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Seven Things I Hate About Sedona
By Marv Lincoln | June 20, 2007
For more than 12 glorious years we have lived in this wondrous place, basking in the glow of the red rocks, exploring, living, giving, working, meditating. We love being strands in the fabric of the metaphysical matrix that is Sedona.
And yet, and yet…There are several things I absolutely hate, loathe and detest about this small town in the high desert. Let me explain:
1) It is a tourist town, yes, and our millions of visitors each year provide the income stream that makes this place economically viable and vibrant. But the locals are often forgotten when it comes to such things as infrastructure, public services and recreational facilities.
Our pro-development politicians have turned Sedona into a hodgepodge of overpriced, red-hued McMansions. Lavish, expensive resorts are allowed in the most inappropriate places (on the one major street; in the middle of National Forest land). Which means….
2) The idea of small town character, one of the Chamber of Commerce’s main talking points, is a joke. Our one major street is choked with traffic. This is one of the worst driving towns in America. I have seen better and more respectful driving in Bombay.
3) Sedona is one of the worst-managed towns in America, especially when you consider its worldwide fame and number of visitors. Our politicians are incompetent amateurs and make terrible decisions. Most city council members have vested business interests in the community, and are blatantly self-serving. There is widespread waste and duplication of effort (e.g., trash pickup done by five different companies!).
4) Sedona is timeshare paradise. Many say the timeshare “owners” contribute greatly to our economy, but this is far from true. Most of these deluded victims of high-pressure sales techniques are cheap, rude, aggressive and overweight. They contribute nothing except more traffic on the streets, more litter in the forest, and more money in the pockets of timeshare salespeople — and the big corporations that own the timeshare operations.
5) Many old-time residents as well as dwellers-come-lately have the Sedona Attitude: “Oh, I’m from Sedona!”, said with a snooty tone that once suggested the Hamptons or Cape Cod or Beverly Hills. As if living in this overpriced, traffic-clogged, sweltering-summer, draught-plagued hick town makes you something special.
6) We love our immigrants here, legal or illegal, it doesn’t matter. Unfortunately, too many of them have a really stinking attitude. They think, because this is supposedly the Land of the Free (!), that you can do whatever the hell you want: Drive around drunk, beat your wife, litter our streets, play loud, offensive music, misbehave in myriad ways. The authorities often look the other way because we need these people. Oh, really….?
7) Sedona is an economic nightmare. Prices of everything from clothing to furniture to restaurant food are pegged to tap the tourist wallet, so most locals have to shop or dine out in nearby towns. Jobs are plentiful, but wages suck big-time. Most people who work in Sedona can’t afford to live in the place. “Affordable housing,” an oxymoron on a par with “military intelligence,” is a concept still being spun by local politicians. Public transportation is another popular oxymoron.
There you have it: Seven good, solid reasons why I hate this town. But don’t get me wrong….I love Sedona.
Topics: Rants & Raves |
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