Kalamazoo (Detroit, Grand Rapids, Plainwell: apartment complex, travel, job)

[leadsquirter]

According to the Edison Neighborhood website Edison Neighborhood Association > Home
the boundries are Michigan Ave on the North, Miller Road on the South, Burdick St. on the West and the City Limits on the East. Now that's a pretty big area and includes a lot of different types of neighborhoods in itself. I would say that the worst area is Washington Ave. East of Portage St. and South to Hayes Park (street). and North to Lake St. But there are some nice homes in that area. The closer you get to Miller Road the better it becomes. When you cross Miller Road that is the Milwood Neighborhood and it's a pretty nice area.

[Abredin]

If you have a chance I would drive the area during the day and again around dusk and later at night. Personally there are few if any parts of the area I would feel safe at night, but I have been rather sheltered; I have no idea how the area would feel to someone with different experiences. I do know that I have friends who lived in this area in college a few years ago and they say it has improved (or they hear that it is improving) from when they lived there. They seemed really impressed with some of the things they read/heard about their old neighborhood.

Good Luck! I'm sure you will find a wonderful place to live in Kalamazoo, it's a great area with a lot to offer.

[Tricia819]

No I haven't driven through the area yet, but it's on my to-do list before we make an offer on the house of course.

What about the Edison neighborhood west of Portage Rd?

[leadsquirter]

West of Portage Street: Clinton, Egleston, and Stockbridge aren't too bad. You go west of the Norfolk Southern Railroad tracks to Burdick St. and its not so nice. Bank St. runs north and south one block west of Portage and that's not bad either. There is a Farmer's Market on Bank St. where they sell fresh produce a couple of days a week and a Flea Market on Wednesday's. Egleston, Lay, and Lane are boulevards to the east of Portage St. The residents on Egleston used to have contests to see who could plant the nicest flower garden on the bolevard and the city would award a plaque for that year. However, I don't know if they still do.

[LaurenRoss]

Hi Tricia819,

If the apartment complexes are not exactly what you are looking for, I would recommend calling Jaqua Realtors and asking for their rental properties. You can even google them and check out all the properties available for rent. There are many homes for rent at affordable prices. Living in the Winchell area or off Grand Prairie Avenue are really nice and family oriented neighborhoods. You will love Kalamazoo!

[Kimberly_WMU]

Houses are so cheap right now in Kalamazoo! A couple of houses in my neighborhood just dropped 25%. If you can get pre-approved then I would strongly suggest going that route. I think they are hitting the bottom!

[GeorgeP23]

Originally Posted by Tricia819

My husband is up for a promotion, but it entails a move to Kalamazoo. Currently we're living in Flint, so it definately can't be any worse, but can anyone give me some insider info on what Kalamazoo is like?

My roommate is actually from the Flint area and he says he would much rather live there than here. I'm not sure where you're staying but everyone except for the students around the WMU campus seem to be extremely rude, it seems like no one around here has any manners. Go to the stores on West Main, Stadium, the Meijer or Wal-Mart on 9th street and you'll see what I mean. If you can put up with the attitude problems around here then I guess it's not a bad place to live. I don't know though, it could just be me living in the wrong area

[Tricia819]

Wow, tell that to the people in the "Moving to Flint" thread. I've been trying to tell them all week that Flint isn't that bad. I don't think the attitude problems are exclusive to Kzoo. If you try smiling at anyone around here they generally think you're trying to hit on them.

[leadsquirter]

Originally Posted by GeorgeP23

My roommate is actually from the Flint area and he says he would much rather live there than here. I'm not sure where you're staying but everyone except for the students around the WMU campus seem to be extremely rude, it seems like no one around here has any manners. Go to the stores on West Main, Stadium, the Meijer or Wal-Mart on 9th street and you'll see what I mean. If you can put up with the attitude problems around here then I guess it's not a bad place to live. I don't know though, it could just be me living in the wrong area

I don't know George, maybe your last sentence sums it up.

I've lived in Kalamazoo all my life and have traveled a lot. I don't think people here are any more rude than other places I've been. I run into very few people that were born and raised in Kalamazoo. It seems most of the people I meet have gone to WMU, graduated and stayed in the area for a job, or they just stayed because they like it here. A lot of people from the Detroit metro area have relocated here...hmmm!

[GeorgeP23]

Sorry didn't mean to make it sound like a such a bad place. Kalamazoo is a nice city it's just the people that aren't so nice. You lived here all your life so its probably not noticable to you. Also traveling doesn't really give you a good idea of a city because you most likely don't stay there long enough. I've been here for 4 years and I've definitely notice a huge difference between the people from Kalamazoo and metro Detroit. I live in an apartment complex with students from all different areas and they've all told me the same thing. Just curious what year are the WMU graduates that you've met? No offense but a majority of the recent graduates are move to Chicago or go back home, the ones who stay are the people from the here.