What is it like to live in Napa? (Santa Rosa, Vallejo: health insurance, houses)

[Rosefolly]

I have visited the city of Napa and find it very beautiful with a vibrant downtown. The neighborhoods with old houses are especially appealing to me. I also like it that it is rural enough to be apart from the Bay Area, but not so rural as to be isolated from the cultural offerings of city life and into areas of rural decay. However, the wine industry and tourism seem to be the economic drivers. If you were not involved in either of those activities, would you be irrelevant to the life of the city, or would it be relatively easy to find a niche with activities and friends? I enjoy wine but it does not rule my life. I'm more of a books and gardens and coffee-with-friends kind of person.

[sfbayarea]

Napa is okay, they're trying hard to make it seem 'evolved'. Although it's only an hour from SF, you'd never know it. The true locals are very provincial in their thinking, as is the city government. Traffic is a big problem. Zoning is non existent, therefore, there really is no cohesive 'feel' to the town.

I used to live downtown in a Victorian. Yes, they're cute and all, but living in certain areas of downtown has big problems - - lots of homeless and crazies wandering daily to the Salvation Army for their free meals, the few downtown parks are overtaken by indigents/drunks/druggies... Be very careful before you choose a neighborhood.

Knowing what I do now, I would never have chosen to live in Napa.

In my opinion, better choices: Yountville (although VERY small), St. Helena (small as well). Sonoma is a better choice than Napa, more interesting arts scene, the downtown still retains a local, small town feel.

[bigdumbgod]

Originally Posted by Rosefolly

I enjoy wine but it does not rule my life. I'm more of a books and gardens and coffee-with-friends kind of person.

More people in Napa are books and gardens and coffee-with-friends kinds of people than vintners and wine sippers. Except for the aforementioned folks stumbling around the parks downtown.

Had a look at Sebastopol yet? Has a friendly vibe, without so much of the provincialism experienced in other nearby towns.

[llgg]

I lived in Napa for five years and I liked it, although I'm from the Santa Rosa area and I liked that a little more.

I agree with bigdumbgod that more people in Napa are the books/garden/coffee with friends type. I knew some of the wine people and even some of them were more that way than the vintner stereotype.

Things I liked about Napa:
Very mellow with friendly, laid-back people
Easy to navigate and hard to get lost
Nice seasons-- warm summers, chilly winters, etc.
Beautiful and some charming spots
If you don't need a lot of entertainment, there's enough here
Fairly easy access to the ferry to SF

Things I Didn't Like about Napa:
Not quite enough to do for me
Hard to find a job
A little run down

If you go more North, yes it's "nicer," but it's also more expensive and more touristy. In Sonoma County, which I really do think is nicer in many ways, I would say Healdsburg is a sleepy, but nice part if you're looking for low-key. Sebastopol is nice in ways, but a little rural in feel for me and little aggressive in its cultural.

[BayAreaHillbilly]

Napa actually reminds me a lot of Redwood City. It used to have a very salt of the earth rep, back in the days when "The Wine Country" was confined to areas up valley. I think that spirit remains in a certain form. That has both pluses and minuses.

[napanite]

