Thinking of moving here? You may want to reconsider

[majoun]

Originally Posted by West of Encino

I'm talking about Venice Beach.

The homeless are a much bigger problem in Venice (outside of Oakwood) than gangs are (at least gangs who are actually from the area, as opposed to outsiders)

The recent gang problems involved people from South L.A. and Compton. Not people from Venice or any area near Venice.

[FromNYC2LA]

Originally Posted by nighthouse66

i think its pretty illuminating to read a 5 year old thread filled with dire predictions about what LA is becoming and how much worse its gonna get- and how funny that it didn't come true.

i have only lived here 6 years, but i feel there is a definite difference between the LA of ten years ago and the LA i know and love (and hate too).
i mean, crime is down HUGELY. i have walked all over this city at night (venice, east LA, los feliz, hollywood, etc) and NEVER had the slightest problem. i feel amazingly safe here- and i don't in atlanta. i really don't.
gangs are largely under control and have sort of integrated themselves into the fabric of the city. downtown has alot of (too much really) gentrification going on now and its the hep place to be. the smog has improved even in the past few years. and people here have ALWAYS been 100 percent fantastic. i never fail to be treated well. any store i walk into, no matter what race or culture, i always have a pleasant experience. its funny how others haven't- maybe it is their own vibe that is causing trouble for them, and not the city itself.

I have only been here close to 7 months (from NYC) and totally agree with you about how nice evryone is. My wife and I have met people from all walks of life and backgrounds, and we are amazed at how friendly everyone has been. This has really been a pleasant surprise.

[bigdumbgod]

Originally Posted by FromNYC2LA

I have only been here close to 7 months (from NYC) and totally agree with you about how nice evryone is. My wife and I have met people from all walks of life and backgrounds, and we are amazed at how friendly everyone has been. This has really been a pleasant surprise.

Glad you have had a good experience out in the real world. Kind of clues one into how tragically (needlessly) negative the mindset is of some C-D posters around here.

[FromNYC2LA]

Thanks! It really has been a pleasant surprise. Before I moved here I was reading this forum a lot. And I'll be totally honest here, I wasn't sure that moving to Los Angeles was a good idea. But so far my wife and I have really loved the scenery and topography of this vast area. Simply spectacular! It's all relative of course, but living amidst building after building with ZERO space wasn't cutting it for us anymore. At least out here for what we pay we get beautiful scenery and space. In NYC we had neither of these things.

[sgvkev]

Originally Posted by DeserTBoB

<snip>

"Proud" of it? Then why is all the trash from Compton moving up to Palmdale/Lancaster? To escape the horrid schools, corrupt city government, out of control crime and gang infestations? No, it's because the LA County Housing Authority is moving Section 8 garbage out to the high desert in droves.

San Bernardino's been a scummy town since the 1940s. Crime in the Muscoy ghetto was some of the worst outside of the worst parts of LA and its ghetto satellite cities. Once mandatory school busing was outlawed, things did settle down in various parts of the city, but it's still a scumball city overall, with a long, long history of corrupt city government, poverty and crime. I remember as a kid, if someone from Riverside wanted to do something illegal, they could always do it in San Berdoo. Once the Santa Fe started closing down the big shops on 2nd St. and Norton AFB closed, the area started into an economic downward spiral from which it never has recovered.

Compton's beyond hope its present form, but with all the trash moving out on Section 8 to Palmdale/Lancaster, investors/developers will buy all the shacks, bulldoze them, and recreate the whole South Central area into expensive single family houses and townhomes. It's just a matter of time, and is the real reason why the Housing Authroity is moving all the welfare blacks out to the desert while closing the 1940s projects, which are dilapidated beyond repair. Jordan Downs is already condemend, and Imperial and Nickerson "Gardens" will follow shortly. It's a smart move, as the area has a much better climate and redevelopment there will eliminate senseless commuting to downtown and Wilshire Blvd. offices from far flung suburbs.

Jordan Downs is not condemned, they're just adding to it. Revitalization...

Just because it's a smart move doesn't necessarily make it right either (and it's highly likely, if not inevitable, that the economy will crash again soon, like in 2008, which would lower housing prices again). That's basically just moving the problem elsewhere rather than actively fixing it, and the South Central and Compton (which is a longer commute to downtown than you think and both South Central and Compton are still attracting minorities in 2017) area has REAL hoods (that have been around since before I was born) that will be hard to get rid of. Gangs that started in the 80s and before generally formed to "protect" that area, hence names like The Avenues, 18th Street, and Florencia 13, as well as Delmann Heights Bloods in San Bernardino since that area was mentioned, not solely for the lifestyle like the newer ones, and thus they have an emotional attachment to that area. That's why Venice 13, Venice Shoreline Crips, Sotel 13, Culver City Boys, etc. are STILL around despite all the gentrification that occurred there.

Climate? The eastside of South Central and Watts are right next to heavy industrial areas like Vernon, and not right next to the ocean like Inglewood is.

San Bernardino? Even they are trying to rebuild their downtown, though it will take a LONG time to recover, because of Norton closing as well as Kaiser steel. For a big city to have that little tax revenue is devastating (and it shows in all areas of the city except the northside, and even then there are a couple bad areas there).

It's very classist to push the low income into places like the desert so the upper class can "take back" the big cities... that's why there needs to be a Universal Basic Income for everyone, as unchecked development can risk making everything too expensive and the middle class is declining rapidly. Rich and poor with no middle class is a major part of fascism...

[highlanderfil]

Originally Posted by sgvkev

Jordan Downs is not condemned, they're just adding to it. Revitalization...

You're quoting a post from eleven years ago.

[Chicano3000X]

Originally Posted by CuteSubmissiveGuy

I'm originally from New Jersey and had two choices were to move. LA or Vegas and I selected Vegas. I'm thinking about moving to LA now. It's that bad?

No, this is an over-exaggeration. Truth is, there is alot of annoyances with L.A. But nothing you cant handle if your not a bigot/racist/angry republican longing for the 1950s or some other era that will never come back. In denial not accepting that a city changes and evolves.

In short, no this isn't your grandfather's L.A.

It's a crazy effin' city and if you can make it here you can make it anywhere. Yes NYers I used your slogan..

[Chicano3000X]

When I was a kid, you could not play in the front. Gunshots almost every night and always a ghetto bird flying around shining lights into your window.

Today it's alot different. Less dangerous but getting more sterile. But on the upside more urban. Wish there was a balance for gentrifacation. Down for getting the crime out but not the people that made these neigborhoods what they were. Seeing murals disappear and replaced by a generic corporate setup is depressing.