How safe is the Mission District? (San Jose, San Francisco: high crime, homes, neighborhoods)

[db88]

ok so....lets say i move to the mission district. I will be near the corner of 18th and Guerrero Street. Can someone make me a map of the ok areas and the bad areas. I see that Dolores Park is only a couple blocks away...it looks pretty nice!

[migol84]

Originally Posted by db88

ok so....lets say i move to the mission district. I will be near the corner of 18th and Guerrero Street. Can someone make me a map of the ok areas and the bad areas. I see that Dolores Park is only a couple blocks away...it looks pretty nice!

go during the day and look at it for yourself. you will be fine. its not like there's a battle ensuing and everybody is getting mugged or assaulted. just stick to the major streets.

[db88]

well ok what are the major streets? Im currently living in downtown chicago...and moving to san francisco(which ive never been to..ever)

[mayorhaggar]

Originally Posted by db88

ok so....lets say i move to the mission district. I will be near the corner of 18th and Guerrero Street. Can someone make me a map of the ok areas and the bad areas. I see that Dolores Park is only a couple blocks away...it looks pretty nice!

As I've already said several times in this topic, mainly stay west of Mission. Mission between 16th and 18th is hands down the worst part of the Mission area. East of Mission isn't as seedy or full of shady characters but it's still pretty seedy and there's a lot of gang members living around there who shoot one another now and then--otherwise you'd generally be left alone though you would be putting yourself at higher danger of muggings or burglaries, and women probably should not live around there. 24th Street East of Mission is OK and has some trendy hipster restaurants mixed in with the taquerias but I still wouldn't want to live there.

Cesar Chavez is pretty crummy and IIRC even west of Mission it's a crappy street. Not really bad during the day but probably best not to live near it.

Again, West of Mission is fine. Guerrero, Dolores, Church are all really nice streets. Valencia has the most restaurants and shops and is slightly grubby but waaaaaay better than Mission which is only a block away. All the numbered streets west of Mission are fine too. I would say though that the very northern tip of the Western Mission, up by Market Street, like by Valencia and Market, is seedier than if you go further south, but the areas around Duboce Park or around Church and Market are very nice.

Potrero Hill, Bernal Heights, Noe Valley and Glen Park are all nearby areas and are all pretty safe and clean compared with the eastern Mission. Though I'm not really sure where the crappy part of the East Mission ends and the good part of Potrero Hill begins. The South end of Potrero Hill has some really crappy housing projects then south of there it bleeds into a crappy industrial area which basically stretches down to Hunter's Point.

[db88]

Alright thanks for the help! So just to throw it out there...how safe would it be living downtown(or close to) san jose when compared to mission?

[nr5667]

Originally Posted by mayorhaggar

This is Dolores Park, in the middle of the Western Mission. Looks really scary doesn't it?

Kind of does, actually.

[nr5667]

Originally Posted by db88

Alright thanks for the help! So just to throw it out there...how safe would it be living downtown(or close to) san jose when compared to mission?

San Jose has a much lower crime rate than San Francisco. I'm downtown fairly often, and haven't had any problems.

Although, to be honest, if you're a well to do white dude who isn't doing something stupidly reckless, you'll be fine in both places, most likely.

[beb0p]

Originally Posted by jade408

No, they have decided they are willing to trade living in a grimy area is OK is there are plenty of "cool" things to do nearby.

The Mission isn't really all that safe or all that clean. That for me is a huge thumbs down. For the average person, not much will happen to you. But you'll definitely be exposed to it in the Mission. Either because you've heard the news, and it is a corner you walk by frequently or you'll witness it. (The only drug deal I have seen in real life happened at 17th and Mission.)

I don't want to live in an area where you can think of several "incidents" in recent weeks on your daily route home.

If you don't like the Mission, fine. But don't pretend you know what other people are thinking. I'm one of the young professionals who decided to live there and I never, ever consider it a trade off of fun and safety. It was both - fun and safe.

I've witnessed drug deals in the Marina, Nob Hill, Chinatown. But I haven't witnessed it in the Mission. That doesn't mean that Marina is a drug infested stone town while the Mission is clean. It just means that drugs happen everywhere in the city and you just happened to stumble upon it.

[beb0p]

Originally Posted by jade408

Actually I disagree. A lot of West Oakland feels really neighborhood-y. I have had several friends (and some distant relatives) live there and enjoy it. From yuppies to non-yuppies of all ethnicities. No matter what happens on the block, people generally know each other.

Below is just a random search of murders in West Oakland within the last 12 months. I'm sure there are more if I really dig into it.

