[DougAderyn]

Originally Posted by beachhead

You would be way better served by moving to CA. There are plenty of eco-religious people for you to commune with. Lots of social programs where you are encouraged to abdicate your parental duties to the state too. Lots of "culture", and of course, there's the mecca of Hollywood, with it's glittering stars to share their all knowing opinion of world affairs. Lots of "causes" to keep you occupied; anywhere from "save the penny", to "save the whale", CA has it all. It doesn't get any better than CA for the progressive life style, and it's close to your relatives. You can also go to the beach and snow ski in the same day! Truly paradise compared to Las Vegas.

Oh, how I wish I could afford it. But DC is expensive enough. I've lived in CA as a kid and a short time as an adult (moved to SD in '08... bad time to try to jump into a huge failing economy ).
Gotta stick with the inland areas and have some money left over to feed my kids!

[BBMW]

Doug,

I don't live in Vegas, but I've been there a number of times, plan to move there at some point, and follow the place pretty closely.

My take is that it's almost the exact opposite of what your looking for. The political philosophy tends more to libertarian conservative. This gets camouflaged to some extent because the major casinos tend to be heavily unionized, and the unions have enough political power to win some elections. But don't mistake that as marking the area as liberal. It largely isn't. Note that the Mormon Church is pretty well entrenched.

On a consumer basis, it's also very dominated by big chain, big business, big box, retailers. You can find some small independent, new age business philosophy type places, but few and far between. You're going to have to deal with a lot of Walmart, Target, Home Depot, etc., type places.

You also didn't say what you plan to do to earn a living. If it isn't working in the casino or other hospitality business, or working for the other big corporations in the area, or you don't have a "portable" job, don't expect to find some small, independent progressively minded business to work for.
Scoop and I tend to disagree on a lot of things, but I agree with him on this. As you've described yourself, Vegas isn't for you.

[NLVgal]

Originally Posted by DougAderyn

Planning on moving to Vegas next year with my SO and 10 mo old. I'm a southwestern hippy through and through. Raised in LA and lived in Tucson most of my adult life. SO is born and raised in DC metro.
We're here in DC now and want to bring our little family back west. Las Vegas is central to all of my friends and family in CA, NV and AZ. I love the desert. LV is so affordable with such a great job market.
But, I'm concerned about culture. We're very crunchy, young professional, eco-hippy types. We met and work at an environmental nonprofit. Eat organic. Had a homebirth, cloth diaper, make our own baby foods, etc. We're very involved with civil rights/LGBT movements. Very environmentally conscious. And do a lot of activist work. We shop consciously and "vote" with our dollars by using fair trade and local stores as much as possible. In other words, we put our money where our mouth is (literally since nonprofit pays much less than corporate).
Is there really a place in the Las Vegas area for a family like ours? I know it's a big city and there are variations in culture from one place to another. I'm used to big city living like that. But, what are the neighborhoods or suburbs that would best fit?
*PS- Please don't post any of these "Don't Move Here Hippy!" responses. I've been reading through these threads and I've seen some nasty posters. I genuinely want honest responses from folks who know the area. I'm not trying to start a debate about politics or ethics - to each their own.

Not sure who told you we have a great job market. Nothing could be further from the truth, depending on your field.

[DougAderyn]

Originally Posted by NLVgal

Not sure who told you we have a great job market. Nothing could be further from the truth, depending on your field.

Haha, well for me it's great. I'm an event coordinator and there's a billion job openings in Vegas. I'm partial to nonprofit work but willing to compromise so my SO can be a stay-at-home daddy while my LO (and her future sibling) are still young.
And pay vs cost of living is WAY better in LV than here in DC (or CA or AZ...) at least for my line of work.

[ScoopLV]

Originally Posted by DougAderyn

Haha, well for me it's great. I'm an event coordinator and there's a billion job openings in Vegas. I'm partial to nonprofit work but willing to compromise so my SO can be a stay-at-home daddy while my LO (and her future sibling) are still young.
And pay vs cost of living is WAY better in LV than here in DC (or CA or AZ...) at least for my line of work.

Sounds to me like you want validation for a decision you have already made.

The pay vs. cost of living ratio is one of the few positives. But that ratio compared to quality of life is in the toilet -- unless you love cigarettes and gambling. And then it's just aces.

[Triggerman6]

Originally Posted by DougAderyn

Haha! That's so strange. I'm used to some homes that could use a mow or a little weeding. But, most folks who invest in homes usually want to keep them nice. How strange that people would spend all that money on a house and then let it look like "a bomb went off". That's really sad.

Understand that 42.9% of Clark County residence rent/lease their home.

[DougAderyn]

Originally Posted by ScoopLV

Sounds to me like you want validation for a decision you have already made.

Not validation exactly. But, I did say in my original post that we are moving to LV and I was just looking for advice on where in the Vegas metro area would be best for my family.
Yes, the decision has basically been made. There are a ton of nuanced and detailed reasons for this decision. So, I don't really need validation. Just advice on where in a 4 million person metro area would I find some folks to relate to.

[ScoopLV]

1) Two-million person metro area.

2) It doesn't matter where you move. It's all one endless sprawl of carbon-copy houses, big-box stores, fast food and drug stores. (Unless you move to an area so wealthy you have no need to come here and ask questions. But I'm guessing that MacDonald Highlands isn't your destination. And those people are the opposite of "crunchy.")


This is WalMart country. Make peace with that in a hurry.

[Triggerman6]

Originally Posted by DougAderyn

Just advice on where in a 4 million person metro area would I find some folks to relate to.

I love the way you think and wish that were the case, but the state population is less than 3 million... the last Vegas estimates I had seen put us back to just about 2 million...

[anna shun]

Actually, on the note of trying to avoid HOAs..

I'd advise looking at the properties near the Rancho Corridor like Scotch 80s, Charleston McNeill, Artesian Heights, homes along Oakey blvd. Some of these are old money ranch homes, former horse properties, or midCentury modern Eichler lookalikes that I think are a hidden gems for their prices and space. You will be close to downtown, the Design market/Smith Performing Arts Center, the Arts District, and the Medical District, and you will these areas served by Traders Joes, tons of antique/vintage shops, psychic bookstores, and you are never too far from the chains if you should need them. KNPR broadcasts from near this area, and great local hangs like Frankie's Tiki Bar, and Herbs & Rye are nearby, as are Los Tacos & In & Out if you want it. The Chinatown area of Spring Mountain blvd is very close. You'll be 10 mins away from the airport, 7 from the Strip, I just can't say enough about how much we love this part of the city.. it's really underrated.

Also:

NO HOAs!!
If you check Crimemappers, you'll be happy too. The area and its history is VERY safe.