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Old 10-13-2015, 02:37 PM
 
Location: Payson, Az
109 posts, read 209,575 times
Reputation: 147

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I lived in Payson for 16 years, from 1991 until late 2007 (from when I was 16 until I was 32), and I grew to love the city and the many nice people there and I really liked living there, and I'm thinking about moving back up there before the end of the year. However, I've been gone for almost 8 years now and I have heard that the city has changed quite a bit - somewhat, for the worse - and that there is now a really bad heroin problem there. So, I'm really curious what the city and the people there are like these days and I was hoping to get some input from people who currently live in Payson or who have lived or spent time there recently.

To be more specific, is Payson still a nice, small town like it was when I left 8 years ago? Is it a safe city to live in? Is the drug/heroin epidemic as bad as people claim it is? Has the crime gotten significantly worse? Is it dangerous to be out and about in and around Payson these days? Do you constantly have to worry about your cars being broken in to or houses burglarized? Do you have to worry about druggies lurking around and starting trouble at Walmart or Safeway or the casino or at places like Green Valley Park?

And has the economy really negatively affected the town? If so, has it started to rebound? I've heard that ASU supposedly bought out the EAC campus up there and people think that is likely to help bring new businesses and money in to the city; but I don't know anything specific about that.

I already have a job lined up, but I'm still looking for a place to stay, and that's being somewhat problematic, as there do not seem to be many options for places to rent right now. So, if anyone who reads this thread has any ideas or suggestions or information about places for rent in Payson (preferably, a 2- or 3-bedroom house, under $1,000/month), please do feel free to reply or PM me and share it.

Sorry for asking so many questions and for making the OP so long, but I really enjoyed the way of life up in Payson and I am genuinely looking forward to moving back and living up there again, so I would really appreciate some replies from anyone who is familiar with what Payson is like these days!
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Old 10-14-2015, 12:46 AM
 
Location: When you take flak it means you are on target
7,646 posts, read 9,948,076 times
Reputation: 16466
I was there a couple months ago. Not much different since '08 that I can see. The people that haven't died are older. Pretty big fires in the region. Business seems OK. Not depressed like Mohave County. It's Payson, it'll never die.
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Old 10-14-2015, 01:48 AM
 
Location: Payson, Az
109 posts, read 209,575 times
Reputation: 147
Quote:
Originally Posted by jamies View Post
I was there a couple months ago. Not much different since '08 that I can see. The people that haven't died are older. Pretty big fires in the region. Business seems OK. Not depressed like Mohave County. It's Payson, it'll never die.
Thanks for taking the time to reply! I'm curious, how long were you up there for? And what all did you do while you up there? Did you happen to check out the casino? If so, was it busy? And did you happen to go fishing or hiking while you were up there? I have also been really curious if there are any good fishing spots around there these days, so it would be nice to hear about that, too.
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Old 10-14-2015, 04:12 AM
 
Location: When you take flak it means you are on target
7,646 posts, read 9,948,076 times
Reputation: 16466
Just to clarify my earlier post - a couple of years ago there WERE some large fires in the area, nothing recent this year.

For BillyJack (great name LOL) We were just driving through from Heber. But I make the drive occasionally. About all I do in Payson is gas and food. But activity seems about the same as always. Plenty busy during midday with folks going about errands. Drove by the casino, I can't really remember, but I can say the parking lot wasn't empty or jammed (or it would have stuck in my mind - now I'll probably look every time - LOL).

I didn't notice any marked new construction, or didn't pay attention, I would assume that like most of the region there is slow growth. Custom homes here and there. The only hiking I've really done east of the 17 is in the Wet Beaver Creek area. There were fish there though!

I did notice that the Mogollon Rim hasn't moved, it's still in the same place as when you left!

I'm sure more folks from that area will post in time. There's a gal here from the Verde Valley that checks in occasionally, she will know more than I.
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Old 06-30-2016, 04:18 PM
 
Location: New River
277 posts, read 429,796 times
Reputation: 177
So how is Payson now? Thank you!
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