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I'm going to be moving to Boston in the spring and I'm looking at an apartment near the Andrew T stop in South Boston. I know South Boston is becoming gentrified, but I'm not sure whether this particular area has undergone gentrification yet.
Does anyone know if it's safe? Could I walk around during the day with my daughter in her stroller? Could I walk the dog alone at night?
Safety is mostly a perception thing. All parts of South Boston if you look at a police blotter will have reports of theft, though nothing violent like assault or armed robbery. Andrew Square is on the border of Dorchester and is near two public housing projects. So you will get all kinds of people walking around Andrew Square, but I doubt anyone is going to go after a mother with a stroller. The City recently tried to make Andrew Square (hexagon?) nicer with giant flower pots and stenciling on the road, but I find the two blocks around Andrew still kind of dirty. It's part of the City of Boston and definitely not Newton. But if you use common sense, then you'll be fine. For example, no woman should think it's safe to walk a dog at 2am in the morning even if they were in Beacon Hill or Back Bay.
I don't know if the south part of South Boston is "gentrifying" in the strictest sense. Yes, there are more expensive condos. But there are barely any stores and restaurants unless you like pizza, liquor, or want to take the shuttle to the South Bay Center. I also would only live on the quieter side streets off of Dorchester St, which has the #10 bus rolling over it all day long. By the way, the street parking even for residents kind of stinks.
Some of the sidewalks are not good for the big strollers or wheelchairs because of the older trees. The streets with trees are prettier, but where there is a tree, there might only be 1-2 feet of sidewalk. So you should at least walk around the block when you are checking out the place.
Andrew is also near Carson Beach and Columbia Park, by the way, which are nice places to walk around during the day time.
Last edited by sharencare; 12-11-2012 at 04:34 PM..
Safety is mostly a perception thing. All parts of South Boston if you look at a police blotter will have reports of theft, though nothing violent like assault or armed robbery. Andrew Square is on the border of Dorchester and is near two public housing projects. So you will get all kinds of people walking around Andrew Square, but I doubt anyone is going to go after a mother with a stroller. The City recently tried to make Andrew Square (hexagon?) nicer with giant flower pots and stenciling on the road, but I find the two blocks around Andrew still kind of dirty. It's part of the City of Boston and definitely not Newton. But if you use common sense, then you'll be fine. For example, no woman should think it's safe to walk a dog at 2am in the morning even if they were in Beacon Hill or Back Bay.
I don't know if the south part of South Boston is "gentrifying" in the strictest sense. Yes, there are more expensive condos. But there are barely any stores and restaurants unless you like pizza, liquor, or want to take the shuttle to the South Bay Center. I also would only live on the quieter side streets off of Dorchester St, which has the #10 bus rolling over it all day long. By the way, the street parking even for residents kind of stinks.
Some of the sidewalks are not good for the big strollers or wheelchairs because of the older trees. The streets with trees are prettier, but where there is a tree, there might only be 1-2 feet of sidewalk. So you should at least walk around the block when you are checking out the place.
Andrew is also near Carson Beach and Columbia Park, by the way, which are nice places to walk around during the day time.
Thanks for the detailed info. It is really hard to judge for myself without ever having been there so I really appreciate your perspective.
As for the crime stats, I did look at the stats on the police website, and there were definitely assaults that have recently taken place in that area (one was a mother with a stroller, actually, so that kind of freaked me out!), but there is crime all over the city, so those stats are not very useful.
And, I know what you mean about it maybe not gentrifying in the strictest sense. I took a look at the area on google earth and it looked like it was all pizza joints and Dunkin Donuts. Not exactly an appealing street scene.
Still, there's something to be said for being so close to the T (big convenience!) and the rent is also a little cheaper in that area. And the apartment I'm looking at looks great. But all of that becomes a moot point if I don't feel safe there. I'm a stay at home mom so it means I'll be out and about in the non-rush hour parts of the day, so I just want to make sure it's safe for me to walk around there even in the less busy times.
It's an ugly filthy neighborhood. It's a good neighborhood for some young punk rockers or college students at UMASS, but pushing a baby stroller? No, not yet. It won't be nice. It STINKS there. The baby won't like the smell. You won't either. The filth is visible on google maps. It's the filthiest neighborhood in Boston. It's not ready to be pioneered by young families. I suggest you don't. And that's coming from a guy who raised a child in Lower Roxbury.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Laura D
Thanks for the detailed info. It is really hard to judge for myself without ever having been there so I really appreciate your perspective.
As for the crime stats, I did look at the stats on the police website, and there were definitely assaults that have recently taken place in that area (one was a mother with a stroller, actually, so that kind of freaked me out!), but there is crime all over the city, so those stats are not very useful.
And, I know what you mean about it maybe not gentrifying in the strictest sense. I took a look at the area on google earth and it looked like it was all pizza joints and Dunkin Donuts. Not exactly an appealing street scene.
Still, there's something to be said for being so close to the T (big convenience!) and the rent is also a little cheaper in that area. And the apartment I'm looking at looks great. But all of that becomes a moot point if I don't feel safe there. I'm a stay at home mom so it means I'll be out and about in the non-rush hour parts of the day, so I just want to make sure it's safe for me to walk around there even in the less busy times.
Thanks for the detailed info. It is really hard to judge for myself without ever having been there so I really appreciate your perspective.
As for the crime stats, I did look at the stats on the police website, and there were definitely assaults that have recently taken place in that area (one was a mother with a stroller, actually, so that kind of freaked me out!), but there is crime all over the city, so those stats are not very useful.
