Moving to MD from MI - One commute to Laurel, one to College Park

[mamc]

I would say Laurel is the most convenient... It's safe, there's tons of restaurants and shops, parks in and around the area, and only 20 min from campus. I go to UMD as well and live in the Foxfire Apts on Contee Rd. Traffic is not an issue for me and I have classes at all times of the day.

[burnt]

Originally Posted by mamc

I would say Laurel is the most convenient... It's safe, there's tons of restaurants and shops, parks in and around the area, and only 20 min from campus. I go to UMD as well and live in the Foxfire Apts on Contee Rd. Traffic is not an issue for me and I have classes at all times of the day.

Laurel's big enough that "safe" should be applied as a relative term. It's safer than, say, East Saint Louis, but not as safe as a good day in Baghdad. Lots of parts are kind of trashy, too. I remember someone marveling that there was a Hooters in Laurel. I told him that wifey had a hankering for bad wings and beer one day, so we went there, and that I didn't think they had their "A" squad working that night. My pal, a resident of Laurel, joked that if they had all their teeth and could stand up straight, that was probably Laurel's version of an "A" squad. Not that I'm a mall guy, but the mall there is kind of gross.

I really like some parts of Laurel, but some are garbage. If one asks about Laurel, I think it's necessary to specify neighborhoods, since the various neighborhoods of Laurel run the gamut from slum to plum.

[rekuci]

I lived in Beltsville for 6 years while planning my out-of-state escape (moved this past August). Beltsville is kind of a dump. There's virtually nothing there as far as shopping and restaurants go, which is ludicrous considering it's a heavily populated suburb. We went to Laurel for most basic needs. Don't rent in any of the large management-run apartment complexes there, or any of the similar quality establishments in the rest of PG county. See Apartment Ratings - Apartments for Rent with Ratings and Reviews from Actual Renters for details. I can personally attest to the conditions at Lighthouse in Beltsville. We had crack-dealers for neighbors one year, cars vandalized, lots of people mugged at gunpoint, one guy downstairs brutally assaulted, many neighbors told me they had their car stolen. Try to find a private rental in someone's house if you can. That being said, you can't do a whole lot better for being close to UMD and Laurel without nightmare traffic (UMD to Beltsville can be done in 15 minutes outside rush hour, 30-45 minutes during rush hour if you're unlucky, 20 minutes if you read maps and learn weird back routes).

Laurel is only slowly emerging from its status as white trash hole. Russett and the area around Contee Rd seem the only half-decent areas. The Wal-Mart in Russett is an...interesting...experience. Columbia is now really clogged and full of sprawl. It used to be so much nicer, but it seems to have given up or sold out on its planned city origins.

If I were you, I'd consider areas more to the east: Bowie, Crofton, Odenton. Lots of back-roads for avoiding traffic. It's a losing battle with any north/south commute along the I-95 corridor. Good luck.

[Triniman]

Obviously you haven`t seen all of Laurel or most of it because ther are many nice homes and low or petty crime related incidents so wherever you drive please don`t judge the whole Laurel area. I live very close to the hospital and I know many other areas in Laurel that look liek my neighborhood or close. Many nice areas and it`s only starting. Checkthis out if your still oblivious to the fact that it is up and coming check this site out. Konterra - The Premier Business and Residential Community. That should keep the critics silent.

[burnt]

Originally Posted by Triniman

Obviously you haven`t seen all of Laurel or most of it because ther are many nice homes and low or petty crime related incidents so wherever you drive please don`t judge the whole Laurel area. I live very close to the hospital and I know many other areas in Laurel that look liek my neighborhood or close. Many nice areas and it`s only starting. Checkthis out if your still oblivious to the fact that it is up and coming check this site out. Konterra - The Premier Business and Residential Community. That should keep the critics silent.

That's exactly it. There are some low-crime areas, and there are nice homes in many others. But it's such a large city that it'd be silly to generalize Laurel as either good or bad. It has plenty of both. It's a very diverse community in everything from race to economic status to crime rate to commercial offerings.

[Triniman]

Very true and very well said. Finally we can agree.

[kjg1963]

Originally Posted by burnt

Laurel's big enough that "safe" should be applied as a relative term. It's safer than, say, East Saint Louis, but not as safe as a good day in Baghdad. Lots of parts are kind of trashy, too. I remember someone marveling that there was a Hooters in Laurel. I told him that wifey had a hankering for bad wings and beer one day, so we went there, and that I didn't think they had their "A" squad working that night. My pal, a resident of Laurel, joked that if they had all their teeth and could stand up straight, that was probably Laurel's version of an "A" squad. Not that I'm a mall guy, but the mall there is kind of gross.

I really like some parts of Laurel, but some are garbage. If one asks about Laurel, I think it's necessary to specify neighborhoods, since the various neighborhoods of Laurel run the gamut from slum to plum.

Too funny! I'm not originally from Laurel but I live there now and it suits me. We always joke about "Laurel's finest." These are individuals that we see walking around looking like they are "soliciting" or looking for their next beer. Many look like they are from the very bottom of the economic ladder. Laurel actually has a noticeable homeless population. Drive north up route 1 and look in the woods as you cross the river. You can see all kinds of "camp sites." I agree about good areas and bad. But the good definitely outnumber the bad.

Hey, just a little trivia. Did you know Laurel had the first nationally-chartered bank and first High School in Prince George's County?