Why all the love for the burbs? (Tampa, Temple Terrace: live in, commute)

[gypsychic]

Originally Posted by tonynorie

As a third-generation Tampan I have seen countless changes come to the city - some welcome and some not. When I was a kid living in Seminole Heights I would walk with my brother to Sulphur Springs for a swim and just to see what kind of adventure we might stumble upon.....that was in the 50's.

Yesterday my work to me to Sulphur Springs and I have to tell you that most parts of it are so blighted and run down that it barely resembles the quaint cottage community I remember. I'd rather live in metropolitan Bagdhad and take my chances there!

From all appearances Seminole Heights has fared much better, but I don't hold out much hope for Tampa Heights. I know it has become fashionable with the young crowd, and I hope their dreams aren't extinguished with a big dose of reality when they learn that the home prices remain flat in those neighborhoods for years to come.

Getting back to the issue - you can log on to sites that show crime stats for our fair city - by neighborhood. I don't know the web address but a quick search should pop it up.......

This post is ABSOLUTELY 100% correct, as I am the same age and grew up in the area. I am apalled that Sulphur Springs, Tampa Heights and Seminole Heights still have all the problems they do. In fact a few years ago I read that Sulphur Springs had about the WORST crime rate of any neighborhood in the country! There used to be a lot of stories on one of those cop reality crime shows back then. Parts of Seminole Heights are nice, but Southeast SH is crime ridden - how would you like to have a nice home and a block away every night there will gather a group of black men dressed as women who are HOOKERS! They gather and hoot and holler and get customers and go in your backyard and leave behind their ....you get the picture. Yes, this happened to me with a beautiful old Victorian house I owned. At the same house I had a druggie bust the door down and steal stuff. Once another guy tried to bust it down and my sister's boyfriend scared him off. I literally had to GIVE that house away to get out from under! Tampa Heights looks nice on the surface with all the renovated homes, but this is where the gangs are, along with the hookers I described and all manner of nastiness.

So this is why we natives give newbies recommendations to STAY OUT OF THE CITY (unless you can afford pricey South Tampa) and go the nice burbs, like New Tampa, Lutz, Land o Lakes, Brandon, etc.

[riversideheightsliving]

It's perceptions like this that have contributed to the disintegration of Tampa's city life, and they're just plain inaccurate. I have lived in Riverside Heights for two years and have never seen so much as a grass blade out of place when I return home even from a two week vacation...even though I live one block off a major corridor. I receive the police reports each month and the crime in this neighborhood is so minor as to be a complete joke. I love the diversity and rich culture of this neighborhood, with its three lovely parks, walkable streets, and the river of course! Yes, we do have an alarm, a dog, and motion-sensor lights, but shouldn't everyone in this day and age?

By contrast, my friend in FishHawk Ranch (a supposedly "safe" upscale suburb of Tampa) recently told me about a string of car break-ins and garage robberies that had happened, and apparently it's not the first time. Another buddy in Valrico said that a man had recently tried to lure a young girl into his car at a bus stop INSIDE a gated community. I recognize the burbs can be a good choice for affordability, schools, etc...but let's not kid ourselves that they're any safer than living in one of our beautiful urban neighborhoods that could use your support and investment dollars more than some wetland-destroying developer.

And besides--you're many times more likely to have a serious wreck commuting for 40 minutes each day than to ever be the victim of a violent crime in Riverside Heights.

[yukon]

Originally Posted by Playball40

crime is bad in all of tampa....even the burbs.

In my "burb", few (if any) of my neighbors lock their doors. I only lock mine when I'm headed out of town. I'd love to live in or near downtown Tampa, would make my commute MUCH shorter...but I can't afford it. If I stay, I'll probably move to the St Pete side of Gandy, closer commute and more affordable.

[INeedAChange]

How is crime in St. Pete as compared to Tampa?

[yukon]

I've never checked the stats, but I like the NE area of St Pete, up by my office. We work wacky late hours during tax season and haven't had any problems yet. We're in the Gandy/MLK area, and housing/condos/apartments around there range from shacks about to fall to verrrrrryyyy nice. I live out in the LOL/Lutz area. Our big problem is kids taking the golf carts out for midnight joy rides (when school's out, usually).

[INeedAChange]

thanks--on the tampa side, what do you think of town 'n' country?

Originally Posted by yukon

I've never checked the stats, but I like the NE area of St Pete, up by my office. We work wacky late hours during tax season and haven't had any problems yet. We're in the Gandy/MLK area, and housing/condos/apartments around there range from shacks about to fall to verrrrrryyyy nice. I live out in the LOL/Lutz area. Our big problem is kids taking the golf carts out for midnight joy rides (when school's out, usually).

[tampaguy03]

Originally Posted by INeedAChange

thanks--on the tampa side, what do you think of town 'n' country?

The times I have gone into town n country, it has been very latino, and floods in many areas. There are some nice areas as with all areas, westchase is close to town n country area as is citrus park to the north.

Regarding the post about Riverside Heights, I just drove around there a few weeks back, and LOVED that neighborhood. Im looking forward to seeing the results of 'The Heights' project in Tampa Heights.

[Woodlandtrails]

I own a home in S. Tampa. I rented it for 4 years starting in 1993 and purchased it in 1997. I ran a police report ($5.00) on my street (off BayShore) before I rented it and the only crime in 1993 was domestic abuse for 2 streets around my street. There is no crime on Foster, S. Kelly, W Sanders, S. Eberon, W. Bay Ave and in that area. There used to be retired military there but they are getting priced out by yuppies in humvees. They are tearing down the small cinder block 1950 homes and building EVERY SQUARE inch of land into mini-McMansions. Sad really. They like the trees and the open space around the small homes and then destroy everything by building McMansions too big for the lots and end up with what they left. Still, my side of S. Tampa is nice. Not sure of the rest of S. Tampa.

[tonynorie]

How timely today's Tribune front page article is vis a vis this discussion:

It shows a map of the incidences of rape in Tampa........guess what? The central urban corridor, along with east Tampa, win the award!!

The article conveniently omits any reference to the race factor, and I just emailed Valerie Kalfrin - the journalist that wrote the piece - to express my dissatisfaction with the ommision. Seems political correctness is more important to some in the media than the safety of their readers.

Any more questions as to why people of quality and character prefer the 'burbs?!?

[Strel]

Originally Posted by tampa-chrissie

I don't think I've seen Seminole Heights, Riverside Heights or Tampa Heights mentioned once one this board. There are some beautiful neighborhoods with great homes in Central Tampa. Does living in suburbia really make the commute worth it? I understand that in town living comes with some downsides, but Tampa was first in transportation costs in a study a few years back due to urban sprawl and the lack of mass transit.

This isn't an attack of burb lovers, just a question. Do you ever wish you had stayed in the city?

And how about Belmont Heights? Sligh Avenue? South 22nd street?

We lived in Temple Terrace for a reason. I still like Tampa, but I wouldn't live in the city.