And, I know what you mean about it maybe not gentrifying in the strictest sense. I took a look at the area on google earth and it looked like it was all pizza joints and Dunkin Donuts. Not exactly an appealing street scene.
Still, there's something to be said for being so close to the T (big convenience!) and the rent is also a little cheaper in that area. And the apartment I'm looking at looks great. But all of that becomes a moot point if I don't feel safe there. I'm a stay at home mom so it means I'll be out and about in the non-rush hour parts of the day, so I just want to make sure it's safe for me to walk around there even in the less busy times.
If you are going to pick a place based on crime stats, you're better off looking in West Roxbury, Newton, and Brookline. Every part of Boston will have some crime, though some areas will have more violent ones than others. Again, it's mostly a perception thing. As a city kid, I have trepidation moving out to the suburbs because I keep hearing these stories of entire families being murdered in their homes after being followed from the grocery store. Or young females disappearing in the woods to have their skeletons discovered years later. I like the idea of being at least within 10 feet of my neighbors, because they will hear me scream and call the cops. A surbanite would think I'm nuts to think those bad things will happen to me, and as a city person, I just shrug at the crime stats because I find it safer to be amongst a lot of people.
I've lived in the area for almost 30 years. I grew up in one of the public projects nearby (which to be frank is a LOT cleaner than Andrew Square itself) and now I live within a few blocks of Andrew in one of the three deckers. I didn't realize what street filth was until I moved into the three-decker near Andrew. Living in the projects, I thought *everyone* cleaned up after their dogs, put things in trash receptacles, or at least had community clean up day. You would think people paying for rent and expensive condos would at least want the area in front of their home not to have random trash there and would shovel their sidewalks when it snows.
I admit, though, the last couple of years have been better because of the lack of snow, which means the entire neighborhood has been feeling cleaner. In the spring and summer, it's actually relatively pleasant because a lot of my neighbors on the side streets do plant nice flowers. Also, if you get a porch on a three-decker you're very likely to look into your neighbors' yards, and they have some impressive gardening going on. But yeesh, when it snows, it just gets dirty and the trash never seems to disappear. I think the street cleaning vehicles just can't get at the snow piles. So I would not say the area smells at all (certainly not smelly like Chinatown), but when it snows, it gets gross. As for it being an ugly neighborhood... We have a few warehouses and train yards, and are near a highway overpass, but the side streets are basically the same as the upper part of South Boston: non-descript three-deckers and condos with virtually no front yards. Just don't go up that stretch on Dorchester Ave between Andrew and Broadway--that's just barren wasteland and uneven sidewalks galore.
I think the area is safe enough, but it's the city and you'll get your weirdos on the #10 bus and teenage punks hanging around the pizza joint. I don't like walking anywhere in the city after 10pm by myself, but I've walked around the area at midnight with my husband in tow, and we felt fine. Again, safety is partially a perception thing. I've been to the Fenway theater area and saw a handgun dropped on the sidewalk. I also saw a couple of white thugs talking about a drug deal in front of the fanciest restaurant in the South End. And those are supposedly "nice" areas. The worst I've ever encountered in 30 years in South Boston is having one of my Amazon package stolen from my porch. Most of the people who actually live in the neighborhood are young professionals without kids and retired townies, sprinkled with a few college/grad students (occasionally, they have loud parties, but that's 2-3 times a year).
Honestly, if you are going to be a stay at home mom, and you want to push a baby around, I wouldn't move to that part of South Boston. The only good thing it has going for it is it's 10 minutes from Downtown Crossing. But you don't want to be pushing a stroller around the subway anyway. My husband and I have seen mothers struggling with strollers on the T and bus and we've always felt sorry for them. Unless you like the beach or don't mind the subway/carriage struggle, you're going to be pretty bored in that part of South Boston.
Last edited by sharencare; 12-12-2012 at 01:05 PM..
Hi there,
Could I walk around during the day with my daughter in her stroller?
Could I walk the dog alone at night?
My vote is with the other posts: you could walk around, but there is nothing to see or to do. Carson Beach is a haul from the T station. You could see my mechanic--nice guy at Andrew Sq. But besides DD, a barber shop, and lottery stores, there isn't anything there at the SQ itself.
There IS a dog park down the street by the beach (google earth it -- it is by the big rotary next to the beach). If your apartment is down there by the beach, sure, take the apartment--it's nice. Actually, it's really nice in the spring and summer and only mildly nice in the fall and totally miserable in the winter. If you have an outside space for a grill, it's the best.
I used to walk my dog at night in the South End and JP --you have to, ya'know, to the other poster-- and depending on the dog (80lb black lab mix) -- people treat you differently. I was never hassled at night (or day). Now, without him, it's a different story -- but I don't walk around late at night anymore. Lots of folks in the South End walk their dog and baby -- I don't know how they do it over the brick sidewalks. Don't know how many folks have dogs and kids in Southie. FYI - dogs are allowed on the subway part of the T - but not the bus.
Don't worry too much. You have the usual punks, most will ignore you. If you have a dog and want to walk it...just walk with confidence. That's the main thing about Boston/Southie etc. If you walk around and look timid - you could easily be a target. I live in Dorchester and walk to the store @ night...most would say Dorchester is more dangerous that Southie. Just walk with your head up (and if you are walking a toy poodle...um, maybe walk them before 8pm)
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