Is Safety Harbor the place for us to move?? (Tampa: low crime, home)

[hanrahanfamily]

We are relocating from a great town in NJ- nice center of town with great activities for the family, good schools, just a nice place to raise a family. My husband is taking a job in Tampa, and we have been looking for a town down there that will give us a similar feel of community. Safety Harbor was suggested to us, and I wanted to see if anyone had any feedback? We have two kids, 5 and 8. Westchase was first suggested, but we would love to be in a town on the water. I would greatly appreciated any feedback!!

[stpeteguy]

Safety Harbor is a VERY nice place. It has the "quaint" downtown charm with shops and boutiques and it is right on the water. The area is very good (but pricey). If you can afford it, I don't think you would regret moving there.

[dunedingirl]

Dunedin is a great place to live and very family friendly. It is located on the water and minutes to the beach. Good schools and great community center and libraries! Just do a search for Dunedin in the forum and you will find some great info......

[hanrahanfamily]

Thanks, I will definately check out Dunedin as well!! How far would it be from Dunedin to the Tampa airport? That is where my husband's office will be...thx!

[dunedingirl]

Originally Posted by hanrahanfamily

Thanks, I will definately check out Dunedin as well!! How far would it be from Dunedin to the Tampa airport? That is where my husband's office will be...thx!

It would only add 10 minutes to the trip....15 minutes tops.

I used to work right by the airport and if I wasn't in rush hour traffic it would take me 25 minutes to downtown Dunedin and it was a really pretty drive most of the time. In rush hour, closer to 40 minutes. If you have to commute though, driving across the bay in the morning w/ the sunrise and going home watching the sun set w/ dolphins swimming by isn't a bad way to go

[deckardc]

Both Safety Harbor and Dunedin are nice. They both feel like quiet little communities even though they are surrounded by the general chaos of Pinellas County. Both are middle to upper middle class areas with fairly low crime. Safety Harbor has a nice little downtown area with boutiques and a spa. Dunedin is building up it's downtown in a similar way and wants to be a sort of New Urbanist community.

If you visit Safety Harbor before you move, check out Philippe Park, it's beautiful.
Philippe Park

If you visit Dunedin, check out the Pinellas Trail. It is a former railroad bed that has been turned into a paved trail for walkers, skaters, and bikers. It is 34 miles long and pretty much runs the length of Pinellas County. It passes right through Dunedin. From there, the trail has a spur that goes out to Honeymoon Island so you can ride your bikes to the beach.
Pinellas Trail Guide

[hanrahanfamily]

Sounds like it will be a tough decision for us to choose between two such great places! What about the schools- we very much need to factor that into our decision. Our children are both elementary aged, but we want to also plan ahead... any thoughts on the schools in Dunedin vs. Safety Harbor??? Thanks!!

[stpeteguy]

Here's a link to the Pinellas county school system.

Pinellas County Schools - School Choice Plan Home Page

You can research all sorts of data concerning the area your moving too and the school your kids will be attending.

[shedav]

How far is safety harbor from the beach? How far is the closest theater? How about eating out? Shopping?

[JSnFla]

pinellas county schools are a complete mess...the schools are overcrowded and they are closing schools due to budget cuts. the superintendant of schools plain bailed mid year. there is no money for anything. unless in one of the few still nice areas u will have to send kids to private school if u want anything even remotely close to what u r used to in new jersey.