Rupert/Twin Falls area or Pocatello area?? Please help us find best place for us. (Boise: real estate, low crime) - Idaho (ID) - Page 2 - City-Data Forum

gregclauss · 10-03-2006, 03:02 PM

hello frybergerfamily, where are you in so cal?,,, your post is our story exactly! we are in so cal too (hesperia high desert area)and looking to move to pocatello area or possibly idaho falls ,we spent a week there in july and are going to spend a week this january to see if the winter is as hard as they say! ,,, we found everyone to be very friendly and we mentioned we were from Ca and thinking of moving to id.
there are catholic and protestant churches in pocatello so you might want to start there for a base of new friends
as well as private schools too that are quite affordable compared to ca ,

djstorey · 10-03-2006, 04:17 PM

Spending a week in the winter is probably a good idea since everyone has their own opinions on what constitutes a "harsh" winter.

We do get snow, although we don't usually get really large amounts at a time. It tends to build over the winter an inch here and 2 or 3 inches there, and a couple of times per winter we might get a really good storm that dumps 6-12". It is cold, so the snow doesn't always have a chance to melt, but we will have "warm" spells that will sometimes melt off what we have and then we start over again. We also get quite a bit of wind, which actually will blow a lot of that snow away!

I personally think the worst part about our winters are the wind and the fact that winter here drags on for a long time. Coming from California myself and being used to winters that last maybe 3 months, it's a shock to find winter lasts much longer here. By Halloween the kids are usually hiding their costumes under winter jackets and we don't usually break out the shorts and tank tops again until about May.

Not trying to scare anyone here, just be aware. Some people really enjoy our weather here and some, like me, don't. Personally, we're moving back out of Idaho. I really miss the longer summers.

cleosmom · 10-03-2006, 07:44 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by djstorey

Spending a week in the winter is probably a good idea since everyone has their own opinions on what constitutes a "harsh" winter.

We do get snow, although we don't usually get really large amounts at a time. It tends to build over the winter an inch here and 2 or 3 inches there, and a couple of times per winter we might get a really good storm that dumps 6-12". It is cold, so the snow doesn't always have a chance to melt, but we will have "warm" spells that will sometimes melt off what we have and then we start over again. We also get quite a bit of wind, which actually will blow a lot of that snow away!

I personally think the worst part about our winters are the wind and the fact that winter here drags on for a long time. Coming from California myself and being used to winters that last maybe 3 months, it's a shock to find winter lasts much longer here. By Halloween the kids are usually hiding their costumes under winter jackets and we don't usually break out the shorts and tank tops again until about May.

Not trying to scare anyone here, just be aware. Some people really enjoy our weather here and some, like me, don't. Personally, we're moving back out of Idaho. I really miss the longer summers.

You were spot on when talking about the wind in winter! That's the thing I dread too as it bites right through you unless you're wearing Underarmour or a Columbia.

Every now again a trick or two is played on us during winter as well. For instance one year Thanksgiving Day was so warm everyone was running around in short sleeved shirts or this past December when we got the bitter cold Jan. temps

Richard Boyer · 10-03-2006, 08:19 PM

I came here from so cal I am a christian and have been confronted by mormons ..but they are humans just like me and have never had an issue with them ..the twin falls area is the BOMB it is growing so fast...they even have teraffic when i got here I gotvwest nle but tookn5 weeks to recover the little cities such as Jerome and burley are full of hispanics and druggies!! but as I looked around Kimberly ..Filer Buhl..haggerman these places were reasonable housing and were cool little towns Filer and Kimberly have the #1 schools in the state and are ony 5 to 10 minutes to twin Falls! so check this place out cause there are alot of places 4 sale and winter is coming and I bet you can get a good deal!!! oh yeah and 90 % 0f the people are super nice!!! and a high school in every town...Good Luck from another so cal ......youll never go back!!!!

frybergerfamily · 10-04-2006, 03:46 PM

Yeah, we heard stuff about the weather in idaho falls from some friends of ours that moved to idaho last year. We have been told that if you like lots of wind and windy blowing snow then you will like idaho falls, but I have never been there so I couldn't verify that one way or the other! It does look beautiful there though and who wouldn't like actually having a white Christmas?

my3arabs · 10-04-2006, 05:50 PM

I lived in the Idaho Falls area from 91-2000 then again in'04-'05. The winters there aren't that bad. There is wind but not like out here in the Magic Valley, I have heard that Mountain Home is even worse for wind. The only thing that I did not like about Idaho Falls was 17th street during rush hour and all day Saturday. IF is very clean and many things to do there now. It has grown too much for me and so many of the wonderful farm land is gone. I haven't been down town in over a yr and don't plan on it. I was suprised at how much it had grown along HWY 20 in just a yr. If I had a place out in the country there, like Rigby area, then I would go back there in a heart beat. Rent has gotten too high and so has many of the staples of life. I would take the snow of IF over the winds of Twin Falls/Buhl any day!

