I need help (job, high crime, bathroom)

[Carbro]

Yeah, definitely the wrong thread, and I'm sure the moderators will move you post and my reply.

Philadelphia is the 21st most dangerous city, according to CQ Press, a division of Congressional Quarterly. By comparison, New York is ranked 237.

You can also use this Moderator cut: linking to competitors sites is not allowed

[jeffcon0]

Originally Posted by LookingtoLeave

Not to get off topic here, but a friend of mine is considering the move to either Brooklyn or Philly, and is leaning towards Philly due to the cost of living. Time and time again though we have heard the crime there is horrendous-she has a 2 yr. old daughter. Is that not the case now or is it better than NY, etc? Thanks

This is definitly off topic and may be removed but I will answer breifly anyways.

Parts of Philadelphia are very bad but I assume they are looking in Center City or somewhere close by in South Philadelphia. These areas are prefectly safe and I would say downright nice. Most of Center City reminds me of Greenwich Village. A beautiful, dense, historic area with fantastic restaurants, shopping, bars, and culture. I think anyone in these areas would feel perfectly safe. Philly is a great city that is not without it's crime problems but it is easy to avoid. If you want more info about specific neighborhoods or to discuss more just send me a private message. I am very familiar with the city and spent a lot of time considering a move there before I came here.

[multishapes]

""It is about as far from "Rock 'n' Roll" as you can get in NY. Bushwick is gritty, has old run down warehouses which many have turned into illegal lofts, practice spaces, and studios but it is not a nice area. High crime, desolate, and generally dumpy.""

as you wrote ...


But That is rock n roll !! Rocknroll is billy corgan living at the rehearsal space in a parking basment .It is cheap houses and desolation ;

THE thing that stops me totally is the safety . Because i am working right now to pay my equipment and i go to live there with 7500 dollars . So if a little french guy lives on his own there ... Might be dangerous and stupid to lose the material as robbers might be well aware of new incomers... in this place ...

Thank you for your help .

Now i keep on going ... I would chose the usa in comparison to great britain because there are more people to entertain , which means more places to play.

So here i am in France ... go out of my parent's house , find myself in a field smoking weed and asking myself where i could music : " ok. english spoken . So basically london or the usa .

Is my " more bars and concerts " logic speaking to you in a way ?

Hey thank you you help me out .

post-scriptum :

To me staten island was lots of schools for children and some artists ... i would see me live there , work in a school or in a bar ( i was teacher one year and barman too ) .

Maybe the north of the island would be more arty / arti ( hip) , as they are artists already working in manhattan living there . And maybe a cooler area ... Even though you s till have to pay attention to some neighbourhoods .

Any comments on nyc bars and concerts would be appreciated . So i can think it all through . Or on cheap lofts somewhere both north and south from staten island .

[jeffcon0]

Don't get me wrong, I understand the romantic idea of the gritty, rock and roll area. I was saying specifically that Staten Island is not rock and roll. Bushwick has a number of your artsy types, musicians, and hipsters moving in but be clear on one thing: It is not a nice area. In some parts it is downright dangerous. It has one of the highest crime rates in the city. If you do insist on looking there than I strongly recommend you stick to the area directly around the Morgan stop on the L subway line. That is the center of the Bushwick scene.

I go to parties in the area and there is a great grassroots music scene there. Check out Todd P. Todd P puts on some great rock shows and many of them are in the area. There are huge abandoned warehouses that people have turned into lofts and Bushwick is certainly changing but it has a way to go.

Make no mistake, I am not endorsing the area and would definitly NOT want to live there. It is not a nice area but young, white folks are moving in. One thing I would definitly say is do not just move in sight unseen. Real estate brokers will sell you anything and say it is a great neighborhood. See it for yourself first. This is not like a gritty working class English town (thinking of somewhere like Birmingham) this is the GHETTO. Also, like I said before, check out Philly. I think it has a much more "rock n roll" vibe.

[Rachael84]

It's possible to find 1 bedroom apartments for 750. I looked into 2 apartments for 750 in Astoria, one of which I took.

[multishapes]

Thanks ,

i really appreciate your concerns . So far is bushwick out for sure .

Now im decided to prefere safer areas and , would you say that north of staten island

would be allright ? i've read about the housing project bad reputation ... but i dont know if there are some bars or concerts there ... that is very important im a musician !

If i get a car once there , living in the south of si and playing music on the island and in new york city could be a nice option .

I'm looking for some clubs infos but i m sure there's enough places to be booked often.


If i had the money i would target right away manhattan or soho , but now i need a place not far from the action .

How nice and expensive is soho by the way , do you know that ? Like in after hours ( the movie ) ?

So to be clear i need a calm , cheap ( less than 1000 dollars) place to live and play music , the bronx and brooklyn are out .

Queens is quite out of it too as i think it could be dangerous too

So between Manhattan ( soho ? ) and staten island ... what would you say knowing my position?

thank you and i hope i dont ask too much


ciao

[jeffcon0]

Seriously if you are looking for any type of "scene" you would be 1000x better off in Philly if your options are between Staten Island and Philadelphia. SoHo is one of the most expensive areas of NYC so unless you up your budget to $5000/mo or more you don't stand a chance of living there. It is not the gritty artist neighborhood it was 30 years ago. It is now filled with exclusive designer shops and is the realm of very high earning Wall St. types. Hell, I can't even afford to shop there let alone live there. If you have space requirements like those of a loft and only $1000 to spend you will be lucky to find anything ANYWHERE in NYC regardless of the area. It would even be tough to find a loft in Philly for that price. Most musicians here rent a seperate practice space. Queens is not all dangerous. In fact, as a whole, it is probably the safest borough in NYC.

Staten Island is a bad idea for what you are looking for. Take the money you would spend on a car and use it for rent. A car is not necessary in this city.

[Viralmd]

You might also want to check into getting a visa that will let you work here legally.

[Rachael84]

Queens is safe, as long as you stay away from places like Jamaica. With your budget, I really don't think you can afford anything south of 96th st in Manhattan.

[Carbro]

Originally Posted by jeffcon0

Take the money you would spend on a car and use it for rent. A car is not necessary in this city.

Actually, a rock musician probably does need a car to schlep all the audio equipment. This would be an exception to the Leave Your Car Behind rule.