Kanab - what's it like? (relocating, hoa, vacation)

[recycled]

I would guess that tens of millions of people from the world over have seen the Kanab area, if they have ever seen classic "western" films from 1940s through 1960s. Hundreds of films and TV programs were filmed around Kanab area. I've been to the area several times and always enjoyed stopping in town for a break. Vermillion Cliffs, stunning.

There's a lot of distance to cover to get to a big city, or even a small city from Kanab, so hopefully anyone planning on moving there doesn't have illusions that the mega mall is just down the street. The fact that Kanab is what many people consider isolated might keep it from getting "overrun" like many other nice towns of the west. Isolated, meaning not on an interstate, no big metro area or commercial airport nearby, and no major retail nearby (yet). This is not a bad thing, just something that might make a lot of people escaping from the big metro areas consider other options before choosing to move to Kanab.

[cloud dweller]

I Consider Kanab To Be The Most Beautiful Area In The Usa.been There Several Times.trying To Convince My Son To Go To College In Arizona Or Utah.

[SingleNurseMom]

RCL,

I hope you will put some genuine honest thought into this. All of the people coming to California for the sun, beaches, technological jobs, and fast-paced lifestyle are causing California to become overcrowded and unaffordable, therefore many Californians want out. Perhaps these California to Utah transplants are trying to find a place more like home, a slower-paced, more relaxed environment just like what California used to be 20-30 years ago when there were fields and grass and open lands? This certainly does not make one greedy, and is an insulting, thoughtless, unfair generalization.

It's like saying that all Oregonians are druggies or hippies, or all Utahns are polygamists or Mormons, both of which are obviously extremely UNtrue statements. Please do not continue to make such assaults on the characters of people that you do not know. Thank you.

[Blondie-Rabbit]

Kanab is quaint, quiet, and charming. It gets as hot as Phoenix in the summer and can get snow (not often) in the winter. Not much of a population to support another pet store. St. George has a few pet stores, one big one in Washington near Costco. Hurricane has none, but has a population that might support it. Problem is, most the people in Hurricane got to St. George to shop. most business in town sturggle, except for the grocery stores. Yet Hurricane can draw from Leeds, La Verkin, toquerville, and those communities up on the plateau, Virgin, Rockville, and Springdale. Apple valley also has to feed down through Hurricane to go to St. George. So you have nearly 30K people that would pass your place. In fact the people of Kanab also do their major shopping in St. George and have to pass through Hurricane. Just be ready for sticker shock for what you want. Retail space in St. George can go for 1.20 a sq ft. with no A/C that you have to put in yourself. Hurricane is now matching that cost. Warehouse rates are now around .85 a sq ft. That may seem cheap to some, but you have to figure out the costs of doing business, and the potential sales vs. costs. Hurricane has it's own municapal power plant and has lower energy costs than other communities.

[deegers]

Since this thread is on the same subject I would want to start, I am going to join in and ask more about what Kanab is like. I hear quiant and charming. BAck in an old thread, Desertdawg had mentioned it a "neat and fun place". Can anyone elaborate on these details. Quiant like old western town or Midwestern downtown Geneva quaint? Fun as in what kind of fun?? the way people are speaking of it's isolation sounds more boring than fun, but I may not fully understand either.

Discuss!

[Ralf57]

I have spent a many hours in Kanab UT i was born there my mom grew up there & my Family have a rich Heritage in that area. Recently we have decided to move back to Kanab it is a Great Small town with many great Recreational activitys to do. Its main attraction is Tourisem with Four, thats right Four National Parks in the surrounding area. it has Rich Coral Red Hills & Cliffs surrounding the area. With a new water park & soon a new outdoor pool. If you walk down Hwy 89 (Also Mainstreet) you might feel like you have gone back in time. It does Get Hot in the summer June/July Temps can reach close 2 105 & it does Freeze Hard enough in the winter to freeze unprotected pipes. as of last summer of 06 they Built a new Trade school outside Kanab. The people in Kanab are realy nice & the overall mood of Kanab is real laid back, and with many ATV Trails you can Elxplore "Gods Country" as some of the Locals call it& Have said all of that Something need to be left "untouched' & left as it is So IF... IF you move here dont expect to b completly welcome right away many Locals are getting mad at All the New "Citizens" come in & try to bring all the "Essentials" with them there is no Starbucks (thank god) & at least I would like to keep it that way.P.S. The Kanab City law only allows 3 dogs to a house in The City Limits outside them is no prob

[deegers]