Man Gunned Down In West Oakland

Jan 6, 2011

OAKLAND (BCN) — A man who was killed in a shooting in West Oakland on Wednesday night has been identified as Donald Johnson, a police spokeswoman said Thursday.

Man Gunned Down In West Oakland; 3rd Homicide Of 2011 « CBS San Francisco

West Oakland murder is the 6th in a week

June 24, 2011

An unidentified man was shot to death in West Oakland last night, marking the city’s sixth murder in a week.

Around 9:17 PM last night, Oakland Police officers arrived at the 1100 block of 24th Street, in between Market and Adeline, in response to gunfire. A 27-year-old Oakland man suffering from multiple gunshot wounds was found at the scene and pronounced dead by medical personnel.

West Oakland murder is the 6th in a week | The Informant

Murder, burglary-turned-rape in West Oakland this morning

June 8 2011

A 49-year-old man was found stabbed to death and a 28-year-old woman was raped by a man burglarizing her Apgar Street home in a chaotic morning in West Oakland.

Murder, burglary-turned-rape in West Oakland this morning | The Informant

Man Killed In West Oakland Shooting

June 19, 2011

OAKLAND (CBS SF) — A man was fatally shot in West Oakland on Saturday night, Oakland police said.

The victim was found suffering from multiple gunshot wounds in the 800 block of 19th Street just after 10 p.m., Officer J. Moore said.

Man Killed In West Oakland Shooting « CBS San Francisco

One killed, three wounded in West Oakland drive-by shooting

June 21, 2011

OAKLAND -- Dionte Freeman's backpack lies on his bed in his West Oakland home.
A bag of Doritos sits on his desk, ready to be eaten. A poster hangs on his wall, with a poem: "I Am Teachable." Along with pictures of family and friends, phone numbers and notes to himself cover the walls.
His small dog, Cash, paces the room -- waiting for his owner to return, not realizing that he never will.

http://www.mercurynews.com/breaking-news/ci_18321469

One killed, one wounded in West Oakland shootings

August 24, 2011

OAKLAND -- A man was shot and wounded Wednesday morning across the street from the West Oakland BART station, a few blocks from where another man had been fatally shot the night before, police said.

Investigators were trying to determine if the shootings were related. So far, they don't have a motive in either shooting and no arrests have been made.

The first fatal shooting happened just after 9 p.m. Tuesday in the 1000 block of 10th Street outside the Acorn housing project.

One killed, one wounded in West Oakland shootings - Inside Bay Area

Two charged with murder in West Oakland double shooting

Two men were charged today with committing a double murder after a West Oakland shooting Friday left two men dead.

Two charged with murder in West Oakland double shooting

Man fatally shot in front of West Oakland home

March 16, 2011

A West Oakland man was shot and killed outside his home Wednesday morning, a police spokeswoman said.

The man was sitting in a pickup truck in front of his home in the 3700 block of West Street at about 8:20 a.m. when he was shot, spokeswoman Cynthia Perkins said.

http://www.sfexaminer.com/local/bay-...t-oakland-home

Man killed in West Oakland stabbing

Nov 4, 2010

OAKLAND, Calif. -- An Emeryville man died after being stabbed in West Oakland on Wednesday afternoon, Oakland police said today.

The stabbing was reported at about 1 p.m. in the 1900 block of Myrtle Street.

http://abclocal.go.com/kgo/story?sec...bay&id=7765595

[jade408]

Originally Posted by beb0p

If you don't like the Mission, fine. But don't pretend you know what other people are thinking. I'm one of the young professionals who decided to live there and I never, ever consider it a trade off of fun and safety. It was both - fun and safe.

I wouldn't feel super safe walking around late alone in much of the Mission -- visiting and eating out is fine. The blocks around 16th St BART can feel a little iffy. I feel fine walking in my Oakland neighborhood late at night. (West Oakland is generally an area where I wouldn't feel safe walking alone either, but it is pretty misconstrued. Not every block is unsafe and crime-ridden.)

The Mission is what I would call safe-ish. You are willing to trade some level of personal safety for being aware of your surroundings and proximity to transit and fun stuff. Because there are enough positives, that are important to you, it is a reasonable trade-off. I wouldn't tell the average newbie who hasn't been there that it is "safe."

You have to decide how much you are OK with in view/proximity of your place. I agree with Mayorhaggar, the western part of the mission is very different than the eastern part.

But overall the urban Bay Area is pretty dirty compared with other metro areas (ahem Chicago!). The Mission is no exception. Unfortunately, there is no price you can pay to live in an urban area in the Bay with clean streets.