La Mesa? Rancho Bernado? Lakeside? Santee? Mira Mesa? (Poway: apartments, to rent)

[kdjohnson]

These are places that we are considering to live so far. I'm not even sure how close they are to eachother (been looking at too many different places, and form my notes, these are the best bets so far) We know nothing about the area of SD, therefore know nothing about the areas listed here.

What would the commute to MCAS MIramar be like form these areas?

Crime..will I get mugged in these areas?

Housing...is it a run down neighborhood, or just middle class?

Are these more fast paced places, or more laid back?


As I have posted in other posts, we are looking for a 2 bedroom at least 1.5 (preferrably 2) bath apartment to rent. We are looking to spend about $1600 (including utilities...electric, gas, water, trash.....NOT including phone, internet, cable, etc.). We want somewhere that we have quietness, but not so desolate that we have to drive far to get to things. A city lke enviornment wouldnt bother us either. We are pretty open as to the enviornment, as long as we are safe. Schoold do not matter to us, as we only have a tiny baby right now.

I have looked in Poway and have only found apartments that are more run down looking, and Tierrasanta has some places that are either out of our price range, or do not except pets (we have a cat).

I understand that crime happens everywhere, but I am looking or a place that my car wont get stolen just because it is new...or a place that I am able to go outside in my yard/porch and I wont get mugged. I woudl prefer a place that isnt covered with graffiti either. (sorry to sound so picky).
I have heard that La Mesa is a good choice, but I have no clue as to what teh commute to the base woudl be like. Any input?

Thanks for anythign you are able to tell me. If possible, can someone spurt out a list of some places that woudl be good areas for me to look in that woudl have a reasonable commute to MCAS MIramar. I am so greatful for this forum...

(and sorry for asking so many random questions abotu tons of different areas..there are jus so many options, and since I dont know the areas, I have to ask you all).

[tande1n5]

La Mesa - solid middle class.
Rancho Bernardo - middle class to upper middle class, the most upscale of the areas you mentioned by far.
Lakeside - generally rural, stickville vibe, and maybe some crime.
Santee - sort of the same, but Santee's getting better in my opinion.
Mira Mesa - Middle class and lower middle class. Some fine areas but some sketchy as well. It's really close to MCAS and that's where a lot of MCAS people live, but that's about the positive thing I can say about it.

Mira Mesa's going to be your best commute since it's immediately north. Santee wouldn't be that bad either, as you can take the 52, and that eastern segment between MCAS and Santee is pretty light most of the time.

The 15 sucks at peak hours, so if you're going to be on it during rush hour, it can be bad.

[JoanWilder]

It will take you about 30 minutes or so to go from down town La Mesa to Miramar. It was a bit shorter during the summer, but now that SDSU students/profs. are back and folks are no longer on vacation, traffic is much heavier on the 8 East and 15 North. A lot of stop and go...the worst kind of traffic.

To me, Mira Mesa and Santee are kind of the same....strip malls with a big road going through them. They don't really feel like towns to me. This is what I like about down town La Mesa. It's small, but you can walk to the post office, library, cafes and restaurants. Of course, if you live near Grossmont Center in La Mesa, then it has that strip-mall feel as well. Don't know about Rancho Bernardo, but I think it's quite a bit more expensive than Mira Mesa. You could also look in Scripps Ranch but that is definitely more expensive than Mira Mesa and also doesn't really have a town, just a couple of shopping centers. But I walk around it during the day and it's pleasant enough.

If I were working at Miramar, I would definitely look for a place up there and not commute from La Mesa or Lakeside. It's not worth the stress or the cost of gas.