Tehachapi nice? (Fresno, Bakersfield, Pasadena: 2014, crime, how much)

[Krispytopher]

I am going to copy paste most of another topic I made to save some time...

Yes, another one of these threads hoping for answers. I am a college student 1 semester away from getting a B.A. And intends to get a masters in History. Currently my wife and I (with a 2 year old daughter and another on the way) live in Fresno, California and want to get out of here. We want a nice/safer community than what we have, close to things for the kids; lakes, museums, and hiking opportunities. From what I gather Tehachapi seems like a possibility.

My wife has been a police dispatcher for years and hopes to get a similar job in the vicinity and I hope to start substitute teaching or maybe working at one of the museums around town, willing to commute to Bakersfield. I am guessing our income will be about $70k. Wife and I grew up in Coarsegold/Oakhurst so are use to the small town feel and having to drive to "town".

Is the are nice, not so much? I hear that train whistles can be annoying, what is Internet like? Decent for streaming and playing online? We are looking at stallion springs? Or some place that sounds like that.

Thanks for the feedback!

[Spikett]

I can't speak to living there because I've only visited, but I loved it. It's a very pretty area, nice little downtown, other shops and stores to the west. The people are super friendly. Lots of fresh produce in the summer from the many farms in the area. Very relaxed feel.

[volosong]

I will be retiring in a few short more years. If I were to stay in California, Tehachapi would be where I would move.

It bills itself as the "land of four seasons". They get snow in the winter. Not much, but some. Summers are warm, but nothing like in the Valley or the Antelope Valley. The 4,000 elevation helps moderate the high temperatures. Politically, the area leans to the right. Minimal shopping in town, enough for routine stuff. If you can't find it locally, just hop down the hill into Bakersfield. Bakersfield has some pretty bad smog, but hardly any in Tehachapi due to its altitude and the hills between it and the Valley. Kern county has one of the most favorable tax structures in Southern California. Then again, it's debatable if Tehachapi is consider in Southern California or Central/Northern California. Emotionally, it's on the border between the two.

Depending on how much driving you and your wife will be doing, you'll get by fine on a salary of 70k. Jobs are scarce, as they are in all small towns. We have one fellow in our vanpool who commutes from Tehachapi to Pasadena every day. That's a bit far! Most people who don't have jobs locally work in either Bakersfield or Lancaster/Palmdale.

[cre8lite]

i can't tell you about living there, but i can tell you it's windy. every time i stop in tehachapi, the wind is blowing. doesn't matter day or night, winter/spring/summer/fall.....it's windy.

[Hawk J]

We always saw the Wind Turbines on the mountain, when we drove to Laughlin/Vegas...

[gogo girl]

Small town, nice to visit but I wish I never lived there. Okay if you have a small mind and little tolerance for deviance! It is in southern California-people gravitate between Antelope Valley, and Bakersfield--two cesspools of California! The Smog will kill you in Bakersfield and the Crime in Antelope Valley. Tehachapi is getting both, especially the crime. Choose Bear Valley if you want security, or West Golden Hills for quick access to freeway. There are not 4 seasons. There is wind or no wind. There is cold or hot. The summers are hot! The winters are bone-chilling with the wind. The pass closes due to snow and you are stuck up there with the K-Mart. I have to admit the town fought hard for a Wal-mart to come in--they also allowed the bullying if a gay young man that led to his suicide. Good luck!

[Krispytopher]

Thanks for the feedback, still stuck in hell (Fresno) for now, hard to look at and explore a new place when money is so tight. Wish I had time and money to explore the state for a good month to get a real feel for each area.

[Ruth4Truth]

Originally Posted by Krispytopher

Thanks for the feedback, still stuck in hell (Fresno) for now, hard to look at and explore a new place when money is so tight. Wish I had time and money to explore the state for a good month to get a real feel for each area.

Tight money is what happens when you get married and have a child during your undergrad studies.

[Ookpik1]

Originally Posted by gogo girl

Small town, nice to visit but I wish I never lived there. Okay if you have a small mind and little tolerance for deviance! It is in southern California-people gravitate between Antelope Valley, and Bakersfield--two cesspools of California! The Smog will kill you in Bakersfield and the Crime in Antelope Valley. Tehachapi is getting both, especially the crime. Choose Bear Valley if you want security, or West Golden Hills for quick access to freeway. There are not 4 seasons. There is wind or no wind. There is cold or hot. The summers are hot! The winters are bone-chilling with the wind. The pass closes due to snow and you are stuck up there with the K-Mart. I have to admit the town fought hard for a Wal-mart to come in--they also allowed the bullying if a gay young man that led to his suicide. Good luck!

Tehachapi is neither "hot" nor "bone-chilling". The summers tend to be in the high 80s. The winters are so variable it is tough to pin a "typical" winter description on it. Some days are cold. Some days are warm. Some days are snowy, but it rarely sticks around for even 24 hours. Occasionally highway 58 will close briefly if it snows in the winter, but generally for only a few hours and you will have been given warning of possible road closures if you pay any attention to weather reports or news. The town has NOT fought hard for a Wal-Mart. Local small businesses are, in fact, still contesting a Wal-mart being built town. As of 2014, no Wal-mart. For your comment about small minds and little tolerance for deviance, I will say this: it tends to be a conservative community, but this varies greatly depending on where you live. If you are in Bear Valley Springs and you are tattooed from head to toe and are sporting a mohawk, yes, people are going to look at you twice and certainly think you look out of place. There are gay people living throughout Tehachapi and I have never heard of anyone who really cares one way or the other. But residents DO keep tabs on the (very few) sexual offenders. Yes, a boy was bullied and he took his own life. It is a tragedy. Sadly, things like this happen all around the nation and it is inexcusable. The public schools have implemented some changes to, hopefully, prevent anything like this from happening again.

[marcopolo666]

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