What's to hate about Brown Deer,WI (Milwaukee, Glendale: house, school rankings)

[JustT&Me]

Originally Posted by south-to-west

You keep trying to pin whatever happened at Northridge on Brown Deer. Northridge is NOT in Brown Deer! Nor are the apartment complexes that surround it. I think that Jesse Anderson (the murderous husband) chose TGI Friday's because it was the one of the closest "big box" restaurants to Cedarburg. Northridge was the closest mall to Cedarburg. Does Brown Deer have its downsides? Sure. But in no way is it a "ghetto" nor is it a blighted area of metro Milwaukee. Overall, it's a solidly middle-class suburb that is tranquil and where people enjoy a decent quality of life.

No, I have not and am not pinning "whatever happened at Northridge on Brown Deer." It is a well-documented fact, as supported by articles previously cited, that B.D. has struggled with and been challenged by "whatever happened at Northridge".

It was you who originally noted "the apartment complexes which surround" the area. I only referenced your two statements comparing it being "totally undeserved and unfair" as to the reputation with which B.D. has struggled with your comment regarding the tenants who were "Section-8 certificate holders" in the "several large apartment complexes surrounding the mall."

Speculating what any individual might have been thinking when he or she committed any of the crimes in or around the area would not change the perception problem with which B.D. has struggled, again, whether "fair or not."

I have seen no posts on this thread citing Brown Deer as a "ghetto" or as "a blighted area of metro Milwaukee" except for you own words defending that it is not.

Again, I would encourage anyone who thinks B.D. holds what he or she wants, to research the area thoroughly and go for it. You will never truly know until you try.

[south-to-west]

Originally Posted by JustT&Me

No, I have not and am not pinning "whatever happened at Northridge on Brown Deer." It is a well-documented fact, as supported by articles previously cited, that B.D. has struggled with and been challenged by "whatever happened at Northridge".

It was you who originally noted "the apartment complexes which surround" the area. I only referenced your two statements comparing it being "totally undeserved and unfair" as to the reputation with which B.D. has struggled with your comment regarding the tenants who were "Section-8 certificate holders" in the "several large apartment complexes surrounding the mall."

Speculating what any individual might have been thinking when he or she committed any of the crimes in or around the area would not change the perception problem with which B.D. has struggled, again, whether "fair or not."

I have seen no posts on this thread citing Brown Deer as a "ghetto" or as "a blighted area of metro Milwaukee" except for you own words defending that it is not.

Again, I would encourage anyone who thinks B.D. holds what he or she wants, to research the area thoroughly and go for it. You will never truly know until you try.

JustT,

Yeah I live in Atlanta, but I'm a Milwaukee native and spent the latter half of my childhood in Mequon. Growing up in Mequon, I was completely stunned by my mother's decision to relocate to Brown Deer because I harbored the same low perceptions of Brown Deer that most other people do. I was proven wrong. My mother lives in a wonderful neighborhood where neighbors know each other and people take pride in their homes.

I don't lose any sleep when my mother tells me over the phone that she is going to go for an early evening stroll. I mean heaven forbid that a neighbor accosts her by discussing how cool the weather has been lately, or asks her what type of flowers she grows in her garden, or what type of fertilizer she uses on her lawn.

It's good that you've given your opinion. But even you yourself have alluded to the fact that much of Brown Deer's poor image in the local media is undeserved. I defend the area vehemently because I'm sick of the sterotypes and I'm sick of people abandoning their neighborhoods over unfounded rumors. Not everyone can afford a $300,000 home in Whitefish Bay or Fox Point. For those that want to buy a comfortable home at a reasonable price and live in a tranquil suburban neighborhood in the North Shore area, then I would definitely suggest Brown Deer.

[pirate_lafitte]

Originally Posted by south-to-west

JustT,

Yeah I live in Atlanta, but I'm a Milwaukee native and spent the latter half of my childhood in Mequon. Growing up in Mequon, I was completely stunned by my mother's decision to relocate to Brown Deer because I harbored the same low perceptions of Brown Deer that most other people do. I was proven wrong. My mother lives in a wonderful neighborhood where neighbors know each other and people take pride in their homes.

