Cleveland Heights - Good spot for married couple in early 30s? (Shaker Heights: home, neighborhoods)

[airics]

cle17 - you are being harsh to the poster above.. she did not say she was walking in the city, it happened in her apartment... and we both know that cleveland hts is not a great place to live.. i have lived in mayfield the last 30yrs and it has also changed for the worse. yes things can happen anywhere, she didnt provoke it and i believe her post.

[andrew61]

Originally Posted by Clevelander17

Yes, do indeed check the crime stats--they show that Cleveland Heights is not only one of the safest inner-ring suburbs, but one of the safest suburbs in the Cleveland.

I don't know about that. What I do know is that there's a lot of controversy among Cleveland Heights residents right now as to whether those official crime "stats" are being fudged. Check out the forums on Cleveland.com and the Heights Observer for confirmation. The posters talk about this issue on an almost daily basis. And one of the people most vocally disputing the "official" crime numbers is a former Cleveland Heights policeman who posts under his real first and last name. Given that he actually worked in law enforcement there, I would tend to believe he knows what he's talking about.

If you read the police blotter in the Sun Press, it seems that hardly a week goes by where someone in CH isn't held up at gunpoint... and many weeks see several such incidents. And remember, their police blotter section doesn't print every crime that occurs in the city -- only a sampling that they have space for.

Yet you would never think any of this is going on if you look at the "official" crime stats... Why?

I can't prove it, but I suspect something fishy is going on at City Hall. And so do a lot of other people.

[Clevelander17]

Originally Posted by airics

cle17 - you are being harsh to the poster above.. she did not say she was walking in the city, it happened in her apartment... and we both know that cleveland hts is not a great place to live.. i have lived in mayfield the last 30yrs and it has also changed for the worse. yes things can happen anywhere, she didnt provoke it and i believe her post.

Speak for yourself. Cleveland Heights is a fine place to live if you're in the right neighborhoods. There are neighborhoods I wouldn't step foot in, let alone consider for living, but like I'm trying to stress here, Cleveland Heights is big and diverse. Not all areas are the same. Ask the numerous doctors and lawyers that live in the beautiful old mansions on Fairmount if they feel unsafe.

[Clevelander17]

Originally Posted by andrew61

I don't know about that. What I do know is that there's a lot of controversy among Cleveland Heights residents right now as to whether those official crime "stats" are being fudged. Check out the forums on Cleveland.com and the Heights Observer for confirmation. The posters talk about this issue on an almost daily basis. And one of the people most vocally disputing the "official" crime numbers is a former Cleveland Heights policeman who posts under his real first and last name. Given that he actually worked in law enforcement there, I would tend to believe he knows what he's talking about.

If you read the police blotter in the Sun Press, it seems that hardly a week goes by where someone in CH isn't held up at gunpoint... and many weeks see several such incidents. And remember, their police blotter section doesn't print every crime that occurs in the city -- only a sampling that they have space for.

Yet you would never think any of this is going on if you look at the "official" crime stats... Why?

I can't prove it, but I suspect something fishy is going on at City Hall. And so do a lot of other people.

Andrew, a couple of points:

First, I'm not sure why you lend credibility to the Cleveland.com forums. They're a mess, especially the Cleveland Heights forum. Too much anonymity, most of those people aren't residents. Lots of real estate agents go there, create fake names, and bash certain cities to try to drum up sales in other areas in which they work. Just because someone uses a name and claims to be that person, doesn't mean that they really are. There's no accountability for lying about who you are there.

Second, Cleveland Heights follows the FBI format like every other city does. If one insists upon the idea that Cleveland Heights is fudging numbers, then every city should be held up to the same scrutiny. If it's so easy to make up numbers, then Cleveland Heights wouldn't be the only city doing it (if they even are).

Finally, we have statistics for a reason. Things are correctly looked at on a per capita basis. Cleveland Heights dwarfs other suburbs in the area in population. Of course it's going to have a raw higher number of crimes. But you need to use the perspective of populations when looking at the numbers. You don't get that if all you're doing is reading the Sun Press.

