How would you describe Phoenix to someone who has never visited? (Mesa: universities, living in)

[SAN_Man]

Originally Posted by NearFantastica

Phoenix = Desert Los Angeles filled with Midwestern transplants

Phoenix has a very long way to go before it enters LA's tier. LA was once a Midwestern transplant utopia in the early 20th century.

Metro LA has about 19 million people in it, 3.8x as large as metro Phoenix and the population density of greater LA is 3x more dense than Phoenix. Here's a list of US cities with a population density greater than 10,000 people per square mile and you'll notice that not one city in Arizona makes the list. If you think Phoenix is congested and overcrowded, you aint seen nothing yet. It can get much much worse.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_o...lation_density

[locolife]

Originally Posted by SAN_Man

Phoenix has a very long way to go before it enters LA's tier. LA was once a Midwestern transplant utopia in the early 20th century.

Metro LA has about 19 million people in it, 3.8x as large as metro Phoenix and the population density of greater LA is 3x more dense than Phoenix. Here's a list of US cities with a population density greater than 10,000 people per square mile and you'll notice that not one city in Arizona makes the list. If you think Phoenix is congested and overcrowded, you aint seen nothing yet. It can get much much worse.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_o...lation_density

100% true, I like having the benefits of a top 15 metro while being close enough to LA to go visit easily if something comes up that I really want to see/do, although as Phoenix has grown this rarely happens anymore but it's there if I want it.

[eddie gein]

Originally Posted by SAN_Man

Phoenix has a very long way to go before it enters LA's tier. LA was once a Midwestern transplant utopia in the early 20th century.

Metro LA has about 19 million people in it, 3.8x as large as metro Phoenix and the population density of greater LA is 3x more dense than Phoenix. Here's a list of US cities with a population density greater than 10,000 people per square mile and you'll notice that not one city in Arizona makes the list. If you think Phoenix is congested and overcrowded, you aint seen nothing yet. It can get much much worse.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_o...lation_density

I think you also need to consider that in 1940 greater LA had about 3.2 million people in it's metro and Phoenix had about 175K.

So Phoenix is roughly 24 times bigger than it was before WWII and LA has grown by a factor of 6.

So it's not like Phoenix isn't trying.

[locolife]

Originally Posted by eddie gein

I think you also need to consider that in 1940 greater LA had about 3.2 million people in it's metro and Phoenix had about 175K.

So Phoenix is roughly 24 times bigger than it was before WWII and LA has grown by a factor of 6.

So it's not like Phoenix isn't trying.

I think growing to somewhere around the 12th largest CSA is a good spot, around 500K more than now, some steady growth there for a while sounds pretty good to me. I don't think Phoenix should be a mega-city, being close to LA lets one take advantage of anything that may be missing here without the headaches of living in extreme congestion.

[MountainGuy74]

We moved here from So Cal 6 years ago because housing was affordable and we wanted to buy our first home, something we would never have been able to do in So Cal due to their outrageous home prices. We finally bought our first home in January 2020, just before the pandemic, when housing prices were still affordable. We just refinanced our home after only two years and I was shocked that my simple 4 bedroom home in West Phoenix had accrued 100K in equity. That's beside the point.

When we first moved out here traffic wasn't too bad. There was still rush hour traffic but for the most part it paled in comparison to the LA area. Today, it's much worse than 5 years ago.

Drivers, as bad as I thought they were in LA, are even worse here. The amount of hit and run incidents here is astounding. You almost HAVE to have full coverage on your cars with uninsured motorists on your policy. Both my cars have been paid off and rather than saving money by dropping my coverage to Liability only I'm not risking getting hit by a non insured driver who hits me and keeps on going.

Summer is what it is. We knew before moving here it would be hot and we've adapted to that although the occasional monsoon storm can be kinda fun (Till it knocks out your power)

I do like the fact that I was able to go into Cabellas and purchase my first gun just as easily as if I were buying a TV at Best Buy. Couldn't do that in CA.

I do enjoy the few local campgrounds (Lost Dutchman, Lak Pleasant) however it's really difficult to go camping in the cooler months because all these snowbirds park their rigs for months and don't allow us locals to use them.

How long will be stay here? Probably till we die or inherit enough money to afford someplace a bit more green with seasons. But for now, we like it here.

