Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
I will preface by saying that maybe I'm biased b/c I'm LDS, but I'm also originally from the Washington DC area which means I don't subscribe to the cliqueish-ness of some Utah/Idaho LDS. That being said - my husband and I live in Eagle, and while there are definitely people we go to church with in our neighborhood, it's like 3-4 families on a street of 20. Eagle is also a little older and more established (also, generally, wealthy) in terms of demographics, so the people are maybe more independent and isolated, if that makes sense? Not to say that people aren't neighborly, because they definitely are. Super nice (and non-LDS, I might add) neighbors on all sides of us. I think when you don't have kids though, and the general population is older, more career focused, and busy, there is less interaction.
Now, considering all of that, we love Eagle. But - I'm 24 and my husband is 28. While we definitely wanted to buy in Eagle, we may have considered Meridian if we had thought about it more. We are definitely the youngest in our neighborhood, and while we haven't even started our family yet, lots of families in our neighborhood have their youngest kids in middle school. Meridian may have been a better fit in that regard. In Meridian, though, you have to consider that there is definitely a more predominant LDS influence, and when neighbor kids see each other at school, AND at church, it's more likely those families will be closer and hang out more...not to purposefully exclude people, but that's just a natural occurrence of seeing people all the time.
So, you didn't mention how old you are or if you have kids, but those are things I would consider most in choosing between Meridian and somewhere else (N. Boise would be more similar in demographic to Eagle, I would think...maybe a little younger). I wouldn't worry about business, because things here are so close that it's not like if you live in Meridian you won't draw from Boise. My husband is a dentist, and works in Boise, Meridian, and Nampa, and doesn't even bother with people we live around.
Ok, so true to my word in my initial post at ps 2....my wife, 2 dogs, 1 cat, both mother-in-laws (long story there) and I moved to Boise in mid-June and are having one heck of a good time. Can the people get any freakin nicer here??? I've finally gotten my health care business open and am sooo excited to get going. Keeping my fingers crossed that it builds and builds. The greenbelt is great, the 95+ degree daily summer temps are smokin, and watching the crazies going by on their tubes down the river is wild.
We live off Broadway near Parkcenter and my office is near the mall. The traffic isn't bad at all going that direction, but boy, what's going on from say...Mountain Home direction toward Nampa after about 4pm everyday? Good thing I'm going the opposite direction everyday. (and from what people have posted....nope, this traffic is no where near LA traffic...maybe at like 1am on the Hollywood highway or something...haha....)
Anyway....
Now if we can just get our house rented over in stinky SE Idaho so we don't have to pay double mortgage....and my business booms....we'll be all set. More to follow in a few months........jj
ps 3...I had to come back in and add this in. My wife grew up in 'the valley'.....um, like the totatally original valley, fer shur, whateveeer....in San Fernando....and claims that so far, a lot of the feel of the town is like that back in the 70's/80's....I grew up in NY and can't comment on that part....
Gloomier than London...roads more congested than the 101???? Come the #$% on!!! If you want people to stay away from Boise just come out and say it....they will laugh at you just as hard, but at least they will respect you!
Gloomier than London...roads more congested than the 101???? Come the #$% on!!! If you want people to stay away from Boise just come out and say it....they will laugh at you just as hard, but at least they will respect you!
Maybe they don't have the "grass is always greener on the other side of the fence" fixation going on.
It's an opinion, just one more to add to a collection of opinions.
I've lived here my whole life. From about this time of year until about April it's fairly gray and gloomy... it will start getting dark at 5:30 or so, so there's not a lot of daylight. There might be sunny days but there are cloudy days as well, and they linger.
A city as big as Boise and it has 1 freeway... think about that. Where does all the traffic go? State Street, Eagle Road, Chinden... they ALL get clogged up, especially when the lights are out of sync.
I agree not "always" greener, but come on most of Idaho is pretty darn nice. The wage thing seems to be the biggest issue, with lack of planning for traffic a close second. I feel bad that I and most people from congested metro areas have the mindset that a traffic jam there is nothing short of a stress reliever for us...it is all relative I guess. We just need to do everything in our power to be part of the solution by reducing our own carbon footprint when moving there...walk, bike, carpool, ect. ...and actively promote that lifestyle. I doubt there are many people there that want all those ills to follow them to that, YES, greener pasture called Boise. Peace!
