Ahhh... is a move to Miami insane? (Hialeah, Orlando: how much, income)

[crisp444]

Originally Posted by Chrome Microphone

Wow, coming from Boston, that says a lot about how S FL has changed and turned out over the years.

Everyone is entitled to his/her opinion, but I lived in Boston from 2003-2007, grew up in Miami, still have plenty of family and friends there, and still visit three times per year. Miami really hasn't changed for the worst since I grew up there, in my opinion. I disagree that Miami-Dade County is "family unfriendly" - there are plenty of nice, pleasant, and safe areas with good public and private schools from which to choose. I would much rather raise a child in Miami-Dade County than in the great majority of this country, to be honest with you. I feel that a child would have a much better upbringing in an interesting place full of character and culture like Miami than in a soulless wasteland of cookie-cutter homes where Taco Bell and Bojangles are considered "ethnic food" and everyone around you is from the same place and of the same culture.

With 100% sincerety, I believe that:
Coral Gables >> "Garden of Eden" of Alpharetta, GA
Kendall >> "The Promised Land" of Cary, NC
Miami Lakes >> "Leave-it-to-Beaver" Schaumburg, IL
Pinecrest >> "Low-Cost, Big-House Paradise" of Plano, TX

[feibax]

I don't think Miami is a good city to raise your kids, there is a lot of peer pressure for drugs sex, The people can be very rough , they are the rudest drivers in the whole country, they are just looking for an excuse to blow off. Naples, where i live, has been good so far , but i am seeing more and more of the Miami population ( esp Cubans and Haitians) , now moving to Naples and changing the character of the city , thank God the police presence is strong in Naples

[Chrome Microphone]

Originally Posted by crisp444

Everyone is entitled to his/her opinion, but I lived in Boston from 2003-2007, grew up in Miami, still have plenty of family and friends there, and still visit three times per year. Miami really hasn't changed for the worst since I grew up there, in my opinion. I disagree that Miami-Dade County is "family unfriendly" - there are plenty of nice, pleasant, and safe areas with good public and private schools from which to choose. I would much rather raise a child in Miami-Dade County than in the great majority of this country, to be honest with you. I feel that a child would have a much better upbringing in an interesting place full of character and culture like Miami than in a soulless wasteland of cookie-cutter homes where Taco Bell and Bojangles are considered "ethnic food" and everyone around you is from the same place and of the same culture.

With 100% sincerety, I believe that:
Coral Gables >> "Garden of Eden" of Alpharetta, GA
Kendall >> "The Promised Land" of Cary, NC
Miami Lakes >> "Leave-it-to-Beaver" Schaumburg, IL
Pinecrest >> "Low-Cost, Big-House Paradise" of Plano, TX

Ha, that's pretty funny.

Diversity and culture is over-rated. Besides Miami is so highly Hispanic, what else is there besides Hispanics and Haitians in Miami, I mean truthfully. Alpharetta is way more diverse anyway. Look it up...whites, blacks, asians, hispanics, etc... no crime and highly educated crowd. The only headache is driving. Traffic is bad.

Soulless wasteland of cookie cutter homes? And you dont think FL has this? Lol.

[tallrick]

Pinecrest, low cost? That has not been true since before the drug money of the 1980's. Cookie cutter? Just take a drive down Kendall, the Turnpike or I-75. Diversity? You can find a diverse array of things in a dumpster, but at least it's free to visit a dumpster unlike Miami where nothing wothwhile is affordable.

[crisp444]

Much of Florida is pretty horrid in that respect, too. At least most Miami-Dade suburbs have some character. And, contrary to popular belief, Miami-Dade is only about 60% "Hispanic," a substantial contingent of which are born-and-raised white Americans, if that matters.

Alpharetta has more blacks (and Asians) than comparable upper middle class areas of Miami-Dade, but it's pretty much all suburban sprawl for miles in all directions. No thanks. I'd rather deal with hearing Spanish, faster drivers, and "more crowded" Miami.

I understand that my urban/international tastes are different from those of the great majority of Americans, so I have no problem that people choose to live in places like Alpharetta, GA and Cary, NC. My problem is mostly with the horrid (lack of) urban planning in those places. Lack of culture is another major strike against them, and general lack of cultural diversity is just the icing on the cake (not the cake itself) of why I would never want to live in a place like that. I just do not buy into the "American dream" of big lawns, open spaces, big and cheap single family homes, multiple freeway lanes, and lack of public transportation to keep out outsiders. Although I love this country and have no current intention to move, I much prefer the built environment of Europe and Latin America and places in the US whose built environment most resemble these places. So, yeah, you'll find me in pedestrian-friendly city neighborhoods and older streetcar suburbs that aren't dozens of miles removed from jobs, restaurants, shopping, and entertainment.