[singlegirlinaz]

I totally relate to people who moved here from LA area. Im from there too, and it's a great place to visit but not to live anymore.

Phoenix is like a smaller desert version of LA without the Hollywood flair or the segregated neighborhoods. Traffic isn't as bad but no cake walk either. The aggressive drivers are the worst part.

One small but notable difference between Phoenix and California, people actually trim back their palm trees here.

[john3232]

Originally Posted by MountainGuy74

We moved here from So Cal 6 years ago because housing was affordable and we wanted to buy our first home, something we would never have been able to do in So Cal due to their outrageous home prices. We finally bought our first home in January 2020, just before the pandemic, when housing prices were still affordable. We just refinanced our home after only two years and I was shocked that my simple 4 bedroom home in West Phoenix had accrued 100K in equity. That's beside the point.

When we first moved out here traffic wasn't too bad. There was still rush hour traffic but for the most part it paled in comparison to the LA area. Today, it's much worse than 5 years ago.

Drivers, as bad as I thought they were in LA, are even worse here. The amount of hit and run incidents here is astounding. You almost HAVE to have full coverage on your cars with uninsured motorists on your policy. Both my cars have been paid off and rather than saving money by dropping my coverage to Liability only I'm not risking getting hit by a non insured driver who hits me and keeps on going.

Summer is what it is. We knew before moving here it would be hot and we've adapted to that although the occasional monsoon storm can be kinda fun (Till it knocks out your power)

I do like the fact that I was able to go into Cabellas and purchase my first gun just as easily as if I were buying a TV at Best Buy. Couldn't do that in CA.

I do enjoy the few local campgrounds (Lost Dutchman, Lak Pleasant) however it's really difficult to go camping in the cooler months because all these snowbirds park their rigs for months and don't allow us locals to use them.

How long will be stay here? Probably till we die or inherit enough money to afford someplace a bit more green with seasons. But for now, we like it here.

In Mesa 45 miles an hour is the speed limit on the longer, more popular streets. No fender, benders here. Not long ago around 5 p.m. I was stopped at Greenfield/University in Mesa waiting for a green light.

A split second after the light turned green a driver coming up University flew through the intersection and smashed into a car which had been traveling fast on Greenfield. Had a front row seat to the whole thing. Car traveling along Greenfield reaches the middle of the intersection and then bam. The car flying up University smashes into the back end of the other vehicle. Spun the car around. Fortunately, no other cars were hit. Within 10 minutes an ambulance and the police had arrived. Luckily nobody was badly hurt. Just a second earlier and the driver traveling on University would have creamed the driver of the other car. Would have hit the driver side door head on.

[new2colo]

Originally Posted by SAN_Man

If you think Phoenix is congested and overcrowded, you aint seen nothing yet.

Where’s the water coming from? Phoenix isn’t getting much more crowded than it already is without water.

[MN-Born-n-Raised]

Like nearly every large metro, there is a wide variation. For example, I use to live in the West Valley. Landscape-wise, it was mostly flat as a board. Yea, tons of brown stucco boxes too. But my specific hood wasn't a brown box neighborhood. Don't get me wrong, I liked it there. Then, I moved to the NE part of Valley, it is a few levels up in all categories. Now, our views are stunning. No more brown "stucco boxes" for many square miles.

Also, the vibe is fairly different between the people as well. As in, a night and day difference. So to those who live in "brown stuck box", "strip mall after strip mall" and "ugly brown landscape", you picked the wrong spot. No "Bro" type conversations/interaction in my area either. So I'm as happy as can be!

[PhxGirl5]

Originally Posted by WellTraveled1988

I could see the overall Phoenix metro (including Scottsdale, Tempe, Gilbert, Mesa, etc.) as the "new/new Los Angeles" if people are calling it that.. But I could definitely see that.

*Just REALLY be aware of the summers though lol

I was just about to come here and ask that, for those who have been living in the Phoenix area for the past decade.

I was born in East Phoenix in the 90s and I have not been since the 2000s..but looking at things from afar, it looks like modern day Phoenix resembles what Los Angeles did back in the 90s. I wondered if it qualifies as the "New LA" in terms of look/feel.

This thread gave me an ego bruise since it's my birthplace, lol. I live in Seattle now but I come to this forum for the nostalgia.