Moving to Dayton--suggestions? (Trotwood, Troy, Oregon: new home, school, living)

[lilfoxi]

First of all, best of luck on your move! I am moving soon as well and know exactly how exciting and difficult it can be.

It sounds like you are open to a lot of options. WSU is located NE of Dayton, and is along I-675 which is generally an easy commute. There are some very nice communities in and around this area. You can also look along I-75 and I-70, which will get you to campus quickly, too.

I would not necessarily rule out Fairborn, although the majority of the population is made up of elderly or college "kids".

Yellow Springs is a wonderful community, and would be right up your alley in terms of greenery, walking/biking to town, etc. However, it is extremely hard to find rentals there as most people who move there don't leave.

You may also want to look into these nice communities (I put the approx. commute time down for you):
Beavercreek - 5 min
Vandalia - 20 min
Centerville - 40 min
Kettering/Oakwood - 30 min
Miamisburg - 40 min

Also, I would steer clear of downtown Dayton and Trotwood.

When I was looking for a home, I found some nice rentals in the Centerville area and the Vandalia area, both of which were basically private houses with attached garages in-between to decrease the through-wall noise. These are generally offered through individual realtors, so even though you are not looking to buy, you may want to flip through the house postings for rentals. Feel free to DM me if I can help with any specifics.

[Billy from Dayton]

Originally Posted by lilfoxi

Also, I would steer clear of downtown Dayton and Trotwood.

What is your reason for steering clear of downtown Dayton? I've lived here for six years in a pretty cool loft, I can walk to dozens of bars & restaurants and I'm steps away from some of the greatest bike trails in the state.

Or are you a suburbanite that watches too much local t.v. news?

[Daytonnatian]

^Trotwood also has some really nice parts as well, such as Olde Town, Moss Creek, and the developments off of Olive road which could easily rival any of our city's other suburbs. However, I do have to admit.........


STAY AWAY FROM DREXEL!!!!!!!!!!!

[lilfoxi]

Originally Posted by Billy from Dayton

What is your reason for steering clear of downtown Dayton? I've lived here for six years in a pretty cool loft, I can walk to dozens of bars & restaurants and I'm steps away from some of the greatest bike trails in the state.

Or are you a suburbanite that watches too much local t.v. news?

I am a suburbanite who has been shot at while driving along Third St.

I would like to also amend my previous comment about avoiding Trotwood. There are some nicer areas of Trotwood as well, specifically the more "rural" outskirts where Trotwood meets Brookville and Clayton.

None of these areas are uninhabitable, but the question was related to finding a good fit.

[tgasper]

I wouldn't avoid downtown Dayton because of one incident. And 3rd Street is a pretty broad description - starting in West Dayton and ultimately running out to Beavercreek, although the name changes. It would be like saying you were shot at on Santa Monica Blvd in LA.

I've seen Billy from Dayton's loft and it is drop dead gorgeous - something you'd see in a magazine. I know many who live in downtown as well as in some of the inner ring neighborhoods of Oregon District and South Park.

I currently live in Beavercreek in a nice, upscale neighborhood and just learned that shortly before we moved here five years ago, a neighbor had someone stick a gun in her ear and attempt to steal her Mercedes out of her garage. Evidently the criminal wasn't the smartest knife in the drawer and couldn't get it out of gear. She was at a neighbor's and had called 911 and the police arrived before he could get out of the driveway.

Sure wish I had something in South Park that would work for you.

[Daytonnatian]

Whoa, you were shot at, lilfoxi? Sweet!!!!!

(sorry about my childish attitude, but you should use that as a point of pride, and I think I'll use that as an expamle of how "my city is tougher that the sissies that live in yours)

Anyways, yeah, Trotwood is quite nice, has an amazing new school, great shopping, and yes, great people. I work there, deal with locals frequently, and not once have I met one that I wouldn't want to be my neighbor. Truly a gem, especially for minorities. (that doesn't go for Drexel, which is partially within the city of Trotwood borders. As much as I wish it were nice, it's not, so don't go there)

However, Dayton has many nice areas, including its award-winning historic districts such as South Park. And yes, Dayton also has awesome downtown living that would rival most cities, all at a cheaper price (still, we got some that top $500K if you want that). So yeah, there are few places in the Dayton area that are not good to live. Drexel just happens to be one of them.

[Billy from Dayton]

I'll admit, I've never been a victim of crime in my almost six years living in Downtown Dayton, nor have any of my neighbors that I know of - so I can't relate; perhaps if my wife or I had ever been a victim we'd have different thoughts about living downtown. I can say that I've been a victim while living in Chicago (in Lincoln Park - one of the nicer neighborhoods), and while the experience shook me up I don't think I ever considered moving out of the city because of it - I was just a lot more careful after that.

Using tgasper's story and lilfoxi's thinking, I guess you all should steer clear of Beavercreek because somebody had their car stolen at gun point there.

Bottom line is that if you're looking for suburban living (and perhaps that describes those who have posted questions here) then yes - you probably don't want to look at downtown because it is obviously urban. But suburbanites in this region need to realize that not everybody wants to live in the suburbs. So to use the blanket statement "steer clear of downtown" is not exactly fair and assumes that everybody is looking for a suburban lifestyle. It is the equivalent to me saying "stay clear of the suburbs because they are utterly boring" - which I would not say.

[calypsospots]

I'll update what's happening with my own search: provided nothing goes wrong with my latest rental application (I don't know any reason it should this time as I think everything has been discussed and the background check has no reason to fail), I'll be moving into an Oregon District duplex at the beginning of August. Since I couldn't visit in person, I had a colleague take a look and she was very enthusiastic both in general and in terms of my specific interests.

I'm looking forward to being done with the moving (packing is so vile! my living room has been taken over by boxes!) and enjoying my new home. Many thanks to everyone who has offered thoughts and suggestions.

[Billy from Dayton]

Hey calypsospots - welcome to Dayton (and the OD)! You'll enjoy the OD - some of the area's best restaurants are there, including Thai 9, Pacchia, Oregon Express, Blind Bobs, Trolley Stop, Dublin Pub and Coco's! The Neon Movie Theater is an awesome independent theater that serves beer and Boston Stoker coffee, and you're walking distance to Fifth Third Field, Riverscape and the theater district (Schuster, Loft Theater and Victoria Theater). You'll also have the Dayton Theatre Guild opening soon on Wayne.

[Beavercreek33]

I have worked in Downtown Dayton for over 4 years, and I have only witnessed panhandlers. Dayton has a very nice, dense and clean downtown. Dayton has a great downtown for a city of its size.