Best place to live around brooklyn center, MN

[khanbuzzz]

Originally Posted by Camden Northsider

Hey khanbuzz,

In that case, and esp. if you're looking to rent a house- check out the Victory Neighborhood of Minneapolis. It's a lot easier to find a house to rent here nowadays- in the past couple of years a number of local homeowners have become 'accidental landlords' due to having either bought the low-ball priced foreclosure next door to them or relocated and not wanting to put their home up for sale in this market.

There are handful of great restaruants/eateries here- these all are in and around the business node areas of 44th/Penn and 42nd/Thomas Aves North. 44th/Penn has Victory 44 (named Best Neighborhood Restaurant by City Pages this year, and a local foodie favorite in Mpls), Steamworks Coffee (also named 'best coffee' by city pages in the early '00s I believe, and just a cool place in general), and Emily's F & M Cafe- a great/cheap old-school family-owned breakfast and lunch spot. On 42nd/Thomas- there's Papa's Restaurant & Deli- also the recipient of a number of foodie blog accolades (I know being named 'best cheesesteak' in the metro area was one of them, this article wasn't as favorable as most but is pretty recent: www.twincitiespizzablog.com). Other nice things about this area- low-crime/very safe, lots of green space (Victory Memorial Parkway, Ryan Lake, Victory Prairie/Dog Park, Victory Park, easy to get to plenty of other green spaces on the Grand Rounds system and in Robbinsdale).

You'll find that you're about the same age as the majority of new folks that have moved to the neighborhood in recent years- I think Victory has recently hit the tipping point of its older residents going off to retirement and nursing homes and younger 20/early 30-something residents moving in- on my block there's probably a dozen households where the owners are in their 20s/early 30s which I think has become a lot more common- many young families, couples, and singles here, and it's really easy to meet people here through block clubs, neighborhood events/activities, and just going for walks or being out in the yard- there's definitely a very friendly vibe here.

Lastly- we're right across the bridge (Brooklyn Blvd/Osseo Road) from Brooklyn Center- I've been to your building a few times, and you could have a relatively easy bike ride or jog to get to work from just about anywhere in the neighborhood if you wanted to, and I can't imagine it would ever take you more than 5 minutes to get to work via car or bus. Direct Message me if you have questions about a street or set of blocks (whether in this neighborhood or surrounding area) or if you want me to keep my eyes/ears out for home rentals.

***Edit/Addition: I should mention that although this neighborhood is in the city proper, it's pretty residential here- if you are looking for a more dense, urban feel with a lot of nightlife options- then you may want to look more towards Uptown, Downtown, or parts of NE that have been built up closer to Downtown. Actually, a lot of Northeast- although a little harder to get to nowadays from B.C. with so many bridges out right now, might have a little bit more of a young single vibe (despite also being fairly residential) than you'll find up here, as well as potentially have some more nightlife/restaurant options but would still be a relatively easy commute for you (it's also an easy drive from here).

Hey Camdennorthsider, am checking out victory neighborhood. But can you suggest something if i want to rent an apartment, as opposed to a house? I looked up link you gave me for victory neighborhood, there is no mention of any places to rent.

Thank you!

[trackstar13]

I would also consider the Bryn Mawr neighborhood of Minneapolis. This area is very nice and close to many amenities, however, it is pretty expensive and there are not very many rentals available so that would be the only issue. In terms of a commute you would probably have to drive, but you could take some back roads.

[Cruz Azul Guy]

If you enjoy city life I agree with the recommendations of Victory and Bryn Mawr. They are both close and the commute would be convenient (going opposite of traffic). Those are probably the first places I'd look if I was working in Brooklyn Center. Bryn Mawr can get spendy if you're buying but rentals there are reasonable.

[Camden Northsider]

Hey Khanbuzzz, apartments can be a tough find in Victory- there are very few apartments in the neighborhood itself, and of the few fourplexes and others apartment buildings that are here (tending to be concentrated around 38-3900 Thomas, or 44/Penn), they don't tend to be the greatest (am hoping that starts to change in the next year/two with some recent sales).

So if you're thinking either Victory or Bryn Mawr (a recommendation I agree with- you may also want to keep your eye on the northwestern chunk of Webber-Camden neighborhood which would still put you w/in walking distance of 44th/Penn restaurants), your best would be to look for duplexes, small SFH's, or house/room share situations. Craig's List (entering search term: Victory or whatever other neighborhood) is your best bet for finding any of these. I think the cheapest single family home I saw in Victory was this one @ $800 (Spacious one bedroom (http://minneapolis.craigslist.org/hnp/apa/1830782345.html - broken link))- I did see a duplex or two available as well but forgot what price point they were at. Otherwise it looked like there were a few residents with nice homes in the n'hood looking for roommates in the $400-$500 range- I actually did a home-share situation myself in Webber-Camden back in the day and had a pretty positive experience overall. But if you're looking for a more traditional large apartment complex in the area, you may want to expand search to Robbinsdale. I'm not really familiar with any apt complexes in the area (whether Mpls, Robbinsdale, or B.C.) to provide a recommendation- I do know there's a large complex in Brooklyn Center itself on Camden Ave N (behind the megaplex) that seems OK/halway decent and has pool, exercise room, etc. and 1 beds going for $650 I believe, but again I'm not too familiar with the apts themselves or the area there.

[nick is rulz]

yeah 3800-3900 Thomas is kind of mehhh for an otherwise pretty decent neighborhood. Its mostly single family homes there.

I rented in Harrison just north of Bryn Mawr for 2 years. I liked it over there a lot. Theres apartments along Cedar Lake Rd, and a complex off Glenwood and Penn.