Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
Here is my perspective as I just moved to UC from a very nice neighborhood in Los Angeles. UC is not at all unsafe it definitely has an urban community feel to it so it can be easy to FEEL like an outsider if you're not cuban or a regular in the neighborhood, this doesnt bother me as much as i have lived in Hong Kong and many cities in europe so i have been an obvious foreigner in many places. HOWEVER, with the exception of a casual stare I have not yet been harassed, treated rudely, or denied service any where I have been. The streets along Bergenline, while very busy and crowded, are not at all unsafe, and there is heavy police traffic in the area so the likelihood of something terrible happening are slim. You have alot of ethnic youth in the neighborhood and for some that immediately evokes an unsafe "feeling" but it just that.... a feeling. People in this community wont bother you if you dont bother them. Now there isnt alot of money in this area so dont expect to walk down a street of shiny new condos but there are many conveniences and lots of places you can walk to and with a confident head on your shoulders you will most likely not encounter any interference. But its also important to note that one block in UC may differ very greatly from the next. The reason there are so many mixed reviews is because there really is no one environment in UC. There is the area immediately bordering Weehawken (which is where I live) and its fairly quiet there, there is Bergenline and its sidestreets, then there are WNY, Hoboken adjacent areas all of which have there own feel. so unless you're hell bent on a posh neighborhood or a virtual yuppiville you will most likely find a spot in UC that works for you. What I like best about this area is the upward feeling that this area will just get better and better and surely it will "arrive" in the same way that hoboken has.These anti UC are the kind of people who literally live their lives in fear.
This is so ridiculous... if you don't think UC is a good town it does not = you are a bigot or afraid of minorities. I GO to UC regularly, I grew up right next to it, I know the town.
FIRST amusing statement is "if you are not Cuban." Actually, there are VERY few Cubans remaining in Union City. Hispanics, yes, Cubans no. They are not one and the same, you know....
And while UC is not (as I stated earlier) the 5th ring of hell, neither is it a bucolic safe little slice of heaven.
I DO know many UC Police Officers and they tell me about the gang activity, about the LACK OF CRIME REPORTING because of the high number of immigrants in town who ARE AFRAID of the police. About how this group won't even cooperate with police when they are investigating because they are afraid of police. It's not a wonderfully safe little town. It's not Irvington, but it's not "just great" either.
Another thing is quality of life... if you move there, expect petty crime all the time. When DH and I left the area going outside to find your car vandalized was pretty much a weekly occurance. If you are a woman, expect to be cat-called and leered at continuously. Expect grafiti. Don't leave a blessed thing outside because it will be stollen. If you are lucky enough to get a parking spot, you may have your car "keyed" because you had the "cojones" to "take" that spot from a punk on your street who was also circiling for 5 hours when you were.... get the picture? Not exacly, Gee can't wait to move in there material.
Here is my perspective as I just moved to UC from a very nice neighborhood in Los Angeles. UC is not at all unsafe it definitely has an urban community feel to it so it can be easy to FEEL like an outsider if you're not cuban or a regular in the neighborhood, this doesnt bother me as much as i have lived in Hong Kong and many cities in europe so i have been an obvious foreigner in many places. HOWEVER, with the exception of a casual stare I have not yet been harassed, treated rudely, or denied service any where I have been. The streets along Bergenline, while very busy and crowded, are not at all unsafe, and there is heavy police traffic in the area so the likelihood of something terrible happening are slim. You have alot of ethnic youth in the neighborhood and for some that immediately evokes an unsafe "feeling" but it just that.... a feeling. People in this community wont bother you if you dont bother them. Now there isnt alot of money in this area so dont expect to walk down a street of shiny new condos but there are many conveniences and lots of places you can walk to and with a confident head on your shoulders you will most likely not encounter any interference. But its also important to note that one block in UC may differ very greatly from the next. The reason there are so many mixed reviews is because there really is no one environment in UC. There is the area immediately bordering Weehawken (which is where I live) and its fairly quiet there, there is Bergenline and its sidestreets, then there are WNY, Hoboken adjacent areas all of which have there own feel. so unless you're hell bent on a posh neighborhood or a virtual yuppiville you will most likely find a spot in UC that works for you. What I like best about this area is the upward feeling that this area will just get better and better and surely it will "arrive" in the same way that hoboken has.These anti UC are the kind of people who literally live their lives in fear.
i do agree with your point about people who live in fear...but what do you mean "arrive"? whats wrong with it now? aside from nostalgia for how it was when i grew up, i think its just fine the way it is...oh and p.s. us long time hudson county residents liked hoboken more back then too, before it "arrived"
Last edited by JohnnyUtah; 04-29-2009 at 01:26 AM..
People need to stop it already. I've been living in UC for over 2 years now and I'm a white, Polish girl. People make the town out to be so bad and sometimes "ghetto", when they exaggerate beyond belief. People must be coming from areas where they live in mansions but UC is just an example of how many americans live.
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
