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The OP pointed out that they were looking for north of the city. I would recommend checking out Grand Island, if a little traffic isn't too much for you.
I looked into Grand Island initially, but my girlfriend will be very reliant on public transit to get around during the week, and it didn't look like there was that many bus routes around there when I looked at the Buffalo transit website. We are definitely looking for north of the city though.
I looked into Grand Island initially, but my girlfriend will be very reliant on public transit to get around during the week, and it didn't look like there was that many bus routes around there when I looked at the Buffalo transit website. We are definitely looking for north of the city though.
Here's a link to the website for the NFTA, they are the major bus people in town. I brought up a map of Erie county, but it doesn't appear you can zoom in enough to get a real feel for all the individual routes
Here's a link to the website for the NFTA, they are the major bus people in town. I brought up a map of Erie county, but it doesn't appear you can zoom in enough to get a real feel for all the individual routes
I looked into Grand Island initially, but my girlfriend will be very reliant on public transit to get around during the week, and it didn't look like there was that many bus routes around there when I looked at the Buffalo transit website. We are definitely looking for north of the city though.
I'd say look at Amherst, between the bus & metro rail it is likely your best option with a lot of public transit as far as suburbs go. Kenmore or a Buffalo neighborhood like Elmwood, Parkside or North Buffalo should be ok as well. Any of the further out suburbs would be real hit/miss with the buses.
First off, the city line is a pretty arbitrary measure of safety. Crime in Buffalo is more prevalent in certain areas - primarily much of the East side, parts of Riverside, the Fruit belt, the Lower West Side. Other areas are as safe as many suburbs like much of Parkside, North Buffalo/North Park, the Elmwood strip or South Buffalo. Dont be unnecessarily dissuaded by anti-city folks, there isnt a hoard of wolves waiting for you to cross Kenmore Avenue.
If you were looking to commute via bus or train, the suburbs see a much lower level of public transit service, and the outlying suburbs have abysmal transit service. You should also consider, within the city, certain routes have much more frequent levels of service than others: You dont want to be stuck waiting 30 minutes or more for a bus.
If you are working downtown and are looking for a safe neighborhood, Parkside might be a good fit for you. Its close to the train (much faster to downtown than the bus), pretty safe, with decent housing stock and owner occupied homes. The biggest drawback is there isnt too many amenities in walking distance.
Alternatively, North Buffalo centered between Colvin and Parkside on Hertel Ave is very walkable. Its served by the 11 to downtown (which doesnt run as frequently as other buses), or the 23 Hertel to transfer (free) to the train on Main.
The village of Kenmore is pretty walkable around Delaware Ave. Elmwood Ave is very walkable and close to downtown, but ask around, you dont want to get stuck with a bunch of college kids as neighbors. Allentown is very close to downtown and is very walkable, with higher levels of transit service - but petty crime and noise is a consideration.
As I might suggest to anyone locating in the area, you might want to get a sublet for a few months to scope out the right fit for you.
BTW - careful the the NFTA's map. Some of the routes only have a couple of buses a day. On some routes, I never have even seen some of the buses. And I ride the bus at least a few times a week.
So we've started hunting for apartment postings. We've come across several we are thinking of following up on and asking for a viewing when we make a trip out to Buffalo in the next couple of weeks.
Here are some of the addresses/areas of places we've found with apartments we were interested in.
We don't really know the areas well and are going off just the research we've done online so far for areas to look at, so if anyone has any comments on any of the locations below it would be of great help.
275 huntington avenue
Chapel and Delaware
2439 Delaware Ave
Kenmore and Colvin
367 Elmwood Avenue
Irving and Allen
303 North St
9 Camelot Court
Any advice on if any of these are in unsafe areas would be very much appreciated.
So we've started hunting for apartment postings. We've come across several we are thinking of following up on and asking for a viewing when we make a trip out to Buffalo in the next couple of weeks.
Here are some of the addresses/areas of places we've found with apartments we were interested in.
We don't really know the areas well and are going off just the research we've done online so far for areas to look at, so if anyone has any comments on any of the locations below it would be of great help.
275 huntington avenue
Chapel and Delaware
2439 Delaware Ave
Kenmore and Colvin
367 Elmwood Avenue
Irving and Allen
303 North St
9 Camelot Court
Any advice on if any of these are in unsafe areas would be very much appreciated.
Kenmore and Colvin - depends where. I am not impressed by any right on Kenmore Ave (although there appears to be some improvements in work) and the various apartments along Colvin are hit or miss, as there appear to be several different owners. You also may want to consider looking at the tudor style apartments along Sanders Road (between Colvin and Delaware), or look further down Kenmore Avenue toward Starin, or on Starin.
2439 Delaware Ave - no. I have never been in these, but along that side of Delaware there are some residents that make me uncomfortable - I don't know if they are group homes or subsidized, but having young/middle aged men hanging out by the reinforced front door makes me a little wary of the buildings.
275 huntington avenue - I have never been in the property, but Huntington and that area are awesome. There are similar tudor style buildings along Colvin Avenue and Crestwood between Tacoma and Hertel, which are also not far from Huntington. Those streets are decent also.
Chapel and Delaware - I don't know which building, but I thought that these were subsidized and Senior apartments. The area is nice (Kenmore) but I do not know about the property.
You also may want to consider renting a flat in a decent area. Many homes are 2-family with an upper or lower for rent - typically 3 bedroom and 1 bath. Try zip codes 14216 or 14214 in North Buffalo, most of these areas are decent. There are other zip code areas that are decent, but I would say there should be little worries in over 90% of these zip codes.
I can't speak for the rest.
Last edited by RocketSci; 04-07-2011 at 03:59 PM..
Are you moving here to go to college or do you have a job waiting here. I would focus on these too factors if they are the reasons for your move. I know that when you come through the city you will find places for rent that are not advertised in the paper or craigslist. I would love to live on Elmwood Ave.
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