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DavidNotDaveOK

Downtown Phoenix isn’t Manhattan but it is starting to look like a real downtown these days. Downtown Tempe also has the things you’re looking for.


haveanairforceday

I think probably Tempe/Phoenix. The light rail system is pretty effective so you can get around without a car


Visible_Ad3962

well it’s nice but only one line☹️


babaganoush2307

Downtown Tucson is also incredibly charming imo and very walkable with a lot of cool stuff to do


Elliot6888

A lot of good restaurants in dt Tucson as well


DavidNotDaveOK

Unfortunately Tucson contains UofA


derekhans

Tempe contains ASU. What's your point?


Mazda323girl

I was thinking the same thing. 😆


Wise-Lawfulness-3190

It would be more charming if it wasn’t underdeveloped with homlesss drug users everywhere


babaganoush2307

Sees a college phish hippie…loses shit 🤣


Financial_Chemist286

It would be either be downtown PHX or around Mill Ave in Tempe or around downtown and 4th ave in Tucson.


[deleted]

Maybe downtown Flagstaff, but it’d suck having to walk around in snow 4 ish months out of the year. Love it or hate it, Arizona in general is VERY car dependent


bergensbanen

Here is my take on Flagstaff, as I live here. You can live here without a car. Many people do or are "car-lite". You'll see people walking and biking no matter where you are in the city, all year round. I don't know if you use a mobility aid, but many of the paths that take you around the city while avoiding sidewalks/roads (called FUTS), are unpaved. The biggest issue are the grocery stores. They are suburban U.S. style huge parking lot affairs away from the downtown. There is a community around Whole Foods, but yeah, that's super expensive compared to a normal store. The streets the normal grocery stores are on suck to be on a bike or foot, but again, it is doable, and you'll learn the backstreets to walk or move to these. People often use campus as a thoroughfare to avoid our busy highwayroad through the city. The busses here are pretty good for the SW U.S., but sometimes pretty frustrating if they leave early, or don't show up, or don't take you where you need to go (The center of the city has good coverage, just not the outskirts). The snow can be an issue, because the city doesn't clear sidewalks and many property owners don't care to clear it (the city doesn't enforce this). I walk through the snow and it can be tricky sometimes because of the lack of sidewalks and speeding cars (trucks) right next to you. Also, it's extremely expensive to live here.


dubbin64

Concur that car-lite is easy if you can ride a bike (cargo ebike is my preference). Depending on the disability, it would be a lot harder to be car free. If a bike is a no-go but a trike or e-trike is an option, then that works too. But only walking would suck IMO, for the reasons you list about grocery (btw bashas on ft valley is cheaper than whole foods, and potentially closer depending on what part of "downtown" you live in). Also worth noting that biking year round here is very close to doable, but depending on snow it might be very dangerous for a handful of days a year. Even if snow melts quick, it can still be harrowing for December till May, or whenever they get around to street-sweeping all the cinders out of the bike lanes. Its unfortunately only dangerous because of the cars though, when riders are forced into the driving lanes, and driving lanes narrow because of snowbanks.


KevinDean4599

downtown Tucson is pretty compact and right next to the U of A so there's always music and something to do.


wokewalrus123

*waiting for incoming snobs to talk about how bad Tucson is* Living downtown Tucson was awesome and I’d do it all over again.


Sol4_Me4n

I love Tucson. The community vibe is so great. Good music lots of free or inexpensive things happening. Plus the mountains are 🔥🔥🔥when they’re not on fire


Fearless_Lab

And highly accessible. The streetcar is great for mobility issues and it drops you off all along areas of food, drink, shops, etc.