I'm a proud native of Idaho, SE Idaho, I moved away to experience the big city life in other states, even lived in England for a while, and something kept drawing me back to my home state, and Boise. I am glad that Idaho has grown this past decade and Boise too, I think alot of young people who grow up in Idaho want to remain in Idaho and it is getting easier to do that especially in Boise. I'm an outdoorsy 32 y.o. that loves and appreciates Boise and my state. I have been all over the state and this is one of the most beautiful states, gorgeous locations and cities built by some amazing scenery, Boise included.
Boise is a great place, has a special part in many peoples hearts, both natives and transplants. I don't mind people moving here at all, it is an exciting time for Boise, the change the city is going through. I think the traffic is a laugh, it gets congested, but come on, the rush hour here lasts 30 minutes unless someone has wrecked and causing delays. I think the weather is great, all year, the sun, the clouds, the sometimes gloomy winter days, on those days just focus on how pretty the bare trees are, take a walk along the greenbelt and look for wildlife. I moved to Boise and back to Idaho to experience the "grass is always greener" feeling and guess what, I am still experiencing it here in Boise after nearly 6 years. I see beauty in this city every day, even when I'm in a bad mood. As a native of Idaho, I am very keen to the attitude some people have that have lived here their entire lives and hate, hate, hate growth.
They live all over the state, not just in Boise, I understand their feelings to an extent, but change is good.
I better shut up, I've probably said too much as a native of this state
Last edited by TohobitPeak; 10-25-2010 at 01:16 PM..
Reason: spelling error
Agreed, I feel like there are better places out there, but this place trumps many places that I have lived. And the places i think are better, MOST of them I have not lived in lol. only one that i can think of, the others i have only visited.
I will say, that the wages are a killer here. And I currently live in the Meridian area...I can see the Northend being MUCH more satisfying for me. more urban, closer to downtown, closer to the water and parks, and also much closer to the trees and mountains.
Tohobit, I think that attitude can be found in almost any place, to be honest. It depends on the person; no place is intrinsically "better" than anywhere else. It's more about fit.
I guess I don't get that about transients. There are great, good and bad about everywhere, but home is home and it just depends. I don't get how people can move place to place and consider each place home. Seems parasitic to me. This is good enough now until we're done and then off to the next place.
Boise now is better than Boise 25 years ago, but not by much. Give me the Boise of the mid 90's any day, or in the later 70's. I just think that once the economy corrects itself, Boise is really going to explode because everyone that can flee California and Arizona will.
The thing for me about Boise - and this is coming from a native - is that the really neat/nice areas of Boise are few: downtown, north end, east end, along the river, the foothills, the park system and surrounding areas, parts of State to Collister, and parts of SE Boise. To me, everything else is boring, sprawlsville Anywhere USA, especially out toward Meridian and Eagle. Why even bother, if you ask me?
The thing for me about Boise - and this is coming from a native - is that the really neat/nice areas of Boise are few: downtown, north end, east end, along the river, the foothills, the park system and surrounding areas, parts of State to Collister, and parts of SE Boise. To me, everything else is boring, sprawlsville Anywhere USA, especially out toward Meridian and Eagle. Why even bother, if you ask me?
The areas you listed as your personal fav's actually cover much of the city, but I have to add that a lot of the Bench area between Federal Way and Cole is pretty nice too, nice older homes mixed in with the newer homes, trees, clean.
I think most of Boise is nice, even the western side of the city before it collides with Meridian. The streets are well maintained, the landscaping along most major streets and residential streets is nice, it is just a nice clean city overall and that is what I noticed about Boise, all of it, when moving back to Idaho. Try living in a city where their major streets by a mall lack landscaping, trees, cleanliness; we don't have that issue here, in fact people that I know who have moved to Boise point this very fact out.
I am lucky to live in the area of town that I love the most and which fits my lifestyle, The Northend. When my wanderings take me to other areas of the city I am always proud to think that this is my city, Boise, a clean well groomed and manicured city, whether it be Milwaukee St near the mall or Parkcenter Boulevard, or Ustick Road, Capitol Boulevard, and of course downtown. Boise as a whole is pretty easy on the eyes, it's not just one or a few areas of town but the entire package for me, although there are areas I prefer spending my time and money over others in town, such as my preference for downtown over the shopping in West Boise.
But yeah, Boise is a great place to live.
Last edited by TohobitPeak; 10-25-2010 at 05:33 PM..
Tohobitpeak and HP1167...you both have an awsome outlook on life itself, and that is inspiring! Well written... I truely believe that your leaders in government will not allow uncontrolled growth to the extent that many fear. Again, the lack of any coastline near-by and the winters will always keep the numbers in check...Take care!
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
