Oberlin?? (Lorain, Elyria: crime, private schools, college)

[BelieveInCleve]

Ive been to Oberlin many times, know people that live there, have lived there for a little while and grew up not too far away. Oberlins crime rate is low and is average at worst. The town only has 8,000 people in it and theres basically only one side of town. I dont understand why you would want Oberlin to look bad. Overall Oberlin is a very safe place. If you look at neighborhoods in Elyria and Lorain which are far worse then Oberlin, you will understand that Oberlin is safe.

I live in North Ridgeville now, but I grew up on the Southside of Elyria (near East Ave.) in the 90s, im now in my late 20s. We had real gangs in South Elyria and our stores got robbed a lot and gunshots were heard a lot especially in the summer, and the area is no better today. We had murders on the main roads and the projects so it was nothing new. Luckily I was never involved in any of that and I got out of that neighborhood. All im saying is that Oberlin is a not a bad place and dont make it out to look like one.

[newmex]

If all you see is crime, that how high your social interaction bar is set. If all you see is shoot-em-up movies, that's about all your cultural scope is as a base.

Oberlin is a great place to go to. Finney Chapel is a great place to go see concerts. Dave Brubeck broke the music conservatory barrier there back in the early '50's with a jazz concert at Finney Chapel, which was later released on Fantasy as "Jazz at Oberlin". Nice disc. The interior let alone the acoustics inside Finney Chapel are something to be seen and heard.

Finney Chapel

I've seen Bill Frisell, Bill Bruford, Bela Fleck and others take stage there. There was a nice bookstore on a corner, although watered down by new management. There's also a house designed by Frank Lloyd Wright, which is opened for tours, I think. Not to mention the art museum. Tuition is at the elitist level, liberal. If it were conservative, who would be playing concerts there, what would be hanging on the walls of the museums?

Makes one wonder...

[newmex]

Can't say it better

[jicle]

Oberlin is a city in Lorain County, Ohio, United States, to the south and west of Cleveland. Oberlin is perhaps best known for being the home of Oberlin College, a liberal arts college and music conservatory with approximately 3,000 students. The population was 8,195 at the 2000 census.
The second largest employer in Oberlin (after the eponymous College) is the Federal Aviation Administration, which houses an Air Route Traffic Control Center in the town. This particular center is one of the most transitioned air traffic control centers in the country, and oversees the airspace over 6 states and a small part of Canada.
Oberlin is governed by a city manager and a seven-member council which is elected to two-year terms in a non-partisan election. In January 2007 Oberlin City Council appointed Planning director Gary Boyle as Interim City Manager. He is expected to serve while city council conducts a search for a permanent replacement.

Thats from wikepedia, lol.

[greenpeace]

But what I did say was that this area in general has a crime problem.
And as for the schools go, they do have a big problem. Some of my friends children go to Oberlin High school, and they complain about all the fights that go on that the teachers aren't aware of, gang controlled ones.

As an Oberlin High school graduate of 2002 i can say with full and open honesty that in 4 years of highschool i witnessed maybe 4 or 5 fights and none were "gang" related. its actually laughable to think that the outside view of Oberlin High school is such.There are no gangs. No it isn't the most amazing highschool in the area. It needs tons of improvement. But it also lacks the funding for it.The schools are very poor. No they aren't the best. But i received a one of a kind experience there, and wouldn't trade it for any snooty private school in or around lorain county. Furthermore i would also like to say that i was born in oberlin and have lived there my whole life, minus college. i've never for a moment felt unsafe there. i'm a girl, and have never felt i couldn't walk from one end of the town to the other alone at night even.oberlin is a wonderful and beautiful place. its peaceful. and nothing like any of the surrounding towns. its a unique place for unique people. who are open minded and willing to accept that the college is also apart of our town. including the students college or from the oberlin school district.you should also know that oberlin high school graduates have an oppurtunity with the college to go there tuition free if accepted.so make sure you ask advice about the town from people who've actually lived there... or maybe hear say should just stay out of advice you give to others in general. thanks.

[oberlinfan]

Oberlin is a great unique place to live. I have lived here since I was 6 years old and have never heard of horrible crime IN oberlin. My family has never locked our houses on a regular basis or our cars and have never had a single thing stolen in the past 15 years! For that matter I rarely even take the keys out of my car if I am parked in the driveway. As for Oberlin High School it is not the greatest in sports or academics. The staff at ohs is great though, most of the teachers truely care about your success. Because the school is so small there are many close bonds between the staff and students. There are options for ohs students such as taking classes at Oberlin College or Lorain Community College for those that want or need to be challenged academically. I think living in oberlin is a great cultural experience, unless one lives here they can not truely appreciate oberlin.

Ohh btw there are not gangs at Oberlin high school!

[BelieveInCleve]

Wow this is a old thread.
Anyways like I said 2 years ago, Oberlin a pretty decent town. It has a good downtown and is very walkable.

Now that I've been back in the area for a few years (I had just came home in 2007 from being gone for 5 years) it does have somewhat of a high crime rate. Meaning that it's not as safe as most small towns in Ohio but it's not that bad. The school district is not good though, I've also heard of gangs there but they're not serious. I've heard of a few shootings but they're mainly isolated and not random. I can't remember the last time I've heard of a murder in Oberlin.

I grew up in bad areas in Cleveland(mainly clark-fulton), Lorain(central), and Elyria(southside) and Oberlins crime rate is not nearly as high as those areas.

[jlawrence01]

Unlike nearly every Lorain Co. citiy, Oberlin has a vibrant African American community largely as a result of the racial tolerance (Oberlin was a stop on the "Underground Railroad") and the presence of Oberlin College, one of the earliest US colleges to offer admission to African American students as well as women.

It is a nice town that is largely dominated by Oberlin College, the FAA and a couple other employers.

When I relocated to Lorain Co. to accept a position in Elyria, Oberlin was my first choice as I have had a lot of contacts with the college over the years. Many of the folks at work told me how unsafe the town was and how bad the schools were.

I thought that was laughable. I spent a lot of time in Oberlin and never saw much that could be considered threatening unless you are threatened by the presence of people of different cultures. And in the year I was looking at, Oberlin was rated second or third in Lorain Co.

I would move there in a minute.

[Peregrine]

Oberlin? Crime ridden and dangerous?
Give me a break....

2007:

0 murders (0.0 per 100,000)
2 rapes (24.3 per 100,000)
6 robberies (72.8 per 100,000)
6 assaults (72.8 per 100,000)
26 burglaries (315.3 per 100,000)
125 thefts (1515.7 per 100,000)
2 auto thefts (24.3 per 100,000)
City-data.com crime index = 140.4 (higher means more crime, US average = 302.7)

Read more: http://www.city-data.com/city/Oberlin-Ohio.html#ixzz0VikHKDhP

I would NOT move there in a minute because I like big towns, but if my daughter wanted to move there, I'd pack her up and send her there in a heartbeat.
Oberlin = Mayberry.

There is a very small drug problem, but what college town doesn't have one.

[BelieveInCleve]

^^
Very true.

I've been in Oberlin many times and have never felt threatened or witnessed a crime there. Plus, the only major crimes (shootings, etc) that I've heard happen there were isolated, not random, and caused by people from Lorain or Elyria.