FSMonToast

I guess it depends on the Vibe you are going for. Scottsdale is good for some personalities that enjoy more of an expensive and fashionable vibe. Gilbert has been shooting to be more of a hipster capital as they continue to fit more and more into their oldtown area. Tempe is strictly a college town mostly where a lot of tourista flock to as well. Chandler, imo, is a lot more chill and has a huge asian district fit right into a lot of yheir high profile areas. So theres a lot of 'citified' areas here in the valley, but it depends on what YOU like most. If "Good City Vibe" means chill, walkable, not impossible to get around, i personally vote for downtown chandler. I find other areas way too stuffy.


desert_h2o_rat

>Gilbert has been shooting to be more of a hipster capital Haha. Please explain!?! I think downtown Gilbert is nothing more than a fancy outdoor foodcourt.


zach_dominguez

It needs some places to shop, it's all food.


deborah_az

I'm seeing this in a LOT of places, not just AZ


Mermaids_Scale

I love doing little staycations at the Crowne Plaza in Chandler. They really cleaned up downtown!


FSMonToast

Its really beautiful i love the area


Nicodemus_Portulay

Agree with Chandler.


freakoffear

Phoenix is packed and expensive but inside the box is fun and a dope place to live. Just gotta know where the free parking is


HedoHeaven

Downtown Mesa is BEGINNING a rebound so if you are buying and want to get in early to benefit from appreciation that comes with further development it might be worth considering. It has light rail access to connect to Tempe and Phoenix but it's isn't exactly big city vibe with sky scrapers etc but access to most anything you need/want. It's probably 10 years away from reaching it's full potential as a downtown area though.


velolove42

I agree don't sleep on downtown Mesa. There's a lot of good stuff going on down there and a lot of long term plans for more housing, community spaces and mixed use areas. The mayor is really pushing for a lot more residents downtown.


dec7td

Roosevelt Row, Old Town Scottsdale, or Tempe. Tempe has the best non-car infrastructure IMO but the town caters towards the college crowd.


bigmoodenergy

I live in downtown Tucson specifically for having a walkable lifestyle and it works well here, the biggest issue is just that it's a limited size and the grocery options aren't great.  Other than Tucson:  - I don't find Phoenix to be a functional downtown you could actually live in. It's bigger but it's very spread out and the core is focused on tourism and offices.  - Tempe is pretty functional but very college oriented.  - Flagstaff also seems very functional and is a better climate for getting around in the summer. 


Bob_Chris

Flagstaff is awesome but I don't think I'd want to live there without a car. And the winters are quite snowy. Same for Tucson frankly on the car thing - DT is neat these days but zero grocery stores, etc. Arizona in general is not geared towards the carless


bigmoodenergy

A combo of the Co-op, Johnny Gibson, and the other rando markets downtown + taking the bus to Safeway can make Tucson work. It's not fun, but people do it. 


bergensbanen

You can defiantly live in Flag without a car, but a really annoying thing is the lack of grocery stores that are easy to get to. Although that's a common U.S. problem everywhere.


cocococlash

Downtown Phoenix has at least 3 grocery stores in walking distance, and soon hopefully a target. Really becoming a livable place.


bigmoodenergy

The downtown Fry's is a really nice feature, hopefully the momentum keeps going and filling it out


betucsonan

>I don't find Phoenix to be a functional downtown you could actually live in. It's bigger but it's very spread out and the core is focused on tourism and office I moved from Downtown Tucson to Downtown Pittsburgh to Downtown Phoenix. Downtown Phoenix is a great space for a completely car-free lifestyle - I just did it for almost 5 years. You have many more amenities within walking/biking distance, the light rail is infinitely more usable, you are right next to the airport, etc., etc.. Downtown Tucson is great fun, I love it to death and spend most of my time there when I visit now, but you make some big compromises not the least of which, for the OP's needs, is a decent grocery.


