Why does everyone bash Tampa? (Miami, Seminole: movers, condos, high crime)

[bnicoleroberts]

Ok, I'm getting ready to move to Tampa and I'm very EXCITED about it. I posted a week or so earlier about places to live and did get some very good feedback. My issue is that everyone seems to bash Tampa and it's crime, rude peope, etc. etc. I live in Raleigh, NC and somehow everyone thinks its a slice of heaven. Well, it isn't. There may be less crime and decent weather but that is about it. Yes, the university system is great and it's an ok place to raise a family. BUT, besides that for a young 30 professional it's BORING! It's very small, has a lot of chain restaurants, only a few music venues and not alot of options outside of Raleigh unless you want to drive 2.5 hrs to Charlotte or 4 hours to Asheville or 2 hours to the beach. It's stuck in the middle of nowhere and so I'm out. I have friends from all over that have moved to Tampa and love it. So, sure every decent big city has crime (I use to live in LA- and work in South Central) and Tampa is actually relatively cheap to many other cities it's size that is near the beach and other big cities. So, what is the catch people? People are rude everyone. I grew up in the midwest, I lived on the west coast, I've lived in Raleigh, NC (which by the way- people are very backstab-ish, I mean it's the south. So, the same crap happens in every city. I just thought I'd give my two cents and see if anyone had a real reason to say such bad things about Tampa.

[Stpetebull]

Most people have qualms about where they live that most people visiting don't see... so I guess its a good thing to give potential movers a heads up before they make the journey.

I thought st pete was the coolest place to live before I moved. I still love it... but now that I live here I'm seeing all different parts. (traffic issues, pedestrain issues, homeless people being kicked out of storefronts every get blocks).

and as they all said... in the Tampa bay area cities... its hard to know where and where not to live. I'm going through that problem now. "good parts" are right on top of "bad parts" which isn't very commen... It seems like most cities have some sort of boarder between... but florida developes in a very strange way.

They aren't necessarily bashing... they are kind of helping... becuase if the person wants to move here, they already know the good. These people that really know the area are giving them the bad and the ugly (which is always nice to know too.)

We understand there's rude people everywhere... and yeah we lucked out with the nightlife thing. I have my college life and a pretty happening city. I'm lucky and i love it... but if someone is coming here to raise their kids... I might try to send them where you grew up.

[gypsychic]

As a born-and-bred Tampa native, the good parts are the friendly people (very few rude people here), great ethnic diversity, convenient to nice beaches and some nice historic parts of town. The really bad issues for me are the high crime, and the fact that all the inner city neighborhoods are just not safe enough. As the above poster mentioned, it is very "patchy" with good blocks and then bad blocks almost everywhere. Most cities have an "area" of town that you know is ghetto or unsafe, but Tampa is a patchwork of "ghetto" and nice.

You will find it reasonable or cheap compared to many places you have lived. Please remember, many people DO like where you are living (Raleigh), you are living there, so you see what you do not like. When you live in an area, it is different from visiting, and the negative will make itself known after the "honeymoon" period wears off.

Good luck, I am sure you will like the Tampa Bay Area.

[yukon]

I've been in Tampa 4 years now, and I still like it. It's a good compromise - more and better jobs than the panhandle area, with good beaches and a semi-small town feel like the panhandle. It has decent jobs and a fairly stable small biz base like Miami/Ft Lauderdale, but without much of the S Fla craziness and traffic. We do have seasons here, although not necessarily four of them (think hot, warm, and comfortable ). December is technically our "coldest" month, and it's wonderful

Keep in mind that while other cities had consistent growth over the past several decades (think Dallas & Atlanta), much of Tampa's growth was pre-1980 and 2000 to now. So you'll see older, dated neighborhoods and brand new neighborhoods, and not much in between. That sort of contrast does make the older parts look more shabby (IMHO). And yes, we have crime here, but I don't think it's any worse than anywhere else I've lived, and definitely better than some spots I've lived in.

Take the negatives you read with a grain of salt (some require an entire shakerful). I've been monitoring other city/state forums with an eye to relocating, and I think the FL forum in general has more unhappy people posting on it than other states. Not sure why, unless maybe they move here already unhappy with life in general and expect a move to "paradise" to suddenly make things perfect.

