Tell Me What YOU Think The Future Of ABQ Is.... (Albuquerque: 2015, condo)
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EnjoyEP your remarks did strike a chord here regarding retirees from NY (and elsewhere back east). Like myself, they never see ABQ on the radar screen and retire to FL, AZ, NV, CA, (and now NC). I had to find out for myself that Phoenix wasn't right for me, but ABQ was. It doesn't make much sense to run from 4 months of cold winters to 4 months of sizzling summers (although CA has fairly nice summers) when you still have to stay inside.
I can't tell you how many easterners visit here with me and fall in love with ABQ. Some are now seriously thinking of moving here as well.
EnjoyEP your remarks did strike a chord here regarding retirees from NY (and elsewhere back east). Like myself, they never see ABQ on the radar screen and retire to FL, AZ, NV, CA, (and now NC). I had to find out for myself that Phoenix wasn't right for me, but ABQ was. It doesn't make much sense to run from 4 months of cold winters to 4 months of sizzling summers (although CA has fairly nice summers) when you still have to stay inside.
I can't tell you how many easterners visit here with me and fall in love with ABQ. Some are now seriously thinking of moving here as well.
I wonder how it is that NM stays so under the radar? I'm not entirely upset about it as I don't want the city to get flooded with more people than it can handle. Perhaps people think it's mud huts and artist colonies out here and that's it?
EnjoyEP your remarks did strike a chord here regarding retirees from NY (and elsewhere back east). Like myself, they never see ABQ on the radar screen and retire to FL, AZ, NV, CA, (and now NC). I had to find out for myself that Phoenix wasn't right for me, but ABQ was. It doesn't make much sense to run from 4 months of cold winters to 4 months of sizzling summers (although CA has fairly nice summers) when you still have to stay inside.
Yep, I think people just get so hardened / angered by cold weather after they've lived in it for decades that they think they want to just up and up move anywhere where they'll never (or rarely) have to feel cold again.
However, they haven't experienced living in the constant and oppressive heat in many regards, and thus think that "it still has to be much better"...and in many cases, perhaps they are right. Still, isn't it better to be fairly comfortable nearly every day of the year than to be in high pleasure for only 7 or 8 months? Especially as a retiree when you want to get out and enjoy as much time as possible (eg: not being saddled to an office for a big chunk of most days anyway).
Also, a big part of this I think is that people just love - LOVE - to do what "everyone else is doing." Be it going to get tickets to the latest sports team that has become the trendy team to go see in any particular town, or everyone buying tickets to a particular movie or show "just because everyone else is seeing it", people love to do as others do.
Thus, places like AZ, FL, Cali became quite trendy relo spots for retirees, so it just became the place to go.
I see this in all facets of life. Until just about a few months ago, they didn't have any Sonic Drive-Thru fast food joints in Milwaukee for some bizarre reason. Now, I enjoy fast food as much as the other guy occasionally, and heck, I don't mind Sonic at all - they have some decent fast food offerings for fast food - however, when the first one opened in Milwaukee, people were flocking to it with 15 or 20 minute waits in line!! I am like SERIOUSLY PEOPLE - who would wait 15 or 20 minutes for ANY fast food??!
But again, it was the thing other people were doing, so they all had to do it too.
Quote:
Originally Posted by ABQSunseeker
I can't tell you how many easterners visit here with me and fall in love with ABQ. Some are now seriously thinking of moving here as well.
Yep, I had a legion of out-of-town visitors come visit us while we were there who likely never would've ventured into ABQ (or probably had even rarely heard of the town), and nearly all couldn't believe how much they liked it.
I am a hypocrite here admittedly, as I am a non-native / currently-non-resident who transplanted down and rants away about the virtues of the city, however, I am with the majority of everyone else here that fears ABQ expanding all too much. I am pro-growth big-time, however, for ABQ alone, I admit to a large part of hypocrisy and hope that it grows in terms of its vibrancy, but stays essentially similar to as it is now. Save the bulk of the retirees / transplants for the rest of the Sun Belt and keep ABQ for folks like you and I! (Again, I admit I am fully selfish and hypocritical for that feeling)...
Quote:
Originally Posted by violent cello
I wonder how it is that NM stays so under the radar? I'm not entirely upset about it as I don't want the city to get flooded with more people than it can handle. Perhaps people think it's mud huts and artist colonies out here and that's it?
Well, if you are talking ABQ in particular, I think one thing that has kept ABQ somewhat under the radar is the relative lack of significant national corporate presences...thus, there isn't a flock of people being transferred for their jobs to ABQ, and there is still not nearly the amount of jobs as there are with towns with major corporate presences, especially corporate headquarters. ABQ's niche economy being largely technological, engineering, gov't contractors, etc., keeps the influx of citizenry more to a "niche" rather than to a "mass".
I do actually think too that people actually (as stupid as this sounds), really do get thrown off by the "New Mexico" name. I can't tell you how many people here have always noted that I used to "live in Arizona". One wouldn't think this to be the case, however, I just heard a stat that 2/3rd of all Americans now can't even name the three branches of US government, so I think it quite logical that most wouldn't recognize "New Mexico" to even be a full-fledged thriving state of the Union yet!
