Your take on living in Capitol Ave area (South Bend, Monon: sales, real estate)

[sarahlevey]

My boyfriend and I recently relocated to Indy (-1 month ago) and are trying to find areas to live that are close to downtown but homes with yards for our dogs to run around in. We are curious what the locals think about the Capitol Avenue area that is south of Fall Creek but north of the Methodist hospital specifically 23rd Street and Capitol Ave. Our concerns are that we want to buy a home but the area is filled with a lot of rentals. We are concerned that it would be an area with depreciating value due to the amount of rentals and potential for lack of care to the property and surrounding neighborhood.
Also, is it a declining neighborhood with crime? I know the further north we go to, say 38th-ish, the higher crime rate. But 23rd and Capitol isn't terrible. What's the crime like in this area?
We like that it's close to the health care campuses and canal so that's why it's high on the list for us.
We read that Fall Creek has flooded in the past but apparently not in this specific area.
Any input from you guys would be greatly appreciated. We would love to live in a safe or even mostly safe area where we can let the dogs stretch their legs and somewhere that we could easily walk to downtown.
Thanks in advance!
Sorry if my post seems naive. I'm a small town girl from Alaska...this is my first time living in a big city! Speaking of Alaska, what are the winters like here in Indy? I know they won't compare to our -20 degrees with tons of snow. I'm curious about specifics. Does it rain more than it snows? If there is snow, how much? How cold does it really get? I guess it can't be as bad as Alaska so I'm not too worried about it.

[grmasterb]

No.

[Toxic Toast]

There are quite a few places I would choose before buying a house at 23rd and Capitol. That is not to say 23rd & Capitol is an Especially if I were moving to Indy from rural Alaska. Just on the other side of Meridian is a neighborhood called Fall Creek Place. That is now a pricey area, but would probably be fine. The area west of College over to the Monon, if you are looking for a cheap house in an area that could see property values increase. Mapleton-Fall Creek, which is north of Fall Creek up 38th and east of Meridian is another area I would be inclined to explore first. I know people living in and moving into Mapleton Fall Creek, I would feel better buying a house there than at 23rd & Capitol.

As far as winter, an average winter is about 25-30 inches of snow. -20 would be quite the rarity for air temperature in Indy. I think it was right at 0 or just a few degrees below 0 last winter when they cancelled school for cold air. I think the wind chills were close to -20 those mornings. I am guessing our winters will seem almost balmy compared to what you described.

[sarahlevey]

Thanks Texas Toast. I've read your comments on other posts and respect your opinion. What do you know about the north side of Brookside Park near Mass Ave? It's a little further away than we'd like but there are bike trails nearby. I'm not too sure about the neighborhood though but we like that it's right across a frolf course.

[sarahlevey]

BTW I'm just wondering what your reasons would be for not wanting the 23rd and Capitol area?

[Toxic Toast]

Originally Posted by sarahlevey

Thanks Texas Toast. I've read your comments on other posts and respect your opinion. What do you know about the north side of Brookside Park near Mass Ave? It's a little further away than we'd like but there are bike trails nearby. I'm not too sure about the neighborhood though but we like that it's right across a frolf course.

You would be better off south of Brookside Park (in the Brookside neighborhood) than north of it. I don't live too far from Brookside Park, and I do know a few people in that neighborhood.

They are expanding the Pogue's Run Trail through Spades Park and Brookside Park, it will connect to 10th Street on over to the Cultural Trail. If you are looking for a quick connection to the bike trail system, that would be an area to check out. However, you might want to stick to the Springdale and Windsor Park neighborhoods west of Rural. They are probably a little less intimidating to a newcomer than Brookside.

[Toxic Toast]

Originally Posted by sarahlevey

BTW I'm just wondering what your reasons would be for not wanting the 23rd and Capitol area?

Personally speaking, when I've moved into "questionable" parts of Indy, I like to stick to areas in which I personally know some of the other people or know of a good neighborhood association. It is entirely possible there are some people sticking it out to improve that area around 23rd & Capitol, but I don't know anyone and I have connections to many near east and near north neighborhoods. I struggle to think of even some kind of neighborhood group or civic association in that area. I moved to Fountain Square before it was the trendy area it is now only because I personally knew a couple of other folks who were committed to sticking things out in the neighborhood. I feel the same way about Englewood where I live now. I don't know anyone near 23rd & Capitol.

[sarahlevey]

Originally Posted by Toxic Toast

Personally speaking, when I've moved into "questionable" parts of Indy, I like to stick to areas in which I personally know some of the other people or know of a good neighborhood association. It is entirely possible there are some people sticking it out to improve that area around 23rd & Capitol, but I don't know anyone and I have connections to many near east and near north neighborhoods. I struggle to think of even some kind of neighborhood group or civic association in that area. I moved to Fountain Square before it was the trendy area it is now only because I personally knew a couple of other folks who were committed to sticking things out in the neighborhood. I feel the same way about Englewood where I live now. I don't know anyone near 23rd & Capitol.

Awesome, thanks for your input man. I see now that there's a lot of renovation in that area. We want an area that's taken care of by its residents. You've given us more areas to consider.

[sweetana3]

Hi, from a former Alaskan. We moved here in 1977. My brother still lives in Anchorage. The first winter here they had a "blizzard" that closed the city. We could not figure out what the problem was. I dont like that it is often wet snow or melting snow and water is dirty and hard to avoid. But it is not 9 months long like AK.

The area you mentioned is not one I would live in. Right now there is a lot of crime, read shootings, in the general area and it affects the whole market. There are better areas. That specific area has had ups and downs. At one time there was a restored bed and breakfast right there that is now closed.

I live downtown around 10th and Alabama.
The hot areas right now are Cottage Home, Windsor Park, Holy Cross, etc. They are just on the East side of the I65/70 spur going North and South. Fall Creek Place is doing well and expanding across College east. There is an interesting neighborhood around Bellefontaine on the East Side of College that has some smaller, old renovated and new homes.

Let me know if I can help. I am not a real estate sales person.

ps: I like Fountain Square for all the activity and good things going on with their involved groups. Fletcher Place is closer to downtown and interesting too.

[ischyros]

I think the neighborhoods you were talking about have already been perfectly discussed so I'll talk about weather, which is something I love. Winters are typically rather mild around here, especially from what you describe in Alaska. Ice storms may possibly be something you're not as used to? They're more common in southern Indiana and Kentucky but we get our share of freezing rain. TT mentioned the average snowfall here. We're south of the lake effect snow belt. For example, South Bend, about 2 and a half hours north in northern Indiana averages 66 inches of snow, which is more than Indy has ever gotten in a season, by about a foot. Winter is really our dry time of year with about 2 to 2 1/2 inches of precipitation in January and February compared to 4-5 inches in May, June, and July. Usually it seems our snow comes with one or two big storms of 4-6 inches or more and then a bunch of little storms with an inch or two, but the occasional "blizzard" with 8-12 inches of snow happens as well. Our average high never drops below freezing though we certainly have stretches where the temperature won't climb above freezing, sometimes not out of the single digits. Daytime highs below zero really are rare, though once or twice overnight isn't unheard of. Thunderstorms often end in November and don't reappear until March or even April. We get rain in the winter but often winter is just dry and overcast. Compare an average of almost 300 hours per month of sunshine in June, July, and August to barely 100 hours of sunshine in November, December, and January.