Some people have this idea about Cleveland Heights, this preconceived notion that it has to be dangerous because there are a lot of minorities. That's simply not the case. I walk the streets several times a week (I'm not a resident, but I visit often) and I never feel threatened. Be wary of your surroundings and you'll be just fine. The police are everywhere and they do a great job.

[airics]

where do you live cle

[CH resident]

To Clevelander17,
That is unfair to us who have been victims of felonies in Cleveland Hts to say that people make up things because minorities live here. You have been lucky, but don't insult crime victims.

[CH resident]

That crime happened in the "nice" part of Cleveland Hts where the medical personnel live. I was not out at night - I was asleep inmy apartment and he broke in through the window. By the time I woke up, he was already on top of me holding me down. You are CRUEL to write what you did about me. You need to learn that your experience is not everyone's experience. You are mean.

[CH resident]

I am so hurt that Clevelander doubts that my posts are real. I can tell you that the PTSD that I have from that horrific 5 hour crime is real.
And a year after that horrific crime, I realized I was being followed home from Coventry in my car 2 weeks in a row and luckily I was savvy enough to pass my home and keep going. I made a police report after the 2nd following event and a few days later the CH detectives called me and thanked me for providing the plate #. The car description and the man's description matched 2 reports that they had not been able to solve: a rape that occurred on Lancashire and an attempted rape and kidnapping of a female police dispatcher. Because of my police report of the car description and the plates, the 2 crimes were solved and the man went to prison - but not before he used his passkey as a his apt. building super to rape a tenant. ALL TRUE.
And just last year an elderly woman was raped in her suite at Musicians Tower. The man had gained access by posing as a workman.
Also a few years ago I was surprised (in the NICE part of CH) by policemen running through my backyard looking for a suspect. I saw the suspect run and hide in my garage. I yelled out that info to the officer. Next I saw Det. Schmidt holding out a gun and ordering the man to come out of the garage. He did and was handcuffed. The police told me to look for cocaine in the garage that they believed he had dumped, but it wasn't until a year later when I did find empty glass test-tube-like vials, that were empty by then from leaking rain through the old roof.
All of this is TRUE and PAINFUL and I truly resent Clevelander denying the truth because he wants to believe what he thinks.

[lcinva]

It's one thing to want buzz and nightlife, but when you bring kids into the equation it's a different story. My husband and I are young professionals, and moving as soon as we finish various graduate/residency programs. Many of our colleagues have children, and are sorry that they chose to live closer to University Circle (Cle. Heights, etc.). Too much goes down around this area to warrant raising a family here, unless you don't have a choice because you already bought a home and can't sell.

Another poster noted that many kids here go to private school. As unfortunate as it is, that means exactly what you would expect in a diverse area with 33% living below the poverty line...many of the white kids are in private school, with more of the black kids in public school. My colleagues can't afford private school as this time in life, and so their kids are often the only white children at school, and are often picked on and bullied. I'm not saying it wouldn't be the same if it were one black kid with a bunch of white kids, (and maybe it is in the private schools) but it's something to consider, especially as this area continues to experience "white flight" - whatever race you are.

As a side note, I personally don't feel as if there is enough "buzz" in the Coventry area to warrant moving there for it, unless by buzz you mean college kids going there to eat at Tommy's and it's cleared out by 10pm. Word is that downtown/Ohio City is much more what you are looking for, but you are really asking for it if you move there. Sorry, I just think Cleveland has a long way to go before it can provide what you are looking for in a relatively safe environment for your kids.

[Clevelander17]

As far as urbanized areas go, Cleveland Heights is indeed one of the safest. That doesn't mean that there isn't any crime, but it is safe compared to many other areas in and around Cleveland and urban areas in general. If you're looking for no crime, spread out neighborhoods, unwalkable shopping districts, cookie cutter homes, then of course there are better options than Cleveland Heights.

Also, it's ridiculous to imply that the nightlife in Cleveland Heights near Coventry ends at 10 pm. There are no less than five good bars around there that are hopping, filled with college students (from Case and Carroll) until closing time. As someone who still frequents that seen occasionally on the weekends, I speak from firsthand experience.