How is Koreatown? (Beverly Hills: apartment, lofts, houses)

[Shikaka805]

Hi!

Potentially moving to Koreatown, anybody have any advice on the area?

I'll be at South Harvard Boulevard (South of 8th Street and North of James Wood Blvd)

Thanks!

[CESpeed]

Parking is a nightmare! If you are in a space one minute longer than you are allowed there will be a ticket on your car! The people who drive around can't drive! Parking enforcement LIVES in the area. They will tow you if you are in the tow zone!

[woogexx]

Originally Posted by CESpeed

They will tow you if you are in the tow zone!

*gasp* How dare them! those bastards!

[cicerone]

I lived in Koreatown for almost 4 years. I enjoyed the NY-style architecture, asian restaurants and hidden dive bars. It's generally safe, although the farther south of Wilshire you go, the worse it gets.

It's not a place for someone looking for the "Westside" lifestyle (swimming pool, gated community). It's more a place for recent immigrants and hipster-types looking for something a little gritty and relatively affordable.

That being said, the location is extremely central - close to Hollywood, Beverly Hills, downtown. It's gentrifying for that very reason, among others..

[whatever78]

Originally Posted by cicerone

I lived in Koreatown for almost 4 years. I enjoyed the NY-style architecture, asian restaurants and hidden dive bars. It's generally safe, although the farther south of Wilshire you go, the worse it gets.

It's not a place for someone looking for the "Westside" lifestyle (swimming pool, gated community). It's more a place for recent immigrants and hipster-types looking for something a little gritty and relatively affordable.

That being said, the location is extremely central - close to Hollywood, Beverly Hills, downtown. It's gentrifying for that very reason, among others..

Exactly what my response would be. except i wasn't there as long. apparently the ms-14 is there, but i never "saw" them or had any problems.

BEWARE the parking situation. if you work normal office hours, and don't have a building w/ parking (most don't), you will NOT find a space when you get home. i would get back about 6:30pm and often park 3-4 blocks away, once 9 blocks (that was the record). add 15-20 minutes to commute time to search for parking.

as to the towing situation, having lived all over la, this is my observation: towing and parking tickets are a tax on the poor. in the nicer neighborhoods, i never experienced parking citations. you could park in the street every day, trash collection and street cleaning didn't matter. in the poorer areas i've lived, different story. for some reason, you can't park on the street for street cleaning which is 2x/wk, for at least 2 hours. which is unfortunate since parking is so limited already.

in Ktown, i was home sick once day and since the streets were always so dirty...i sat and looked out my window for 2 hours, watched parking enforcement giving tickets, and observed NO STREET CLEANING, even though it was the designated day. this really pissed me off.

anyway, i lived in an amazing beautiful art deco building in a 1200 sq ft 1 bedroom, it was really neat. if you don't mind lack of parking, trash on the street and quite possibly the worst drivers in la county, then by all means move there, you can find an awesome apartment for your money, and it is very central to everything.

[the one]

some spots of k-town are really nice. some old buildings that have been around for decades. the parking is bad and the thugs exist more towards macarthur. some parts are ruff, but you do have some really nice areas. it is busy in the day and less busy at night. many night spots to eat. its an ok area, but the further south from wilshire the worse it gets...

[JackSparrow]

I like Korea town. Good little restaurants, decent scene. I don't know anything about parking or much else though. Good luck!

[matt345]

If only they would extend the purple line subway, many people wouldn't even have to worry about parking!

[King0fthehill]

It's very up & coming, that's for sure.

A ton of trendy coffee houses, bars, clubs, raves, etc. Many young hipsters are moving there, partially because of it's proximity to many places, but also relatively inexpensive home prices, new lofts and that "city" feel.

Beware of the areas south of Wilshire and the visible Latino gang presence.

[SAT3LokS]

I live south of Korea town. Its a good place, cleaned streets and I don't hear much about it.