Retiring - Paradise , Chico or Magalia (San Francisco, Redding: house, neighborhood, income)

[xani]

Originally Posted by GracieKarm

That is NOT wood smoke I smell. I had a wood burning stove before in my 65 years on this earth so I know what wood burn smells like. This is chemical smells. And its a constant when its cold outside. Maybe the cookers think winter will hide the odor but they aren't very smart.

This reminds me of one town I lived in and many people burned trash a lot, horrible toxic plastic smells....now I think they might have been burning it to make it less obvious that they're "cooking"....

[WaleskB]

Hi, any suggestion about other place in Northern California with the same vibes and house price than Paradise?

[GracieKarm]

I went in to Chico yesterday to check out senior low income apartments. Its called 1200 Park Avenue...because that is the location of it, lol. Anyway...the apartments were ok I guess...not large, not too small. Gas stoves, which is a plus. Huge courtyard, big reception area for the tenants. Only thing I really loved was the individual patios and balconies of each unit. Problem is....there are homeless everywhere surrounding the complex. I have no issue with the homeless...been there myself...but I stayed in stealth mode and was very discreet about it. One can be homeless or poor and not look awful or behave in such a manner. These poor folks....they were everywhere. Lounging on the grass across the street, wandering up and down those streets, hanging out at the church across the street, etc. Everywhere. I would not be able to enjoy my balconey or patio at all due to everywhere you look, you see someone less fortunate. So...although we were considering moving to Chico from Paradise...that plan is now out of the question. I like Paradise. Quirky, but...nice.

[BeauCharles]

Paradise is about the least "quirky" place in California.

[mgforshort]

One thing about Chico, they make a huge effort to take care of the homeless. Every time I read the Chico News and Review or turn on the local news on television there will be a sob story, a plead for help, and everyone has an idea or asking for an idea about how to solve the homeless crisis in California.
Paradise, on the other hand, doesn't seem to care about them. Very cruel, and heartless, one might believe.
Interesting because the result is that there aren't many homeless in Paradise, while in Chico they are all over. The more we help them the more will come.

[Radaghast]

Originally Posted by mgforshort

One thing about Chico, they make a huge effort to take care of the homeless. Every time I read the Chico News and Review or turn on the local news on television there will be a sob story, a plead for help, and everyone has an idea or asking for an idea about how to solve the homeless crisis in California.
Paradise, on the other hand, doesn't seem to care about them. Very cruel, and heartless, one might believe.
Interesting because the result is that there aren't many homeless in Paradise, while in Chico they are all over. The more we help them the more will come.

The homeless issue is naunced. There are homeless individuals who are genuinely down on their luck and have caught a lot of bad breaks, they're the type of people who would jump at the earliest opportunity to get back on their feet and reintegrate into society. Then there are transients who tend to have more anarchic worldviews and don't demonstrate any interest in being contributing members of society. They're the ones who want all of the services and either get hostile if they don't get exactly what they want or if something is expected of them in return.

I'm all for helping the former but the latter shouldn't be tolerated. Unfortunately we're getting more of the latter in Chico, and I have it on good authority that they're spreading the word for more to come here.

Originally Posted by GracieKarm

I went in to Chico yesterday to check out senior low income apartments. Its called 1200 Park Avenue...because that is the location of it, lol. Anyway...the apartments were ok I guess...not large, not too small. Gas stoves, which is a plus. Huge courtyard, big reception area for the tenants. Only thing I really loved was the individual patios and balconies of each unit. Problem is....there are homeless everywhere surrounding the complex. I have no issue with the homeless...been there myself...but I stayed in stealth mode and was very discreet about it. One can be homeless or poor and not look awful or behave in such a manner. These poor folks....they were everywhere. Lounging on the grass across the street, wandering up and down those streets, hanging out at the church across the street, etc. Everywhere. I would not be able to enjoy my balconey or patio at all due to everywhere you look, you see someone less fortunate. So...although we were considering moving to Chico from Paradise...that plan is now out of the question. I like Paradise. Quirky, but...nice.

That's probably because 1200 Park Avenue is right across the street from one of the two major homeless shelters in Chico.

[evening sun]

Originally Posted by BeauCharles

Paradise is about the least "quirky" place in California.

IMO, it is more quirky than Oroville

[golden sunset]

While there is a lot of natural beauty surrounding the Paradise area, the town itself is poverty stricken and is increasingly becoming a drug town. Its nickname is "drug hill." I lived there for 30 years, it was wonderful for the first 20. Then it slowly changed and when pot growing became legal, it changed dramatically. Now there are drug houses and pot grows throughout. The police do not care, nor do the good ole boy town leaders. I left and will now retire out of state. Paradise is also very backwards, if you are not a white male, you will not like living in Paradise. I left, I feel safe again, I could not be happier that I left. Paradise is a "has been" place that I used to love. I recommend Chico over Paradise if you wish to live in the County. With drug problems and crime throughout the northern CA though, along with CA's catch and release prison system, I recommend a different state. Of course if you want to grow pot you truly have found Paradise.
Wishing you well.

[golden sunset]

Paradise is a drug slum, unless you want to grow pot or set up a meth house, I would not recommend living there. It is certainly not a place to raise children. It used to be a wonderful place but the town is too backwards to keep up with the times. The good ole boy network runs everything and if you are not a part of it, they will try to rip you off at every turn.

[mgforshort]

Golden Sunset joins City Data to tell us how miserable Paradise became. Supposedly lived here for 30 years. Well, we only moved here in 2015, after three separate visits, and I find that post completely, 100%, I mean one hudred percent wrong.