Originally Posted by Ralf57

I have spent a many hours in Kanab UT i was born there my mom grew up there & my Family have a rich Heritage in that area. Recently we have decided to move back to Kanab it is a Great Small town with many great Recreational activitys to do. Its main attraction is Tourisem with Four, thats right Four National Parks in the surrounding area. it has Rich Coral Red Hills & Cliffs surrounding the area. With a new water park & soon a new outdoor pool. If you walk down Hwy 89 (Also Mainstreet) you might feel like you have gone back in time. It does Get Hot in the summer June/July Temps can reach close 2 105 & it does Freeze Hard enough in the winter to freeze unprotected pipes. as of last summer of 06 they Built a new Trade school outside Kanab. The people in Kanab are realy nice & the overall mood of Kanab is real laid back, and with many ATV Trails you can Elxplore "Gods Country" as some of the Locals call it& Have said all of that Something need to be left "untouched' & left as it is So IF... IF you move here dont expect to b completly welcome right away many Locals are getting mad at All the New "Citizens" come in & try to bring all the "Essentials" with them there is no Starbucks (thank god) & at least I would like to keep it that way.P.S. The Kanab City law only allows 3 dogs to a house in The City Limits outside them is no prob

Wow, thanks for the info! It's good to hear a different perspective. I say many small town have potential. I can't wait to visit. Do they have family owned grocery stores and such?

[Gettingaclue]

I love Kanab! I dream about moving there or the St. George area one day. However, reality is that we stay in a large metro area for work.

If you love the great outdoors w/ a desert flavor it can't be beat. My favorite thing about Kanab is that Lake Powell is only an hour away. Lake Powell is my favorite place in the world! There is no place like it one Earth, and as many times as We've been there I'm always anxious to go back.

Kanab does have some small stores and even some chains like Wendy's and McDonalds. It's a little over an hour from the St. George area which is a small metro area for shopping and other conviences.

[goozer]

Originally Posted by pyrlover

Hi
I am going to Kanab to visit Best Friends Sanctuary. Thinking of starting a pet business in a smaller, growing part of Utah. Can anyone tell me about what life is like in Kanab? I also was considering Hurricane or Ivins, as it is closer to St George. I need to find modest housing, with a bit of land. I have 2 dogs and 2 cats and am in my 50's. I am wondering if there are many single people living there too.

Best Friends is a pretty amazing sanctuary. A very nice facility in a beautiful part of the country. When I visited, I felt like it would be an ideal to win the lottery and set up a similar sanctuary. What a great life.

[jdavid93225]

Originally Posted by deegers

Since this thread is on the same subject I would want to start, I am going to join in and ask more about what Kanab is like. I hear quiant and charming. BAck in an old thread, Desertdawg had mentioned it a "neat and fun place". Can anyone elaborate on these details. Quiant like old western town or Midwestern downtown Geneva quaint? Fun as in what kind of fun?? the way people are speaking of it's isolation sounds more boring than fun, but I may not fully understand either.

Discuss!

Kanab is quaint, more like an old western town, to use your phrase. As far as being neat and fun, it depends on what you like. It is a small town of about 5000, and as others have said, does not have a lot in the way of amenities. That's one of the things I like best about it. For Wal Mart or Home Depot, it's at least an hour's drive to St. George, the closest "big" city to Kanab. Other "cities" that are nearby include Cedar City and Page, Arizona, both of which are about two hours away, as I recall.

As for fun, Kanab is what you make it. If you like outdoor activities, Kanab's weather allows these activities to be done most of the year. It does get hot, and it does get cold, as others have said, though the extremes don't seem as bad as in other places IMHO. If you want to have your entertainment fed to you, Kanab is not the place for you. Kanab does not have a ten screen multiplex theater, a shopping mall, lots of restaurants, tons of fast food choices, or any of that other big city stuff. It has a few family owned restaurants, a few motels, a couple of fast food places, a hardware store, a hospital, and several nice shops in the "downtown" area. Speaking of downtown, it's the kind of place that it's great to just get out and walk through. It doesn't take very long to walk from one end to the other, and it's a great way to get a feel for the town.

About those Californians that are moving there, I have some thoughts on this, too. I live in a rural small town community in California. I've been here for many years. The problem I have here is that the "urban sprawl" is coming to my area, and changing the complexion of my community. I don't like it one bit, but I can't stop it, either. I am one of those folks that likes the simple life, and doesn't want to be crowded by the big city. I like having the city an hour away, though, in case I need to go there for something. Kanab is the kind of place I would consider moving to in order to escape the sprawl that is taking over almost all of California. It is like my area was 15 years ago. I think a lot of Californians that want to relocate to places like Utah and Arizona want to do so in order to find the kind of life they had in California years ago.

To be fair to Californians, not everyone here wants to build a McMansion on acreage to have a bigger or better place than their neighbors. Unfortunately, some do, and it lends to the impression that all are that way. Not all Californians are that way. Some of us would like to go to a small town to fit in, not to stick out. Some of us want to assimilate into the culture, not change it. Many of us have felt the same pressure here that is happening there.