My husband and two children are relocating to Sierra Vista in 6/2006. We are currently living in Miami, Fl. I have never live on the west coast or in a small town before... I grew up in NYC. So, I am a little nervous and excited about the move. I would like to know how you have adjusted to your move. Is there shopping, great places to eat, nice neighborhoods, family oriented and do you find yourself going to Tuscon for entertainment. Please share your experiences.
Moving to Sierra Vista AZ
Hi! I have been living here for one year and 3 months. I have not adjusted well to it. Since my Dh is AD military I am just doing my time here. We have 2 kids and are from the east coast. Born in NYC too :)
No there is no shopping here. Target Walmart and Kmart.Sears and Dillards at the one level ';mall'; and a midsize Ross and midsize Marshall%26#39;s. There are mostly national chain places to eat Outback Chilis etc.
There is a construction ';boom'; here now. there are som etypes of families that prefer to live near Buffalo Soldier trail. we don%26#39;t I am not a suburbai type mom. We chose to buy a home in the ';city'; proper.It jsut made ssense for daily living and or more bang for the buck. We chose a new construction home (4th lot to close in this neghborhood) in Oct of 2004 by the time we added upgrades and moved in it was 204K.Now the same homes in this community go for $280K base price.
Keep in mind that very few companies build spec homes here. They wait for people to purchase then they build.And there are delays in construction be careful when told ';it%26#39;ll be ready in 3-4 months';
The largest apartments are in the 600-700 sq foot range in average.
I do not go to Tucson for entertainment since I am a homebody. But I have found that we travel out of state a whole lot more. :) I know of moms that go 2-3 times a week to Tucson to hang out and shop. And some that go faithfully every weekend.
As for edcuation you might get a ';better'; school near one of the newer communities. However, it is all relevant. When you see where AZ falls in state by state ranking I wouldn%26#39;t exactly be bragging. We send our kids to a Christian school that has a reputation for being strict. It is challenging, and closest in curriculum to what we left behind.
As for what to do. Children activities are VERY limited. There is a city owned/run state of the art indoor aqaatic center.Tae-kwon-do or gymnastic/tumbling lessons.And there is a dance studio as well. No chuck-e-cheeze but a local venue called ';Peter Piper Pizza'; Although there is a preschool reading time at the one library branch that too gives hte impression that it is geared primarily for our retired and senior members. A small fair and small circus roll into town once each year.
Also getting used to dealing with imigrant issues and illegal issues on a daily basis is tiresome after a while. MANY border patrol agents live here and you go past a checkpoint to get from SV to Tucson.
The weather is a wicked dry heat in the summer. Having lived in south Florida for several years (Homestead and Naranja) I can attest that it is a very different type of heat. We find the winters mild. My Dh hasn%26#39;t broken out his LL Bean coat since we%26#39;ve been here, and ditto for my coat. Dry Dusty come to mind.
I am not bashing SV. It has charm. And the way it is nestled in the mountains provides spectacular views. My favorite time of the year is the brief monsoon season in late summer. It is just a beautiful sight to behold. It is alid back life here, which is good for destresing :)
Moving to Sierra Vista AZ
Movin 606: I would agree with the above post. I have been here since 99 and have adjusted well. My wife however has not but she has gotten better. She prefers city life. I think that what most people have trouble with is that Sierra Vista will not entertain you, you have to go out to get entertained. What I mean by that is that many people, especially big city folk, I am from Washington DC, area are used to quick entertainment by ways of Malls, movies, arcades, and such. Indoor type entertainment. Here you have to go out and look for it. There are many trails here for hiking and I have seen deer, javelina, and even a bear and her cub on my hikes with my 5 year old through the mountains. So that is something I enjoy. There are many people here who hike as well as mountain bike. At Sun n%26#39; spokes you can get information on the Dawn to dusk mountain bike club. They will show you the ropes and you can go on little trail rides to serious down hill. There are alot of people who jog here as well and road bike. On the fort you have TMAC which is a swimming club for kids. At $45 a month it is a great deal. Both my daughters have learned to swim there and have learned competition swimming as well. There is also an adult coed recreational soccer team and a womens recreational team. If you are so inclined there are many other opportunities within a short drive. So unfortunately home bodies do have a tough time. But I can also say that since I have been here I started to run again, learned to mountain bike and have also hiked more than any other time in my life. Oh, and I started playing soccer to which I haven%26#39;t done since I was 12, which was a LONG time ago. Great people here. Lastly, you may want to get involved with a community organization to meet other great people such as Kiwanis, Lions, or Rotary. I myself joined rotary out here and have met many great people.
Just my 2 cents,
good luck,
Tim
Hmm.. Miami and NYC huh? I%26#39;d say you%26#39;re in for a pretty big culture shock to put it mildly. I don%26#39;t live in SV, but have traveled there at least once or twice a year for the past 5-6 years to visit my brother. I enjoy the trip and the time I spend while down in SV, however, I can%26#39;t imagine living there at this stage in my life. Tucson is about 90 minutes from SV, so you%26#39;re looking at about a 3 hour round trip.
Fort Huachuca is located in SV, so the town has a bit of a military flavor to it. Seems to be growing as another poster pointed out with new housing developments popping up.
Dunno, guess it depends upon your expectations and where you%26#39;re at in life. The southwest has grown on me, but not enough to move there just yet.
-r
I guess you can%26#39;t say I actually ';moved'; there. My father was transferred there when I was 10 and I lived there until I went to college. I%26#39;ve lived a lot of places since, big ones and small ones. SV is a lot better than the other small ones I%26#39;ve lived in.
