STL experience (St. Louis, Oakville, St. Ann: apartment complexes, crime rates, school districts)

[moorlander]

Much of West County is very nice, quite and overall a great place to raise a family. And being 10-30min comute to St. Louis City proper is still pretty awesome.

[1greatcity]

That's one of the great things about the STL region: there's a part of the metro area-- be it a city neighborhood, a suburb, a semi-rural area, or a satellite town-- to suit the taste of just about anyone. And for the most part, I think most people are pretty comfortable in the area where they live.
For example, not a very large percentage of Wildwood residents have a desire to live in downtown STL. They find what pleases them in their own community: wooded hills, solitude, safety. By the same token, most loft dwellers will have little interest in living in the outer ring. The exurbs don't offer enough of the amenities and the urban vibe that they crave.
I think what's also interesting is how some people want the best of "both worlds"; they want a urban-style community located in a suburban setting. I guess that's why we have places like New Town.

[kshe95girl]

Originally Posted by aragx6

I just wanted to say that if this board is skewed in one direction, thart's hardly the fault of this board's regular posters. It seems as though we have very few regular posters from areas outside of the city and damn near none if you include the inner-ring suburbs.

From what I've seen in almost 4 years on this forum is that we get an awful lot of trolls who offer very little information other than to say that the city is a rotting crime-ridden hell hole. I imagine these are the same folks who comment on every Post-Dispatch article online. It usually falls to us city folk to help those who come to this board for relocation advice, and I feel confident that if you looked at those posts from say the last year, you'll find even those who live in the city are more than happy to give fair and honest advice -- even if that means looking in the suburbs for some people. From the few suburbanite posters we've had, I've not found that to often be the case.

I have often thought that some of the trolls that pop up here and the ones that post on stltoday are one and the same, glad to know I am not the only one that thinks that.

[Snake Plissken]

Obviously West County isn't going to appeal to the liberal hippie bohemian subculture who only want to eat at locally-grown vegan organic fair trade restaurants and make their own clothes, but it's a great place to raise a family--quiet, safe, good schools, etc.

[aragx6]

Yes, those are the only two types of people in this world: "liberal hippie bohemian subculture who only want to eat at locally-grown vegan organic fair trade restaurants and make their own clothes" and those who want to raise a family.

You're an odd duck.

[1greatcity]

Originally Posted by Snake Plissken

Obviously West County isn't going to appeal to the liberal hippie bohemian subculture who only want to eat at locally-grown vegan organic fair trade restaurants and make their own clothes, but it's a great place to raise a family--quiet, safe, good schools, etc.

Um, let's not just sum up all of West County as "safe", like it's some kind of haven from crime. That's a fairy tale. Crime is everywhere, and West County definitely has it's share. Here are some of the latest reported incidents: Saint Louis County Missouri Crime Incident Map

[flynavyj]

LOL, 1greatcity...maybe we're seeing different things, but looking at the crime map, and randomly filtering the different crimes on and off shows SIGNIFICANTLY less crime in West County in comparison to the other parts of St. Louis County (namely North and South County). The area with the most crimes on the map seems pretty clear as the North Eastern part of St. Louis County, the Southern part of St. Louis county is a "close" second...and West County is far below either of those two areas...so yes, crime is everywhere...but if you were looking for a crime free haven in St. Louis County, W. County might be as close as you're going to find.

Do we have a crime map for St. Louis City?

NM, found it. https://www.crimereports.com/

With the same layers turned on, there's barely a blank spot on the map. So if West County isn't the "Haven of safety", maybe St. Louis City is the Haven of crime?

[stlcitygirl]

^I absolutely think West County is safer than most places, but calling the city "haven of crime" is pretty shallow.

[flynavyj]

I was simply posing the question with a not so subtle insinuation. I don't believe for a minute that the city is a "haven of crime", it was simply a response to your statement that West County isn't a "haven from crime".

Also seems like a bit of a double standard, when crime is brought up in relation to the city we speak of it being "localized" and typically not "random". I think the crime map listed above shows that the crime throughout the St. Louis area is fairly concentrated. In the County Map you provided, crime seems to be most concentrated to the very inner ring suburbs, and increases the further North you move on the map. The further you remove yourself from the city core, the less "county reported" crime you see. Just an observation.

[stlcitygirl]

^Not my statement