Is Riverside SoCals well kept secret? Seriously. (San Diego, Santa Ana: houses, job market)

[Tex?Il?]

I think Riverside benefits from people poo-pooing/trash talking it. It keeps a city that has a decent amount of amenities more affordable for middle class folks.

Through my job, I have been on the road all over the IE (and throughout SoCal) over close to the last two years or so, and I love getting the sense of different areas and checking places out in my downtime.

I think part of it is that if one visits one IE city, then one might think they are all like that. The first project I worked on in the IE was in Ontario well over a year ago, and then thought "wow, well I guess I can see why everyone thinks the IE is undesirable (don't mean to offend anyone in Ontario, but seriously, most of it is not great at all).

I do realize that a fair chunk of the IE is either nice, but sterile, sprawling suburbia, or exurban semi-ghetto (of ALL skin colors) but there are many communities that have a character and culture. However most of these (IE: Redlands, Temecula) are still distinctly small town in feel.

Riverside I think is the only city in the IE, that feels like a SMALL CITY with its own great character and culture. You got incredible historic landmarks, a revamped downtown, the georgeous Mission Inn, Mt. Rubidoux for views, a couple museums, some decent restaurants.

Sure there are definitely shady/sketchy parts of Riverside no question there, but since its 300,000 people, there are also many very nice neighborhoods where kids can be raise with safety (no idea about schools). You still have some citrus groves to get an idea of old SoCal (including the state park), and access to both LA proper, Orange County, San Diego, mountain and desert recreation (San Jacinto, Joshua tree)

People there seemed friendly, etc. Sure its not the most exciting city, it is kind of a far commute to more abundant employment, and social life opportunities, so I wouldn't live there as a single guy, but If I decide to stay in Southern California for the long haul, and settle down into domestic, family life, but want to live in a more affordable area, Riverside I could see certainly being a major contender.

Agree or disagree?

[Galaxie Girl]

Originally Posted by Tex?Il?

I think Riverside benefits from people poo-pooing/trash talking it. It keeps a city that has a decent amount of amenities more affordable for middle class folks.

Through my job, I have been on the road all over the IE (and throughout SoCal) over close to the last two years or so, and I love getting the sense of different areas and checking places out in my downtime.

I think part of it is that if one visits one IE city, then one might think they are all like that. The first project I worked on in the IE was in Ontario well over a year ago, and then thought "wow, well I guess I can see why everyone thinks the IE is undesirable (don't mean to offend anyone in Ontario, but seriously, most of it is not great at all).

I do realize that a fair chunk of the IE is either nice, but sterile, sprawling suburbia, or exurban semi-ghetto (of ALL skin colors) but there are many communities that have a character and culture. However most of these (IE: Redlands, Temecula) are still distinctly small town in feel.

Riverside I think is the only city in the IE, that feels like a SMALL CITY with its own great character and culture. You got incredible historic landmarks, a revamped downtown, the georgeous Mission Inn, Mt. Rubidoux for views, a couple museums, some decent restaurants.

Sure there are definitely shady/sketchy parts of Riverside no question there, but since its 300,000 people, there are also many very nice neighborhoods where kids can be raise with safety (no idea about schools). You still have some citrus groves to get an idea of old SoCal (including the state park), and access to both LA proper, Orange County, San Diego, mountain and desert recreation (San Jacinto, Joshua tree)

People there seemed friendly, etc. Sure its not the most exciting city, it is kind of a far commute to more abundant employment, and social life opportunities, so I wouldn't live there as a single guy, but If I decide to stay in Southern California for the long haul, and settle down into domestic, family life, but want to live in a more affordable area, Riverside I could see certainly being a major contender.

Agree or disagree?

I generally agree with your descriptions, although there are lots of parts of the IE that I'm not familiar with, so I couldn't say if Riverside is necessarily the best in the IE or not. I grew up in Riverside. Poly High was the best when I went there, not sure how the newer high schools (like MLK) compare, those were brand new when I was in Poly so they didn't have a track record yet. I know lots of people in LA make fun of the IE, but honestly, you couldn't PAY me to live in LA. Even as a kid when we'd go to something in LA, and driving through various areas I would think "Why do people want to live here? It's so trashy and scary."

[NorCal Dude]

Lol no. Riverside is boring suburbia with a horrible economy. The whole county.

[SoCalAsian]

Well since I was born, raised, and still live in San Bernardino, Riverside is definitely a lot better.

[Dunbar42]

IMO, the only thing that distinguishes Riverside from other places in the IE is that it's not all cookie-cutter new developments designed to cram as many houses as possible into a piece of land. It's old enough that it has "real neighborhood" feel to it. I used to live in the IE, and don't hate on the place, but Riverside is not that special IMO.

[GatsbyGatz]

Riverside has potential to be really nice. The problem is that the job market sucks. Also, smog plagues the I.E. When I lived in Riverside I nearly died to allergies every summer, which is burning hot. Riverside is fine for any month except for summer.

[Tex?Il?]

Originally Posted by GatsbyGatz

Riverside has potential to be really nice. The problem is that the job market sucks. Also, smog plagues the I.E. When I lived in Riverside I nearly died to allergies every summer, which is burning hot. Riverside is fine for any month except for summer.

I would imagine commute times in the IE are perhaps the highest in the country. Many exurban/sattelite cities are like this. People have to travel far for more employment options. Its not completely unheard of people to commute from Riverside to LA almost daily. Orange County has more employment options than the IE, and is a little closer, but traffic can also be pretty horendous. The 91 freeway going between the Chino Hills/Santa Ana Mtns are a little like the 405 through the Sepulveda Pass on a smaller scale. A fairly rugged terrain with only a couple passes where transportation can go through.

[8635angelvalley]

Every time I watch COPS one of the segments is from Riverside.

[Fontucky]

Originally Posted by 8635angelvalley

Every time I watch COPS one of the segments is from Riverside.

This topic concerns the city, those segments are mostly Riverside County SO, which doesn't patrol the city of Riverside. And don't forget that Riverside County extends all the way to the AZ state line.

[MountainBiking]

My sister and her family live in Riverside's Wood Streets area near RCC. The Wood Streets area is beautiful and peaceful and yes there are plenty of rules for the home owners to follow. The 'meter maids' love to ticket in these streets, BTW. I'm surprised downtown after 5 o'clock is basically dead. The Mission Inn is a must see as the architecture is wonderful (Mexican-rustic). The Fox Theater (now the Fox Performing Arts Center) was refurbished and it looks wonderful.

I'd like to see downtown Riverside turn into a mini Gaslamp Quarter (San Diego). Over all I would rate Riverside a B-. One of the biggest things that I don't like about Riverside is the traffic: on the 215 around downtown and too much traffic everywhere you go inside the city. Is it me or does the city have too many stop signs/red lights? I like that Riverside is getting bicycle friendly and I have always enjoyed Fairmont Park, the Santa Ana River Trail and Rubidoux Mountain. Riverside is a good place to live with interesting history dating back to the 1800s.

-Cheers.