Anyone from Dayton? (Toledo, Akron, Youngstown: cul-de-sac, foreclosures, violent crime)

[JefferyT]

Ok, there has been a lot of focus on the city itself, but how about the dinky towns that are outside the base? I.E. Enon, medway, New carlisle, Donnelsville, or yellow springs? Any info on them?

The little towns around Dayton and the surrounding farm country offers some real nice living opportunities. I think this is the real quality-of-life strength of this area.

Yellow Springs is probably the best place to buy as the place is somewhat desirable and has good schools. But it is a college town and is sort of "alternative" or "countercultural". It is a very educated community, with a high population of PhDs. Housing prices are probably higher than the rest of the rural towns you mentioned.

Enon is ok, there is an older "country village" core, and some 1950s/60s subdivisions around that. There is newer housing in the countryside around, a lot of it sort of this low density development where you buy an acre (or two) on a country road and put a house on it.

New Carlisle is bigger than Enon, maybe a bit more redneck. I dont know much about it, really, aside from driving through.

I am more familiar with the country towns south of Dayton, like Germantown, which is the best one for rural charm and nice old buildings, but there is new development going on around it too.

Or how is base housing?
Someone mentioned its not very safe; don't they have SP's gaurding it? What are the houses like in there?

Two areas have been privatized, "The Woods" and "The Praires" (Formerly Woodland Hils and Page Manor". Page Manor has been largely rebuilt, and the Woods has housing from the early 1970s.

The non privatized housing "inside the gate" is Green Acres and Pine Estates, which are also from the early 70s and small and dated by todays standards. They will probably be torn down as the Dayton area has a surplus of housing and OSD policy is to house military "on the economy" not on base.

What does the housing market look like in Dayton? Has it been effected by the Reality bubble popping? If you had to work at the air force base, where would you invest your money in a home to make some great equity?

If you are interested in making money on a resale and like suburbia, Beavercreek, Sugarcreek Township, and Bellbrook are your choices (though Bellbrook is sort of nice and hilly, and has an older village core to it). I think these areas will probably hold value into the future as they are the hot new suburban areas that are not too far from the base.

Also, what are the roads like in and around dayton? Are they boring and straight, or are they curvey and fun? Where do people with crotchrockets go to have fun?

They go to Kill Kare speedway off of US 35 near Xenia, as you can race your production car there on a sort of dragstrip, to see how fast it can go.

There are curvy roads in some areas, but for straight flat Midwest country roads western Montgomery County and Preble County (to the west, too) are great for going flat out, but watch out for the odd stop sign (you can test your brakes too).

Beware of these notorious speed traps:

Riverside, Oakwood, and Kettering, particularly Riverside and Oakwood.

In general there is a very big police presence in OHio for speeding, which Ohioans take for granted but is sort of disconcerting to newcomers who are used to laxer speed enforcement.

[JefferyT]

I was just wondering if there were any fun little twisty roads cause here in fargo all we have are straight boring roads that crown the hell out of my tires. Besides all that, did anyone have any answers to my other questions?

Oh, geez, you are looking FOR curvey roads and you have a bike!

OK, well if you have a Harley you've come to the right place as there seems to be a lot of Harley enthusiasts around here, and I think there is a bike club too. I see people in groups doing runs all the time.

Curvey roads, gosh, never thought of this.

From what I recall the best areas for curvey roads is south and east of Dayton, in the vicinity of the Litttle Miami River valley, from Yellow Springs south. Particularly the roads leading into Oregonia.

And if you want to take a longer ride like on a weekend, there are some curvey hilly roads in the "top of Ohio" hill area arond Zanesfied, near Bellefontaine, northeast of Dayton. Or, southeast of Dayton, maybe even Adams and Highland Counties, These areas are almost like Kentucky.

Further east, beyond Peebles and Bainbridge you get into Appalachian Ohio, and you have curvey mountain roads in that country, which is mostly forest.

[JefferyT]

I'm a transplanted New Yorker living in the Dayton area almost 15 years now. I've moved into a historical district downtown Dayton (two years ago).

The portrayal of Dayton being a crime ridden slum is really blown out of proportion thanks to local media and some Americans who seem to be afraid of everything with help of the media.

I agree with that.

I see you are from New York. I am a transplant here to. It often takes out-of-towners to appreciate the older parts of Dayton.


Some of those historical distircts are very solid neighborhoods and have excellent restored period housing (my favorites are the Oregon, Grafton Hill, and Saint Anne's Hill). I do a lot of amature photography in the city and havn't had any problems yet (knock on wood).

I go out a lot for performing arts events and live music, and this takes me into downtown Dayton quite a bit (and the nearby Oregon neighborhood) and have yet to have a problem with crime. Maybe I've been lucky, but I do think crime is probably going to occur in certain poor neighborhoods that have drug activity, so its unlikely one will be a victim unless one is involved in that scene.

