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I moved to Santa Fe a year ago and don't regret it one bit. My income is modest. I live alone and I have a dog. I've never been given attitude for not buying anything. (That said, I'm not going to Plaza stores unless guests are visiting.) The people here are a billion times nicer than anywhere else I've lived (NYC, Boston, and Detroit -- so not hard, I guess.) Almost everyone I've met here is happy to be here. Those who aren't, I steer clear of.
Sanat fe nm: Ten things you should know from personal experience
1. Highest DUI rates in the country
2. Crime Index of a 5: your chances of becoming a victim of a crime esp property crime is 1 in 18.
3. Illegal immigrants have flooded the city; NM is a sanctuary state
4. Once you are off the Plaza and Disney-scape you are in the REAL world; gangs, drugs, and poverty. Disenfranchised youth everywhere
5. SMALL police presence; city doesn't pay much
6. Water shortages during droughts 9also check the quality of your water by independent testing OUT OF STATE)
7. Government the biggest employer
8. Be vigilant when hiking; many under reported thefts
9. If you're thinking about living in SF then rely LESS on brochures and romanticized pictures
10. Great food, big sky....do the cost/benefit
Please define SMALL? Starting Salary for Santa Fe New Mexico PO 1 is $19.11 per hour. They have a top rated P.E.R.A. Retirement Plan. They start drawing 70% after 20 years. So, if at 21 years of age you start at that "doesn't pay much" wage, happen to never get promoted or never get a cost of living, don't work nights, don't do SWAT, K9, never get to be a Field Training Officer, EOD and are not Bilingual, then you can take your $27,824 per year at age 41 and become a ski bum/beach bum, or use the educational benefits they have and become, well, whatever you want, maybe. Of course the pay goes up, but I doubt you will come back and have a real discussion... Santa Fe, NM - Official Website - Benefits and Compensation
I too am struggling to decide to move to SF. Coming from Rural MT which is lily white I am looking to expose my children to other cultures to learn and grow. What I don't want them to experience is crime, impovershment and racial hatred towards whites, blacks, hispanics or anyone of color. I also want them the experience acceptance and openness. So while I feel comfortable with my purposes of moving to SF I don't know if my family will be accepted. I have faced racism before while living on a reservation in Nevada and don't want to expose my chiildren to that bigotry. Plus I would love to have a lawn (in the middle of the high desert .
I too am struggling to decide to move to SF. Coming from Rural MT which is lily white I am looking to expose my children to other cultures to learn and grow. What I don't want them to experience is crime, impovershment and racial hatred towards whites, blacks, hispanics or anyone of color. I also want them the experience acceptance and openness. So while I feel comfortable with my purposes of moving to SF I don't know if my family will be accepted. I have faced racism before while living on a reservation in Nevada and don't want to expose my chiildren to that bigotry. Plus I would love to have a lawn (in the middle of the high desert .
Having a lawn will be your biggest problem. I believe the other items are non-issues here.
That's not to say there aren't bigots here; there probably are (like any other place), I just haven't run into them.
I am going to point out some facts & experiences that are at odds with the other people who responded here. I moved here with my family almost two years ago. At first I loved it. That rapidly started to change, particularly after the first murder on my street. If you live on the East Side, it's all good. REALLY GOOD in fact. However, if you live anywhere else, well, do so at your own risk.
I have NEVER IN MY LIFE seen such rampant hard core drug abuse as when I moved here. It's generational. I've seen grandma, mom and her kids all hooked on heroin. Go figure what happens to those families. It's a hot mess on every single level. I have NEVER IN MY LIFE seen the kind of crime I've seen here. (Fueled by the RAMPANT drug use.) First a murder about half a mile from my house (and I live in a fancy neighborhood in the HISTORIC DISTRICT). Then I go to the pharmacy and the pharmacy is ROBBED while I am shopping. Then ANOTHER MURDER half a mile from my home. The lady next door had her kids taken away because of drug use, then our back wall started getting graffiti -REPEATEDLY, then my other neighbor started getting public drunk and had to be taken by ambulance to the hospital oh, about eight or ten times, then my other neighbor's car was stolen in broad daylight, then the THIRD MURDER happened about half a mile from my house. Then robbers broke into two of my neighbor's houses, again, IN BROAD DAYLIGHT and had all their stuff stolen. Then more than $1,000 cash was stolen from my own family. My OTHER neighbor got t-boned in BROAD DAYLIGHT by a drunk driver. Her car was trashed, both arms were broken and she was a mess. Then there was a shooting and a knifing one block to the east. Then my other neighbor (who was repeatedly calling 911 on her no good boyfriend - but always taking him back - got her children taken away). The gang problem is TERRIBLE. I will NOT go out to walk my dog at night. It is not safe, particularly in my neighborhood (again - historic district). None of the women I know in my area will go out side at night.
In addition to that there is a massive amount of very unfortunate homeless people in this SMALL town. A HUGELY DISPROPORTIONATE number of homeless. It is impossible to go to the grocery store or to the gas station in this town without being hit up for a little cash to "just get enough gas to get home." I have never in my life had so many people beg for money from me - every trip to the store I get hit up. In addition to all this the schools are HORRIBLE, only three make passing grades out of all the schools in this town - only three. So, if you have kids plan on being rich enough to buy into the right school zone or to afford private school because the schools are ****ty. The drop out rate is OVER 50%. My son's school is mediocre at best, but is the school of choice for the locals. Civic and community leaders transfer their kids to my son's school, which scores a grade no higher than a "C" yet no one is concerned. The apathy here is appalling.
So, yes, I am going to say that your friends were "indelicate" in their description of the "REAL" Santa Fe experience, but they were not far off the mark. This place is a depressing cesspool and that's kind of putting it delicately. The people are nice, but this place is a mess, a depressing mess.
This post is the truth about Santa Fe. It is a dangerous place. It is riddled and rotten with drug abuse. The last time I walked with my son in the plaza at night I had to call 911 because thugs were drunk and fighting - it was scary. I won't walk my dog outside at night - in fact I don't even want to open the backdoor to let her out in the yard. It is THAT bad. Some parts of town are safer, but almost no part of town is good. This place is a dream an idea of something that does not exist except for the very, very rich. Reality is depressing: rampant drug use, 50% drop out rate, bad, bad, baaaaaaaaaaddddddddd schools, rampant homelessness, indescribable poverty, apathy and so much lack of planning and foresight (except for the planning to draw in the tourists). Where does all that money go by the way? With so much poverty and homelessness here you think it would make a difference, but it does not. The people are nice, but we are planning to move away from this place and soon.
This post is the truth about Santa Fe. It is a dangerous place. It is riddled and rotten with drug abuse. The last time I walked with my son in the plaza at night I had to call 911 because thugs were drunk and fighting - it was scary. I won't walk my dog outside at night - in fact I don't even want to open the backdoor to let her out in the yard. It is THAT bad. Some parts of town are safer, but almost no part of town is good. This place is a dream an idea of something that does not exist except for the very, very rich. Reality is depressing: rampant drug use, 50% drop out rate, bad, bad, baaaaaaaaaaddddddddd schools, rampant homelessness, indescribable poverty, apathy and so much lack of planning and foresight (except for the planning to draw in the tourists). Where does all that money go by the way? With so much poverty and homelessness here you think it would make a difference, but it does not. The people are nice, but we are planning to move away from this place and soon.
Sean - Love your retort!
Talk about a parallel universe! Scary….
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Sanat fe nm: Ten things you should know from personal experience
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