My husband and son will be having thier first non white x-mas ever this yr and I am sure that my son will not be happy about it. We use to spend our winters on an old ski hill in Bear Gulch just North of Ashton ID. No more sleds for x-mas, they can actually get something that will work for all seasons now!

All I can say is keep a smile on your face say "hi" to everyone no matter what face they make at you, be proud of who you are and stick to your guns about your way of life. If they don't like you for where you are from then they are not worth your time. You will find very good ppl here but they are few and far between. I found my best friend when we bought our dog from her, so they are out there.

chazcrew · 11-14-2006, 10:08 PM

fryberger, I just saw this old post so I'm bumping it up to the top. I grew up in Rupert, and you couldn't pay me to move back. I have happy, nostalgic memories of my childhood, but even so, there was a lot wrong with the town when I lived there, and it's gotten worse since.

Examples: when I left, the town was 30% hispanic. That's a high percentage in the middle of white-bread Idaho, but I think it's gotten higher since. There were a lot of migrant workers on the farms. Big illegal problem.

The one movie theater in town shut down, then reopened showing exclusively Spanish-language films. The one dance club in town was all hispanic, all Spanish-language music. In the summer there were live bands for city celebrations around the town square. Two of the four sides of the square played mariachi music. I heard Spanish everywhere I went. I saw low-riders cruising the square. It's a small farming community, but it has turned into Little Mexico. I had a few hispanic friends, but for the most part, it was quite segregated socially. I felt very marginalized being white and English speaking.

The area is highly agricultural. Those who don't own farms still rely on the farming industry. They work on other people's farms, sell tractors to the farmers, teach the farmers' children. And the farmers are a dying breed. Only large corporate farms can afford to stay in business these days. So all the family farms are going under and taking the town with them. It's a really sad thing to see. The area is culturally torn, economically depressed, and struggling to hang on.

There are still lots of good people there, squeezing out a living somehow. There is even a little money there, much of it from outside development. It is supposedly coming out of the dumps a little, although on my last visit I saw little indication of improvement. I have a fond spot in my heart for Rupert because I had a happy childhood there. I'd like to see it get better again. But if I had to choose between there and Pocatello, I'd probably choose Poky, even though I always thought it was a depressing and ugly city. At least it has jobs.

By the way, Twin Falls is quite a nice little city, and while we considered it a fairly long drive when we were growing up, now I would say it's a very reasonable commute. Probably 30 minutes to Rupert. So that's always an option. And I don't remember who said Boise was 2 hours away, but it's more like 4 hours.

Pineboy · 11-14-2006, 10:24 PM

Pocatello, because it is built at the foot of a mountain range. Plus, Idaho Falls isn't too far away. either.

busone · 11-20-2006, 01:59 AM

months ago. We just have not seen all the bad stuff you all are talking about. We are Catholic and have been accepted just fine. We have become friends with Hispanic families and white families as well. After living in Denver I can say this place is great.

I have not seen any gang activity and really don't believe that. My friend is a firefighter and he has never mentioned any gang related stuff. In Denver gangs were a big problem.

Many native Idahoans complain about Californians driving up the cost of living but that same complaint is heard in Colorado. If you are a good person they will accept you just fine.

As for burley being a dieing town that is just plain false. The unemployment rate is around 3.3%. Dutchman manufacturing just opened a plant here. The cattle/dairy business is very healthy.

Rupert is another story. Rupert has a lot of Hispanics and their high school has one of the highest pregnancy rates in the nation. I would work in Rupert but live in Burley.

As far as Pocatello I cannot comment. I have been there twice to go to Harbor Freight tools. It seemed like a nice city, just a little too big for me.

Before moving here I would read the newspaper online everyday. You can get a good feel for a place by reading the paper.

www.magicvalley.com

my3arabs · 11-29-2006, 09:01 PM

I was in Burley on Sunday and it is very different than it was just a few yrs ago. We drove around the East side of town off of HWY 30 coming from the Loves truck stop. There are some real nice new homes going in and they have cleaned up a huge portion of town. You would have to drive to Twin to do major shopping but they have all of the lil stores and still has a small town feel. We ran into a great park that had a playground with all of the fun wodden toys and walkways etc. That play ground is three times the size of my home and we are about 1000sq ft. There are many older homes that have new siding and most of the yards that we saw were in great shape and were clean of leaves.

We liked the newer part so much that we are thinking of moving there from Buhl. You should get a hold of the Chambers of Commerce in the towns that you are considering and have them send you some info on each place.