I don't know...ABQ to the non-knowledgeable still just is not "sexy"...and I wouldn't mind if it eternally stays that way!
(Actually, I do think this all is a huge reason as to why the people that go to ABQ / NM for living and do live there have such enjoyment and pride in their area - they are the ones that "get it")...
Portland "tries so damn hard" to be hip. Albuquerque just is hip (just not the "hip" in the way many CD Forum 20 year-olds would define it - as MTV / VH1, "alternative music" and their college professors have taught them to define it).
Portland is just bellowing out "look at us - we are HIP!" Albuquerque hides, and yet, is truly the "hip" place.
Portland *tries hard* to be real. Albuquerque really is real.
(That, and Portland is gray and drizzly and cool most of the year; Albuquerque is sunny, dry, and warm most of the year)...
I certainly hope that ABQ will not copy Portland on anything besides Light Rail or at least an efficient Bus System.
I like your city and toy with the idea in some ways of retiring there. However I fear that ABQ and other cities predominately in the west, will think that Portland is a city to be modeled after. As for me I never ever want to live in a city like Portland, Oregon again. I will always be thankful I am not originally from here.
Portland is full of itself like no place I have ever been or lived. Truthfully it displays personality traits many would find nauseating in a person. That is an arrogant, self congratulatory, somewhat phoney misleading portrayal of itself. A densely packed in community of have and have nots, crammed in between this Urban Growth Boundary deisgn type infrastructure that we have here. This growth Boundary though sounds good has driven up Real Estate Costs and has definitely put a damper on business coming here. Mostly it has put to many people in to small an area. This closeness has created a very noticeable have and have not society on top of each other. Combine that with the fact Portland has the worst social problems I have ever seen in a medium size city in a 1st world nation.
I certainly hope ABQ does not look to this city for its future design, again anything beyond transit options. I like the open country and the much less self serving, and weird politics people I have seen in ABQ than here in Portland.
There are stats putting El Paso at just shy of a million by 2013. Looks like we could really use that Rail Runner connection! I'd love to visit ABQ more often if I didn't have to spend about $100 in gas for my truck!
I love it here in the southwest, I've made my way out here from green and cold east and I actually find the brown dryness great.
I think both our cities (ABQ and EP) are destined for great things if we look at the mistakes of cities such as Phoenix that are crippled with sprawl's expense and resource draining.
What I find funny is how many people don't realize how large these cities are and how many things they have to offer. Everyone seems to just think Mexican drug cartel violence when mention the southwest.
I've seen those stats which I think are laughable! They put El Paso's population at 994,000 by 2013, their population in 2007 was 734,700. Maybe by 2030 but 2013 is ridiculous, El Paso would have to grow by 259,300 in 3 1/2 years....CRAZY growth. The chart on this thread is more reasonable, it puts it at 800,100 which I think is a little too low. By comparison Albuquerque was at 835,100 in 2007 and they have it at 956,700 in 2030...which I think is too low also.
I've seen those stats which I think are laughable! They put El Paso's population at 994,000 by 2013, their population in 2007 was 734,700. Maybe by 2030 but 2013 is ridiculous, El Paso would have to grow by 259,300 in 3 1/2 years....CRAZY growth. The chart on this thread is more reasonable, it puts it at 800,100 which I think is a little too low. By comparison Albuquerque was at 835,100 in 2007 and they have it at 956,700 in 2030...which I think is too low also.
Isn't El Paso expecting a large influx due to rapid growth and expansion at Ft. Bliss? I don't know the figures but it is huge, then you have to add all the supporting civilians that will be needed to support the military operations as well. Again, 260K in 3.5 years seems to be a stretch but depending on the base who knows.
Isn't El Paso expecting a large influx due to rapid growth and expansion at Ft. Bliss? I don't know the figures but it is huge, then you have to add all the supporting civilians that will be needed to support the military operations as well. Again, 260K in 3.5 years seems to be a stretch but depending on the base who knows.
It is something like 30,000 troops, which with civilian support & family 120,000 would be a strech. it's rapid growth but not natural growth, if there are changes by the federal government the city will be left holding the bag of abandon buildings and closed businesses.
I wonder how it is that NM stays so under the radar? I'm not entirely upset about it as I don't want the city to get flooded with more people than it can handle. Perhaps people think it's mud huts and artist colonies out here and that's it?
Being a mid western transplant myself, my take is very simple. Everyone who lives east of the Mighty Mississippi generally vacations in Florida or the Carolina's. sun and water! Almost every person I talked too before coming to see for myself said it's just Brown not a lot of Greeny sort of drab! Of course that was there opinion. NM isn't under the Radar it isn't even on the Radar but that's fine with me!!
Probably the biggest drawback to retiring in NM is health care! Or lack there of.
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(Again, I admit I am fully selfish and hypocritical for that feeling)...
