Best walkable neighborhoods in the South Bay? (San Diego, San Jose: 2014, apartment complexes)

[sprtgrl22]

I'm taking a job in the South Bay to be closer to family, and I am looking for recommendations for good, walkable neighborhoods in the area to move to. For comparison, I've spent the last 10 years living in North Park in San Diego, Capitol Hill in Seattle, and Central Square in Cambridge, MA. All great neighborhoods with great shops, bars, and restaurants nearby--even if I had a car to commute to work, I rarely used it on evenings or weekends. My job is in Santa Clara, so commuting from SF or Oakland is just too far, otherwise I would probably live there. I'm too old for the party scene, but I do appreciate good arts and food, and at least one non-sketchy place to get a drink where I don't have to worry about driving.

Right now I'm looking at :
- downtown Mountain View
- Japantown in San Jose
- along the Alameda around the San Jose/Santa Clara border and near San Pedro Square
- maybe downtown Palo Alto after I check the commute
- maybe downtown Sunnyvale

Are there any other areas you would recommend checking out? A few people have mentioned Santana Row, but it feels so...fake? manufactured? to me.

[NoMoreSnowForMe]

I loved where I lived in Santa Clara. Right next to Santa Clara University. That neighborhood gives you walking distance to the Saturday Farmer's Market on Jackson Street at the Franklin Mall - it's very small, but hey, it's a farmer's market, right? There is a post office in the Franklin Mall, and a small library basically across the street from there, on Main Street.

There are things to do on the University campus, and one of the missions is on that campus. If nothing else, it's beautiful to walk around on campus. Lots of sports on campus. The Earthquakes used to play on campus. I'm not sure if they are in their new stadium now, but it's just a quick drive away (or you might be able to catch a bus from the terminal at the train station).

You can walk to the train station, where you can catch Cal-Train to SF, or take the free shuttle to the airport, or ride to downtown San Jose, and you can catch Amtrak from there, or go to the HP Pavilion (it's named something else now).

There is also a Safeway within walking distance, and several bars and restaurants.

It's also very safe. Santa Clara has very little crime, and a police force that actually shows up quickly if you call them.

That area is the original old downtown, but unfortunately, the old downtown was demolished for the Franklin Mall and the giant parking lot that is now behind the stip mall on Lafayette and Homestead. But, it's still full of lovely old Victorian homes.

I thought another nice neighborhood might be on The Alameda in San Jose, around the Indian theater, just before you get to Race Street, heading south. There are some nice apartments there, and a lot of restaurants, and I think the light rail stops there, too.

I don't really know the San Jose neighborhoods.

Sunnyvale is nice, too. Same story, though, as Santa Clara, as in there isn't really a well-defined downtown anymore. But, you can easily walk to strip malls with amenities and it's safe, and the Cal-Train serves the area, too.

I really like Mountain View's downtown area. Have only been a couple of times, but really liked it. Parking is more of a hassle there, than Santa Clara or Mountain View, but if you were renting there and could walk, that wouldn't be an issue.

But, if you will be working in Santa Clara, I think you would be happy to live in the old town area there, by the university, and then just hop on a train when you wanted to go into San Jose, etc.

The Rivermark area of Santa Clara is nice, too, but it's also kind of "fake" like Santana Row, as in it was more recently developed, and is built around a strip mall, basically. Also, I would bet that the 49er games would create traffic from hell when there are events at the new stadium.

Congrats on the job!

[bobby_guz_man]

San Francisco or bust!

San Jose no good. Too many homeless people, downtown San Jose too dead, and Santana Row too fake--feels like built with cardboards ($600 million worth of cardboard though). No culture (Hispanic and Asian culture do not count, only Anglo cultures count!) Girls are all dead, only guys and computers live here. It's terrible place, too many Hispanics and Asians, very ethnic-y, very scary!

San Jose also very violent and crime-filled city. Last year in 2014, we have 32 homicides!!!! Compared that to the incredibly safe cities of San Francisco and Oakland, with 44 homicides and ~90 homicides respectively! Man....I really wish one day San Jose can be as safe as San Francisco and Oakland

PS: Congrats on job, now go live in SF and try not to trip over the homeless guy eating a raw pigeon at your doorstep. Unlike fake Santana Row, the homeless guy and his pigeon are real

[ccm123]

Look into Los Gatos also. Great downtown area.

[Local123]

Campbell has a great walkable downtown. There are are several apartment complexes on Union Ave which is within walking distance to downtown Campbell and The Pruneyard.

[mstnghu2]

Originally Posted by bobby_guz_man

San Francisco or bust!

San Jose no good. Too many homeless people, downtown San Jose too dead, and Santana Row too fake--feels like built with cardboards ($600 million worth of cardboard though). No culture (Hispanic and Asian culture do not count, only Anglo cultures count!) Girls are all dead, only guys and computers live here. It's terrible place, too many Hispanics and Asians, very ethnic-y, very scary!

San Jose also very violent and crime-filled city. Last year in 2014, we have 32 homicides!!!! Compared that to the incredibly safe cities of San Francisco and Oakland, with 44 homicides and ~90 homicides respectively! Man....I really wish one day San Jose can be as safe as San Francisco and Oakland

PS: Congrats on job, now go live in SF and try not to trip over the homeless guy eating a raw pigeon at your doorstep. Unlike fake Santana Row, the homeless guy and his pigeon are real

You do realize that people who don't normally post here won't realize you're being sarcastic, right?

