12 MOST HATED Northern California Towns — Locals Begged Us Not to Include #3

Overview

The video is a commentary-style countdown arguing that Northern California’s “postcard” image conceals severe, place-specific crises—such as economic collapse, disaster aftermath, homelessness, and/or police corruption and violence.

The creator also claims that locals in multiple towns specifically asked not to be included, and frames the series as advice to do “homework” before relocating.

Core themes and recurring claims

Across the list, the creator emphasizes:

• Economic decline and job loss: Major employers are described as leaving permanently, with lingering unemployment, weakened safety nets, and reduced population stability.
• Natural disasters and inadequate recovery: Wildfires and other disasters are portrayed as recurring shocks that strain housing, infrastructure, and community resilience.
• Policing problems and racial/civil-rights violations: Multiple towns are highlighted for alleged racist practices, wrongful or excessive force, and cases where prosecutions allegedly falter due to officer credibility.
• Homelessness and public-safety strain: Several places are described as facing visible, chronic unsheltered homelessness and substance-abuse crises.
• Misleading “affordability” narratives: The creator disputes the idea that low housing prices automatically indicate good value, arguing instead that “cheap” reflects deeper structural problems.

Town-by-town highlights (main arguments and reported evidence)

#12 Weed (Siskiyou County)

• Presents Weed as a “charming” facade that collapses under repeated disaster and industry withdrawal.
• Cites major job loss after Roseburg Forest Products shut down a veneer plant (Dec 3, 2025), eliminating about 140 jobs in a town of ~2,800 (roughly 5% unemployed overnight).
• Links vulnerability to a disaster cycle:
  • 2014 Boles Fire
  • 2022 Mill Fire (allegedly began at the same facility; killed two people while destroying many homes)
  • Then the mill’s permanent closure, leaving vacant lots and un-rebuilt areas.

#11 Crescent City (Del Norte County)

• Emphasizes extreme tsunami vulnerability, citing:
  • Destruction from the 1964 Alaska earthquake tsunami
  • Destruction from the 2011 Japan tsunami
• Argues the local economy relies heavily on Pelican Bay State Prison, where nearly half the city’s official population is incarcerated.
• Reports declining non-incarcerated population, low median household income (about $35,000), and youth outmigration—framing isolation as both scenic and economically trapping.

#10 Susanville (Lassen County)

• Argues the town “mortgaged its future” to prison employment.
• Claims Governor Newsom shut down the California Correctional Center in 2023, and Susanville sued to block the closure because the prison represented about 45% of local jobs.
• Describes post-closure downtown decline: empty storefronts, for-sale signs, and officers commuting or leaving.

#9 Marysville (Yuba County)

• Contrasts expected Gold Rush/river charm with downtown deterioration (boarded windows, quiet streets).
• Reports high crime metrics (about 28 per 1,000; 1 in 36 people victimized annually).
• Mentions residents’ talk of a meth/fentanyl problem and theft/cases not being reported unless severe.
• Includes a cited reviewer sentiment: moving from Marysville to Oakland as presented evidence of perceived severity.

#8 Eureka (Humboldt County)

• Centers homelessness as a defining crisis: “more homeless people per capita than any other city in California,” including tourists encountering open drug use and aggressive panhandling.
• Explains economic collapse through:
  • Decline of timber
  • Disruption of cannabis economics after legalization in 2016 (corporate growers flooding the market; street prices collapsing)
• Cites a civil grand jury investigation alleging ineffective enforcement spending (up to $13,000 to prosecute individuals without reducing street homelessness) and rising unsheltered counts (513 in 2015 to 653 by 2019).
• Notes local political conflict over affordable housing—portrayed as paralyzing development.

#7 Redding (Shasta County)

• Challenges the “affordable escape” narrative using wildfire-smoke conditions and high housing pressure.
• Reports a low vacancy rate (~2%) alongside rent/wage mismatch and encampments in parks, under overpasses, and along the river—visible from a major landmark.
• Claims most homeless residents are long-term locals (not “imports”).
• Adds political instability: far-right-led local governance conflict and recall/campaign dynamics described as turning county politics ideological.

