San Luis Obispo, The happiest town in America. (San Francisco, Santa Maria: camping, allergies)

[tattoobarbie]

Its a beautiful place to live but it is hard for middle income families. Employment is hard to come by, the private sector is small. Shopping is limited but not terrible. We do have a Target opening soon, we have a costco ect..
We are cheaper than Santa Barbara by about 30% but in my opinion SB is far more desirable.

[MissSanLuis]

Originally Posted by guy1

Is there an active nightlife with fun bars in SLO? I know it's a college town, so there must be something? Preferably something for late 20's/early 30's crowd.

There aren't really any fun bars that don't cater to the college crowd in San Luis. Sure, there are definitely people in their late 20s, early 30s at some of the "college" bars: Bulls, Marston's, Mother's, Library, etc., but the majority is college students. I'd imagine most of us in late 20s/early 30s are ready to move on from that scene
For that age group, it's more about going to some of the nicer restaurants. Having wine/cocktails/apps, and then maybe hitting up another place for dessert and more wine (hey, it's San Luis!). I recommend Blue, Palazzo Giuseppe's, Luna Red, and Novo. There is a new place that opened over in Railroad Square called Meze that is fantastic, and packed with that demographic.
Cielo Cantina (formerly Native, formerly Mission Grill) and Creeky Tiki try to target that age group, and I see a lot of Cal Poly grads there who are not into the crazy party scene, but also not quite settled down/fine with just wine/cocktails at a nicer restaurant, if that makes sense.
You'll find a mixed bag at McCarthy's Irish Pub, from the wasted 21 year old taking a Jameson shot to the 50 year old guy fresh off work, enjoying a pint. It's always struck me as a place for serious drinkers.
It just keeps getting better here, so I expect to have even more options (especially along the wine bar/bistro line) coming soon!

[Cassino]

Originally Posted by tattoobarbie

Its a beautiful place to live but it is hard for middle income families. Employment is hard to come by, the private sector is small.

This is what drove me to move from SLO after college. I wanted to stay but there were very few jobs in my field and they did not pay much. I'm still dying to go back but I don't know how we would make a living.

[Capt. Dan]

Originally Posted by Cassino

This is what drove me to move from SLO after college. I wanted to stay but there were very few jobs in my field and they did not pay much. I'm still dying to go back but I don't know how we would make a living.

Me too! I would love to be back in SLO. But I dont see any way to make a pension work there and still have some quality of life.

[the city]

Originally Posted by Capt. Dan

Me too! I would love to be back in SLO. But I dont see any way to make a pension work there and still have some quality of life.

What type of quality of life do you need?

I'm from Templeton, and I would say I live in an middle income area. And live in a life of no complaints and no wants. Anything in life my parents couldnt afford for me I earned by working in high school.

Some people in SLO county have money to have high end homes, cars, have the nicest clothes, wine taste at wineries, and eat the finest foods. But thats a slight portion of people who are lawayers, doctors, professors, and white collar jobs that master degrees.

The middle class I know are living in smaller homes and saving their money more in SLO. They still drive middle class cars like Hondas and Toyotas. And they still do all their shopping at the discount chain stores of America.

Anyways, my list of reasons of why I like SLO:
-Lots of hiking trails (Bishop's Peak, Madonna Mountain, etc...)
-Walkable and historic downtown with bars, restauraunts, shops, theaters, coffee shops, and gov. jobs
-Organic grocery markets (Trader Joes, Fresh N Easy, New Frontiers)
-Warehouse Club (Costco) and department stores (Sear's, Kohl's, Forever 21, and coming soon Macy's)
-Asian market (SLO Oriental Market) and Asian restaurants (sushi places and Golden Gong Restaurant)
-No Wal-Mart (so local businesses can succeed)
-45,116 population (enough people to see diversity such as different faiths, ethnicities, and cultures)

[neptronix]

Originally Posted by .highnlite

I have heard of alternative realities, hadn't actually seen one in action, except under the influence of certains substances. It is hard to accept a post that is so at odds with what everyone else thinks about the community, even Jenny McCarthy and Oprah.

LOL you think i'm on drugs? I haven't touched a drug in 8 years.

I guess you'd rather listen to some celebrities than someone who grew up in the area.

[neptronix]

Originally Posted by Cassino

This is what drove me to move from SLO after college. I wanted to stay but there were very few jobs in my field and they did not pay much. I'm still dying to go back but I don't know how we would make a living.

That's one reason why i moved and will never look back.

Retired with a lot of cash? working for the college or prison? going to school? ok, go ahead and live in San Luis Obispo.

Otherwise it's probably not for you unless you are REALLY LUCKY to land one of the few decent jobs available. Employers were insanely picky before the recession hit. I cannot imagine how picky they are now.

[neptronix]

Originally Posted by mountainman51

Other than the cost of housing whats not to like about SLO? Mountains,ocean,ideal weather.Farmers market and a great downtown.Plus they have JET JOCKEY!

1. Lack of jobs.

2. Demographic - great if you are in college or are retiree age, otherwise you belong in an outlying city because SLO is not for the working class.

3. One of the highest sales taxes in the nation ( it was a little over 9% before i moved )

4. The cops and highway patrol are there to make money and not police, and will not forgive the smallest infraction.

5. Typical California attitude where if you aren't middle or upper class, you are a loser.

6. Mountains are brown the rest of the year as soon as spring is over. And a lot of those mountains are private property.

7. I mentioned this before but employers are extremely picky and pay low because they know they can exploit local college students who mostly have silver spoons in their mouths and don't have to make living wage ( am speaking more of Cal Poly students here. ).

8. Lack of culture - SLO was a bohemian place back in the day, with tons of interesting local businesses... now it's any ordinary corporate-capitalist Californian city with a few cute local businesses thrown in there to "keep the city's character".. the bohemian element has left for greener pastures - Portland, San Francisco, LA, Seattle, and eastward.

9. Wear earplugs during summer because the college kids party with their windows open and if the cops do respond to a noise complaint, it will take them well over an hour to do so.

10. If you have allergies, this place may be a big problem for you. The city has planted a lot of male trees in the area to keep the maintenance bill down. Most people don't have issues but it was one of the reasons i left.

11. Predominance of white, Christian/Mormon and conservative attitude amongst anyone outside of college and retirement age. Maybe that's a plus to you, but it wasn't to me.

12. Difficult to drive through the city. Insane amount of stoplights per capita! I worked as a computer technician around town and it made life hell for me. They keep putting in more stoplights even though the population hasn't really increased. Great to get around as a bicyclist, but not as a car.

[slo1318]

Yeah, it's a hard life in SLO....

[allorberb]

If you are a rich retiree, then San Luis Obispo is very nice.

If you are the average young person with goals, hopes, and dreams in life then you get out of there as quickly as possible. If you do not work for the government or work for yourself, then get used to making $9.50 an hour or digging ditches in construction.

It is beautiful there, but beauty does not pay the bills of a college graduate.