South Park street help! (Milwaukee, Madison: best neighborhood, apartments, rentals)

[bhubs420]

Me and my boyfriend are moving to park village apartments in madison on south park street. we are [mod]snip[/mod] 20 and 21. Should we not be moving there. we [mod]snip[/mod] just dont wanna be gettin jumped. could anyone give advice on the area and what we should be concerned about. We will be taking the bus so we would be waiting at bus stops. please help we are suppose to move in less than a month and really like the place just wanna be sure we will be safe.

[7G9C4J2]

That's not the best neighborhood, to be honest. You can be safe there, but you need to be sensible about things. Don't walk alone after dark, don't walk around intoxicated, don't walk around distracted by being on your cell phone, don't carry or flash a lot of money or valuables, and remember to keep your apartment door locked at all times, including when you are at home and awake.

The sad truth is that pretty much any one-bedroom apartment in Madison that is renting for under $750 is going to be in a sketchy neighborhood. Rentals are really, really expensive here. If you need a low-priced apartment, it's either going to be way the heck out in the remote parts of Dane County or else it's going to be in an iffy part of town.

[JoshB]

Originally Posted by MidwesternBookWorm

The sad truth is that pretty much any one-bedroom apartment in Madison that is renting for under $750 is going to be in a sketchy neighborhood. Rentals are really, really expensive here. If you need a low-priced apartment, it's either going to be way the heck out in the remote parts of Dane County or else it's going to be in an iffy part of town.

Well said, I agree. Spend a little more on rent and you'll avoid the rif raf. You may have to cut some things in your budget to afford a nicer place, however its worth it.

[Chelito23]

I don't understand why you say you are moving to a neighborhood (you must have already seen the place and surroundings) that you felt was fine at the time and now, you are suddenly worried about it. Why didn't you post before you got yourself into this? Clearly you saw what the area was about when you saw the complex.

All I can say is, good luck and you aparently have a good idea what to look out for.

[Megan1967]

Oh, for pities sake. It isn't the the best neighborhood in the world, but follow MWBW advice and you will be fine. Just because there are lots of minorities in the neighborhood doesn't mean you are going to be "jumped." They live there because they are not well off and it is one of the cheapest parts of town. I cat sat for a couple who lived in those apartments (young, white in their early 20's), and I never felt threatened. That said, I would also take Josh's advice and save up your money or rework your budget so that when your lease is up, you can move somewhere nicer. If you have signed a lease you are going to have to suck it up and live there for a year - or lose a ton of money on the deal.

[CowsAndBeer]

It depends on what you're used to, I'm sure. I live in Milwaukee and there isn't a single area of Madison that would intimidate me at any time of the day. When I moved to Madison many years back after college, I hadn't lived in a city bigger than 30,000 and there were areas that seemed "scary" as hell. If you're new to town and haven't been in a "city" living situation before, maybe spend a little extra per month and cut out; if you like the apartment and can handle yourself, don't worry about it, it isn't an extremely unsafe area compared to what many other cities offer.

[ranger17]

we lived for a year off Park/Badger in the 80's and it wasnt great back then; BUT common sense especially at night would go a long way on your side. The complex we were in at the time didnt allow children and actually itself had little trouble compared to some places behind the old 7-11 (i cant say if that's around or not).
As noted earlier, if one comes in from tougher neighborhoods or cities, then areas off Park, Badger, etc can seem pretty tame. We have good friends that lived in the 2000's in the Badger rd/Fish hatch area. I was not always comfortable going there at night to visit, but they had zero issues and considering where they came from in Mil and Chi it was a nice place for them to live.
I'll add this: one can get 'jumped' while walking around campus area/downtown, and homes/cars in normally quiet 'burb's can be broken into just as easily as those in an apt complex. Be smart no matter where you live and you'll be a step ahead of any trouble.

[mrs.cool]

Somebody could look this up, (I'm too lazy), but I seem to remember that the last few times I heard of a crime like this, somebody being jumped, having someone shake them down for money, or their cell phone or whatever, was around the campus to State Street area, U Ave, Johnson, etc.

[Megan1967]

People get mugged on campus all the time because criminals go down there to "roll the drunks." People, especially students, get blasted and then walk down dark alleys in the middle of the night. If you are stupid you can be the victim of crime anywhere.

[mrs.cool]

And again last night. Wisconsin and Dayton. Not saying he was stupid OR drunk, but the Badgers' new quarterback got beaten and robbed of his wallet and iphone.