Pros and Cons of Lynn MA (Boston, Salem: middle-class, apartments, loft)

[Bogo78787878]

Any local people that grew up in Lynn MA looking at some imput about the pros and cons of the city particularly around the ocean front and eastern ave thanks so much

[MA2NHFIDORelo]

There are very few nice parts of Lynn. The area of Ward 1 is the nicest part in my opinion. While there are some nice neighborhoods in various parts of the city there are also many bad ones. Eastern Ave is close to Essex street....so depending on where on Eastern...

[goyguy]

The closer to Swampscott, the better, in the "Diamond District." Other good areas are in the vicinity of all the cemeteries, approaching Salem in the area of Sluice Pond along Western Ave, West Lynn around Wyoma Square, and along/north of Boston St.
Some urban renewal (not "urban removal" for a change) has been taking place around the commuter rail station downtown. Old factories and warehouses have been refurbished into loft-style and other apartments. There are a few recently opened coffee places, along with old-school watering holes, scattered about. But it still seems foreboding around there after dark and will probably never be the bustling district that it was until the '60s.
As is true in most larger old cities, the public schools in Lynn are one of its main Achilles' heels. The quality of education has plummeted over the last half century, meaning that a good number of middle-class families who live there go the parochial/private route. The neighborhoods I've mentioned, along with random pockets throughout the city, tend to be suburb-quiet. But others are "lively" with robberies, drug dealing, and not too infrequently arson. So choose carefully when home shopping. You could wind up with a bargain-priced Victorian that doesn't even need much work, or a cool loft with all "the latest," or a sweet sturdy bungalow or Cape, and great neighbors - or (ahem) not.