as original Napan...people are right that many people are into books, movies, gardening is huge! But it has great climate to garden in...i grew up in Sonoma as well since my grandparents lived there and spent great deal of time with them.
I think there is nothing different between Napa county and Sonoma...people are pretty much the same. You do have wine snobs...i grew up knowing most of the original vintners before it was known for it's wines in both counties! Original people make fun of ostentatious wineries and homes on hills etc...anything that tries to stand out instead of blending in with local flora/fauna.
I think it is sad how everything is going to grapes instead of growing some other products...we use to have many orchards of peaches, plums etc and could earn extra money picking the fruit. That was in the sixties/seventies so many years ago.
I have lived a lot of different places in northern calif and still love both Napa and Sonoma counties....of course with Sonoma that includes the coast...but Santa Rosa is giant now compared to size it was when i was a kid!
I do think that people living in both counties have the snobbish feeling that they are better for living there than like Farfield, Vallejo and Bencia areas. Napa and Sonoma were both known as racists towns...so bad when i went to Sac and started my job many blacks were afraid to approach me when they heard i was from Napa/Sonoma...but i am happy to say that now there are many people of color living there....to the point i heard or know of idiot people who moved away because it was becoming too racially diverse!
In the seventies, we had interracial couple move on our street..we actually had a neighbor come around and try to get us to sign a protest to ask them to move! Thankfully my parents and neighbors did not agree with it and raised to think it did not matter about skin color. Even i as teenager had racial slurs yelled at me because i was so dark in the summer...so I know how it felt.
So if you can afford Napa or Sonoma homes...i think it is great location..hour to coast or SF, 3 hours to Tahoe, has great produce stands and nurseries! Sonoma you would add hour more to Tahoe but less to ocean and SF.
I like Healdsburg and all that area...but too far from mountains for me. I also have friends up here who moved from down there and said it was just getting too snobby for them. I do not for sure what they meant....but they made a decent to good income there...might be like me it just was getting too large a city for them..since only wealthy can afford the homes back than...it was not well rounded community as much?
Art is huge and they have great community art classes that my mother has been taking for years and they keep challenging her. She made great friends there as well. My parents are from Petaluma and Sonoma...in their eighties so i have deep roots there ...most my dad's side is still in Sonoma area.
When i go back to visit...i always run into old friends and if i could afford it i would back there...i am hoping soon maybe too...some where in north bay area....i like it all...and think you should just pick which town feels the best for you...but you should visit Sonoma and Santa Rosa, Petaluma as well as Napa and Calistoga....but if you plan on going to Tahoe a lot than Napa is worth saving that extra hour.
Wooden Valley is very nice as well but it is hard to find homes up there...Green Valley in the hills is nice but near Costco is too windy.
I am trying to give you other options than what has been mentioned. I think what they mean is DT Napa has lost a lot of larger stores but has many nice small ones and great restaurants! Jobs are slow there ...my sister in law has been out of work for about 2 years now....not sure how hard she is looking but she was professional....had to do with housing building...so when RE market dropped it hurt her job.
So check out the two counties...maybe even Wooden Valley area...as well...rent for a bit ....see which one claims your heart...sure one will! It is a beautiful area and I call it Camelot weather...not too hot for too long...not too much fog like coast..or SF...perfect weather in my book! Plus if you can kind of pick areas in both counties if you like it cooler or warmer! so get a great Realtor...or two and start looking! have fun! and good luck!

[napanite]

OOH i wanted to reply about the 'crazies'!
There are not any more crazies there than any other bay area town...not as far as i have seen. I asked people i know who live all over in Napa/Sonoma, Bay Area(north and south)...and none said it was worse there than any other place. Most said less than nearer you got to SF.
For you newbies...if you think crazies are bad now you should have lived in Napa when Regan was govenor and took all the money away from the State Hospitals. People were put on the street from the Napa State Hospital. For those of you who do not know...it had violent ...very violent people living in there and now they were out wandering..for year there it was extremely scary..but we always had the
Retarded, Mongoloid children and more severe learning handicap children living on and off the hospital grounds. I hope i am not offending anyone by my choice of words too...I had class in HS working at the Wintun school....where we taught teachable children to adult age children ish acting people to learn to take care of themselves and job skills. The school is now on hospital land...it was great school and really helped me to get over my fear of retarded people. I had the experience of few who 'liked' me when i was in elementary school and would follow me home....they were much older and bigger than me but their mental age was about mine probably....terrified me.
So working there actually made me enjoy and love being around their openness and hearts full of love!
My dad works at one of the soup kitchens...we all have helped out with him...yes you have your mental cases...who should be in hospitals..but since Regan...unless they are committed by family or do something to become 5150 and that is only for 3 days...they have no where to go to get help since most do not have health insurance.
They are on a completely different level than addicts who live on streets or healthy people who just pan handle because it is easy way to make decent living.
But i never seen a lot of crazy people in Napa like i did as kid...so i am not sure what that person was speaking about....every town in bay area has homeless ...they come from back east since we have better weather..makes sense.
I know that...my husband worked as CHP officer in SF and regularly would pick people up crossing the bay bridge who had hitch hiked across country to come to SF area because of climate....and so many liberals they tend to give more than conservatives. Which is nice thing i think to give as much as we can afford!! Care about others.
So i just wanted to make that clear...Sonoma also had a state hospital...but it was more for people who were missing limbs...where Napa was more for mental problems/// but that was 30 years ago...now sure they all just try and handle what ever.

[bigdumbgod]

Originally Posted by napanite

Retarded, Mongoloid children and more severe learning handicap children living on and off the hospital grounds. I hope i am not offending anyone by my choice of words too

Well, the two above terms leave a bit to be desired when desribing people with developmental disabilities, so discarding these would be a step in the right direction.

[silverkris]

Originally Posted by bigdumbgod

Well, the two above terms leave a bit to be desired when desribing people with developmental disabilities, so discarding these would be a step in the right direction.

Correct. Today we use the "people first" terminology to describe persons with disabilities, as in "persons with Down's Syndrome" (as opposed to Mongolism) - because, they are people, who just happen to be afflicted with certain disabilities. It's a lot more respectful. As one may say, "I'm a person, not a disability!"

[balmain]

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