Is Seattle turning into California? (Bellevue, Redmond: rental, home, neighborhoods)

[argo69]

The neighborhood in the photo looks like one of the pictures used in the book Suburban Nation to demonstrate how NOT to structure a neighborhood. It is the sort of place where one must get in a car and drive to get anywhere...drive to the hair salon...drive to the gym...drive to the grocery store...drive for a 1/4 mile or so just to get out of the housing tract. Where I live I have all of these amenities within a few blocks radius and can walk to them or take public transit or drive. This said, I understand the appeal of these sorts of communities for families with young kids and I grew up in a neighborhood not terribly unlike it. For many other people however, especially young singles and older folks with difficulty driving these sorts of places are less appealing than having all life's amenities within easy distance of one's residence. It's why so many empty nesters have sold their suburban homes and moved back into a nice condo in the city once the kids are out and on their own. To each his own though...different people are looking for different things.

[chris]

Those pictures are definitely evidence of Californication. Not my cup of tea.

People seem to think this is somehow progress, which amazes me.

[ness]

It is the unfortunate thing that happens when a place becomes a very desirable place to live. It has happened in many places across the country...including California. This popularity of an area creates a playground for developers who build to make money....not create great neighbrhoods. These homes are not designed by talented architects, they are often bulider creations with no creativity. It's just sad, sad, sad. I guess there are people that want to live in PUDs, but I really don't understand why. But then again. I live in a house built in 1895 and love it....so I'm probably not the developers target market. = )

[argo69]

Originally Posted by ness

This popularity of an area creates a playground for developers who build to make money....not create great neighbrhoods.

Exactly...

[SEAandATL]

In some ways, the entire United States is becoming like California. It's just like that song "Californication" by Red Hot Chilli Peppers. Certain examples of this include obsessions with body image, rising housing prices and overall cost of living, overcrowding, illegal immigrants, greed/materialism, rudeness, and oh yeah...bad driving habits (certain habits are named after California because they were invented there, such as "the California stop" or "California roll").

[ness]

Originally Posted by SEAandATL

In some ways, the entire United States is becoming like California. It's just like that song "Californication" by Red Hot Chilli Peppers. Certain examples of this include obsessions with body image, rising housing prices and overall cost of living, overcrowding, illegal immigrants, greed/materialism, rudeness, and oh yeah...bad driving habits (certain habits are named after California because they were invented there, such as "the California stop" or "California roll").

California has not always been the way it is now, but people say that California is at the front of the trends....so it happens first in Calif. and then the rest of the country follows. I think what is happening in Calif. is a product of our materialist culture, etc. and other factors that are not unique to Cali.

[VeronikaW]

I think those pictures are a horrible representation of our neighborhood. I offer these in rebuttal:











V. =)

[wythors]

Looks just as bad to my eye. Cougar Mountain area of Issaquah I assume?

[la_fuerza]

Originally Posted by wythors

Looks just as bad to my eye. Cougar Mountain area of Issaquah I assume?

No VeronikaW and I are in the Issaquah Highlands. It's like a self contained city of it's own. It just keeps growing too. It's nice at the moment but I could see it being a ghetto in 25 years.

It's got pink houses too! That's very California!

[ness]

some of those pics make it look a bit more charming, but it is still a bit too cookie-cutter for my taste. with the seattle freeze people talk about I wonder about people choosing to live so close to one another. = )