. That is where the "blue-collar" workers live.

If you have $$$ or some type of high-demand trade or business, then you will do fine in PV. Otherwise, get ready to drive 90 miles each way to Phoenix for work. Surprisingly, some people do that. I guess if the job pays enough, then it will be worth putting 40K miles a year on your car.

Here is MY view on the Prescott area:

Shopping = B- (Has the main stores you need, but any specialty or a better variety of stores, you have to drive to 180 mile round trip to Phoenix)

Medical = D+ (Finding a family doctor is impossible, get ready to wait 6 months. We ALWAYS drive to Phoenix for health care. 100% of all major surgeries and trauma is done in Phoenix. Get ready for a helicopter ride!)

Weather = A- (Very mild winters. Yes, it might drop into the teens and even single digits temps at night, but it will usually warm-up to the 40s or 50s during the day. Snow is light and melts fast. Summers can be hot, with temps coming close to 100F, especially PV, they are lower elevation, they can and do hit 100F. It does cool off A LOT at night. OVERALL, the climate is excellent. Not much rain, so landscapes of ROCK are common, or low-water use plants. Water can get $$$$, so use it wisely.)

Seasons = C (Anyone who says it is a FOUR season climate doesn't know what they are talking about. If you want a REAL SPRING AND FALL, Prescott is NOT for you. Salem Oregon, Denver, Washington D.C. , those are true FOUR season climates. Where springtime brings awesome blooms and colors. Remember, Prescott is HIGH DESERT. I would call it a TWO season climate - Winter & Summer - That is the 1st thing I remember being disappointed with. They sell Prescott as a FOUR season area. It is NOT.)

Jobs = F (Read the above. There are a lot of public service jobs like Lowes, Wal-Mart and other such fields. Real Estate fields were HOT back in 2005 and earlier. Now it has tanked. )

Nature/Scenery = B (Nice rolling hills and mountains. Prescott/Williamson Valley is where it is at. The Ponderosa forest, juniper trees and mountain top views are gorgeous. PV is ugly IMHO, as is CV. I'm sorry, but compared to Prescott & Williamson Valley, PV and CV are flat deserts. Phoenix at least has the cactus and Palo Verde, the CV & PV desert landscape is flat and dead. Lots of wildlife in the Ponderosa forest of Prescott & Williamson Valley. )

Quality of Life = B (Crime is rising but nowhere like a major city would be. Traffic is small compared to Phoenix. Pace of life is slow. There is a thing they call "Prescott time", which means slow and easy. Unfortunately, this sometimes rings true for businesses. Prescott is in the middle phase of being a large town. It is still small but not to small, it is growing but it will take another 20+ years before it might start getting "too big".)

People/Culture = C- (This is MY view. You get clashes with different types of people. You have the retired wealthy people who, at times, look down upon you since you are one of the "new" people who "destroyed" their small town appeal. Then you have the good'ole country folk, some are kind, others are just ignorant and rude. Not too much diversity. The black population is less than .05%. American Indian comprise 2%. The Hispanic population is 8.2%. The white non-hispanic makes for 88.2% If you want MORE diversity, Prescott does NOT offer that. So you do get the IGNORANT white folks as they do not get much diversity coming in.)

Housing = C (PV, CV and Dewey are affordable but they are NOT what embodies Prescott. If you want juniper and pine trees with rolling hills and mountain views, then Prescott & Williamson Valley is where it is at. That is WHY the price factor comes into play. A home that costs $250K in PV, will cost $500K in Prescott. IMHO, Williamson Valley is the FINAL FRONTIER where you can get TRUE Prescott nature and views, while still finding decent deals.

[Gretchen B]

Originally Posted by Pettrix

[b]

Weather = A- (Very mild winters. Yes, it might drop into the teens and even single digits temps at night, but it will usually warm-up to the 40s or 50s during the day. Snow is light and melts fast. Summers can be hot, with temps coming close to 100F, especially PV, they are lower elevation, they can and do hit 100F. It does cool off A LOT at night. OVERALL, the climate is excellent. Not much rain, so landscapes of ROCK are common, or low-water use plants. Water can get $$$$, so use it wisely.)

