Fort Wayne Housing etc (apartment complexes, for rent, crime)

[nlpavalko]

Hello everyone, I'm looking for housing, and information in general, about Fort Wayne specifically, housing near Ivy Tech.

I'm moving from the SW Ohio area, but grew up in Northeast Ohio near Cleveland. My impression of Fort Wayne is that it's a rustbelt city, like Cleveland. Am I right?

What does it have to offer in terms of entertainment, art/culture, sports?

How is public transit? Citilink buses, do they run 24 hrs? Are they safe? Clean?

[cdcdguy]

While I would not consider Fort Wayne a true rustbelt city, the economy has seen manufacturing pull out the last 30 years like any Midwest city. Still, unemployment is a little lower here than many Midwest cities. GM is still here, and the medical corridor here has really grown. I can't comment on housing around IVY Tech, but others will know. We are much smaller than Cleveland, but have a symphony, and arts, as well as a beautiful Embassy Theatre downtown. I am pretty sure Citylink does not run all night, and this is a town where you really need a car or you are going to be very retsricted.

We also have minor league sports and a really nice new baseball stadium.

[whatsthebigdeal]

Housing options in the Ivy Tech area are kind of limited. There are apartments down St Joe and St Joe Center. I am sure you will hear about Canterbury Green but I have not known anyone who has enjoyed living there, especially since it mostly populated by college-aged adults, so the noise and partying is always an issue. I would definitely suggest a visit to the city, and just look at the different areas of the city, as well as the different apartment complexes in the north and northeastern side of town. I don't know if renting a house is your thing, or an option, but in the neighborhoods off of Crescent, toward Lake Side park usually have small houses for rent, you just have to drive around.

As been mentioned, downtown has a nice sports stadium, but it is only really used in the warmer months. Fort Wayne does have a nice art museum, as well as art galleries through the West Central neighborhood. Also, you can check out http://www.artsunited.org/ for all the events Arts United sponsors, the art museum, Artlink, Dance Collective, Civic Theatre, and Cinema Center (one of my favorite arthouse/independent theaters in the country).

There are bars everywhere in the city, and a few nightclubs. You are in luck if live music is your thing, if you go looking for it, you can usually find it every night of the week.

Citilink does not run all night. A few bus lines run to midnight, I believe, but I think most stop at 10ish, check out Fort Wayne Citilink, A Service of the Fort Wayne Public Transportation Corporation for more details.

[nlpavalko]

Thanks everyone for the information! How about safety? Is Fort Wayne a safe city? Is the area around Ivy Tech pretty safe?

[brainiac138]

On average, Fort Wayne is very safe. Like anywhere else, you have to keep your surroundings in mind. Here is a map to give you an idea of where crime is concentrated and what kind of crime is prevalent, which is usually car break-ins and such...
Fort Wayne, IN Crime Map - Showing Crimes in Fort Wayne - Crime Statistics, Alerts and Reports - Crime Stops Here

Also, the area around Ivy Tech to the immediate south and east is very residential and safe. Canterbury Green has problems that any large apartment community with mostly young people has.

[nlpavalko]

What about the Citilink system? Is it safe? Well-used? Popular? I grew up near Youngstown, Ohio which has a bus system, but the overwhemling majority of people in the area did not use it and it was generally thought to only be used by low-income people in the city.

I, for one, am all for mass transit and bus systems, but if the buses are old and out of date and unsafe I won't use them.

[wh15395]

Originally Posted by nlpavalko

What about the Citilink system? Is it safe? Well-used? Popular? I grew up near Youngstown, Ohio which has a bus system, but the overwhemling majority of people in the area did not use it and it was generally thought to only be used by low-income people in the city.

I, for one, am all for mass transit and bus systems, but if the buses are old and out of date and unsafe I won't use them.

The buses are actually nice and they seem very safe. Given, I've only used Citilink once to get from IPFW/Ivy Tech area to Times Corners on the SW side. My only complaint about the buses are that they aren't really usable unless you have a lot of extra time, because they only run every 60 minutes (some routes may come every 30) and there are also not enough routes.