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.
[SIZE=3]Okay. I am 27, female, and I have just moved to the city three weeks ago. I am getting a graduate degree at Columbia, and prior to moving here I met with several real-estate agents and professors about where to live. I found the apartment I now reside in through the Columbia housing department. I am living on w110th street, central park north facing the park. According to many of you on this forum I am in a really bad part of town. Many students at Columbia live in Harlem, and I was told over and over again that where I am is an okay place to live. After sifting through this forum for several hours today, I am now scared sh&%less, and I am thinking about moving, or better yet leaving the city to go back to where I came from. Was everyone that I met with about where to live here crazy?[/SIZE]
It's pretty much where the Upper West Side (UWS) ends and Morningside Heights begins. It's a neighborhood that has a fairly good reputation. The only thing to worry about is being in the park at odd hours or venturing into east harlem. You really would have no business being in East Harlem since Columbia is on the west side. I think you should be fine.
Morningside Heights is a relatively small neighborhood and it often gets confused with Harlem and the UWS.
Harlem is 15 blocks north of you. So you can avoid all those scary people easily (just being sarcastic, don't kick me off the thread now). No worries.
First off, calm down. I am guessing you signed a 1 year lease for your apartment? You really can't get out of one of these lease anyways, unless something really horrible happens to the apartment. If you try to break that lease your landlord is probably going to sue you for the remaining rent that you owe him for the rest of the year.
I'm not sure, but I think 110th st is kind of ok, however I believe there is a decent sized housing project up on 112th st, which probably makes things kind of sketch. This is harlem though, so the whole neighborhood is questionable at best.
Right now you should be engaged in risk aversion, since you're probably going to be stuck in your apartment for a year. Figure out real quick where the hotspots in your neighborhood are. Where do the local corner boys like to hang out at? Are there any drug dealers in your neighborhood, and if so, where do they hang out at? You want to figure out all this stuff so you can avoid those corners as much as possible. Also I'd avoid hanging around outside at night as much as possible.
Also try not to **** off the local people as much as possible. Many of them are already pretty mad that their rent is going up, so don't go and start anything with anybody.
I'm sure some other people on here will hook you up though. Lots of people on here are familiar with Harlem and can probably give you some advice.
EDIT: Yeah what part of the park are you on? The west side, east side, or by the middle? If you are closer to Morningside Heights that is kind of ok. Thats the neighborhood where George Carlin grew up and made his joke about "white harlem." The diner from Seinfeld is also in that neighborhood.
Is this a serious post? No offense, but hard to believe anyone would turn tail and run because of these forums. Not everyone here thinks this area is overly unsafe. There are viewpoints, negative and positive about certain areas on these boards--and plenty of alarmists, many of whom do not live in the areas they consider unsafe from afar.
Check the other thread on CCNY and you'll see opinions from people who actually lived in/attended school in the area. Most of the negative posters have not had this experience personally. Who would you tend to believe more?
In any case, after being here three weeks, do you feel safe in the neighborhood or do you see and hear things YOURSELF which make you fearful?
I tend to think with the vacancy rate being so low that some landlords would be glad to break a lease if it meant they could raise rents if the building is rent stabilized.
Nevertheless, I'd be curious to know what the OP's own experiences are so far.
You really can't get out of one of these lease anyways, unless something really horrible happens to the apartment. If you try to break that lease your landlord is probably going to sue you for the remaining rent that you owe him for the rest of the year.
Even if he doesn't sue you, he will report you to the credit agencies. This will harm your chances for future rentals.
Quote:
I'm not sure, but I think 110th st is kind of ok, however I believe there is a decent sized housing project up on 112th st, which probably makes things kind of sketch. This is harlem though, so the whole neighborhood is questionable at best.
I dropped a friend off in central park north not too long ago. It was during the day. So, the area didn't look too bad. However, I believe mead is correct about the housing projects on 112. Also, East Harlem is littered with housing projects, particularly bad ones. I don't go over to the west side over there, but I've heard that it's not too bad. Having said that, I have recently seen an increasing number of news stories about violent incidents and robberies in those highly touted, 'gentrified' areas.
Quote:
Right now you should be engaged in risk aversion, since you're probably going to be stuck in your apartment for a year. Figure out real quick where the hotspots in your neighborhood are. Where do the local corner boys like to hang out at? Are there any drug dealers in your neighborhood, and if so, where do they hang out at? You want to figure out all this stuff so you can avoid those corners as much as possible. Also I'd avoid hanging around outside at night as much as possible.
Also try not to **** off the local people as much as possible. Many of them are already pretty mad that their rent is going up, so don't go and start anything with anybody.
This is good advice for whatever neighborhood you move to.
I also went to Columbia. In a worse area: the medical school. And lived there. Where you are, at the downtown campus, is FINE. Don't worry. You're in a decent part of town! Just act like you know where you're going at all times of the day and don't act like you're from out of town.
thanks for the advice, so far I have had no problems in the neighborhood. I only venture to the west side of where I am. I have a bus that picks up and drops off right in front on my building to go to campus. there are some sketch balls in the area, but its like that all over this city, to the person who asked if I was serious, does he read what hustla718 puts on here? that guys a police officer right?
OP.. remember there is no way to tell what someone does for a living. City-data doesn't verify anyone's occupation. I am not saying Hustla isn't a police officer but you have to read what everyone has to say and not rely on just on one person's view to be the absolute truth. Many on this forum post good information and when an area is bad to one may be great to another.
To the OP: what Keeper says is correct. Hustla's viewpoint is very pessimistic, and based on his own experiences and perceptions. If I dealt with criminals all day long and lived in a dangerous project, my viewpoint might differ too. The point is that the proof of the pudding is your own experience. It's often useful to hear what others have to say--and it's always wise to be cautious in any area of the city--but sometimes those who have never lived in the area rely on their own prejudices or sometimes outdated notions of what a particular area is like now. The city and its neighborhoods change with dizzying speed.
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.