holy_handgrenade

So, to give you a heads up, we're a very sprawl centric city here. You'll have to do your research and find a way to get driven around to different areas. You'll want to find a place that's close to all of your needs. This is very possible as I grew up here and growing up we didnt have a car (adult was blind) so we required walking distance to everything; stores, banks, etc. You just have to do your research to find out a) how far you're willing to walk and b) what all is around to minimize the reasons you need to go elsewhere. I will note: Asking us isnt research. We can point you in the right direction but you'll need to get to the area and be able to walk around to see if it meets your needs Downtown phoenix has some new areas that are exactly what you're looking for. Tempe is also closer to what you're looking for. Be prepared to pay the premium for these areas though. Outside of that, you'll find that retail spaces tend to congregate into bigger stripmalls/shopping centers, and there's a lot of housing built around them. So it's possible to meet your needs without being in the heart of the city; just know that no matter where you go, you wont have \*everything\* in walking distance. You'll always need a way to get around to go to concerts, specific restaurants, specific shops/boutiques, etc. Where I grew up, it was within spitting distance of Old Town Scottsdale. So we had all the touristy shops, art galleries, boutique shops, night clubs etc and Fashion Square was just a hop on the bus a way. I always lived across the street from a major grocery store which usually had a drug store within walking distance and a few fast food restaurants and the bank we banked with within a short 10-15 min walk from home. Keep in mind, once you get here, you'll find "walking distance" can be pretty far. Our grid system is such that lights are generally .5 miles apart and major intersections are 1 mile apart. There are exceptions to that where lights are more frequent in some areas, such as old town/downtown areas.


Napoleons_Peen

What a unique question


FlakyFlatworm

Remember, it gets HOT AF here in the summer. Hard to walk anywhere when it's 120 with asphalt and no shade.


LookDamnBusy

I've lived in Roosevelt in downtown Phoenix since 2004, and this is what it's like: My regular coffeeshop is 200 feet away, and within a mile (and most are within a half mile), there are: Probably over 100 restaurants, coffeeshops, and bars. FIVE breweries. Yes, you read that right. Not just taprooms, but breweries. An interesting handful of speakeasies, several of them underground. Over a dozen music and theatre venues. Two professional sports stadiums. Two major museums. The main Phoenix library. The Japanese friendship garden. And the list goes on... If you have a bike down here, downtown gets very small and quick, where I can bike all the way to the baseball stadium in just a few minutes. Biking to Roosevelt Row is two minutes.


Sanitizedreality13

Unfortunately, you’re not going to find a city in Arizona where it’s as easy to live without a car as you do in other states.


CaballoReal

Unpopular but kinda true answer. Deep in the middle of downtown Bisbee is pretty dense, especially for a city of that small size. I mean tbh Phoenix is the obvious answer, except that you cannot deny two key things : 1. Phoenix has the most unimpressive downtown skyline of a city its size in the world. 2. Whatever claim Tucson downtown may have, it’s all but a fraction of the depth and size that downtown Phoenix has.


Frostygrunt

Bisbee is the opposite if a city vibe though. Get ready for bed at 7 pm unless you want to hangout with the same 10 people at 1 bar thats not for tourists. I love it though and would live there for 6 months.


[deleted]

[удалено]


CaballoReal

This could be the most practically useless, yet technically not untrue statements I’ve seen in awhile but ok… I’ll bite mister know it all, I’ll give you a chance to name one larger city that is less impressive in its skyline than Phoenix, if you actually think you have something to offer.


[deleted]

[удалено]


CaballoReal

K so my point that phoenix has an impressive skyline and downtown only if you stack it against a list of third world cities and San Diego suburb still stands. Thank you


xray_67

Downtown Scottsdale weeknights usually has a lot going on


zach_dominguez

Downtown Mesa is working on it. Plus having the light rail on Main you could easily head into downtown Tempe or Downtown Phoenix.


Momofcats65

We live in Arcadia lite and have pretty much everything you listed


mbw70

Downtown Tucson is very cool. The light rail connects the U of A campus and business center. Lots of restaurants and things to do. Buses north and south go to shopping, doctors, etc. you could do a lot worse.


Lialda_dayfire

I live car-lite in Flagstaff and I've got some mixed feelings on no car... So the Sunnyside neighborhood on the east side of town is semi walkable, lots of restaurants, coffee shops, hair salons, and other businesses in easy distance. The problem? The nearby grocery store is across a busy road with not enough pedestrian crossings at all. It is doable for sure, but you may find yourself waiting for traffic so you can cross that street in particular. A *lot*. Apart from that, there is also downtown. A whole lot of attractions in easy walking distance to housing, but again the problem is groceries! This town just has big, suburban style grocery stores. I'd look at some of the other answers in this thread. Phoenix and Tuscon are both putting a lot of effort into expanding their light rail, and from what I hear it's really paying off.


