Questions About Eureka Neighborhoods (Arcata, McKinleyville: high crime, co-op, homes)

[freepelican]

Hi All. Try as I may, I cannot find a good map/guide describing the Eureka neighborhoods online. If anyone knows of one, could you please PM it to me (I don't think city-data.com allows external links on posts).

Also, can you guys help me know what neighborhoods to avoid, i.e. high crime or just icky spots, and suggest neighborhoods that I might like. I also realize there are sometimes good/bad pockets within neighborhoods so any advice on this would also be appreciated.

I've read that "Broadway" is an area to avoid and I know that's part of 101 but where does this section of 101 start and end? I've also read to avoid the "downtown" area for living but I need to know more what streets form the boundaries of this.

Right now, I'm thinking I want to be relatively close to the northern/eastern end of 101 so I can get to the 255 bridge fast and also head north (to the beaches like Trinidad and Arcata Marsh) really fast without having to go through as many red lights/traffic on the way. I also don't want to be too far inland or too far away from the co-op and the Eureka Nature Foods store, both of which I really liked.

No kids involved so this isn't an important issue for me personally.

Also, love neighborhoods with trees. Love water views too but realize that's a pipe dream that probably won't happen :-)

Just so you know... I visited the area not very long ago exploring everything from Eureka to a little north of Trinidad in more detail and got an overview of the areas a little north and south of this stretch too. Before visiting, I thought I would like Arcata best for living but it did not turn out that way, although the marsh is nice and I like the fact there is a university in the area. Wasn't expecting to like Eureka as much as I did but it appealed to me in multiple ways that surprised me (like some of the artwork I accidentally ran into and architecture around and the waterfront was much more quaint than I expected and I kept running into genuinely friendly down to earth people.. and even Palco Marsh was another nice surprise), especially now that I've had time to digest what I saw on the trip. However, I did not have time to explore all of Eureka unfortunately, and certainly did not get a good feel for all the neighborhoods. Also, I loved the coast from Moonstone north of course... beautiful and serene... but I think living there might seem a bit too isolated after a while. I think I would find myself driving to Eureka fairly often and wishing I had the amenities there and the community feel. I like the fact that the area is an easy drive away though.... if I had a magic wand, I'd move it even closer! Also, I really tried to like McKinleyville, and it wasn't bad or anything, but it just didn't call my name so to speak. I wasn't overly impressed with the access to the water from the "city" itself (is it incorporated now?) and there isn't much in the way of natural/organic food like you find in Eureka. I think I would have liked it a lot more if kids were involved. Anyway, just trying to let you know where I am coming from.

Thanks in advance to all who reply!

[TheDragonslayer]

Again, I apologize for being harsh in your other thread.

First off, good neighborhoods in Eureka. One is Myrtletown at the top end of Myrtle by the fair grounds and it has access to Old Arcata/Bayside road which used to be the route to Eureka before 101. Parts of Henderson Center are nice too with some nice Craftsman homes. I also like parts of H, L, J, K etc between Henderson center and Wabash. Anything too close to Broadway or downtown tends to have higher crime, drugs and noise. There are parts of Harris to the south near Redwood park and the zoo that are really nice and so is Cutten. I love the architecture in Eureka compared to the lack of architecture in McKinleyville and if I could afford to, I would buy a nice Victorian in Eureka as a second house. Anything near the Bayshore mall or the old mall on Harris is too busy and has higher crime, same with old town or near Target. There are some nice parts of Eureka.

Have you looked at Blue Lake yet, it is about 5 minutes inland from Arcata on 299, much warmer in the summer time, but not too hot and with 299 it has easy access to 101 and the coast. It is incorporated, as is Trinidad. McKinleyville is still unincorporated and that is a big problem when it comes to having our issues addressed by the county, but we are almost as big as Arcata now and it has necessitated a community advisory committee to give us a voice and some control over the towns growth. Very important to us are routes through town that do not require a car or getting on the highway. Eureka is not very pedestrian friendly or bike friendly.

[freepelican]

Originally Posted by TheDragonslayer

Again, I apologize for being harsh in your other thread.

First off, good neighborhoods in Eureka. One is Myrtletown at the top end of Myrtle by the fair grounds and it has access to Old Arcata/Bayside road which used to be the route to Eureka before 101. Parts of Henderson Center are nice too with some nice Craftsman homes. I also like parts of H, L, J, K etc between Henderson center and Wabash. Anything too close to Broadway or downtown tends to have higher crime, drugs and noise. There are parts of Harris to the south near Redwood park and the zoo that are really nice and so is Cutten. I love the architecture in Eureka compared to the lack of architecture in McKinleyville and if I could afford to, I would buy a nice Victorian in Eureka as a second house. Anything near the Bayshore mall or the old mall on Harris is too busy and has higher crime, same with old town or near Target. There are some nice parts of Eureka.

Have you looked at Blue Lake yet, it is about 5 minutes inland from Arcata on 299, much warmer in the summer time, but not too hot and with 299 it has easy access to 101 and the coast. It is incorporated, as is Trinidad. McKinleyville is still unincorporated and that is a big problem when it comes to having our issues addressed by the county, but we are almost as big as Arcata now and it has necessitated a community advisory committee to give us a voice and some control over the towns growth. Very important to us are routes through town that do not require a car or getting on the highway. Eureka is not very pedestrian friendly or bike friendly.

I appreciate the apology.

Not interested in Blue Lake as a place to live but will visit of course (I've heard you can buy raw milk there at a casino store). I've pretty much narrowed it down to Eureka. I had seriously considered the Sunny Brae area of Arcata and the area around Old Arcata Road, and haven't yet 100% ruled it out, but after a lot of soul searching I think Eureka would work best for me, especially if I can have easy access to 101 and 255.

That's the second time I've read about "Henderson center"... is that a local name for a certain area of town or is it an actual center of some type? Where is it exactly?

I should probably start another thread on this one but I'm also wanting to hear impressions about St. Joseph Hospital. I've read some terrible things and some great things and not much in the middle. Are they able to handle most emergencies and medical conditions? Is it true that if you go to the emergency room you have to wait a REALLY long time? I ask because it is a really long ways to another hospital! What about dentists? General doctors? Specialists?

[TheDragonslayer]

Henderson center has a grocery store called Winco, a blockbuster video store, Michaels and a Staples office center. It is a few blocks over from Broadway and can be got to from Broadway not far from Bayshore mall by taking West Harris, or from old town taking H to Henderson and heading south/west till you see the Winco sign. It took me a few years to get used to the one way streets in Eureka and I used to get all turned around at H, Henderson, Harrison and Harris combos, now I am used to it since I have yards in Eureka. Bayview and Lundbar hills near the golf course are other nice areas of Eureka, though they all are really the surrounding communities that are not part of Eureka, but make up over 40,000 people in its metro area.