Just visited san antonio (Dallas, Austin: rental car, rental, low crime)

[scottcc]

I posted awhile back looking for recommendations on places to live in SA as i have an opportunity to move there for work.

I wanted to share some of my thoughts on the area and see if you folks that live there can shed some light or correct my impressions.

We stayed in the contessa hotel downtown on the riverwalk. Downtown is very busy as expected. But i was taken aback on the amount of homeless folks in the downtown area. We ate at the whataburger on the corner of commerce i think it was? the first day since it was the first place we spotted when we left the hotel. In the 15 mins we were in there i think we saw three homeless folks come up and clean through the street side garbage can.

Later that day we walked around the area of the riverwalk up to the rivercenter mall etc. In the hour and a half or so we were walking around i think we got approached 3 times asking for money or to buy someone food and at least once by some rather rough looking guy asking us to buy some tacky looking purse i swear he produced from under his shirt.

The next day we took the rental car and drove around some neighborhoods looking at some of the houses the realtor had given us. Most of the morning we were up in the leon valley area. The thing that struck me about this area was that the houses themselves were mostly nice looking but the area itself looked a bit run down. not sure how to explain what i mean by that, just a general impression. In the 3 hours or so that we were around that area i think we saw police have people pulled over doing car searches and the occupants had hands on the hood 2 or 3 times i beleive? We also saw a car pass us that looked like someone had shot the gas tank area with a shotgun.

We worked our way up to the stone oak area. I think i was on evans drive or stone oak parkway? It was a curvy road that went down a hill. This area was very pretty and was pretty much exactly what i was looking for. But of course once we looked at the rent costs..... We stopped at an HEB in the area and ended up chatting up some locals. At which point we asked about crime in this area and they mentioned that someone in their gated community was assaulted a few weeks ago and they had all had their cars broken into in the last year.

Later that night, maybe around 730, i ventured out of the hotel again on foot and within 30 seconds i saw police hauling someone into a paddywagon and maybe 10 mins later i got chatted up by someone who was rather pushy and kept trying to get me to go into this courtyard/alley type area. Thankfully a bike cop came by and i flagged him down 'asking for directions' and the person that was harassing kind of disappeared.

Now I've lived in Minneapolis for a few years and frankly, i saw more police action in 2 days in SA than i saw in 2 years in Minneapolis and frankly it was a little disheartening and really gave a feeling that this city isn't that safe at all. Even the 'nice' areas evidently have issues, and to live in the areas where you would actually feel relatively safe your going to be paying 1800k + rent.

Are my impressions of SA really accurate or did i just have a bad experience?

[rynetwo]

The downtown homeless problem is in every city and San Antonio has the problem because its DT is so lively.

Stone Oak is a very safe area. With the exception of one assault at night in a church parking lot you never hear of stranger on stranger crime. I can't speak to car break ins but I have lived here a long time and all over the city and I have never had my car broken into.

[Rustybolt]

I believe your perspective is definitely driven by where you live now. When I visit Minneapolis, my reaction is about 180 out from your reaction to San Antonio. I say things like "wow how clean this town is" and "where are the homeless"? San Antonio really does have some advantages and I definitely wouldn't make any decisions based upon downtown, where you will presumably spend very little time. And the crime isn't that bad and shouldn't be based on anecdotes from people you meet. Do your homework and research and make an informed decision. Good luck to you.

[Proffer]

That "run down" look that's hard to put your finger on is right on target. A lot of the city looks like that, and translates into a certain feel that you will have here, and that will not go away if you are from the north. People who are from the South, or who are San Antonio natives, will have a hard time figuring out what you mean by that, but it will always bug you. To me, it's the opposite of the "crisp" orderliness of things that you see in northern and more high income cities.

[pobre]

Car "break-ins" in Stone Oak...

I live in a gated community here. 99 times out of a hundred, people have left valuables in plain sight in their car, AND left it unlocked. Ironically, because of the overall low crime rate here, they don't think twice.

I've lived in Stone Oak for 12 years, and have not been a crime victim. Lived (non-gated) off of Thousand Oaks 9 years before that, had 2 items swiped from my front yard (bench, decorative item), and stuff was taken from the back seat of my (unlocked by mistake rental) car. Nothing major.

Personally, I'm always going to be even more vigilant when downtown (in ANY city), due to the sheer density of people around me. But I will always lock my doors WHEREVER I am.

[Shock]

hehe, sounds like you described compton. minneapolis is quite a contrast in terms of size, development, pollution, noise, and yes crime. statistically, crime here isn't bad compared to other major cities with the exception of theft being up there.

downtown sounds about accurate though. honestly, you just gotta ignore people or blow them off sometimes. there are some strange people around in certain areas. currently s.a. is in the process of making a mediocre attempt to change the environment of downtown. it's not bad but it's just old and not very corporate attractive.

[LindaGrace]

I've lived here 16 years and have never been a victim of any kind of crime. In that time, my father-in-law's truck was broke into once and some fool tried to steal the spare tire off my husband's pickup (in a church parking lot, even!). That's it - very minimal.

Having moved here from the Midwest myself, I know what you mean about that can't-put-my-finger-on-it rundown look. I think part of it is the sun and heat really take a toll on houses, especially if they have siding instead of brick or stone. The yards/landscaping also look like hell because of the heat and lack of rain. This really strikes a disconcerting note if you're used to the tidy, crisp, green look of a "typical" Midwestern suburb in the summer.

On the up side, no snow or ice, and rarely any cold days. It's a trade off but one I'm more than happy to make.

[smuboy86]

I think you got the wrong impression, of course going back to your other posts you've never lived in a major city outside of Minneapolis, a city that's decidedly homogenous in it's population.

Regarding the homeless, you see more homeless in the south, mainly because they can survive down here in the winter. If you want to see a real homeless problem, visit Austin or Dallas.

With the law enforcement presence you saw, chalk that up to a proactive police force, not a reactive one. According to the FBI UCR, San Antonio has time and time again shown to be a large safe city, with violent crime rates dropping per capita. If you were in one of our smaller independent cities (Leon Valley for example) they are know for aggressive enforcement of traffic laws.

As far as appearances go, I think that Linda hit the nail on the head, the summer heat, along with the ongoing drought means that every thing gives a almost rundown look. Trees and other vegetation look wilted, also it's hard to do maintenance when it's 105 outside.

As most know here I'm very anti-stone oak. I would never recommend anyone live up there for a variety of reasons. Looking at your first post, I think you should have been looking at Windcrest, or inside 410 in Terrell Heights, Manacke Park or even Laural Heights. All these areas were developed before San Antonio was the large city we know today and retain some of the small town atmosphere that I think you were looking for.

[stoneclaw]

yeah unfortunately, the downtown homeless thing is in every downtown thing and just comes with the territory. It is what it is.

[Cuero]

Originally Posted by scottcc

Are my impressions of SA really accurate or did i just have a bad experience?

As a 35 year resident that has also lived and traveled all around the country, I think you have an accurate impression of SA. SA is a major retirement destination for military retirees as well as middle income retirees from around the country. The run down look can be attributed to a lot of retirees and economic refugees unable to maintain their homes as well as the heat and current drought. The homeless problem is common throughout the southern USA due to mild winters. The affordability indexes are skewed a bit because 3/4 of the city is uneducated and impoverished. The nicest areas of town, including parts of Stone Oak, are expensive and somewhat overpriced in my opinion. SA has a low violent crime rate but a high property crime rate. The entire north side, including Stone Oak, has been seeing a crime wave in the past few years. What those people in HEB told you was most likely true, its been happening all over.