Fort Lauderdale Positives and Truths Please (Oakland Park, University: high crime, new home, safe neighborhood)

[the_diva]

Hello,

I am from Alaska( and I don't live in an igloo LOL) and quite frankly Im tired of the ice,cold,and lack or Arts and entertainment. On top of that, the school here doesn't offer my academic program so I'm being "forced" to move either to Fort Lauderdale,FL or Boston,MA to persue my degree.

Like most Alaskans, Florida seems like a nice change, but after hearing about the city's February mild tornado and hearing about the hurricanes in south Florida, Im getting kind of nervous. Here's my questions:

1.) Can someone tell me the good things about living in Fort,Lauderdale? (every city I research on this site, someone is always bashing a place and complaining about it)

2.) Do you really get bad tornadoes and hurricanes in the Fort Lauderdale Area? How Often?

3.) As a 19 year old young black woman, is the city going to be enjoyable for me? Let me clarify: I am CERTAINLY NOT racist and love eveyone, but people told me SOME parts of Florida are stil VERY ignorant towards minorities.

4.) How the minimum wage down there? Here in Alaska it's pretty high at 7.50 and usual summer jobs start around $9 an hour.

How Could I forget:

5.) How is Public Transportation? (I probably wont have a car there)

6.) Is Fort Lauderdale a generally safe/clean place to live?

Thank you for anyone who enlightens me on what seems to be a beautiful little town.

XOXO

[heydade]

i would go with Boston instead ! Much more nicer and down to earth crowd. People here can be very superficial...believe me. You will be much happier in Boston minus the cold winters.

[compelled to reply]

1. If you enjoy the beach, the beaches are fantastic. The air is quite clean assuming you don't live directly under the Port Everglades power plant. The winter weather is flawless, despite a stiflingly humid summer. The physical appearance is relatively clean and neat. I have seen much worse traffic, you will see some crybabies on here claiming it takes them 20 minutes to go 2 miles. Yeah, maybe if you have the Fred-Flintstone-mobile. There is a fair amount of arts/culture...for a beach town. The city/area is very diverse and accepting of almost anyone...except for racists.
2. Tornadoes are so common you don't even hear about them. You don't hear about them because they are almost always F-0s and do no damage. The hurricanes, however, are a serious threat every year from May to November, and can spin more serious torandoes. The area can goes many years without receiving a hurricane, but there is always that risk. The last major hurricane was Wilma in 2004 which tore up roofs, knocked out power and ruined the tree canopy in some cities. You need to always be ready for that risk during the season.
3. As enjoyable as any city is going to be. This part of FL isn't one of those sections.
4. Minimum wage is 6.79 an hour. Expect 7-8 dollars an hour for a typical "service" job. If you can get a gig at an upscale restaurant you can pull off a lot more, but don't expect to make more than 8 bucks.

Well, Boston is a great city, a "Real" city with real city amenities, real city history, and an extraordinary high cost of living. Ft. Lauderdale is a beach town trying to go upscale with a few big city amenities, and quite a few big city problems. Take your pick- get away from the cold and move to a beach city a little more culture, or move to a cold city with a load of culture. However, Boston can be a harsh place for blacks from what I understand, although I have been there and saw tons of interracial couples/etc which probably means it's a little exaggerated.

I saw above the "down to earth" crowd. Well honestly neither place is very down to earth. South FL can be superficial and Boston can be stuffy. But as a whole, I would probably pick Boston. It's a serious city with serious culture.

[Keish83]

Which academic program will you be pursuing?

[flappergirl]

I have lived in Boston. It is a great town for many reasons, the arts among them. AMAZING music scene, especially classical and jazz. It is scenic and pretty and historical. But it is a Puritan yankee town, and, while I was a student in an international music conservatory, the "townees" or natives are pretty segregated. There is a black section and a white section. I didn't like that part one bit. NYC is much more integrated and diverse this way.


I would love to hear more opinions about Ft. Lauderdale in terms of culture and art/music as well. I am considering this as a new home from NYC. Diversity and open-mindedness are very important to me and would like feedback on this as well. I would love to live in a funky little beach town with cool people and a decent arts scene.

[the_diva]

Originally Posted by Keish83

Which academic program will you be pursuing?

Degree in Broadcasting at the Art Institute

[the_diva]

Originally Posted by compelled to reply

Well, Boston is a great city, a "Real" city with real city amenities, real city history, and an extraordinary high cost of living. Ft. Lauderdale is a beach town trying to go upscale with a few big city amenities, and quite a few big city problems. Take your pick- get away from the cold and move to a beach city a little more culture, or move to a cold city with a load of culture.

When you say " big city problems" do you mean high crime? Im soo tired of the cold I think maybe Ill be willing to settle for "a beach city with a little more culture". The Arts/Entertainment doesn't have to be over the top since I will probably just be staying in Fort Lauderdale for two to three years the most.Also, how about public transportation?

[compelled to reply]

Originally Posted by the_diva

When you say " big city problems" do you mean high crime? Im soo tired of the cold I think maybe Ill be willing to settle for "a beach city with a little more culture". The Arts/Entertainment doesn't have to be over the top since I will probably just be staying in Fort Lauderdale for two to three years the most.Also, how about public transportation?

The public transportation is (and I'm being nice), crap. There really is nothing but a slow bus system that seems to attract the dredges of the community...

When I say big city problems, crime is part of the equation, although that tends to be avoidable by staying out of high-crime areas at night. But I was also talking about the cost of living, impatient people, fast pace if you don't like that, the crowding, etc. I have walked around some of the bad neighborhoods at night like Sunland Park and parts of Oakland Park and, well, I wouldn't live there, but no reasonably street-smart person should have a problem there. Sistrunk Blvd and the NW sections of Ft. Lauderdale OFF of the major roads is probably the scariest part, but you really have no reason to be there. Also, in some of the "better" areas there is a little bit of a spillover where there are more burglaries/etc, but you won't have a hard time finding a safe neighborhood to reside in.

[Keish83]

Originally Posted by the_diva

Degree in Broadcasting at the Art Institute

So why only Fort Lauderdale or Boston? Many schools offer degree programs in Broadcasting.

[the_diva]

Originally Posted by Keish83

So why only Fort Lauderdale or Boston? Many schools offer degree programs in Broadcasting.

I wanted to go to a career college rather then a University so that it would be more specific and The Art Institute seemed like the best fit. The only thing about AI is that they only have my program at the Boston Area Institute or Fort Lauderdale one.
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To Compelled To Reply:If you are honest about the public transportation in Fort Lauderdale then I am scared!!! I probably won't be able to take a car there and that's going to suck if I can't get around. I was thinking about doing the bike thing since the weather seems soo great in FL, but still... Maybe I should think twice before going to this scool. How come nobody has anything positive about this place???? I know there has to be SOME good besides sunny mild winters. Are you guys telling me the bad certainly out weighs the good in Fort Lauderdale?
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