Any areas around lexington to stay away from? (Nicholasville, Georgetown: apartments, high crime)

[CoffeeAddict]

Hi all, it looks like I may be moving in the next two months and I've been doing as much research as I can online about the various neighborhoods in and around Lexington.

So far, just from reading online, I think that I may like the areas of Nicholasville, Versaillas, Goergetown, or actually in Lexington and not on the outskirts.

I know this may be a touchy subject, but I would really appreciate it if anyone can tell me of certain areas that I may want to take out of the running. Places that have higher crime, run down appearance, etc.

It's SO hard to get a feel for different areas and neighborhoods without actually seeing them. Some days I think I want to live right in Lexington, and other days I think a smaller town right outside it would be better.

I'm just so lost, and it doesn't help that I will only have two days to go down and find an area that I like. Two days is not a lot of time to make such decisions, but that's how it has to be done.

I just want a place that is middle class but close to upper class areas, nice houses with reasonable prices (but I hate those cookie cutter subdivisions) and close enough to civilization. Near some pretty horse farms would be nice.

Oh, and does anyone know of a site that shows good pictures of these areas? City data doesn't seem to have many. I really want to SEE some of these places before I go there if possible.

Thanks! I need all the help I can get at this point! It's all a little overwhelming.

[MorganMRE]

Lexington isn't that high crime because the city itself isn't that big. I would live in Lexington. Versailes, Nicholasville and Georgetown don't have what Lexington has to offer. If you have children then I think it would be OK. But if you don't - then I'd live in Lexington.

Really, the bad areas are downtown. West 3rd St is pretty rough - along with Race St. Many of the areas surrounding these streets aren't that great. Even though I LOVE the revamped houses downtown because they're GORGEOUS - I don't think I could live there because I would never feel safe at night.

I really like Man O' War/Hamburg area. There's a ton of restaurants, shopping and everything right there. Everything is pretty new, which means it's nicer - but also means it's more expensive. Traffic kinda sucks, but I think traffic in Lexington sucks everywhere. However, you eventually learn the back roads and ways to avoid the traffic.

Good luck!

[CoffeeAddict]

Thanks, I don't have any kids and don't plan to have any for a long time, so schools are not an issue.

Really, the bad areas are downtown. West 3rd St is pretty rough - along with Race St. Many of the areas surrounding these streets aren't that great. Even though I LOVE the revamped houses downtown because they're GORGEOUS - I don't think I could live there because I would never feel safe at night.

Okay, this is where I get a little confused. I have a hard time wrapping my head around what is "downtown" and what isn't. Isn't all of the city of Lexington considered "downtown"? Or is it just a certain area and other part of Lexington are more suburban?

Where does downtown end and the better parts start?

That's why I was considering living in one of the other cities surrounding Lex, because I just assumed that all of Lexington was "downtown" and I want more of a suburban feel while still be fairly close to everything.

[MorganMRE]

No, it's not just downtown. Versailles, Nicholasville, Georgetown, etc are all different counties. So they're completely different from Lexington. Downtown is just...downtown. hahaha. The streets are numbers and the majority of them are one way. It's right in the center of the city - even though I don't think there's that much that's appealing north of downtown. I stick mainly to south of downtown because it's the area that I'm most familiar and everything I want is there. Some of my friends live downtown near UK and they've never had any problems. I'm just a chicken, so I wouldn't chance it to begin with. But I do know that W. 3rd St, Race St and the surrounding areas are the ghetto places in town. I'm sure there are other sketchy neighborhoods, but that's where the majority of the crime takes place. Not to mention, unless you're GOING to school - I would never want to live near a college. I think it's just asking for trouble because there's too many people, too many drunks and too many people acting out because of their drunk behavior.

But yeah, there are some great areas in Lexington. I'm looking into the Hamburg Farm townhouses right behind the Hamburg. I also like Rabbit Run Apartments. Bridal Creek Apartments on Nicholasville Road looks really nice as well. My friend lives there and really likes them.

I hope that helped :-/ heheheh

[CoffeeAddict]

That does help. Thanks!

I was searching google for neighborhood info and came across this map, can you or anyone else possibly point out which area quadrant you think best suits what I'm looking for? It would be so helpful to be able to relate what you're saying to a map. I tried looking for the streets you mentioned but they don't seem to show up there.

(I hope it's okay that I post a link. Scroll up for the map)

http://www.lexhomes.com/lexmap.html

[jehnifer]

You both should also consider the Lansdowne area and Tates Creek Rd. area. Its the south end of town. Spacious, less traffic than Hamburg area but very close proximity to the Hamburg Place shopping and Fayette Mall and the restaurants all along Nicholasville Rd. Without the crazy congestion!!

[gimme it]

I didn't think there was anything bad about downtown or near the university. I may not want to live right there, but it seemed perfectly safe.

[CoffeeAddict]

I'm starting to wonder if maybe I should be further away from the city, since I do have three dogs and I want at least 1 acre of land for them. I'm assuming I won't find that in any of the Lexington neighborhoods since it's so close to town?

Any suggestions for areas that will have a bit more land available but still within a close drive to shops and such?

[gimme it]

Look into Stonewall for bigger yards.

[CoffeeAddict]

I just googled stonewall and it looks like a beautiful neighborhood! Thanks for suggesting it. That's exactly the kind of place I'm looking for. Close to malls and shops, but not in a sub with each house top of one another.

Do you happen to know the zip code? I searched their official site and they didn't have it listed there.