We may move to West Palm Beach from Chicago-land need feedback (Miami: real estate, 2009)

[jer2911]

What is West Palm Beach like? Is it a walker friendly town, with safe public transportation, outside dining and cafes? Are the neighborhoods family friendly with sidewalks, parks, libraries, restaurants, and good schools? Are there a lot of gangs, prostitution, and crime activity? Are there museums, and fun cultural events to attend? Is there a downtown area? Is West Palm Beach thriving or declining? Is West Palm beach anything like Miami?
What do you like and dislike about living there?
I really appreciate all and any feedback. Thank you!

[TriMT7]

Southern West Palm Beach is good. Northern West Palm Beach is not recommended at all.

The best family neighborhoods are as follows (in no particular order):

Flamingo Park
El Cid
Grandview Heights
Southland Park
Monceux/Central Park
South of Southern

Any realtor worth their salt should know exactly where those places are.

Stick to those neighborhoods for families, tree lined streets, sidewalks, and good schools (at least up until High School) -- Palm Beach Public and South Olive Elementary are very well rated. There are skate parks for kids, dog parks, playgrounds, and a water park.

There IS public transportation in the form of Palm Tran, Tri-Rail, and a downtown trolley, but it's not anything like "big city" public transport -- by a long shot. You WILL need a car. (A bike, however, can get you downtown and to the beach in a mile or two, however, no problem from most neighborhoods).

The main shopping/entertainment district for West Palm Beach is CityPlace and Clematis Street, where you will find independent sidewalk cafes and dining options, chain restaurants, etc. There is also a farmer's market in the autumn and winter in downtown WPB. Cityplace has condos and highrises, as does other parts of downtown West Palm.

West Palm Beach looks bad crime-wise on paper because of the aforementioned "North end" of the city, which is akin to the "Southside" of Chicago. Definitely don't want to move there.

Cultural amenities and events are plentiful. There are Sunday concert series at Meyer Ampitheater, the Kravis Center which has all sorts of shows, plays, etc. There are zoos, water activities, and art fairs, sculpture gardens, and museums. The Southend of West Palm along Dixie Highway is known as "antiques row" by collectors, and you can spend a day simply driving around Palm Beach and parts of West Palm Beach to view architecture of significance and homes featured in Architectural Digest.

That being said, West Palm is not Chicago, and its residents do not want it to be Chicago. It's a very small city comparatively, with about 100k resident. During the summer the population drops off as seasonal residents held elsewhere, and it becomes very sleepy. Right now, West Palm Beach is not declining, but it's not growing either. The real estate bust has hit the area hard. The upside is that it is more affordable than it has been in years and years to live here.




Of course, I'm talking about the CITY of West Palm Beach proper.... not the unincorporated area, and not the suburbs. From what it sounds like, however, if you're looking for an "authentic" city with real neighborhoods (not gated communities), mom and pop stores, and a downtown, West Palm Beach will be the best fit. I have lived here for two years now and have explored enough and learned enough to appreciate its uniqueness and best qualities. Most people never venture past downtown or past the bland commercial strip just outside the city to know everything that the city proper has to offer.

[Surfalot]

I think maybe broaden your ideal 'relocation' zone and your questions will all be answered to your liking. South Boynton(East) and east Delray, I'd say the downtown scene is better in Delray than West Palm BY FAR.
My 12 cents though, just mine!
Good luck Jer

[skylinet]

I'm from Milwaukee, you will not find a Chicago-like downtown atmosphere down here, even in Miami. But since most people that say they are from Chicago are actually from the suburbs of Chicago you will find a lot of similarities to the burbs, except in many cases you will find newer homes for less money then you will find in the Chi-town area.
Public transportation you will find is not as big down here since there isn't nearly as much traffic so you can actually own a car and drive it on a regular basis. Outdoor dining in the winter is great but during the summer is few and far between. I was amazed at how little people ate outdoors until I got used to the climate and found myself eating inside on days where in Milwaukee I would have eaten outdoors. People don't celebrate the warmth down here like up North because it's warm pretty much 350 days a year.
I personally would never move back because I can't stand winter. I miss the downtown living atmosphere but nothing brings a smile to my face faster then driving by the oceanside.
On the down side... It's more patchy down here. By that I mean you have million dollar homes and then a couple blocks away you have a trailer park. But common sense goes along way.
Summer is very hot and rainy, but I'm sure you're used to the hot humid summers Chi-town offers. On the opposite side of that though (obviously) you never have snow.
If you can find a decent job you will probably be happy and you will be amazed at what you can get for a home compared to Chicago. What I paid for an 1800 sqft condo in Milwaukee, which was way less then Chicago, I could get a 3000 sqft newly built home.
Take a vacation and check it out you'll be happy you did.