[tonynorie]

My opinion: People of character and principle who hold themselves largely responsible for the way their life is, will almost always find a quality lifestyle in Tampa (and anywhere else for that matter).

People who go through life as victims of (fill in the blank here)......"the system"....."the man"......."this town"......"the filthy rich" - you know the deal - will almost asuredly find fault with life in Tampa.

Bring your own luck with you when you go.........

[Keeper]

IMHO the people who really hate Tampa don't out number the people who do like Tampa, it is just they are much vocal in their post. If you read any city forum you will get to know the ones who are unhappy with an area. I think there are a lot of good things about Tampa not that I don't know a lot of the bad, I just chose to focus on the good.

[bnepler]

You know, "If you took all the people out it wouldn't be a bad place to live".

[henrydeanjellybean]

I bash Tampa because the last time I was home I wanted a Cuban sandwich, it had lettuce and tomato on it!!!!!!!

No lechuga y tomate!

The roast pork wasn’t marinated in mojo.

And bread tasted more like French than Cubano.

I still have a very hard time dealing with it!

[Superpippo]

Originally Posted by bnicoleroberts

Ok, I'm getting ready to move to Tampa and I'm very EXCITED about it. I posted a week or so earlier about places to live and did get some very good feedback. My issue is that everyone seems to bash Tampa and it's crime, rude peope, etc. etc. I live in Raleigh, NC and somehow everyone thinks its a slice of heaven. Well, it isn't. There may be less crime and decent weather but that is about it. Yes, the university system is great and it's an ok place to raise a family. BUT, besides that for a young 30 professional it's BORING! It's very small, has a lot of chain restaurants, only a few music venues and not alot of options outside of Raleigh unless you want to drive 2.5 hrs to Charlotte or 4 hours to Asheville or 2 hours to the beach. It's stuck in the middle of nowhere and so I'm out. I have friends from all over that have moved to Tampa and love it. So, sure every decent big city has crime (I use to live in LA- and work in South Central) and Tampa is actually relatively cheap to many other cities it's size that is near the beach and other big cities. So, what is the catch people? People are rude everyone. I grew up in the midwest, I lived on the west coast, I've lived in Raleigh, NC (which by the way- people are very backstab-ish, I mean it's the south. So, the same crap happens in every city. I just thought I'd give my two cents and see if anyone had a real reason to say such bad things about Tampa.

I have lived in Tampa and visited Raleigh while there. It's a big high tech hub but I would never remotely consider moving there (not that I am happy in San Jose either). It seems so damn boring!!! And the weather sucked by the way. I was there in November and it was colder than in Europe!!!

As a European I find Florida the best part of the US, especially because of the beaches and weather. I actually love the summers in Florida (ok, minus the hurricanes). I have also lived in Texas and do agree witn you, the southern charm is so fake is not even funny. I liked Tampa and think it is good for a young professional (the night life is good) but I prefer Miami.

[cdfl]

Tampa is an ok city; I've been here 5 years, I'm originally from up north. Tampa is lacking a downtown culture in a huge way. When looking at historical photos, you can see the busy downtown areas with pedestrians, shops and restaurants everywhere; There was trolley transportation from downtown to the suburbs (Hyde Park, Seminole Heights, Ybor) people lived off the downtown and lived in the suburbs......the downtown now is made up of neglected historical buildings, office buildings and condos; nothing worth walking around for. Instead, they built little "areas" for pedestrians to shop and eat-Channelside, Centro Ybor (does a charismatic place like Ybor really need a shopping complex? Just implant the retail within the streets, not in some out of place mall) and none of the areas are connected very well....the downtown has lost it's "soul". Also I-4 and I-275 have divided the once thriving neighborhoods of Seminole Heights and Ybor City; those neighborhoods died an ugly death, becoming havens for boarding houses, crack houses and prostitution. Only recently have they become revitalized, but they will never be as they were, because in many neighborhoods, the interstate is backing up to once ideally located houses. Some houses were moved or demolished. These early neighborhoods are also part of the "soul" which has been lost. It's very sad looking at the old pictures, when Nebraska Ave. was the epitome of a family neighborhood and people were out and about everywhere, whereas now everyone is forced to get in their cars. Coming from the north, the downtown and pedestrian compatible neighborhoods are what I miss.....but Tampa also has good employment opps, and provides diversity not seen in some of the smaller northern towns. The good and the bad......what can you do?