West Allis??

[Eshea]

I could not live without the West Allis Farmers Market!!!

That said, I have friends that live in WA and they love it. I have never seen them wear black tennis shoes and neither have a tattoo. They really like the school their boys go to. I do remember a time when WA had a bad school reputation, way back when I was in high school. In the 80's! My mom would not marry her boyfriend who lived there, because she did not want us going to the schools. I think the school system has changed quite a bit since then!

This does not stop us from teasing our friends who live there, though. I mean, they are South Siders....

[mrkool]

West Allis has more good points than bad. I live here, and having lived in other places/states, I am somewhat discerning about where I live.
Schools are pretty good, crime is pretty low, houses affordable, and very centrally-located in the metro area.
Property taxes are high, but that's true of the entire county, and state.
If you move here, my only suggestion would be to go west of 84th, to get the neighborhoods whose houses have side driveways. Most of the neighborhoods east of 84th have alleys, and they are nothing but trouble in terms of garage/car break-ins, snow accumulation and removal, etc.
Direct message me for more info. I recently helped out a couple that moved here from the east coast, and originally posted questions at this forum.

[Olive2Bgeeky]

> Does that factor in Hale as well as Central?

No, this was about Central. Who knows, things may have improved in the last few years, you'd have to research the data.

What I wonder is when people say the schools are 'good' what are they basing their opinion on? No knife fights, the building isn't crumbling, or the test scores that come out of the schools?

If a parent is looking for a good school system in that area, New Berlin, Whitnall, Elmbrook, Greenfield are all better.

[mrkool]

Original poster... you're welcome. Not a problem.

[Angorlee]

what are the streets that mark the boundries of West Allis?

[Angorlee]

is there a central downtown business area in West Allis or is it all strip malls, etc.

[Milwaukee Ronnie]

West Allis does have a downtown, comprised mainly of Greenfield Avenue in the 60s and 70s. It is an interesting place, full of a lot of shops that time forgot, like vacuum cleaner repairmen, shoe cobblers and dusty old record shops. Stores that you really don't find anywhere else these days.

'Stallis has it's charms. It is decidely working class. This gives it a certain "mullet" stigma, a stereotype that is based on a kernal of truth. But it is a changing community, an industrial suburb trying a go of it in a post-industrial era.

The old Allis Chalmers plant, for which the town was named, is now a major office center employing thousands in white collar jobs in health care, insurance and banking. To me, this sums up West Allis. It's not glamorous. It's not "Old Money" or "New Money." It's a working suburb full of working people. If you have a problem with this, then don't live in West Allis.

[Milwaukee Ronnie]

Originally Posted by Angorlee

what are the streets that mark the boundries of West Allis?

'Stallis is more or less comprised of I-94 on the North, Oklahoma on the South, 124th Street on the West, and roughly 60th Street on the East.

[LMae]

Being a semi-recent graduate of the West Allis school system, I have a fairly good understanding of what the schools are like. While I only attended high school in West Allis (at Nathan Hale), it definitely prepared me for college. Because of all the Advanced Placement classes available, I was a step ahead all through college and was able to register for classes earlier than the majority of my peers. The teachers that I had while I was there were excellent educators who went above and beyond for their students. I'm not sure what the current situation is like (I graduated in 2004), but I'm assuming that the majority of the faculty is probably still the same. Because of my education at Hale, I'm graduating with honors from UW-Eau Claire and attending Pharmacy school in the fall. While I'm sure this is not totally indicative of the school system, I felt that my classes in high school were equally as rigorous if not more rigorous than some of my classes my freshman or sophomore year of college. However, I also recognize that the surrounding schools (New Berlin for example) are probably equally as good if not better than some of the West Allis schools. I'm not sure about the amount of AP classes available at these other schools, but I know that Hale has a very wide selection which is especially helpful for the college bound student.

To sum up, I went to high school in West Allis and had a wonderful experience there, and would definitely recommend it for anyone.