Seasons = C (Anyone who says it is a FOUR season climate doesn't know what they are talking about. If you want a REAL SPRING AND FALL, Prescott is NOT for you. Salem Oregon, Denver, Washington D.C. , those are true FOUR season climates. Where springtime brings awesome blooms and colors. Remember, Prescott is HIGH DESERT. I would call it a TWO season climate - Winter & Summer - That is the 1st thing I remember being disappointed with. They sell Prescott as a FOUR season area. It is NOT.)

Hmmm, having lived in Denver for nearly 10 years, I'm not sure I concur with that statement. I remember leaving Denver for a trip to AZ on May 1st in a blizzard. And there was still ice left on the streets from the first snow storm in November. And I remember plenty of times we went from winter (40's) to summer (80's) in one month. Here in Prescott we have mid-March thru mid-May and mid-September thru mid-November with temps consistently in the 60's/70's. I personally consider that to be spring/fall weather.

I don't miss the brutal winters here. But one thing I do miss, though, is that April & May is normally a very dry time of the year, so we don't have a Green spring, and I miss that. However, we do green up from mid-July through mid-September during our monsoon season.

[LBear]

Originally Posted by Gretchen B

Hmmm, having lived in Denver for nearly 10 years, I'm not sure I concur with that statement. I remember leaving Denver for a trip to AZ on May 1st in a blizzard. And there was still ice left on the streets from the first snow storm in November. And I remember plenty of times we went from winter (40's) to summer (80's) in one month. Here in Prescott we have mid-March thru mid-May and mid-September thru mid-November with temps consistently in the 60's/70's. I personally consider that to be spring/fall weather.

I don't miss the brutal winters here. But one thing I do miss, though, is that April & May is normally a very dry time of the year, so we don't have a Green spring, and I miss that. However, we do green up from mid-July through mid-September during our monsoon season.

Yes, Denver can have some crazy swings in temperatures and weather. I believe they had a high of 68F last week. Now, it shows that it is in the 30's.

Speaking of snow, Prescott is going to get 6" of snow by Sunday night and Flagstaff is bracing for 2+ feet of snow. One thing I do notice is that Prescott shuts down after 3"+ of snow. People do NOT know how to drive in the snow out here.

What I meant by a REAL spring, is the flowers & trees, including all the greenery. Go to Denver or those other places I mentioned in April or May and compare the landscape to Prescott at that same time of year. Not only that, compare those places with Prescott in the summer and fall. It is a night and day difference. In fall, those places I mentioned will have TRUE fall colors, the only place were there are some fall colors is Flagstaff.

Salem Oregon, D.C and Denver have some of the most spectacular spring and fall colors. You just do not get that in Prescott. Flagstaff (2 hour drive) and the White Mtns (4 hour drive) yes, but not Prescott.

[BriansPerspective]

Originally Posted by StormiNites

How well do you think an indoor soccer areana would carry out there? Would there be enough participation if someone were to begin their own? We have a few out here and they actually cater to all ages, U5 and through to over 35.

Hi Stormi,

Sorry for the delay, I've been a little busy. My wife thinks in indoor soccer arena would be a 7 out of 10. She thinks that it would take-off after a while, but it might take some time to get going. Are you thinking of coming out here and building one?

-Brian

[Gretchen B]

Originally Posted by Pettrix

Yes, Denver can have some crazy swings in temperatures and weather. I believe they had a high of 68F last week. Now, it shows that it is in the 30's.

Speaking of snow, Prescott is going to get 6" of snow by Sunday night and Flagstaff is bracing for 2+ feet of snow. One thing I do notice is that Prescott shuts down after 3"+ of snow. People do NOT know how to drive in the snow out here.

