How safe is the western portion of Bucktown? (Oakdale: apartment, condo)

[thenine]

My wife and I are about to sign on for an apartment in West Bucktown. It is about one block west of western and one block south of Armitage. My wife and I are both new to the city, and city living, and want to make sure we are in a good area. We walked around last night and things seemed ok, but we wanted to double check.

Thanks

[thenine]

Make that one block EAST of Western

[dragoro]

I'm new here too but I think I heard its better on east side of western.

[Humboldt1]

East of western is better but one block west in that area is okay as well. You have good access to L. You are in bucktown, east of western. There is no west bucktown, only logan square, though technically bucktown is part of the logan square neighborhood. South of bloomingdale is wicker park, which is part of the west town neighborhood.

[Avengerfire]

I would stay east of Western as much as possible.

[Drover]

I spend a lot of time in that area, as a frequent patron of The Map Room (two blocks from Western/Armitage), Gallery Caberet (one block from Western/Armitage) and Arturo's Tacos (literally on the corner of Western and Armitage), often well into the early hours of the morning, and not always in optimal command of my faculties. The most untoward thing I've ever seen in that area was a fistfight between a couple of drunks in the parking lot at Arturo's. That said, Milwaukee Avenue, particularly northwest of the Western/Armitage/Milwaukee intersection, is a pretty active drug-dealing corridor and that sometimes results in fights, stabbings, the occasional shooting, and junkies strong-arming people to get some dough for a fix. It's usually fine during the daytime, but I wouldn't walk that corridor alone at night, especially if there aren't a lot of other people walking up and down the street.

[Phl_Gd]

The "West of Western" Vs "East of Western" stuff is really not as applicable where you are looking. Fortunately, that blanket assertion is getting a bit outdated. Specifically, where you are looking, you will see that the 'hoods immediately on either side of Western are quite similar. We are in this area everyday and with the exception of the traffic/activity/rowdiness associated right outside an L station, it is pretty good. Not sure if you are looking Single Family or Condo but there are some really nice single family homes east of Oakdale and Leavitt. Lends to the future of the area you are looking.

[Avengerfire]

Originally Posted by Phl_Gd

The "West of Western" Vs "East of Western" stuff is really not as applicable where you are looking. Fortunately, that blanket assertion is getting a bit outdated. Specifically, where you are looking, you will see that the 'hoods immediately on either side of Western are quite similar. We are in this area everyday and with the exception of the traffic/activity/rowdiness associated right outside an L station, it is pretty good. Not sure if you are looking Single Family or Condo but there are some really nice single family homes east of Oakdale and Leavitt. Lends to the future of the area you are looking.

There is a big difference being a block or two west of Western than a block or two east of Western in terms of who your neighbors are.

[Phl_Gd]

Recall that Western Ave runs almost the entire length of our great city...my point (of rule being a bit dated) referred to the fact that you cannot uniformly apply that rule with a street as long as Western that goes though various diverse neighborhoods. There is almost a reliance on that mantra and to be frank, there are several places East of Western that are no joke either. I think some judgement as to the where specifically on Western, needs to be excercised before we throw out the "rule". The pocket in particular that the poster refers to is very familiar to me and there is almost a 'blending' of both sides of Western. I would agree that there are several points along Western where you can use "the rule"

[Avengerfire]

Originally Posted by Phl_Gd

Recall that Western Ave runs almost the entire length of our great city...my point (of rule being a bit dated) referred to the fact that you cannot uniformly apply that rule with a street as long as Western that goes though various diverse neighborhoods. There is almost a reliance on that mantra and to be frank, there are several places East of Western that are no joke either. I think some judgement as to the where specifically on Western, needs to be excercised before we throw out the "rule". The pocket in particular that the poster refers to is very familiar to me and there is almost a 'blending' of both sides of Western. I would agree that there are several points along Western where you can use "the rule"

I was simply speaking about around the Armitage area. I thought that was fairly obvious.