Riverside?

[slvrfx]

We are looking in the retirement areas in Riverside and they are gated, now listening to alll of you a little anxious now. Is it really bad? We live in Alabama now and its very hot here so the weather I know is about the same,we have no breeze,is there any there.
Slvrfx

[Fontucky]

Why are you anxious? Where are you looking? What communities? Need more information.

No, the weather isn't the same, in fact, it couldn't be more different. Alabama has wet heat, Riverside County has dry heat. It's much more comfortable. Yes, there are breezes, and, once again, where you live determines what direction they come from and how refreshing they are. Sometimes those breezes turn into 80+ mph Santa Ana winds that feel like a blow torch, but that's not a factor until Fall.

[antredd]

I lived in Riverside for 8 years in the Canyon Crest area. I like the area and felt very safe. For Riverside to be a fairly large city of 300,000 people now, I would say it's a nice town over all. You do have your neighborhoods of gangs and high crime. But you also have neighborhoods that are very nice and upscale. Just like any city, you gonna have nice and bad neighborhoods. I agree with the other poster, if you move to Victoria Grove, Woodcrest, Canyon Crest, Orange Crest, Mission Grove, HAwardian Hills, the historic district, and that new area off of La sierra/Pierce streets, those areas are the most desirable and where the newer tract homes have been built. The schools in those neighborhoods are your better schools as well. Plus Riverside has two malls, 5 hospitals, two major universities, and it sits dead in the middle of the inland empire and almost exactly the same distance from Los Angeles to the West, Palm Springs to the East, the high desert to the north, and San diego to the south.

[nightbird47]

I moved from Riverside last year after living there for over twenty years. I would strongly reccomend anyone considering moving there come and visit on a hot day in the summer when the smog is really bad first. Drive around the streets at 4:00 on a weekday. Check out the gang tags that are everywhere. There are some nice areas but they are not cheap. The cost of living will be much higher than areas in Alabama. My one bedroom apartment in a complex with problems was going for over 800 a month when I moved out.

The smog is BAD. I could not walk more than a block without being out of breath there and had constant vision problems from the soreness which came from the pollution. I left and all that went away. If your not used to bad smog do not move there. The IE is one of the worse in the nation and Riverside is one of the worse areas in the IE.

The santa ana winds are normal. It was always a suprise to me when people complained it was "windy". I thought of it as a breeze. Its windy here in Oklahoma but it just seems normal to me. If your from somewhere there isn't much wind prepare for a big adaptation.

Traffic is bad. When I first moved there there were 79k people and the same amount of roads. Now there are 300k plus and traffic is a nightmare. People bog down the streets like Magnolia since the 91 is so slow and it too becomes a crawl anytime near afternoon and evening. The bus system is better than nothing (we have nothing here) but was an only as have to for me there.

I do miss the downtown corridor. The old buildings have been saved and restored and the Mission Inn is awesome. When there are events its a very nice feel. But on a normal day I'd be out of the area by dusk.

Heat starts (usually) in June. It extends through September. Wasn't there this summer but the one before Riverside continued to get more humid as it has for years and we had a LOT of hot and humid days. A good ac unit is manditory.

I've never seen a part of Riverside that lacked gang tags. Some of the areas are a lot worse (east of downtown, and the area around Indiana going west) but you find the evidence all over the place. With the expanding empty homes I have read that they are spreading. Personally would not take a child there because of the safety issue and the smog.

The general feel is rushed and hurried as is all of socal, but more laid back than other areas. If your used to OC then it will seem very casual.

I left to get away from the crowds, the air, the gangs and the stress. If your from somewhere without a crowded population and breathable air, make sure you visit first and think about it before making a commitment.

[california-jewel]

Originally Posted by rpd

I live in Riverside. Don't do it! I will say that it is nice along Victoria Ave, but the city as a whole is pretty bad. Especially, if you have a child. I live in one of the more average areas, in the Arlington section. This area is not considered to be very bad, but I can not take it anymore. I am looking to get out. There are no safe parks to take my child. My wife can not even walk around our neighborhood without being attacked or yelled at by gang bangers. There are some nice areas if you do not have kids to raise, such as: Orange crest, Woodcrest, Victoria. Be very carefull about where you choose.

I would really like to know where you live in Riverside, i lived in CANYON CREST, NO PROBLEMS MAJOR I LIVED IN ORANGECREST, NO PROBLEMS AND SURELY NO GANG PROBLEMS AND I LIVED IN LAKE HILLS, NO PROBLEMS NO GANG PROBLEMS, WHERE DO YOU LIVE, I have always lived in the nicer areas of a city. We have safe parks so i totally disagree with You, i can walk around MY NEIGHBORHOOD WITHOUT A PROBLEM, OR WITHOUT BEING YELLED AT BY GANG BANGERS, SORRY BUT YOU MUST NOT LIVE IN A NICE AREA OF RIVERSIDE. You must be careful no matter where you choose to live, no matter what city you choose to live in, and no matter what STATE, JUST GOT THE CRIME STATS MAILED TO ME FOR OCTOBER 6, 09 TO DEC 6, 09 TO NOW, and oh by the way M.V. HAD ONLY ONE CRIME, CANNOT SAME THAT ABOUT OTHER CITIES IN OTHER PARTS OF THE U.S. i got so tired of looking at the crime report for FLORIDA, ARIZONA, COLORADO, IDAHO, ILLINOIS, LOUISIANS, CONNECTICUT, AND KENTUCKY, AND MASSACHUSETTS, FOR THE SAME EXACT TIME PERIOD THE CRIME WAS UNBELIEVABLE, so what does this prove, there is crime EVERHWEHRE, IN EVERY CITY, IN EVERY PART OF THE UNITED STATES. Oh and Washington had more crime in this time priod more then M.V. ALSO. CRIME EVERYWHERE FRIEND, BECAUSE HUMAN BEINGS ARE GOOD APPLES AND BAD. And the bad elements live in every different city across this great UNITED STATES, WHICH COMES WITH CRIME. Sorry to disagree with you but Riverside has many great areas to live in, CANYON CREST, ORANGECREST, WOODCREST, MOCKINBIRED CANYON, LAKE HILLS, LAKE KNOLLS, VICTORIA GROVE, WHERE DO YOU LIVE AGAIN NEVER EVER HAD YOUR PROBLEMS LIVING IN RIVERSIDE EVER. SO I DISAGREE WITH YOU, YOU MUST NOT LIVE IN ONE OF THE BETTER AREAS OF THIS CITY.