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Old 02-27-2014, 06:20 PM
 
2 posts, read 5,813 times
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I've lived in Chicago for my whole life and I am looking into moving to California within the next 2 years. I'm looking for suggestions as to what cities I should investigate. I am done with the big city life and I am looking for a slowish pace. I think I'm looking to live somewhere that's less than 100,000 people, with a large city within a 1 to 2 hour drive. I have a sister that lives in Rancho Cucamungo (not by choice, moved there from San Diego because of a job). I would like to be within an hour or so drive to her. I am fairly liberal and would prefer not to live in a really conservative town. A place with a crafty/artsy feel would be wonderful. I am a hairdresser and am fairly confident that having done hair in a large city for 10 years will help me find a salon to work in fairly easily. Housing wise I would love to able to find at least a 1 bedroom for around $1200. I don't even know in at which cities I would start looking. Help I need suggestions!!
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Old 02-27-2014, 07:10 PM
 
Location: Santa Maria
54 posts, read 96,060 times
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Your title said "low key California coastal cities under 100,000" and then you said you would like to be one hour from your sister in Ranch Cucamungo. I don't live in the LA area but I think a drive directly to the coast from Rancho Cucamungo would take an hour if traffic was light, but you'd have more than lot more than 100,00 people around you.

A bit further from Rancho Cucamungo, you might consider the northern end of Ventura or even closer to some of your other criteria is Ojai.

Quote:
Originally Posted by audciecka View Post
I've lived in Chicago for my whole life and I am looking into moving to California within the next 2 years. I'm looking for suggestions as to what cities I should investigate. I am done with the big city life and I am looking for a slowish pace. I think I'm looking to live somewhere that's less than 100,000 people, with a large city within a 1 to 2 hour drive. I have a sister that lives in Rancho Cucamungo (not by choice, moved there from San Diego because of a job). I would like to be within an hour or so drive to her. I am fairly liberal and would prefer not to live in a really conservative town. A place with a crafty/artsy feel would be wonderful. I am a hairdresser and am fairly confident that having done hair in a large city for 10 years will help me find a salon to work in fairly easily. Housing wise I would love to able to find at least a 1 bedroom for around $1200. I don't even know in at which cities I would start looking. Help I need suggestions!!
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Old 02-27-2014, 08:44 PM
 
2 posts, read 5,813 times
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Thank you ddennis669! Now I have a jumping off point!
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Old 02-28-2014, 12:16 AM
 
Location: TOVCCA
8,452 posts, read 15,046,521 times
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Ventura to Rancho Cucamungo is more like 2 hours in the best of traffic, which is pretty much never.
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Old 02-28-2014, 11:00 AM
 
2,145 posts, read 5,071,764 times
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Yes, I was going to suggest Ojai but it's further from RCM than OP wants. Low key and CA coastal don't really fit in the same sentence. LOL. Nor does under 100k. And...that $1200 for a one bedroom coastal is also sketchy. (Inland, perhaps...)

But....Here are a few places under 100k that are great spots [though some are part of larger metro areas] and fit the atmosphere that the OP is describing:

Ojai, Encinitas, Laguna Beach, maybe Santa Barbara, South Pasadena...
There's really nothing within an hour, even w/o traffic, that fits OP's criteria, except maybe parts of Pasadena or LA [again with traffic probably much further]. These are the places with more crafty/artsy feel, that are not LA or SD. There's nothing in riverside or San Bernadino county that really fits that description.

You could check out Temecula, and that is 55 miles, so with no traffic, just about an hour. It does have some great artists and a large farmer's market. But the area as a whole is not what I would describe as liberal/artsy....It's got a lot of pretty wineries/vineyards, though, in the surrounding area. Your budget would work fine, and I believe its population is 100k. It's not charming at all though-more suburbia with a cute, small old town and shops.

Ojai really came to mind first, though.

Last edited by lrmsd; 02-28-2014 at 11:12 AM..
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Old 02-28-2014, 11:07 AM
 
2,145 posts, read 5,071,764 times
Reputation: 1666
Actually, here's a funny article I just found. A Temecula woman will be featured on a reality show soon for her 'artisan sheep shearing business'. LOL
Temecula shepherdess Natalie Redding makes reality TV debut March 1 - latimes.com
http://articles.latimes.com/2011/jun...sheep-20110619
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