tell me about carrollwood area (Pinellas Park, Odessa: to rent, house, neighborhood)

[gomthong]

Can anyone recommend a god apartment complex in the Tampa area? All my online research has led me to a lot of horrible reviews.
Thanks!

[MAniacTHW]

A god apartment complex... Have you tried the Holy Trinity?

I keed. Anyways, those reviews you see will always be negative. The way I usually narrow down the reviews is this: See if there are a LOT of recurring topics. "The crime here is horrible." is a general statement on every apartment. EVERY apartment. When you see it mentioned a good 5 or 6 times, you might want to worry about the crime. Another thing to look out for it staff written reviews. They're usually very easy to spot as they make some ridiculous claims: "This is the nicest apartment I've lived in in 50 years. Never had a problem with bugs, crime, traffic, and the children are all well behaved. This apartment complex is like living with family (any catch phrase is a pretty dead giveaway)." With that said, St. James Crossing on Gunn Highway at the light at Carrollwood (not sure what road it's on, but it's across the street from the Big Lots, Discount Auto) I've heard good things about. 10 mins from the mall, across the street from Publix (our biggest grocery store down here), 5 mins from Wal*Mart (If you haven't seen Wal-Mart: The High Cost Of Low Prices), Easy access to Citrus Park, which in the last few years has REALLY been growing, 5 mins from Dale Mabry where you can find anything you could possibly need. Schools in the area are Essrig Elm, Ben Hill Middle (I HIGHLY suggest avoiding this school at all costs), and Gaither High. And, if you're in the area, you MUST stop at Gus's Italian Cafe. Hopefully my post helped a little.

[FloridaKash]

Thanks for reviving this topic. Now I am thinking about Carollwood. Ugh, can;t makeup my mind. I am going to be doing a whole lot of driving around and scouting when I get down there.

[MAniacTHW]

I lived in Carrollwood a good 15 years. Just avoid the Four Oaks area. Every neighborhood has that iffy spot... Four Oaks has the drugs, the "gangs" and everything else you could ask for. Outside of that, the rest of the area is really nice. They've also been working on cleaning Four Oaks up for a little while now.

[alwaysadrmr]

Carrollwood: Forgive me!!

Old houses ( most of them), traffic, no parks(?).. but in the middle of everything. Being in Carrollwood is like living in the GI; gastrointestinal system..., in the middle of your body, and the quality that it offers. Okay, just a joke, don't take it offensively

[MAniacTHW]