Again, my main problem with much of post-1960's suburban/exurban America has to do with (lack of) urban planning and sustainability; my next problem is lack of character. Diversity really isn't a huge thing for me; it matters a little but not enough to make me move to somewhere that is more "diverse" than where I live. "Diversity" should not be praised at all costs, I agree. In fact, I was much happier living in a magnificently-planned city, urban city that is not diverse by American standards (Madrid, Spain) than I would be living somewhere like the Buford Highway corridor NE of Atlanta - very diverse, but planned for the car and not for the pedestrian.

[crisp444]

Originally Posted by tallrick

Pinecrest, low cost? That has not been true since before the drug money of the 1980's. Cookie cutter? Just take a drive down Kendall, the Turnpike or I-75. Diversity? You can find a diverse array of things in a dumpster, but at least it's free to visit a dumpster unlike Miami where nothing wothwhile is affordable.

I think you misunderstood my post. I was using the >> symbol to mean "greater than" or "better than". As in I prefer (expensive) Pinecrest of (low-cost-big-house) Plano. Tallrick, you know I don't like cookie-cutter. But, in general, Miami-Dade is not cookie-cutter (you and I know that far West Dade is an exception to this rule) like SW Broward up I-75 is. As for diversity, Miami-Dade is more diverse than most metro areas in this country.

[tallrick]

Generally the older the area the less cookie cutter it is. The newer zero-lot line developments or condo style have no hope of ever being more than cookie cutter. My rule for south Florida is bigger lot, more desireable. That rule has never failed. Smaller lot, location matters. Condo, stay far away.

[compelled to reply]

Originally Posted by Chrome Microphone

Alpharetta is way more diverse anyway. Look it up...whites, blacks, asians, hispanics, etc... no crime and highly educated crowd. The only headache is driving. Traffic is bad.

But they have *gasp* red light runners!!

http://www.city-data.com/picfilesv/picv30471.php

Look at all of that diversi-tuh! Gottuh have white people for educitation and diversity! Hispanics are non-diverse and cause rude people.

* White Non-Hispanic (80.7%)
* Black (6.5%)
* Hispanic (5.5%)
* Asian Indian (2.5%)
* Other race (2.4%)
* Two or more races (1.5%)
* Chinese (1.4%)
* Korean (0.8%)
* American Indian (0.5%)

Crime in Alpharetta by Year
Type 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007
Murders 2 0 0 0 1 1 1 0 0
per 100,000 7.9 0.0 0.0 0.0 2.8 2.8 2.8 0.0 0.0
Rapes 11 9 6 4 6 4 4 13 10
per 100,000 43.5 31.4 16.8 11.0 16.5 11.2 11.4 31.4 22.8
Robberies 43 30 24 18 25 20 19 40 41
per 100,000 169.9 104.5 67.2 49.4 69.0 56.0 54.0 96.6 93.4
Assaults 102 63 81 99 81 54 60 66 95
per 100,000 403.1 219.5 226.9 271.6 223.4 151.2 170.5 159.4 216.4
Burglaries 252 324 202 241 192 145 182 162 243
per 100,000 995.9 1129.0 565.9 661.3 529.5 405.9 517.2 391.1 553.4
Thefts 2,382 1,820 1,153 1,096 1,197 1,002 1,198 1,317 1,501
per 100,000 9413.2 6341.9 3230.1 3007.3 3301.3 2804.8 3404.6 3179.9 3418.4
Auto thefts 256 183 103 107 132 81 89 81 92
per 100,000 1011.7 637.7 288.6 293.6 364.1 226.7 252.9 195.6 209.5
Arson 256 N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A 3 N/A N/A
per 100,000 1011.7 N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A 8.5 N/A N/A
City-data.com crime index (higher means more crime, U.S. average = 320.9) 709.3 484.1 270.9 268.0 282.4 220.3 257.7 256.2 281.7

Look ma, no crime! Look at all of that cry-me they have an hour from downtown Miami by comparison!

