CWE (Central West End)?

[RisingAurvandil]

Don't forget: parking a car in the CWE may cost additional, which cuts further into your $750.

If you are lucky, you might score a place in the CWE, or nearby in Midtown or Debaliviere. Alternatively, you could find a more affordable place within walking distance of a Metro station. Maplewood, Richmond Heights, Shrewsbury, etc. Of course, these aren't nearly as urban as the CWE.

Clayton and the CWE are the premier urban areas in StL. And the most expensive.

[DredScott]

Originally Posted by RisingAurvandil

Don't forget: parking a car in the CWE may cost additional, which cuts further into your $750.



Clayton and the CWE are the premier urban areas in StL. And the most expensive.

And both have their fair portion of thuggery as well.
The biggest mistake St. Louis made was constructing a light rail through those areas.

[FrankMiller]

Originally Posted by DredScott

And both have their fair portion of thuggery as well.
The biggest mistake St. Louis made was constructing a light rail through those areas.

Just so you know, "thug" is commonly used as a racist code word for "black teenager", so you may wish to avoid using it lest people get the wrong impression of you.

As for light rail bringing crime, I've only ever seen evidence to the contrary, and only anecdotes in support, but feel free to cite sources. Most of the spectacular stories that make the rounds have more to do with the rising popularity of these neighborhoods drawing interest from teens looking for cool places to hang out, rather than Metrolink functioning as some kind of crime highway.

[RisingAurvandil]

Originally Posted by DredScott

And both have their fair portion of thuggery as well.
The biggest mistake St. Louis made was constructing a light rail through those areas.

Another troll. 3 posts, as of today. You remind me of a poster...who has returned under a new alias.

Clayton is almost completely void of "thuggery." It has always been a great area. You're living in another world.

[Dawn10am]

Originally Posted by DredScott

And both have their fair portion of thuggery as well.
The biggest mistake St. Louis made was constructing a light rail through those areas.

Have you ever actually set foot in the CWE MetroLink station? It's almost entirely medical professionals and WashU students most of the time.

[STL2006]

Originally Posted by Dawn10am

Have you ever actually set foot in the CWE MetroLink station? It's almost entirely medical professionals and WashU students most of the time.

Yeah those are the worst type of thugs. Always trying to find new ways to treat cancer and stuff. Stay away from that element.

[tomhklein]

I am a year round bicycle commuter, and have bicycled in that capacity in Madison, WI (a very bicycle friendly city), Boston (not so much), and as a visitor in over 50 cities in 5 countries. My wife is a fair weather bicyclist who prefers walking to work. We also own one car, which we generally use for weekly grocery trips, or to get out of town on the weekend.

For bicycle commuting, I'd consider St. Louis to be pretty average by American standards. It doesn't have the infrastructure found in Portland or Minneapolis, but driving culture is far superior to that of New York and Boston.

Like everything else, bicycle friendliness is relative and really comes down to your comfort levels, but regardless of the city, in most cases, you can find a commute that will work for you, it just might be a bit longer or less direct. From Tower Grove to CWE, it should be relatively easy to find a route that works well for you or your spouse.

My wife and I just signed a lease for July 1 in CWE on the 4100 block of W. Pine Blvd. and are paying $1,100 mo. for a 1 bedroom 1 bathroom in a two unit house. It is 900 square feet and has a back yard, deck, central air, and a few other amenities that might make it a bit higher than some places, but we spent a significant amount of time looking at places in CWE and found that many places for $750-850 were quite small or had poor finishes. We also noticed a trend of a la carte charging by many buildings. For example, they'd advertise the unit as $710 but then you'd find out that there is a $20 mo. charge for common spaces, or $25 mo. pet fees for each pet. By the time we priced out the actual cost of these places, it was over $1,000, so we went with a slightly larger, more private space on Pine.

Good luck in your hunt!

[gypsyjudy]

You should look into Maplewood. I've lived in the area for over 2 years and love the convenience. Quick ride on the Metrolink to the CWE. We live in Maplewood and go to Mass in the CWE, and it is a quick drive. Maplewood would be very affordable and probably safer than CWE. About half of the area is rentals - apartments and houses, so you could easily find something to your liking. The main strip, Manchester, is very cool and has all kinds of locally owned shops where you can get pretty much anything you could possibly imagine (very hip and trendy). Great nightlife for your age group, also. 9 parks. I think there is at least one dog park, but I can't be certain. The pool has a doggie swim at the end of the season that is very fun. There are a lot of street festivals throughout the year and other activities such as the Taste of Maplewood, Let Them Eat Art, the Coffee Crawl, etc. One of the parks has a lot of concerts throughout the summer. (Maplewood is 1 square mile, so you can walk there.) Schlafly's, my neighbor, has a lot of bands, etc. weekly, along with a farmer's market on Wednesdays (highly attended by people from all over). It has everything you need, really and is convenient to absolutely everything (including Whole Foods, my favorite). We rarely leave our 5 mile radius out of Maplewood. We have 2 cars, but we could easily, EASILY have only one (We would sell it if we didn't have a teenager that is beginning to drive). Maplewood is quite progressive, too. Lots of BERNIE signs around to be sure! Check it out. I think you would find everything you need here!

[pianist1972]

Originally Posted by DredScott

And both have their fair portion of thuggery as well.
The biggest mistake St. Louis made was constructing a light rail through those areas.

Disagree, and the stats don't back that up either.