[happycow]

You remember that old joke about the parents that thought something was wrong with their kid cause he was 5 years old and hadn't spoken. Ended up he finally spoke and when they asked why it took this long he said 'cause he didn't have anything to say!! That's me. I haven't been gone. I still log on and read, just don't have anything to say. I will agree that downtown Cincy has some nice areas along the river and I'm sure the population has grown. A lot of empty nesters and P&G'ers, etc are moving in. I just can't figure out why they can fix up Over the Rhine so nicely and it flourishes for a while and now it's dying out. That's why I'm trying to say. Seems like the bad parts of town stay the bad parts of town no matter what you do. Back in the OLD OLD day, my granny lived in Winton Terrace. Nice, nice place for the elderly and low income to live. She had absolutely no fear of living there or letting me and my brother go outside to play. I wouldn't drive down those streets now for fear of a bullet going astray. There are just declining neighborhoods that will always be declining neighborhoods in my opinion. Just like in downtown Lebanon. There are certain streets you just know you don't want to live on because it's where the drug deals are made. I'm in Kettering now because my job is, and so far so good. I like the aesthetics, I like the parks, I like the surroundings. I haven't been up here long enough to know where the BAD BAD parts of town are, but I know I don't like some of them. Drove around with my grandson looking for a KMart last night and I'm passing "gentlemens' clubs". I'm no fan of Si Leis, but I have to give credit where credit is due on keeping Hamilton County clean of that crap. Anyhoo, anyone want to tell me where to steer clear of here in Montgomery County I'd be happy to hear about it. I also need to know which are the best parks, etc. I'm familiar with Kettering Rec Center. Used to bring the kids here when I lived in Mason.

[DowntownDweller]

I have lived in Downtown Dayton for three years in a loft condo. We have wonderful neighbors and there are many places to walk to - restaurants, theaters, bars, parks, riverfront, art galleries - the list goes on. Crime is definitely an issue in some Dayton neighborhoods, but not so much in downtown despite what the local media would have you believe.

I grew up in Chicago and lived in St. Petersburg, FL before moving to Dayton to be closer to my wife's family. I miss many things about the places I used to live in, but I can honestly say that the more places you live, the more you will realize that no place is perfect. Dayton does have its share of urban challenges. So does any other large or medium sized city in the country. That is not to say that there aren't great things about Dayton.

The thing I have found here is that there is such a divide between suburb residents and city residents. I used to think it was simply a racial thing, but it goes beyond that. There are many suburb people that simply do not understand urban living because it is so different from what they are used to in the suburbs. And it is human nature to be afraid of what you don't understand. The shame of it is that the local media loves to bash Dayton-proper and the suburb residents simply use that info to base their opinions. Just like Chicago, when you watch the news almost ALL of the crime that is reported happens in the city proper. Does that mean that the entire city of Chicago should be avoided? No, nor does it mean that the entire city of Dayton should be avoided either. There are good parts and bad parts. As for downtown, it is actually statistically safer than the suburban shopping mall parking lots. Yes, you will see homeless people here, and you will see many people that look different than you here. But it is the same in any city, and that is not a reason to avoid coming here.

I have often been frustrated living in Dayton, but not because I think it is a bad city or I don't enjoy living here. I am frustrated by the number of people in this region that do not take pride in their city. Whether you live in Oakwood, Centerville, Kettering, or Beavercreek - you should ALL be calling yourselves Daytonians.

Downtown Dayton is definitely seeing a lot of development these days. Investors (both local and non-local) are seeing the value in downtown and are rehabbing many of the beautiful historic buildings. The riverfront is being planned by Mandalay (owners of the Dayton Dragons and a major movie studio in L.A.). As large "old school" corporations are moving out because of mergers or their lack of foresight, smaller and more creative and technology-driven companies are moving in. Downtown (and surrounding historic districts) have truly independent stores and restaurants which make the city unique - unlike the generic big box stores and chain restaurants that are typically found in the suburbs. And all kinds of people (from young professionals to empty-nesters) who want the urban lifestyle are discovering that it can be found in Dayton at a fraction of the cost of other cities.

My wife and I believe in Dayton so much that we have started a new website: www.Dayton.MostMetro.com
There you can find info on different neighborhoods, venues, and events in Dayton. We also have a blog section where we include all news stories about things in Dayton (that the local t.v. news never has time for after the neverending coverage of car accidents, fires, robberies and ridiculous celebrity "news"). We also have some great discussions going on about things that are happening in our city. If you are already living here, or plan to live here soon it is a valuable resource. And if you don't see info you're looking for, just email me at bpote@mostmetro.com and I'll be happy to help.

[paintballer1708]

^Thank you for that great post, DowntownDweller. So many people nationwide dont understand the importance to our cities Central Business Districts, or downtown regions. Luckily today most cities are starting to see development, and sparwl will hopefully begin to slow down.

[getmeouttahere]

I will be possibly moving to the greater dayton area and have heard alot about different suburbs in the area. I have been looking into Fairborn. Any info on that area. Is it as home townlike as the website seems to let on?

[JefferyT]

I don't know the website, but Fairborn is pretty good-old-boy. There is even a neighborhood called "Little Kentucky", so you will certainly get a southern/country feel there.

Here are some pix of the older part of town, and some of the Halloween stuff the town is locally known for. Though this is a suburb there is a real town there, with a Main Street and older houses like one would expect in most older Midwest places.

http://www.urbanohio.com/forum2/index.php?topic=5896.0


Housing stock ranges from pre-Civil War to brand new, with most of it looking like it was developed in the 1950s and 60s. The newer homes are out near I-675, and there is some brand new commercial development at the I-675 interchange with Dayton-Yellow/Springs Road.


Don't know much about the schools, but the town has been getting poorer over time, as has a lot of these older Dayton suburbs. Personally I sort of like the town, and my barber is there.

[getmeouttahere]

Thanks for the info. That's great to know. Any more that anyone else knows would be greatly appreciated.

[paintballer1708]

Fairborn Homepage:

http://ci.fairborn.oh.us/