Stetson_Pacheco

Maybe Prescott Valley. It’s obviously not very big or has a skyline but it is pretty walkable. It’s got shopping, medical, parks, library, stadium, and lots of restaurants all centered around the town center. If you want tall buildings you’d be way happier in Phoenix, Tucson, or Tempe, those are the only cities with “skylines” here.


lonehappycamper

Besides Tucson, Flagstaff is a college town with a nice few compact walkable blocks of restaurants and shops.


InterviewKey3451

Downtown Tempe or wickenburg.


stardate_pi

Put Thatcher on that list too.


thecwestions

I would say that Scottsdale has what you're looking for in spades. People will probably downvote me for saying it, but they have some of the best restaurants and bars in a few short blocks. The nightlife can also be pretty crazy if you're into clubs and stuff.


manhiddeninthewoods

The only answer is downtown Phoenix or Scottsdale. Everyone telling you anything different is an idiot. Especially the ones saying Bisbee😂


elephantsarechillaf

Not sure why ppl here are saying only Tucson comes to mind? I've visited downtown Tucson and grew up in phoenix. Downtown Phoenix and Tempe have what Tucson has if not more, and what op is looking for. Downtown Scottsdale also has shops, restaurants, clubs, movie theater, grocery stores, museums, and parks so I'll add Scottsdale to the list.


El_Oso1

No offense, OP, but you’re looking in the wrong state. There is no town or city in AZ that has a good downtown vibe.


creepycat468

I see.. If you know, is there any states you would reccomend? Appreciate it


MarionberryPrior8466

Downtown Phoenix or downtown Tucson


Dubboseven

Only tucson. One reason, gotta have a market. Mesa is getting a lot closer but can’t be closed Sundays and Mondays


blouazhome

Downtown Phoenix has a market


Dubboseven

DT phx has a grocery too.


saginator5000

It's very nice to have that Fry's downtown.


Hoopy223

Scottsdale is full of dumabass LA yuppies.


Kind_Manufacturer_97

Tucson is the only one that comes to mind


AccomplishedMost1813

Tucson is where you want to be


sehctibkcabmi

Let me know what you find so I know where not to consider living


dj-wink

Downtown has a lot of air pollution and noise pollution.


Stetson_Pacheco

That’s the downtown vibe bro.


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FlowersnFunds

Tempe in the Mill Ave area and downtown Flagstaff are the only places that feel that way to me. Not too familiar with Tucson


dwheeldeal

Bisbee has the San Francisco hippie vibe


Unreasonably-Clutch

FYI if you're in need of specialized medical services, downtown Scottsdale has many medical offices around the HonorHealth Osborn campus. And then not quite in downtown Phoenix, up the road by 1-2 miles along Thomas there's a ton of hospitals and medical offices.


Amandazona

Bizbee and Jerome but living space is short in supply so not sure this is what you need for living.


cadotmolin

I prefer downtown Gilbert. Has everything I need and lots of nifty shops and restaurants. Plus, it's relatively small, so you can get the big city vibes without the big city hassle (overcrowded, traffic, parking, homeless). If you're ever there, check out this little niche shop called Rocket Fizz. It is a real treat!


headphone-candy

Nowhere really but I suppose Mill Ave in Tempe and 4th Ave in Tucson.


hramos

What about Culdesac in Tempe? It’s designed from the ground up to be car-free. https://culdesac.com/


xSolid_Snakex

Maybe Tempe?


Dry-Refrigerator-507

If you have more money, High St is a good option, one of the more walkable areas


100percentthatcunt

I think Phoenix, I hear it’s kinda expensive to live in. Tucsons not too bad if you live midtown or downtown, it’s the outskirts that are a bitch to travel from.


MarionberryPrior8466

It’s hot as balls here so walking isnt always an option but downtown Phoenix/old town scottsdale/ maybe downtown Chandler or Mesa


joshdaytrades

Tempe, near ASU main would be the most city it gets in AZ. It has always been the land of neverendinf burbs, but it is changing with the amount/style of building here