Santa Cruz NM-a good place to live? (Albuquerque, Santa Fe: insurance, find a job)

[mornar8727]

Moving to the general area between Santa Fe & Taos (and I know that covers a wide swath) Santa Cruz struck us as nice on a drive through in the spring and I haven't found much "bad" info on the immediate area but have few speciifics. Weather seems warmer than Santa Fe (at least in the summer) Please enlighten me.

[bradly]

Yea in the Espanola Valley you mean.

I grew up there, you will love it. People are friendly, small town(Espanola) where everyone know's each other. Great culture and what not..

[cynanthus]

I don't know much about Santa Cruz, but did want to mention that it's pretty far from most places to work in case you'll need to find a job.

[bradly]

No, It is in the Espanola city limits, it is a bankers town.. That town has soo many banks for its size. The gaming industry in Norther New Mexico is also what keeps it alive.

[mornar8727]

Thanks...keep it coming. We couldn't remember if we had seen large grocery stores or chain stores, maybe just Mom & Pop type businesses.
Fortuantely, no need to find a job. Self-employed but requiring about 10 days on the road each month. That said: anybody out there commuting from SF to Albuquerque want to reveal their thoughts or experiences?

[cynanthus]

Many people commute between SF and ABQ. Depending on where you live/work, the drive is an hour to an hour and a half. It's mostly highway driving, and the congestion isn't nearly as bad as anywhere on the East Coast. That said, 25 gets shut down or virtually shut down several times a winter due to snow or accidents and on those days, your commute will be really annoying. My husband did the ABQ to SF commute for two years and didn't mind it, but the two plus hours a day in the car took a toll on him and we moved up here this past winter. He's a much happier person now that he's not driving 110 miles a day. I have heard that the commute from SF to ABQ is a little worse because there's more traffic, but am not sure if that's true.

[bradly]

Originally Posted by mornar8727

Thanks...keep it coming. We couldn't remember if we had seen large grocery stores or chain stores, maybe just Mom & Pop type businesses.
Fortuantely, no need to find a job. Self-employed but requiring about 10 days on the road each month. That said: anybody out there commuting from SF to Albuquerque want to reveal their thoughts or experiences?

There is a Wal-Mart in Espanola, Like I said Santa Cruz is apart of Espanola. A city of 10,000+ and is apart of the Santa Fe Metropolitan Area. Espanola also has tons of fast food and banks,..if you havent noticed.

[GreatSantaFe]

"anybody out there commuting from SF to Albuquerque want to reveal their thoughts or experiences?"

No one's mentioned it yet, but the new Railrunner train is a good option for commuting to Abq from Santa Fe. It's around 1-1/4 hours depending on which stop you get on/off. Also there are shuttle buses to the Abq airport so if your flights are well-timed, you can hop the train and make it to the airport in time to hop your flight. I don't think there're plans to extend the Railrunner to Espanola, but there has been talk about it.

[anahwake nah]

is it safe for elders to live there. just inquiring, I am a new mexico artist ,retired with my mom here and need a peaceful healthy setting for she and I , would santa cruz be a good place for us ?

[GreatSantaFe]

There are some nice properties out that way, and it's pretty lush in the river valleys. Rightly or wrongly, the Espanola area has a bad rep due to drugs. Presbyterian Espanola Hospital has a pretty good reputation. Depending on location, the property could be on Indian land so water and road rights will need to be investigated. At this time some title companies will not issue title insurance to properties on Indian land because of legal access issues (yes, even if the property is located on a county road).