Is Palo Alto safe, meaning crime and drugs (Palo Alto, Bay Area, safety, crime, gangs, drugs) (Santa Clara: low crime, home)

[PierreUrquhart]

I'm going to be working by the Stanford campus and my wife is working at UCSF in the City. We're moving to PA from suburban Atlanta (Buckhead) and we love the preppy feel of Buckhead. Both me and my wife love the city of Palo Alto (we get the same Buckhead feeling), but we're afraid that PA's not safe. See, we both read James Franco's Palo Alto Stories which describes lots of lewd behavior and hard drug abuse among Palo Alto teens and that scares us, especially if we send our kids to the excellent public schools here. Any comments?

[fakeplastictrees]

For some reason a lot of the well to do areas in the Bay Area have a big drug/alcohol scene among the teenagers. It's no worse than it is in any other areas of the Bay Area or U.S. Just be open with your kids and talk to them about it at the right age. Most of my friends experimented with some type of drug (mostly weed) in high school and almost all have stopped by now (we're young adults). Sometimes it's something teens do to rebel a bit.
If you're moving to PA and sending kids to school there, you are lucky you can afford to do that. It's one of the best school districts and places to live in CA.
What's scarier than some teen drinking and drugs, though, is the students in Palo Alto who have committed suicide due to pressure from parents, peers, and who knows what else. Several have jumped in front of Cal Train. I grew up in a highly competitive school district, but students have never committed suicide there.
But, as I said before, you can't get safer than Palo Alto.

[Heidi60]

The concern is what comes into PA from E. Palo Alto. A few years ago a bright and promising young scientist was beat to death while on an evening walk just a block from PA PD by thugs from E. PA. PA and nearby Menlo Park donate their police services in an attempt to keep the problems contained. Always check the local crime stats for any neighborhood you are considering.

It is a truly great place to live with the exception of the above problem.

[gnomatic]

Originally Posted by fakeplastictrees

I grew up in a highly competitive school district, but students have never committed suicide there.

I went to a highly competitive academic high school in Toronto (back in the 90's, it doesn't get safer), kids committed suicide, including one of my brother's best friend.

I had friends who were/are recreational drug users and other "wild' behavior...all the while maintaining perfect grades. Most went on to top grad schools, a few with doctorates in the hard sciences.

On the surface, they all appeared to be the "good", "smart" kids. Their parents never knew..and still don't know what went on.

[bigdumbgod]

Originally Posted by PierreUrquhart

lots of lewd behavior and hard drug abuse among Palo Alto teens

Give kids lots of money, they'll spend it on the latest glamour drugs of choice. Used to be cocaine, but E, Oxycontin, and whatever's in mommy and daddy's medicine cabinet are all over the place as well. It's a rich kid thing.

[Doctor Blues]

Originally Posted by PierreUrquhart

I'm going to be working by the Stanford campus and my wife is working at UCSF in the City. We're moving to PA from suburban Atlanta (Buckhead) and we love the preppy feel of Buckhead. Both me and my wife love the city of Palo Alto (we get the same Buckhead feeling), but we're afraid that PA's not safe. See, we both read James Franco's Palo Alto Stories which describes lots of lewd behavior and hard drug abuse among Palo Alto teens and that scares us, especially if we send our kids to the excellent public schools here. Any comments?

Palo Alto proper (meaning the town where Stanford is) is ok, but the part called East Palo Alto is not safe.

[nr5667]

Originally Posted by PierreUrquhart

I'm going to be working by the Stanford campus and my wife is working at UCSF in the City. We're moving to PA from suburban Atlanta (Buckhead) and we love the preppy feel of Buckhead. Both me and my wife love the city of Palo Alto (we get the same Buckhead feeling), but we're afraid that PA's not safe. See, we both read James Franco's Palo Alto Stories which describes lots of lewd behavior and hard drug abuse among Palo Alto teens and that scares us, especially if we send our kids to the excellent public schools here. Any comments?

I don't mean to be rude, but, really? A book by James Franco has you scared about Palo Alto? Is it even technically non-fiction?

'Sides, you think the rich kids in one rich place are all that different than the rich kids in another rich place? I wouldn't worry.

Also, East Palo Alto is a separate city on the other side of the 101.

[roadwarrior101]

Originally Posted by nr5667

I don't mean to be rude, but, really? A book by James Franco has you scared about Palo Alto? Is it even technically non-fiction?

'Sides, you think the rich kids in one rich place are all that different than the rich kids in another rich place? I wouldn't worry.

Also, East Palo Alto is a separate city on the other side of the 101.

I know people that grew up in Santa Barbara who had the same comments about drugs. I don't think its isolated to Palo Alto.

Also, East Palo Alto has become a lot safer in recent years. With the construction of the Ikea and other nearby stores, there are many more jobs. You hear about an occasional murder there, but its not rampant as it was in years past. Of course, I wouldn't go walking there at night, but I can say that about a lot of areas.

[mstnghu2]

One of my best friends is a cop in Palo Alto. He called me the other day on his way home from his shift and was telling me how he's bored out of his mind. He is actually considering trying to find police work in a more exciting (meaning more crime) city. Low crime means it's boring being a cop who wants to have an interesting job, but it's good for the residents. Palo Alto also has a very high rate of solving crimes, because there's so little crime that they actually have time to investigate things.

Honestly, OP, if you find Palo Alto unsafe, there's really no place you would feel safe. Palo Alto has one of the lowest crime rates in Santa Clara county or the entire Bay Area for that matter. As others have said, East Palo Alto which is a separate city in San Mateo county is the place to avoid, although it's not as bad as it used to be.

[gone down south]

Rich kids messing around with sex and drugs is 'dangerous' to you?
Boy, you'd better never live in a real city, it would blow your mind.