Temple Terrace, Davis Island, St. Pete (Tampa, Riverview: rent, neighborhood, movie theaters)

[Holly1007]

Hello to all,
I will be relocating next year to teach kindergarten in the Tampa area. I would really like to get some information on a few areas such as: Temple Terrace, Davis Island, St. Pete, and Riverview. I want to know if any of these areas are kid friendly. Does the areas have a lot of children? My son will he 11 and starting middle school which will be at Tampa Prep. I want to move to a neighborhood where there will be a lot of kids, by him being the only child, I would like from him to be able to have friends outside of school. I don't know my price range in housing yet because Im still looking. But I do know i want it be in a neighborhood with a lot of children. If you know of any other areas that may have lots of children, please post. Im open to all areas.

[NJK35]

I would not recommend Temple Terrace, I went to college at USF and can tell you that Temple Terrace is kind of a decent area surrounded by a lot of bad areas. For a family Riverview has really blossomed into a nice suburb with a ton of subdivisions, mall, movie theaters, big box stores and is mainly geared toward families. St.Pete it definitely depends on the area, I am not so sure about David Island though, I am sure others can chime in on the other areas you mentioned.

[MortonR]

Every area you mentioned is fairly high rent except for maybe Riverview, depending on exactly where in Riverview.

I would assume you're coming here with a substantial nest egg or a partner who is well established, as you're dropping $25k on your child's tuition. If you are teaching in the public schools here you'll be making less than $50k, so without some sort of stake coming in the door, none of the areas you mention would be affordable. As for being "family friendly", maybe St. Pete depending on the neighborhood and Riverview. Temple Terrace has some nice areas, but it's a bit of an enclave of sorts. Davis Island is more of the "old money" and young professionals sort of place.

RM