[mstnghu2]

Originally Posted by sprtgrl22

I'm taking a job in the South Bay to be closer to family, and I am looking for recommendations for good, walkable neighborhoods in the area to move to. For comparison, I've spent the last 10 years living in North Park in San Diego, Capitol Hill in Seattle, and Central Square in Cambridge, MA. All great neighborhoods with great shops, bars, and restaurants nearby--even if I had a car to commute to work, I rarely used it on evenings or weekends. My job is in Santa Clara, so commuting from SF or Oakland is just too far, otherwise I would probably live there. I'm too old for the party scene, but I do appreciate good arts and food, and at least one non-sketchy place to get a drink where I don't have to worry about driving.

Right now I'm looking at :
- downtown Mountain View
- Japantown in San Jose
- along the Alameda around the San Jose/Santa Clara border and near San Pedro Square
- maybe downtown Palo Alto after I check the commute
- maybe downtown Sunnyvale

Are there any other areas you would recommend checking out? A few people have mentioned Santana Row, but it feels so...fake? manufactured? to me.

Of the areas you mentioned, I do think that Japantown and the Alameda area between Santa Clara/San Jose are good options. You could also consider Willow Glen, but it's more of a family area and not really geared toward upwardly mobile professionals. I also agree with Local123 about the Campbell selection. I'm not sure what your budget is, but Los Gatos is very expensive.

[cardinal2007]

Originally Posted by sprtgrl22

I'm taking a job in the South Bay to be closer to family, and I am looking for recommendations for good, walkable neighborhoods in the area to move to. For comparison, I've spent the last 10 years living in North Park in San Diego, Capitol Hill in Seattle, and Central Square in Cambridge, MA. All great neighborhoods with great shops, bars, and restaurants nearby--even if I had a car to commute to work, I rarely used it on evenings or weekends. My job is in Santa Clara, so commuting from SF or Oakland is just too far, otherwise I would probably live there. I'm too old for the party scene, but I do appreciate good arts and food, and at least one non-sketchy place to get a drink where I don't have to worry about driving.

Right now I'm looking at :
- downtown Mountain View
- Japantown in San Jose
- along the Alameda around the San Jose/Santa Clara border and near San Pedro Square
- maybe downtown Palo Alto after I check the commute
- maybe downtown Sunnyvale

Are there any other areas you would recommend checking out? A few people have mentioned Santana Row, but it feels so...fake? manufactured? to me.

I would say the only area in the South Bay that has a good arts scene is the South First area in downtown San Jose, of the areas you mentioned the closest to that is near San Pedro Sq. I think you should visit Japantown to see if it is to your liking, with the empty "Corp Yard" it does tend to have an up and coming feel, all the construction does that too, but it is nice nonetheless. Another area to consider should be near the Alameda close to Diridon, separated from downtown by the parking lots east of Diridon it has its own feeling, it is nice and walkable but not as many bars and eateries as downtown, but San Pedro Sq is only a 10-15 minute walk, also nice commuting options if you ever end up working close to Caltrain.

[Azmordean]

OP - of those options, I'd probably lean toward one of the San Jose options, or Mountain View.

I live in Mountain View myself, in walking distance to downtown. The downtown is quite nice -- full of bars, restaurants, Sunday farmers market, and so forth. That said, rent close to downtown tends to be quite high.

I also like downtown San Jose, as well as the area of the Alameda directly adjacent (near Diridon). DTSJ is definitely up and coming. Prices are also somewhat lower in San Jose as compared to Mountain View. Mountain View feels like a really cool small town downtown, while San Jose feels like a new city downtown. I like both; your preferences may vary. Both are safe, though there are areas that are a bit less safe that border parts of DTSJ. Another thing to keep in mind is San Jose State is in DTSJ, so you have some college scene going on -- you might want an apartment that doesn't face a main street if you value quiet evenings .

As to the other options... Palo Alto is great, but even more expensive than Mountain View and a longer commute, so I'd scratch it. Sunnyvale's downtown is about one block. San Jose Japantown is an area I'm not very familiar with; it could be a good option.

As between DTSJ and Mountain View, it might depend on where exactly your job is. I'd probably go for the shorter commute.

[darkeconomist]

Originally Posted by sprtgrl22

I'm taking a job in the South Bay to be closer to family, and I am looking for recommendations for good, walkable neighborhoods in the area to move to. For comparison, I've spent the last 10 years living in North Park in San Diego, Capitol Hill in Seattle, and Central Square in Cambridge, MA. All great neighborhoods with great shops, bars, and restaurants nearby--even if I had a car to commute to work, I rarely used it on evenings or weekends. My job is in Santa Clara, so commuting from SF or Oakland is just too far, otherwise I would probably live there. I'm too old for the party scene, but I do appreciate good arts and food, and at least one non-sketchy place to get a drink where I don't have to worry about driving.

Right now I'm looking at :
- downtown Mountain View
- Japantown in San Jose
- along the Alameda around the San Jose/Santa Clara border and near San Pedro Square
- maybe downtown Palo Alto after I check the commute
- maybe downtown Sunnyvale

Are there any other areas you would recommend checking out? A few people have mentioned Santana Row, but it feels so...fake? manufactured? to me.

Residential areas in Santa Clara County built before WW2 are generally going to have the walkable vibe you seem to be interested in. Fortunately, we have a lot of those. Unfortunately, many are either priced out or haven't hit up-and-coming and have some crime problems.