What I meant by a REAL spring, is the flowers & trees, including all the greenery. Go to Denver or those other places I mentioned in April or May and compare the landscape to Prescott at that same time of year. Not only that, compare those places with Prescott in the summer and fall. It is a night and day difference. In fall, those places I mentioned will have TRUE fall colors, the only place were there are some fall colors is Flagstaff.

Salem Oregon, D.C and Denver have some of the most spectacular spring and fall colors. You just do not get that in Prescott. Flagstaff (2 hour drive) and the White Mtns (4 hour drive) yes, but not Prescott.

Well, I definitely agree with you, Pettrix, about the "winter" driving abilities of most Prescottonian's . But, then again, I don't mind things shutting down because of 6" of snow on the ground. Gives me a good excuse to stay in my sweats and read a good book.

I do miss a green spring. But on the other hand, we're a lot greener here in the summer than Denver is (unless they've had a really wet year). Usually pretty brown from July on in Denver.

Here's some pix I took of some of Prescott's fall color.

[GG74K]

Originally Posted by StormiNites

I was kind of afraid of that. We have that exact problem here in Oklahoma as well. However, I was fortunate enough (I guess you could say) to know a little bit of Spanish. We still have some of our other leagues that do not have that issue, those arethe leagues I've preferred to play with.

How well do you think an indoor soccer areana would carry out there? Would there be enough participation if someone were to begin their own? We have a few out here and they actually cater to all ages, U5 and through to over 35.

Originally Posted by StormiNites

Hey guys,

I've got a couple of questions.. I'll put a little bit of information on me here. I've done tons and tons of research. My boyfriend and I are about to move to the Prescott area this June. I will be attending Embry Riddle and transferring out with my current job. His job, on the other hand, will not transfer him. We currently live in southside Oklahoma City. Those from around here know that the midpart of South OKC hosts a vast amount of illegals. (from around se 15 through to se 59) My father worked at Dayton Tire. He was layed off when they took his job down to Mexico. My best friend is illegal. So I've had experience from both sides of the arguement. I've played soccer since I was young.

A few of my questions are:
-Prescott seems to be a white dominated area.. Is this true? (That would be such a change from here. Probably something hard to adapt too.)
-I've read the immigration law that just recently passed within AZ. How has this affected the Prescott/PV area?
-For my boyfriend, what kind of jobs are there? He's looking for places such as warehouses, construction, trade jobs..
-Area there local sport leagues (preferably indoor soccer for me and baseball for him) for adults? I've found a few websites on their children's sports, nothing on adults.


I understand that the area hosts quite a lot of retirees. (Everyone jokes saying "What? The ones that couldn't make it out to California/just to lazy to drive that far?") Are they rediculously hard to get along with? Here in Oklahoma our cost of living and housing costs are a lot lower. However, the ones with money are of two types: They are either stuck up and stengy, or actually help out and are extremely caring.


I actually have a lot of other questions but none come to my m ind at the moment.

i thought OKC was doing very well economy wise

[GG74K]

ive been thinking about coming to prescott to sell my products at the peddlers pass flea market, alot of vendors from tucson come up during the summer because of the heat in tucson, on the other hand i would probably have to leave in the winter since im sure the market slows down...i sell hand woven indian rugs, blankets and mexican pottery.
trying to decide on prescott or albuquerque for the summer, seems like crime in ABQ is over the top...peddlers pass seems to be a very popular market

[thedfly]

Originally Posted by GG74K

ive been thinking about coming to prescott to sell my products at the peddlers pass flea market, alot of vendors from tucson come up during the summer because of the heat in tucson, on the other hand i would probably have to leave in the winter since im sure the market slows down...i sell hand woven indian rugs, blankets and mexican pottery.
trying to decide on prescott or albuquerque for the summer, seems like crime in ABQ is over the top...peddlers pass seems to be a very popular market

Downtown on the square of Prescott might be a good venue too when they have some of their arts and crafts shows. We get LOTS of visitors escaping the heat and strolling in the shade of the big trees around the courthouse.