[kv.ny]

Hello. I am moving to Hartford for a job and am wondering about good/bad neighborhoods. I'll be looking for a one bedroom apt in Hartford. Any guidance or suggestions are greatly appreciated! Thanks!

[ansky]

The north end of the city is the absolute worst. You would want to focus on the south end near the Wethersfield border or the west end near the West Hartford border.

[goldenband]

Some questions that'll help us help you:

What's your budget/price range? In what part of Hartford is your job located? Are you looking to drive to work, or take the bus, or walk? Are you looking for an area with "nightlife", or for a quieter environment? Will you be bringing any kids with you?

[JayCT]

As noted, the South End and the West End are good, as is downtown. It all depends on what you want and how much you can spend. Jay

[Babydoll9983]

I agree with everyone here...West End, then Downtown, then South End in my opinion. Downtown tends to be pricier, but definitely has some hidden gems.

[skel1977]

West end is the only "good" neighborhood IMO. I lived in the south end and never again....Dont even think about the north end

[MikefromCT]

North End is generally regarded as the area along Route 44 and the vast area north of it. There have been some improvements, and some of the streets in the Blue Hills area are surprisingly nice with older, well-kept homes similar to those in W Hartford (like on Canterbury Rd and Ridgefield St, as well those around UHart on Rt 189). Otherwise it's a dangerous area to avoid at all costs.

South End WAS a nice area but it's deteriorated over the last 20-odd years. It used to be known as Little Italy, and the Italian presence still exists here and there - Franklin Ave is still lined with some great reataurants and bakeries - but there are virtually no Italians left there today. Most of them fled for Wethersfield just to the south of the city. Those that remain are just old-timers who refuse to move. It's not the worst neighborhood by any means and some decent streets are still intact, but if I had to decide I would pick either downtown or the West Side hands down.

[goldenband]

A bit OT, but does anyone have any detailed data on the section of the North End -- call it "northwest Hartford" -- that Mike is describing? I've often wondered about that area, because it appears to be so different from the usual picture of the North End and much of it appears to be well-kept, quality housing stock.

I'd be interested to know more on a block-by-block basis about who's living there, what the crime rates are like, median rents/home prices, and so on. To put it glibly, do people who live on (say) Euclid or Burnham Sts. hear gunfire at night? Maybe Bowles Park and Westbrook Village are a big part of what's keeping this area from being a "hot spot" for UHart profs and grad students; if so, more's the pity that those projects haven't yet been redeveloped.

[MikefromCT]

Originally Posted by goldenband

A bit OT, but does anyone have any detailed data on the section of the North End -- call it "northwest Hartford" -- that Mike is describing? I've often wondered about that area, because it appears to be so different from the usual picture of the North End and much of it appears to be well-kept, quality housing stock.

It is. I don't know the area well, but I do know that the area known and defined as Blue Hills is different. It's definitely safer than the area east of Keney Park. Housing in BH varies - everything from estates (which can be found on the streets I mentioned earlier, which are just east of BlueHills Ave) to smaller postwar houses and public housing (like Westbrook Village and Bowles Park). Some of the streets can be rough (such as Granby Street) and there's still cirme here (a man was brutually murdered on Colebrook St earlier this year) but it's nothing compared to the Clay Arsenal / Northeast neighborhoods - thisis typically what comes to mind when people refer to the North End. This is where most of the violence is.

This link will give a little more info on Blue Hills and the streets that are included in it:
Hartford's Neighborhoods | Blue Hills