Crime in Cooper City by Year
Type 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007
Murders 0 1 0 0 1 0 0 0 0
per 100,000 0.0 3.3 0.0 0.0 3.4 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0
Rapes 3 2 0 3 8 5 2 2 1
per 100,000 10.1 6.6 0.0 10.3 27.2 17.0 6.6 6.6 3.3
Robberies 11 8 14 12 3 8 17 18 18
per 100,000 37.2 26.2 48.8 41.1 10.2 27.1 56.5 59.0 59.6
Assaults 24 37 45 37 51 42 82 68 79
per 100,000 81.1 121.4 157.0 126.6 173.5 142.4 272.3 222.7 261.7
Burglaries 146 104 161 169 125 99 107 113 123
per 100,000 493.4 341.2 561.7 578.5 425.2 335.7 355.4 370.2 407.5
Thefts 452 367 435 552 550 442 467 426 560
per 100,000 1527.6 1204.0 1517.6 1889.4 1870.7 1498.6 1550.9 1395.4 1855.4
Auto thefts 38 48 37 43 41 29 24 33 19
per 100,000 128.4 157.5 129.1 147.2 139.5 98.3 79.7 108.1 63.0
Arson 5 0 4 1 3 3 4 6 8
per 100,000 16.9 0.0 14.0 3.4 10.2 10.2 13.3 19.7 26.5
City-data.com crime index (higher means more crime, U.S. average = 320.9) 141.4 128.6 156.4 173.7 182.1 141.5 170.0 157.9 180.7

[onegreatnurse]

Originally Posted by muscleman305

I would never raise a daughter anywhere near here period! Take it from a guy in his late 20's that has seen everything and believe me no girl is safe from the club culture in Miami. For example, I have met and hung out with Jewish girls that walk to temple on Saturdays and never wear a skirt above their knees in public, do and say some really crazy things I would never dare repeat on this forum. In fact one of my biggest fears is having a daughter, which is probably the reason why I'm 29, married for 3 years and still havent had a child yet. My cousin had girl twins and she moved to North Carolina a year after, a neighbor moved from New jersey with her 13 year old daughter and she sent her back to live with her dad after she caught her sneaking out in the middle of the night with marijuana in her purse, my wife moved here when she was 12 from new york and almost comitted sucicide throughout her high school and middle school years because of peer pressure and verbal abuse from envious classmates because of her innocent naive personality at the time. I'm sure there are many good schools here that will shelter her from the bad environment, but the closeness and draw of the clubs and the element it attracts is sometimes hard to avoid. Even the best private schools are going to have kids that socialize with other kids from bad public schools that will most likley introduce them to drugs like extasy, cocaine and marijuana which are very prevalent here and the Miami mentality among young latins is so idolized with scarface, money and strippers that it creates an environment very difficult to raise a young latin daughter with morals. Sure odds are she can probably be corrupted in California too, but from personal experience the odds are a whole lot greater in Miami.\
Why don't you visit here during the summer and enroll her in some sort of summer school program where she can meet some peers her own age and that way you can get an idea of what to expect.

Ok I'm from NJ....and we have all those drugs here and I've known plenty of people to do them...coke, pot (I smoked it in college myself, during my days of experimentation, never really cared for it), X, you name it...also I hated high school and grammar school and was picked on all the time, my mother finally had to pay to send my sister to a private high school to stop people from picking fist fights with her right in front of the grammmar school where the principal said there's nothing we can do after all it's not school property! Right in front of the school! I wasted four years and learned nothing in high school, as for grammar school, I was lucky to be smart enough to learn some on my own, but I was tormented by a rough crowd of classmates for years, myself and another Italian girl, because we were conservative and good girls who didn't run aroud smoking, drinking and having sex from the fifth grade on...

[rogerbacon]

Originally Posted by crisp444

I understand that my urban/international tastes are different from those of the great majority of Americans, so I have no problem that people choose to live in places like Alpharetta, GA and Cary, NC. My problem is mostly with the horrid (lack of) urban planning in those places. Lack of culture is another major strike against them, and general lack of cultural diversity is just the icing on the cake (not the cake itself) of why I would never want to live in a place like that.

Do you think White America has no culture? It has to be Hispainc of Asian to have culture?

I just do not buy into the "American dream" of big lawns, open spaces, big and cheap single family homes, multiple freeway lanes, and lack of public transportation to keep out outsiders.

I guess I believe in the American Dream then because what you wrote sounds ideal to me.