Southside area of Birmingham (Gardendale, Vincent: for rent, house, neighborhoods)

[vinbigD]

great info!! any thoughts on where to find a good street map of the area so i can gauge what listings to steer clear of? Thanks for all the help everyone!

[cpg35223]

Originally Posted by vinbigD

great info!! any thoughts on where to find a good street map of the area so i can gauge what listings to steer clear of? Thanks for all the help everyone!

Here you go. this map is less accurate once you get to the suburbs.

Birmingham Crime Map - Showing Crime in Birmingham, AL - Crime Statistics - Crime Alerts - Crime Stops Here

[vinbigD]

the map is great! thanks. we will be visiting in the next couple of weeks. are avondale, crestwood, forest park different parts of southside or are they all subdivisions unto themselves?

[cpg35223]

Originally Posted by vinbigD

the map is great! thanks. we will be visiting in the next couple of weeks. are avondale, crestwood, forest park different parts of southside or are they all subdivisions unto themselves?

Well, it really depends on who you talk to. As 3 a.m. pointed out, some see Southside as a well defined area stretching westward from Five Points South all the way to the Green Springs Highway, while others tend to see it as a more general description of the northern slope of Red Mountain.

As far as the three areas you described are concerned, I would think of them as neighborhoods rather than subdivisions, for each really has a distinctive character and charm.

Avondale (South of Fifth Avenue...an important distinction) and Forest Park abut one another. Avondale is more where you'll find a lot of young professionals, creative types, medical interns, etc. The same is true of Crestwood, but there are fewer people in Crestwood with children.

Forest Park, which really stretches out along Clairmont Avenue tends to have more established families, the ones with enough money to afford really nice private schools.

So, having no idea about your income level, here's what I would recommend:

1) Moderate income, pre-school kids: Avondale
2) Higher income, pre-school kids: Forest Park
3) Moderate income, school-age kids: Mountain Brook or Homewood (Some sections are quite affordable and the schools are excellent. Plus you're close into the city).
4) High income, school-age kids: Forest Park, Mountain Brook or Redmont (Sandwiched between Forest Park and Mountain Brook). Be prepared to send your kids to private school.

I know somebody will take exception to this list, but the schools were a huge issue with us. We paid tuition for nine years to private schools before we finally threw up our hands and moved to Mountain Brook. However, most families of more moderate means make the move by the time their kids hit seven or eight.

On the whole, those parts of town offer really convenient living. A little like heaven on earth, really.

[vinbigD]

Well, I would consider us to be closer to high than moderate with no children living at home. We do not have to worry about the schools systems except as it relates to resale value.

I have found some nice homes online in the Avondale and Crestwood areas. I will have to check out Forest Park.

I noticed some houses we really like do not have garages which would be important for me.

I really appreciate everyone's input.

[cpg35223]

Originally Posted by vinbigD

Well, I would consider us to be closer to high than moderate with no children living at home. We do not have to worry about the schools systems except as it relates to resale value.

I have found some nice homes online in the Avondale and Crestwood areas. I will have to check out Forest Park.

I noticed some houses we really like do not have garages which would be important for me.

I really appreciate everyone's input.

Good deal. Do us a favor and let us know your impressions when you get back from your scouting trip.

[pvjd]

Regarding Avondale, you will want to look into ALL of Avondale first before deciding whether to live there. I am not trying to be negative or bash the place, but there is a lot of drug activity and prostitution, as well as gang activity and crime in Avondale. Forest Park is Forest Park, I don't consider that to really be part of Avondale, though it is very close to it. If you ask the police dept. for crime stats, they will verify what I am saying to you. I am there several times a week for work, and parts of Avondale rival any other dangerous section of N. or W. Birmingham.

[drfranklin]

My wife and I lived in Southside for several years before moving from Birmingham in 2003. We loved it! I attended med school at UAB and lived literally "down the road" from all the hospitals. We bought a home on 10th Ave South and lived in an area my family called "Little Lebanon" - we had great neighbors! Mostly from the Middle East who had lived in B'ham for years.

Southside is extremely diverse and much more liberal than other parts of the B'ham metro. The dining scene was very good and I'm sure its even better now. Birmingham city schools are terrible and I would not want to live there with school-aged kids.

Another area to consider is Homewood (just to the south). I recently visited Birmingham (has been quite a while) and was amazed at the transformation of "downtown" Homewood (SOHO Square).

[vinbigD]

thanks for the input! I embrace diverse and love the idea to being close to great restaurants and city life. What types of venues would host traveling theater companies or speakers like David Sedaris?

[jakabedy]

The Alys Stephens Center (part of UAB) is a nice medium sized house with a good arts calendar. I've seen George Carlin, Spalding Gray, Canadian Brass, etc. there. The Alabama Theater is a restored Vaudeville theater from the 1920s downtown and gets good shows as well (John Prine, Lyle Lovett, and I think David Sedaris was just there).

For traveling theater, you're talking mostly the road shows of the big broadway shows and they'll be at the civic center. But there is a thriving local theater community.

Back to the neighborhoods . . . you need to consider what type of house you want. Southside and Five Points is ca. 1900-1920. Lots of wood, no attached garages, beautiful old homes. Forest Park/Redmont are the original blue blood neighborhoods. Lots of brick Tudor and storybook-style homes, 3,000 square feet and up, many with views. These are your priciest areas inside the city.

The label "Forest Park" gets attached to several areas trying to cash in on the cache. Anything more than a block or so south of Clairmont/8th Ave. So./University Blvd. isn't really Forest Park anymore. The Tudors turn to ranches and a few MCM homes and you are really in Avonwood and/or Crestwood South. Lots of great rock solid 1950s-60s ranch homes in South Crestwood, though (i.e., garages). Cross Crestwood Blvd and you are in Crestwood North, which is a few more ranches, then postwar cottages, then 1920s bungalows (Glen Iris/Little Beirut area on the other side of Southside gets these types of homes as well). Cross the first tracks and it is still Crestwood, but getting close to Woodlawn (not as safe). Don't go past the next set of tracks.

There have also been a lot of high-style condos built in the area in the last 5-6 years. If you're not tied to a single family home, you should consider the condos, as well.