I don't lose any sleep when my mother tells me over the phone that she is going to go for an early evening stroll. I mean heaven forbid that a neighbor accosts her by discussing how cool the weather has been lately, or asks her what type of flowers she grows in her garden, or what type of fertilizer she uses on her lawn.

It's good that you've given your opinion. But even you yourself have alluded to the fact that much of Brown Deer's poor image in the local media is undeserved. I defend the area vehemently because I'm sick of the sterotypes and I'm sick of people abandoning their neighborhoods over unfounded rumors. Not everyone can afford a $300,000 home in Whitefish Bay or Fox Point. For those that want to buy a comfortable home at a reasonable price and live in a tranquil suburban neighborhood in the North Shore area, then I would definitely suggest Brown Deer.

Why do you think alot of people talk down about Brown Deer(other than media attention)?

[yeah!]

What's wrong with BD? I see this is a very common question here. The answer is simple. There is this one thing about Brown Deer - it has diverse demographics and in quite segregated WI this is not viewed as a good quality. That's the key problem. It is also blue collar area. Brown Deer schools are not all white and wealthy, they are not the greatest in academic performance, and they are located near some bad neigborhoods. No parent want to jeopardize their kids future for lowerd priced housing, thus upper and upper middle class families with children avoid settling in BD. I can understand that. But if you are single adult on the budget BD is a good choice, IMHO.

[Ron Burgundy]

Why do you think a lot of people talk down about Brown Deer(other than media attention)?

I agree with those who claim that it's due to Brown Deer being more of a working-class community compared to the surrounding suburbs as well as the fact that it carries the negative 'stigma' of diversity that seems to be so prevalent in Metro area.

The thing that bothers me the most is that for all the people that are color blind enough not to notice the difference in street signs between the village of Brown Deer and the Northridge area of Milwaukee when explaining why Brown Deer is "bad" (here's a hint: Brown Deer's street signs are, in fact, 'brown'), there are almost as many people willing to publicly demonstrate that they're lacking in the more important sort of color-blindness of being accepting/tolerant of racial and ethnic diversity. The former type of color-blindness disregards the fact that a.) the Northridge area isn't nearly as bad as it's cracked up to be, and b.) it's over 10 blocks away from Brown Deer's westernmost edge, which is largely non-residential. And it's almost as if some people see the increase of minorities in a community as a threat to their own homogeneity as a culture for the latter type of color-blindness, as if that remotely matters in this day and age. How 1950s-ish of them.

There is not a single section of the village that I would classify as being rough, un-safe, or dangerous by any means. People who claim otherwise are either looking for trouble where it's not in a quest to appease their false beliefs or are in need of a serious reality check as to what 'rough', 'un-safe', and 'dangerous' really mean. That is a false, insular viewpoint that the spreading of is detrimental to the village as well as the entire Metro area.

Regarding the diversity aspect, the truth is it shouldn't be about skin color at all. It should be about values. And the minorities I've encountered living in Brown Deer seem to hold the same tenets and values as the majority that live in the community. And that's what's truly important.

[pirate_lafitte]

[quote=Ron Burgundy;5258484]I agree with those who claim that it's due to Brown Deer being more of a working-class community compared to the surrounding suburbs as well as the fact that it carries the negative 'stigma' of diversity that seems to be so prevalent in Metro area.

The thing that bothers me the most is that for all the people that are color blind enough not to notice the difference in street signs between the village of Brown Deer and the Northridge area of Milwaukee when explaining why Brown Deer is "bad" (here's a hint: Brown Deer's street signs are, in fact, 'brown'), there are almost as many people willing to publicly demonstrate that they're lacking in the more important sort of color-blindness of being accepting/tolerant of racial and ethnic diversity. The former type of color-blindness disregards the fact that a.) the Northridge area isn't nearly as bad as it's cracked up to be, and b.) it's over 10 blocks away from Brown Deer's westernmost edge, which is largely non-residential. And it's almost as if some people see the increase of minorities in a community as a threat to their own homogeneity as a culture for the latter type of color-blindness, as if that remotely matters in this day and age. How 1950s-ish of them.