There's a couple of parks. Hampton Park comes to mind as does the one off of South Village across the street from that pizza place that used to be NYPD (definitely check out this pizza place too!). If you have a pet, there's a very good vet in there as well, and a gas station that's on the "WHAT ARE THEY THINKING!?" expensive side and I've heard a story about their pumps exploding on people. I'd avoid that particular gas station. As far as I know, the Carrollwood area is between Dale Mabry, Gunn Hwy, Anderson Rd, and Ehrlic (four major roads in the area). If you MUST go to Wal-Mart (watch "Wal-Mart: The High Cost Of Low Prices" first) there's one on Ehrlic and Dale Mabry, as well as a Publix, a Radio Shack, a Target, Macaroni Grill, Applebees, and all sorts of other shops. On the Gunn/Dale Mabry side you have next to nothing. There's a Deli a little ways up, a Race Track gas station, and various other (very random) shops. Also, at Gunn just east (I believe) of Casey is a pool hall, real nice one. Fun place to go on a budget, or just to get out. On the Gunn/Anderson side you have another Publix, Walgreens, Subway, two Chinese places, Winners sports bar, a kids barber shop, a TV repair, and whatever else they added. Up on Anderson is the area's movie theater with a bunch of (not very good) restaurants. On the Ehrlic/Anderson side you have Sweetbay, Little Ceasers, Alex's BBQ (VERY good BBQ... You'll never go back to Sonny's!), a Spanish place (decent food as well), a jewler (very, VERY strange spot for one) a Suntrust bank, Taco Bell/KFC, McDonalds, gas station, Albertsons, Windy City Pizza, and other shops. 15-20 mins up Gunn Highway is Citrus Park Mall, make a left onto Gunn/Sheldon and you have Mellow Mushroom, Cherry's, and a road that they've been working on for years to bring traffic down. Make a right onto Gunn/Sheldon and you'll find your way to Hwy 54 (New Port Richey, Wesley Chapel). Most of the things you'll want to do will be found on Gunn or Dale Mabry. Tampa Lanes is on Dale Mabry across from the smallest "Super" Wal-Mart you've ever seen, there's a Vietnamese place next to it, and QZar lazer tag not far from there. Gunn hwy has Terra Sports (cosmic bowling after 10) and leads into Temple Terrace, Thonotosassa, and other small towns. Whatever you do in Tampa, AVOID NEBRASKA AVE, ESPECIALLY after dark. Things to keep in mind: There's a Hungry Howie's (best one I've been in) at Casey and Gunn, next to the Sweetbay, there's a Pizza Hut next to the Publix at Gunn/Anderson, Borders and Barnes & Noble on Dale Mabry, a MiMi's Cafe and a Bar next to (I believe) Borders, a new Lowe's and other shops popped up at Dale Mabry and Fletcher (though that plaza doesn't ever seem to bring people in, thus shops there are rarely long term... Ask any of us who've lived in the area how many times Harpo's shut down), there's a new pizza place, and a Chili's, AND a comedy club across Dale Mabry from Lowe's. If you're on a budget, are a musician, are looking for something different, or are redecorating your home, across Fletcher from the Lowe's plaza is Sam Ash, CiCi's, Bed, Bath, and Beyond, Five Guys, and a Philly Cheese Steak place, along with a farmer's market. There's also a Wendy's in that plaza. Across Dale Mabry from all that is yet another Publix, another Chinese place, a Blockbuster Media, Tuesday Mornings, Walgreens, a sports bar, a book store, a melting pot, a Bonefish Grill, Firehouse subs, and a Men's Warehouse. Unfortunately for the area, the Krispy Kreme shut down and the closest one is a good half hour away. The traffic also isn't all that bad... I've also been born and raised in Florida... I don't know any better. I realize that this will come out as a big block of text and you'll stop reading about half way through... Sorry. I'm doing a quick response. Anyways, hopefully this helps.

[TampaKaren]

Maniac, how long have you been gone from Carrollwood? Many of the places mentioned in your post closed years ago.

[MAniacTHW]

Originally Posted by TampaKaren

Maniac, how long have you been gone from Carrollwood? Many of the places mentioned in your post closed years ago.

What closed down? Most of them were there a year ago?!

[TampaKaren]

Publix bought most of the Albertson's stores in June 2008; Windy City Pizza bankrupted in 2008 as well. The Old Mission Bell Plaza where Lowes and surrounding businesses are located is a bustling place now (not quite as cool as Mission Bell was, but I digress). Mimi's is still there, but it's in front of Barnes & Noble. O'Briens Pub is still there, thank goodness! Men's Warehouse moved to Grand Plaza (I think that's what it's called) near Grillsmith. Near the AMC on Anderson, the Green Iguana opened a couple of years ago and it's a good hang-place. Bostons Restaurant nearby seems to do a good business as well (I ate there once which was too many times for me).

NBD, but when I saw Windy City in your post, I knew you hadn't been nearby lately. Their pizza was really good!

[MAniacTHW]

I haven't been to certain plazas in a WHILE. I left Carrollwood maybe 6 months ago? I think I remember Albertsons being closed now, but the majority of my post is still there. What'd the Lowe's plaza do? Last I checked, Jamba Juice moved in, then closed, and the pizza place that was in front of Wal-Mart moved in, then closed. There was a Chipolte, a Japanese place (I think) and a few other random things. When did Men's Warehouse move? I might be thinking of Steinmart, but I thought they moved a good 7 years ago. I knew about Anderson, but I don't drink, so GI doesn't go on my list of "to dos" and Bostons has some really bad food. The wing place in there is hit or miss, as is the steak house.