#6 Oroville (Butte County)

• Frames Oroville around the Oroville Dam spillway catastrophe (2017), describing massive evacuation (about 188,000 people across multiple counties) and repairs costing $1.1 billion over nearly two years.
• Argues the crisis exposed long-term deferred maintenance and broader infrastructure neglect.
• Connects it to regional fire context (nearby Camp Fire destroying Paradise and killing 85).
• Leaves a lingering question: after repairing the dam, residents doubt what else remains neglected.

#5 Modesto (Stanislaus County)

• Emphasizes auto theft as a pervasive local norm, citing per-capita vehicle theft rankings (National Insurance Crime Bureau) and describing it as culturally normalized.
• Adds homelessness: 2024 point-in-time count claims 1,622 homeless individuals in Modesto alone (about 79% of county total).
• Notes chronic poor air quality and includes the lasting “Scott Peterson” association as part of local stigma.
• Portrays everyday life as shaped by safety concerns (e.g., a motel clerk instructing staff to park under a security camera).

#4 Antioch (Contra Costa County)

• Focuses on police corruption and civil-rights violations.
• Claims a federal + district attorney investigation (2019–2022) found many officers exchanged racist, homophobic, and violent text messages.
• States about 40% of officers were placed on leave and that FBI/DA actions followed, including indictments.
• Mentions consequences for prosecutions: cases allegedly collapsing because prosecutors couldn’t trust officer testimony.
• Provides crime-rate and vehicle theft probability figures to support a “high risk” depiction.

#3 Vallejo (Solano County)

• Presents Vallejo as a town locals resisted including after publicized failures.
• Cites Chapter 9 bankruptcy (2008), blaming city finances—especially police/fire salaries, pensions, and overtime—consuming much of the general fund and leaving little for basic services.
• Claims police staffing reductions and closed fire stations accompanied the collapse, with violent crime rising.
• Highlights police use-of-force deaths, providing counts and describing nationally reported shootings (including an alleged 55-round incident into a sleeping man’s car, and another killing while on knees).
• Mentions over $7 million in civil settlement payouts linked to police force.

#2 Clear Lake (Lake County)

• Describes Clear Lake as among California’s most economically distressed communities.
• Reports high poverty (25.5%, one-quarter below the federal poverty line) and low median household income estimates ranging widely.
• Claims high crime (about 27 per 1,000) and visible meth/opioid crisis.
• Notes the 2015 Valley Fire destroying many homes and that property values and insurance access deteriorated (premiums too high or insurers stopping policies).
• Concludes the region remains largely ignored by state-level decision-makers.

#1 Stockton (San Joaquin County)

• Saved for the end as the “worst/troubled” town, citing Forbes naming Stockton the most miserable city in America.
• Argues “miserable” reflects systemic conditions:
  • Chapter 9 municipal bankruptcy (2012) attributed to overbuilding during the housing boom without adequate funding for pensions/benefits, followed by crash-era revenue collapse
  • Police reductions (roughly 27%) and dissolution of specialized units; homicide rate increases and unemployment nearing 16%
  • Violent crime reported as ~1,397 per 100,000, described as far above the state average
  • Mentions FBI data ranking Stockton among the most dangerous in California
• Highlights South Stockton as the crisis epicenter, linking it to redlining and disinvestment.
• Uses school district claims: large unspent pandemic-relief funds (over $241 million unspent, per grand jury investigation) and high student poverty (~80%).
• Ends with a personal vignette: a lifelong resident doesn’t want to leave but limits children’s independent play—framed as a “no dramatic pause” statement of normal fear.

Presenters / contributors

• Presenter/Creator (unnamed): The video host narrating the countdown (no name given in the subtitles).