Chico or Bend? (San Diego, Sacramento, Santa Cruz: rental market, homes, college)

[SomePlacePlease]

We've been in Palm Springs for about 6 years and are looking to move to either Bend Oregon or Chico.

We miss the change of seasons and are looking for some place a little more affordable with more to do outdoors.

We're in our forties, no kids, work from our computer, and enjoy going out at night for drinks and dinner, skiing, fishing, etc.

Our concern is that we keep hearing Chico is a party place for the college crowd, slightly remote, and has winter fog. Also, I noticed that it has a 24% poverty level.

Bend looked more affordable for the rental market and seemed to be a little more "upscale." At least both have a Trader Joe's, farmer's market, and Bend has a wholefoods.

Does anybody have an opinion on one over the other?

Thanks...

[Highnlite]

Our concern is that we keep hearing Chico is a party place for the college crowd, slightly remote, and has winter fog. Also, I noticed that it has a 24% poverty level.

Why would students parties affect anyone's decision to do anything, except go to the parties.
If you think Chick is slightly remote, I guess you have not seen a map of Oregon yet.
Chico is not so far from SF that you cannot drive to the city, watch a play and drive home.
Yes, it has winter fog, so, live in Paradise, or go skiing a lot, no fog above 1,000 feet elevation.

I know some folks who spend winter in Palm Springs, and summers in Bend. Never too hot, never too cold.

[CA4Now]

We have friends who moved to Bend from San Antonio, TX (former Californians) a few years ago due to a job change and although they like it, they said the winter weather can be really dreary. Their kids are grown. It seems that many people from all areas of CA have relocated there. It's good that you'll be renting....home prices have apparently fallen drastically there in the past few years.

[Highnlite]

My spell checker stuck chick in there, I do know it is Chico.

[NewToCA]

Bend has a true change of seasons, Chico really doesn't have a winter season.

Bend homes are a bit more affordable, and the area is very safe too.

For a family with your requirements, it seems like a fairly easy choice to me.

[jaynetarzana]

I used to work with someone from Chico. She moved to San Diego after college and while she has fond memories of Chico, it isn't a place she wanted to be long term. We drove through Chico a few times and it wasn't really all that memorable.

I have close friends who moved their family to Bend from Santa Cruz. They love the outdoors so it is nice for them, but it is VERY dry and the winters are VERY cold and can last a long time. We went to visit them in the winter and it was quite cold. They had to have a humidifier added to their furnace because the kids were getting nosebleeds. It does have a fantastic farmers market and the downtown area is nice. Home values have taken quite a hit in recent years. Not sure how they will turn that around, but I hope they do because it is a nice community.

So, if I had to choose between the two, it would be Bend, even though I hate the cold.

[Highnlite]

Chico has the Sierra Nevada Brewery, and Bidwell Park.

Bend has my demented sister in law

I'd take Chico

[tstieber]

If you want "real" 4 seasons with snow and all, then Bend is your only option. Chico is still in California, and if you want to escape palm trees and long periods of heat and sunshine altogether, then Bend is your answer. Chico is pretty hot in the summer, but not as bad as Palm Springs. In don't think either town is incredibly hip, but both are cute.

[Brenda-by-the-sea]

Originally Posted by SomePlacePlease

Our concern is that we keep hearing Chico is a party place for the college crowd, slightly remote, and has winter fog.

First of all, I think even around campus, the party reputation of Chico State has declined quite a bit in the past decade or so. Moreover, I would have to think that if you lived east of the Esplanade, you wouldn't even have a clue as to what college students might be up to.

Despite the tule fog, Chico is still in a higher overall winter sunshine bracket than Bend is (40-50% in Dec. as opposed to 30-40%). Annually, Chico beats Bend in sunshine by more than a 3:2 ratio (Chico gets three hours of sun for every two hours that Bends gets). I'm guessing most Chicoans are so tired of heat and sunshine by Halloween, that they won't begrudge a few months of fog liability in the dead of winter. Some years there's hardly any fog at all.

Both areas have some seasonal variation but the relative proportions are hugely different. Bend has a long cold winter and a short dry summer with an average of 68 days between killing frosts (it would be a tough environment to garden in). Spring and fall are short transitional seasons. Chico has long hot summers with an average of 230 days between killing frosts. Spring and fall are longer there as well. In the northern Sac Valley, winter is perhaps more a state of mind than a well-defined season. If you have an avid enthusiasm for winter sports, that would give Bend a strong edge. If you don't, you should consider what the payoff for those long winters would be.

Bend is much more remote than Chico. From Chico you can be in Sacramento in an hour and a half and SF in two and half hours of driving. Portland is just under two and a half hours from Bend. Anywhere else would be more than a half-day drive away.

Bend is in Oregon, rather than California, and that may have some appeal for some folks. A happy medium would be the Rogue Valley (Ashland-Medford-Grants Pass) area of southern Oregon. It would be a bit like Chico with longer, cooler winters, but not so long as Bend and rarely with more than an infrequent dusting of snow.
All three of these areas are places of economic hardship at the moment, and probably have more people moving out than moving in due to the scarcity of jobs.

[SomePlacePlease]

hmmm....good point about the winters in Bend. We don't mind some cold weather and snow, but are wondering how long the actual winters are?

Anybody from Bend that can answer? How many months of really cold weather?