Tucson left back in time? (Phoenix, Chandler: homes, landscaping, established neighborhood)

[elmore]

Rick,
That is not representative of 99% of Tucson. But nice try.

[nickw252]

Originally Posted by elmore

There seems to be very little modernization. It appears as if Tucson is economically depressed but not just due to the recent downturn. Houses look dated, unkempt except in more recently built subdivisions out of the central area. Maybe desert landscape is not my thing. I am from the east coast. Supposedly good neighborhoods do not appear to be so. Not trying to just be negative. Does anybody love Tucson and why?

I understand what you're saying and I think what the problem you see is that there is very little central city in Tucson, and that what central city that there is, it seems rundown and ugly.

I think the problem is that Tucson is a new city compared to east coast cities, and instead of there being a big and dense downtown, Tucson's is small with only a few government buildings. Also, instead of there being beautiful and ornimented civic buildings, Tucson has an endless supply of strip malls, shopping malls, big-box stores, subdivisions, suburbs, tract housing, and highways.

Additionally, what does exist in the central city part of Tucson is mostly done in the abominable Modernist and Brutalist architecture that was popular from the 50's - 80's (when Tucson was built up).

Modern architecture - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Brutalist architecture - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

[TucsonBound?]

I am from "back East" too and I would have to say there are plenty of places back east that are far worse then Tucson.
I have only lived here for a week and LOVE it!! I can tell Tucson is not for everyone....some hate the desert and I didnt think I would like it too much either. I bought a home in the Northwest and absolutely love it! I much rather be here then anywhere else in the country!!
I am happy here and wish you success on finding your "perfect place"

[Tamarind]

I've lived here for 3 years and still love it. I like the sparseness of the desert and the old-timey homes. I think "ugly" is subjective. Tucson is a diamond in the rough. It just needs a bit of polishing to really shine.

[Bummer]

Originally Posted by TucsonBound?

I am from "back East" too and I would have to say there are plenty of places back east that are far worse then Tucson.
I have only lived here for a week and LOVE it!! I can tell Tucson is not for everyone....some hate the desert and I didnt think I would like it too much either. I bought a home in the Northwest and absolutely love it! I much rather be here then anywhere else in the country!!
I am happy here and wish you success on finding your "perfect place"

Originally Posted by Tamarind

I've lived here for 3 years and still love it. I like the sparseness of the desert and the old-timey homes. I think "ugly" is subjective. Tucson is a diamond in the rough. It just needs a bit of polishing to really shine.

I could not agree more, TB and Tamarind.

[actinic]

Originally Posted by nickw252

I understand what you're saying and I think what the problem you see is that there is very little central city in Tucson, and that what central city that there is, it seems rundown and ugly.

Actually the boundary within the city is quite expansive and filled with graffiti, vandalism, pot holes, overgrown weeds, and parked cars in front yards that others find quite appealing.

[nickw252]

Originally Posted by actinic

Actually the boundary within the city is quite expansive and filled with graffiti, vandalism, pot holes, overgrown weeds, and parked cars in front yards that others find quite appealing.

I don't disagree with you there - and once you get outside of these neighborhoods you're stuck in some cookie-cutter subdivision full of identical snout-houses. I find the area around Tucson to have an abundance of natural beauty but the city of Tucson is just terrible. Where is the architecture? Where is the uniqueness? Where is the civic and public realm?

[sickofIL]

I don't disagree with you there - and once you get outside of these neighborhoods you're stuck in some cookie-cutter subdivision full of identical snout-houses. I find the area around Tucson to have an abundance of natural beauty but the city of Tucson is just terrible. Where is the architecture? Where is the uniqueness? Where is the civic and public realm?

I think that if you looked at many of the older cities in this country you will find neighborhoods or even entire cities with houses that all look the same. I grew up in one of the border western Chicago suburbs and the entire town was red brick bungalows and 3 and 6 flat apartment buildings. Actually, most of the close Chicago suburbs are like this along with a good part of the City of Chicago. Most of the bungalows were built in the 40's and 50's and are the typical house of that era.

When you get a little further out of the city to younger towns you find sub-divisions full of houses that are the same.

This is typical of developers everywhere. They usually build whole sub-divisions with only a couple of different house designs. This maximizes their profits.

Architecture? Look at most of the McMansions that were built in the last 7-8 years. Talk about cookie-cutter. And people paid big money for these. My neighborhood is full of these from where builders bought old unique houses, tore them down and built these expensive boxes. And they are still doing it although not like a few years ago.

Tucson is no different than most other cities.

[miamiman]

Does the OP want Tucson to be filled with those tile-roof homes that you can find NO shortage of in Marana, Oro Valley, and Sahuarita?

While I agree that Tucson's built environment is hideous at best, I wouldn't mind a variety of attractive buildings. Attractive does not necessarily equal new. If you look at Sam Hughes and El Encanto, you would see many older homes that add to the beauty of the city. However, I do agree that many of the homes in Central Tucson that preservationists try to save because of their "historic" value are nothing more than vomit-inducing shacks.

If you look at Phoenix, many of the neighborhoods there are FULL of the same tile-roof, stucco homes. It makes Phoenix look boring and sterile. It's hard to drive in Phoenix for more than 15 minutes without yawning a million times due to the fact that EVERYTHING looks the same.

At least in Tucson there are a variety of neighborhoods and the mountains add a natural scenic touch.

[elmore]

miamiman, OP???
Glad to hear a variety of viewpoints. It baffles me that homes and areas that look rundown are preserved for their historic value. I think maybe this is part of a tradition in Tucson of living environmentally and politically correct and disturbing the character of what Tucson was would be at odds with this? Just speculating.
As far as living in the newer subdivisions... is it sneered upon by those that endure the character and historic nature of central Tucson? Sort of like NYC Manhattenites sneering at people from NJ and the outer boroughs that flood the streets on weekends?