A depressing place.
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12/16/2018
Whew where to begin with dear old riverside.
I enjoyed growing up here until my high school years (back in 2011). In 7 short years the downward deterioration of the city is remarkable.
The 鈥渂eautiful and historic鈥 downtown is really just a miserable traffic ridden couple blocks which I swear seems to have tripled the amount of homeless (I mean young, meth head homeless, not the down-on-their-luck type). An increase in shootings (sometimes in front of Riverside鈥檚 beloved mission inn) has caused a constant heavy police presence as they try to convince people it鈥檚 still safe there.
People don鈥檛 interact with each other here. Everyone commutes, seems to be miserable, and drives like absolute animals (driving down the shoulder, consistent weaving dangerously between cars, riding bumpers). It鈥檚 one of the most aggressive driving cities and is along the commute to the worlds ranked most congested traffic in the world. In riverside, with no freeways on this drive, my apartment to my old house is an 8 minute drive (no traffic at 3am). At 6:30am-9pm that drive will take between 30-45 minutes. The city feels over populated and more just keep coming in. The traffic has gotten so bad that I (and my girlfriend )will always debate if going on an errand 0.5mi away is even worth it. You鈥檒l begin to loathe leaving your home because of how long it could take to get simple things done.
The smog ruins any distant view, and on some days it really speaks to how it鈥檚 rated one of the worst smog counties in the US. If you have respiratory issues, or don鈥檛 want to involuntary smoke (co2 emissions) don鈥檛 move here.
The desert gets old pretty quick. The city seems to try to hide the fact you鈥檙e in a desert, and most driving areas block in your view of what would be pretty desert if you enjoy that scenery (Tucson is a good example of a city embracing the environment).
It鈥檚 no surprise California ranks last in quality of life. It鈥檚 no surprise California loses 100k residents a year to outward migration, has Uhauls charging $2,000 to move a state over where that same drive back they charge $160 (there鈥檚 a shortage of trucks here).
Really, it鈥檚 hard to justify living here. It鈥檚 getting absurdly expensive. At 25, my brother at 28, neither of us know anyone who has begun paying a house in California around our age. The only draw was the 鈥渃entral location鈥 where a 鈥40 minute drive鈥 could take you to the beach, desert, or mountains.
Don鈥檛 let anyone sell you on this BS. That may have been true 15 years ago, but today that commute could take you up to 3 hours. I luckily had friends with beach houses to justify the drive, but unless you have rich friends, are rich with a beach house, pay an expensive hotel, or are fine with driving several hours to enjoy the beach for a little while before having to head back, you won鈥檛 see the beaches too often.
In fact, your average income earner will be miserably poor here. Rent in an area that ISNT known for gang activity and prostitution (looking at you University/Crowell/7th street) our rent costs us 1,000 for a one bedroom apartment.
Your dollar is worth .88 cents here. You won鈥檛 be able to save towards your retirement. All the bragging rights of the town are literally amenities of any moderately sized city (movie theatre, mall, a Main Street). Those amenities have zero sense of community, most people are unfriendly/uninterested in riffing, and 65% of the states inhabitangs struggle to make enough for rent.
For a city with a 2010 census of 300,000 (its felt considerably more crowded since then), it sure has a great way of making you feel lonely.
If you want your hometown to feel like a hotel room that you sleep in and leave to go to work and come back, this is the place for you.
If you have family, gangs, drugs, homelessness, and deterioration of schools is where the city is visibly heading. I really can鈥檛 fathom anyone thinking it鈥檚 a good place to Live, let alone raise a family, unless speaking in the past tense and getting their memories mixed up with their daily experiences.
Hope I help someone dodge a bullet. We鈥檙e in the process of leaving this miserable place.
Eric | Riverside, CA