I%26#39;d say if you have kids, your life it probably built around them, so don%26#39;t worry. If I were you and you have any inclination towards the outdoors life, definitely take advantage. You have great trails and mountains, an amazing selection of birding activities, a history of the area that goes back to before the U.S. was populated by western europeans. You have to work with what you are given.
It just happens that i%26#39;m going back to sv this week, after quite some number of years, to enjoy the nature conservancy area. I wish you the best.
Well I hate to disagree with everybody but being as I am from that area I feel the need..........
We haven%26#39;t lived there in a long while as we too are AD military but my parents still do.
Sierra Vista isn%26#39;t THAT bad........it%26#39;s all what you make of it. No it%26#39;s not NYC or Miami but if you don%26#39;t expect it to be you won%26#39;t be so dissapointed.
There ARE however still cultural opportunities available you may just have to look a little harder. There is LOTS to do around the area if you are interested in history at all (eg, Tombstone, Bisbee, Chirichaua National Monument, the Museum on Ft. Huachuca, Events at the college, Kartchner Caverns, Coronado Ntl. Monument, Mexico,etc.) you just have to be willing to travel a bit. Tucson is just over an hour away and has all kinds of things to do as well.
The area is really growing. It is not a rural area anymore but it isn%26#39;t a metropolis either.
I think if you are willing to be open minded and give it a chance you%26#39;ll be pleasently surprised.
Nobody should just ';do thier time'; anywhere. We%26#39;ve moved all over (AZ, KS, Germany, WA, CA) and enjoyed every place after a few intial months of adjustment.
Hope that helps.
and for you AD ladies just remember it could always be worse! ;)
Oh hey,
like the others said. There are things you can do here you can%26#39;t elsewhere such as the world renowned birding (not kiding ... people come from all over to Ramsey Canyon), etc. Fort Huachuca is a history lesson all on it%26#39;s own (once one of the most desolate posts it is now one of the most requested), etc.
Sorry can%26#39;t help much as far as the housing market, and you may decide you want to live in Bisbee, Tombstone, Huachuca City, or out towards Hereford or Palominas rather than in town. I%26#39;ve heard that many people who are there with the Military are having to do so.
Schooling is schooling...........you get the bad the good and the ugly all in one. Or you can home school, AZ has very good hs laws and large groups who do in Cochise County (it%26#39;s a large county compared to places back east), just remember that%26#39;s always an option.
If I think of anything else I%26#39;ll chime back in.
have a good one
My favorite place to shop is actually in Bisbee, 1/2 hour from Sierra Vista. It is called Cache and is on Main Street. They sell vintage estate jewelry, fine label new and recycled clothing and shoes, southwestern clothing boots and hats, DVDs, CDs, and antiques.
I actually bought a $900 Ralph Lauren jacket there for $85. And $200 Chicos jacket for $45. Fun place!
What kind of shopping are you looking for? If youare lookign for the Higher end stuff that yes, Tucson is the place to go. That is the closest big city. But if you are on a military budget, where Mom works part time, than there are ample stores around.
As the other posters put it mildly, life is gonna be what you make it. There is a lot of culture and historical things to do around the area and you have to make an effort to get involved.
Sierra Vista is ';Good Morning., How are you, where the bigger cities are give me your wallet and watch';. if you are looking for a slower pace so that your kids will grow with culture and be able to experience history than there%26#39;s plenty to do.
We came from Los Angeles ...and to come here where people are cordialand kind was a breath of fresh air.
I moved to Sierra Vista in late October 2004 from Santa Barbara, CA. All I can say is that some of the posts on here are true - it is all what you make of it. I came out here to work for Northrop Grumman, and considering I%26#39;m an Employment Recruiter, yes, I do feel somewhat obliged to ';sell'; the area. Regardless, I did a lot of research before I came here, as I was a little worried that I%26#39;d hate it. Honestly, there is so much beauty out here, and it is laid back and relaxed, that you find yourself accepting S/V for what it is, and hopefully falling in love with it. I, too, was a ';big city'; girl, having been raiseed in Annapolis, MD and constantly going to DC for ';culture';.
The pros are that S/V is affordable, and you don%26#39;t need to worry about being stuck in ';big city'; traffic. It%26#39;s also very beautiful here, and as one person said, the monsoon season is wonderful. Plus, there are numerous wineries in the Sonoita are (which is about 30 minutes away), and it%26#39;s like a different world up there.
I don%26#39;t have any children, so I can%26#39;t comment on the schools and such, but in regards to any cons about S/V, it does have limited shopping...but that%26#39;s when you can take a day trip to Tucson and still enjoy yourself! :)
While it does get hot in the summer, one has to keep in mind that we are, on average 10-13 degrees cooler than Tucson on a daily basis, and about 14-20 degrees cooler than Phoenix.
Hope this info helps.
Thanks for the objective info. I will be relocating there in January and find it hard to sort out what information posted here is true and what is just adjustment difficulties for people who are accustomed to a different lifestyle and haven%26#39;t lived in a large variety of places.
I%26#39;m from small cities on the west coast, but have spent the last four years in major cities on the east coast and the Caribbean. I%26#39;ll be glad to get back to a smaller environment with less traffic, lines, crowds, pollution, etc. I can see how it%26#39;s difficult for people who love city life, but I don%26#39;t think I%26#39;ll have any problem leaving that behind.
For military spouses (as am I), I would just encourage you to enjoy what you can about the place, because the next one can always be worse! Ha, ha.
Looking forward to finally settling down for a while. Thanks again!
No comments:
Post a Comment