[jer2911]

You guys are great thank you for taking the time to respond!

[Retiredcoach]

I have family who live in West Palm, and have lived there for years. They live in a very beautiful gated community , but they live in a state of ongoing fear. They will tell you that the crime infested section of WPB is not isolated as some might suggest to you. It is an ever-growing part of the city and is not limited to one area. They must continually take every conceivable precaution in any aspect of their daily lives, to lessen the possibility of being victimized again. Based upon what they have told me, and what I have observed from my many visits, you owe it to yourself to really know the city before you commit to it.

[jer2911]

Eeek!
That sounds scary!
So, the crime is getting out of control?

[TriMT7]

Originally Posted by jer2911

Eeek!
That sounds scary!
So, the crime is getting out of control?

Perhaps I can be of assistance:

Gang Violence down:

http://www.palmbeachpost.com/localne...gviolence.html

Violent crime down in Palm Beach County:

South Florida crime: Crime up in Broward, down in Palm Beach County, FDLE says -- South Florida Sun-Sentinel.com

Crime down 50% in downtown West Palm Beach:

Decrease in crime in Downtown West Palm Beach |West Palm Beach News, South Florida Breaking News, Forecast, Video from WPTV

Crime down 17% in 2009 so far vs. 2008, though there is an increase in murders from last year:

Florida City - Justia Blawg Search - Law Blogs, Lawyer Blogs, Legal Blogs Directory & Search Engine

As in Chicago, however, you will find that in West Palm Beach, most murders are localized in one particular area of the city, and victims tend to fit a particular profile, are drug/gang related, or domestic related incidents.

Major crimes drop in Palm Beach County:

http://www.palmbeachpost.com/local_n...rimestats.html

There are good parts and bad parts of West Palm Beach. And good and bad parts of Palm Beach County as a whole. Just like Chicago, Atlanta, or Pittsburg.


------

It has been discussed numerous times again and again on this forum and others. Crime in Florida --- and Palm Beach County in particular --- is not "out of control." In FACT, the overall crime rate in Florida and PBC is much LOWER than the 80s and 90s.

What is driving a lot of people to be "scared" more than ever is word of mouth, the internet, and the news cycle that bombards people with crime news. Overall, there may also be "more" crimes, because of the huge increase in population. Per capita is key, however.... and it's something a lot of people forget.

It's the only thing that can explain how people in Florida will talk about how great and safe it was in the 90s when they moved here, when the crime rate was several magnitudes greater than it is today.

[blacksmith76]

My wife and I relocated to Palm Beach County and have been here since June. We moved here from Denver, and lived in Atlanta before that. We don't find any of the "big city" aspects like crime, etc. to be any worse than anywhere else. What is different is the laid back, Caribbean/Florida atmosphere mixed with an East Coast big city vibe. We love it, but I'm sure part of the reason people get so freaked out is partially because of how different it looks and feels here from anywhere else in the country.

FWIW our car broke down at the IGA in Riviera Beach on a really hot day. We kind of went there by accident without realizing we were in one of the areas you are supposed to avoid. Anyway, everyone was nice enough and we got the car jump started within 10 minutes. Not saying I would want to live there or that it's a great area, but people on here tend to blow things out of proportion.

[skylinet]

Just like Chicago, common sense goes a long way down here. You can tell pretty easily when you are not in the right part of town...
I live downtown West Palm and have never had an issue with crime. I don't walk down the street at night with a fancy watch and a nice necklace on, but I walk to Cityplace a lot and haven't had an issue.
I'm sure there's people in the North Dakota forums complaining about how bad crime is there.