There is not a single section of the village that I would classify as being rough, un-safe, or dangerous by any means. People who claim otherwise are either looking for trouble where it's not in a quest to appease their false beliefs or are in need of a serious reality check as to what 'rough', 'un-safe', and 'dangerous' really mean. That is a false, insular viewpoint that the spreading of is detrimental to the village as well as the entire Metro area.

Regarding the diversity aspect, the truth is it shouldn't be about skin color at all. It should be about values. And the minorities I've encountered living in Brown Deer seem to hold the same tenets and values as the majority that live in the community. And that's what's truly important.[/QUOTE]

It is sad more people don't think that way.

[Milwaukee City]

Nothing is wrong with Brown Deer, it's the same people that think all of Milwaukee is black ghetto's. This lack of knowledge from our own people in this area is mind boggling. I don't know how many times I have heard that Downtown is dangerous or anything north of 94 is hood. I take people from out of state to all of Milwaukee and they can't believe their eyes. They envisioned Gary North, so there shocked when I take them up Lake Dr, or through River Hills/North shore area or when we drive through downtown or The Third Ward. Until Milwaukee starts to TRY to change it's image people will always assume Milwaukee is one giant hood. The first Milwaukee tourist ad should be run right here for the people that never make it to other parts of the city.

[pirate_lafitte]

Originally Posted by Milwaukee City

Nothing is wrong with Brown Deer, it's the same people that think all of Milwaukee is black ghetto's. This lack of knowledge from our own people in this area is mind boggling. I don't know how many times I have heard that Downtown is dangerous or anything north of 94 is hood. I take people from out of state to all of Milwaukee and they can't believe their eyes. They envisioned Gary North, so there shocked when I take them up Lake Dr, or through River Hills/North shore area or when we drive through downtown or The Third Ward. Until Milwaukee starts to TRY to change it's image people will always assume Milwaukee is one giant hood. The first Milwaukee tourist ad should be run right here for the people that never make it to other parts of the city.

I have never imagined Milwaukee as one giant ghetto. I have heard about Milwaukee being dangerous in a few places. For me, Detroit is what I imagine when I think "one big ghetto". Alot of people just don't want to see Milwaukee from ALL sides. The same is with Brown Deer. It is too easy to assume it as "ghetto" in some people's eyes.

[Ron Burgundy]

The idea that Brown Deer would be considered ghetto is laughable to me. If Brown Deer Road was re-named Menomonee Falls Road, would we be thinking the same thing about Menomonee Falls? What's funny is 95th & Brown Deer Rd (the "roughest" patch by far) is actually about as close to Menomonee Falls as it is to Brown Deer.

I live in Brown Deer. The PR from the ignoramus is astounding off-base. My residence is on a tree-lined street in between Bradley & Brown Deer Roads in a 1950/60s development. I've brought people to my house and I get responses of pleasant shock saying "This is Brown Deer?!?!?" as if they were somehow expecting broken windows abound and overturned cars on aflame in the street as wild and unkempt youths would loot their not-yet-locked vehicle. Far from the case. Yeah, some of the houses may look like they're still owned and maintained by the original owner, but outside of cosmetics they're in great shape. 95% of them are perched on a quarter acre or larger lot.

When contemplating the question 'What's to hate about Brown Deer', outside of the property taxes (which is the requisite complaint for Milwaukee County) I can't think of a thing. Affordable housing stock nestled right in between I-43 and US45. (I love having those travel options.) Efficient trash collection and plowing services. A clean library. Convenient access to parks. Sufficient police presence. Low crime. Gee, sounds pretty good when you don't have an axe to grind.

[Angorlee]

what I wouldn't like about Brown Deer is that there isn't any central city like a downtown area. Unless I mistaken I havn't seen any downtown area.