Connecticut - I've never felt safer walking around at 3 am and I've made more friends in the last 2 months (without trying) than I probably have in the last 6 years of living in the bay area.
Good to hear! Are the comparable areas of similar population density? I'm wondering what incremental steps (non-partisan hopefully) can be brought to the Bay Area to slowly move it towards a similar environment.
I lived in the Bay Area for about 30 years, so here's my (probably biased) opinion. The biggest issue is the lack of community, and in my experience, this is due to the high turnover of residents. From my high school graduating class of 400, fewer than 100 are still in the community; everyone else has moved to Florida, Phoenix, Austin, etc. You can't encourage long-term planning (good public education policies, systematic reductions in the drivers of crime, etc.) if the community changes every two decades. My personal opinion is that the Bay Area won't improve because everyone is out to get 'theirs' and then leave. While I do miss the weather, the lack of humidity, and, honestly, a more educated population, I believe raising children in a strong community is more important. So, I'm more than happy with the trade-offs for a better overall quality of life.
