I am moving from Boston to Columbus. Any advice? (Hilliard: apartment, to rent)

[Boston02118]

Hello Kind People of Columbus. My same-gender spouse (male) and I are moving to Columbus (from Boston), later this year. Could you please give us any advice about the most comfortable/"nicest" areas in or near Columbus to live. If any of you also may know about HIV Testing services (we are both Health Practitioners that work in the field), please share this information with us. Thank you so very much for sharing your kind advice with us.

[Tenzo]

Victorian Village / Italian village if you are under 35
Clintonville / Marrion Village 35 - 45
German Village 45+

[boston2columbus]

I too am moving from Boston to Columbus at the end of the summer. I have only been there 3 times for short stays, but I chose to rent in the German Village. It felt familiar to me with the historic brick homes, small streets, and decent walkability. Plus, in the Northern part of the village you can see the downtown buildings reminding you you're in a city! This felt like the Fenway neighborhood where I used to live. I was also attracted to the area because I rely on my feet and public transportation to get around. Columbus definitely seems less pedestrian friendly than Boston, but just South of downtown, the area I don't think is as car dependent as the neighborhoods further North of the Short North and the Ohio State University campus. I keep hearing chatter about higher crime rates in the German Village, but can't tell if it is coming from those who are less accustomed to living in urban areas. I sure hope that the area is safe. This is my primary concern right now as the rest felt pretty picture perfect. If I could have found a place in the Victorian Village, I probably would have gone for that because of its great location and similar vibe, plus as Tenzo mentions, the younger crowd. I'm 25 and hope that the German Village doesn't seem too "old" for my liking. I hope that helps add some perspective. I welcome any advice for myself as well!

[14thandYou]

Originally Posted by boston2columbus

I keep hearing chatter about higher crime rates in the German Village, but can't tell if it is coming from those who are less accustomed to living in urban areas. I sure hope that the area is safe.

It is, and it is.

[Tenzo]

Having lived in Chicago and Philly I can assure you that the crime rate in German Village is what we would classify as 'petty'.

Left my garage door open one Saturday by mistake. The two bikes sitting in the garage were still there when I got back.
About once a month I accidently leave my SUV unlocked over night.

In Philly I had someone steal some my bike that was on the East side of my lawn when I was watering the plants on the West side (lawns being about 10 ft. deep). As I watered the lawn I saw the cretin ride my bike down the street. In the time it took me to go in the house and call 911 the 12 year old thief had ridden 2 blocks and held a couple up at gunpoint. This was in a nice area of Philly.

The current crime wave terrorizing German Village is someone stealing garden plants.

[ulnevrwalkalone]

Originally Posted by Tenzo

The current crime wave terrorizing German Village is someone stealing garden plants.

hahaha thats why people need to look at the types of crimes reported and not just the rate of crimes reported.

[sauerkraut145]

Crime in Columbus is pretty high if you look at city-rated crime web sites. The "Hilltop" area of west Columbus always was a good place to live but they have been getting alot of garage & dumpster arson fires and home break-ins these past few years. I live in Hilliard now and that city is starting to get alot of crime... Some pockets of the city are worse than others. I'd like to get out of Columbus and move to a warmer state with less tax. Ohio is one of only two states with a school income tax and that is on top of a city income tax, state income tax and federal income tax. The South Western school system has very high prop. taxes. I don't know nothing about HIV or other lifestyles in Columbus I can't help ya with that.

[14thandYou]

Originally Posted by sauerkraut145

Crime in Columbus is pretty high if you look at city-rated crime web sites.

No, it's not. It's squarely in the middle of the pack.

[Beavercreek33]

Originally Posted by Tenzo

Having lived in Chicago and Philly I can assure you that the crime rate in German Village is what we would classify as 'petty'.

Left my garage door open one Saturday by mistake. The two bikes sitting in the garage were still there when I got back.
About once a month I accidently leave my SUV unlocked over night.

In Philly I had someone steal some my bike that was on the East side of my lawn when I was watering the plants on the West side (lawns being about 10 ft. deep). As I watered the lawn I saw the cretin ride my bike down the street. In the time it took me to go in the house and call 911 the 12 year old thief had ridden 2 blocks and held a couple up at gunpoint. This was in a nice area of Philly.

The current crime wave terrorizing German Village is someone stealing garden plants.

Had no idea you were from Philly. So am I.

Anyway, Columbus is a much younger city than Boston, but it has many great city neighborhoods, like many have mentioned already, that are rich in culture and history, and some are the new and up-and-coming areas of the city. Columbus has an extremely diverse economy, and with its growing population, it is bringing in many different nationalities and ethnic groups.

[boston2columbus]

So would you say walking around at night is fairly safe in the GV? I'm used to walking around the better neighborhoods of Boston/Cambridge and feeling pretty safe until around 12AM or so. That's not to say there aren't incidents. Just recently a few armed robberies and an assault have occurred on/around Harvard's campus. This doesn't make me feel afraid though. I just figure to keep the ipod out of the ears and walk like I'm not to be messed with. I checked out the apartment at night which is a block or two south of Schiller and the park seemed pretty well lit. I wasn't thrilled when I heard that the buses stop running around 10PM. Anyways, any thoughts on GV being relatively safe at night, (with vigilance of course) or any other neighborhood, downtown, etc, would be greatly appreciated.