any dallas neighborhoods with Hippies, academics, artists types? (Austin, Plano: apartments, lofts)

[rgc]

Probably a strange request for Dallas but, we live in Berkeley, CA and are thinking about a move to Dallas. I see from this forum that many others from Cali have moved to Tx. I'm in high tech, my wife is an academic we have a 16 month old and live in a walking part of Berkeley. We love the ethnic diversity, liberal bent and beautiful environs here but don't care too much for the weather, would like more house and would like to be closer to New Orleans.

Are there any urban neighborhoods in Dallas where the academic, artists types tend to live? Or where liberals, hippies or gays live -- those are good signs for us.

thanks

[pepper131]

I know a family from Berkley who live in Winnetka Heights in Oak Cliff - they love it there; especially after being nearly suffocated in Highland Park.
Winnetka Heights :: Historic Neighborhood in Old Oak Cliff, Dallas, Texas

[cityconvo]

[quote=pepper131;3388089]I know a family from Berkley who live in Winnetka Heights in Oak Cliff - they love it there; especially after being nearly suffocated in Highland Park.

I completely agree that Oak Cliff would be a good fit There are some other parts of Oak Cliff that may work as well such as Ravinia Heights and Beckley Club. The homes in Winnetka will be older and larger for the most part than the homes in Ravinia and Beckley Club.

A few other areas in Dallas that would also be a good fit are M Streets/Vickery Place, Junius Heights, and Munger Place (Pretty much the Lakewood area).

But overall from what you describe I think Oak Cliff would be a better fit.

[5stones]

we used to live in Lafayette, you'll be hard pressed to find the atmosphere of Berkley here. The Oak cliff area is the best fit but compared to Berkley, it's a small blip. It's a funky neighobrhood, but the city as whole will seem very conservative and HUGE compared to Bekley.

If you don't have to live in Dallas...Look at Austin. it's the closest city as whole that has the same vibe as Berkley. If you LOVE the entire feel ofthe city of Berkely and the Looks (the hills the lake) then really Austin is a much better fit as a whole.

Also another berkelyesque type of city is Boulder colorado. Just throwing options out for ya.

[Lakewooder]

East Dallas - Junius Heights, Cochran Heights, Vickery Place, Munger Place, Lower Greenville, Little Forest Hills and maybe even Deep Ellum/Expo Park (more lofts and apartments, no single family homes). We are close to SMU, without the snobbery and stuffiness of Park Cities. Lots of profs, faculty etc. Many kids go to SMU or TCU (reciprocal) on the tuition benefit.

[Dallas native]

If you want to be in a diverse, liberal part of Dallas, then Oak Cliff, East Dallas and Oak Lawn are your best bets. All of these areas are inside of Loop 12 (a loop around the central city that maintains a radius of about 7 miles from downtown). If you go outside of that loop, then the "W" bumper stickers become much more prevalent. Dallas is quite diverse and has a large and politically formidable gay population. Oak Cliff and East Dallas are both composed of many different neighborhoods with a wide range of socio-economic levels. Winnetka Hts. in Oak Cliff or Junius Hts. in East Dallas both might have the atmosphere that you are looking for. Oak Lawn is still a cool area, although it has lost some of its Bohemian character with the influx of high end condos and townhomes. Good luck!

[fogllama]

I agree with the other posters, but urge you to think carefully about moving here. I fear you will feel oppressed. There will be a sensation like a great weight on your spirit from the sheer quantity of W people and the volume of their rhetoric. If you can insulate yourself from the constant onslaught, ignore the signs and overheard snide comments, not worry about local politics, then come on down. There are like-minded people here. In fact, we really could use you. I should be urging you to move here. But you need to know. Many moderate-to-liberal folk fear to speak out here. One can lose one's job or face eviction if one does not pretend to follow the gospel of W. Is that legal? Heck no. It still happens.

[cityconvo]

Originally Posted by fogllama

I agree with the other posters, but urge you to think carefully about moving here. I fear you will feel oppressed. There will be a sensation like a great weight on your spirit from the sheer quantity of W people and the volume of their rhetoric. If you can insulate yourself from the constant onslaught, ignore the signs and overheard snide comments, not worry about local politics, then come on down. There are like-minded people here. In fact, we really could use you. I should be urging you to move here. But you need to know. Many moderate-to-liberal folk fear to speak out here. One can lose one's job or face eviction if one does not pretend to follow the gospel of W. Is that legal? Heck no. It still happens.

Not sure about this. Maybe in the northern burbs, Addison, Plano, etc. but not in Oak Cliff or Lakewood. You will be fine. In fact, in Dallas proper the numbers between Kerry and Bush were actually pretty close, but Bush crushed him in Dallas County which includes most of the burbs.

[Dallas native]

Originally Posted by fogllama

I agree with the other posters, but urge you to think carefully about moving here. I fear you will feel oppressed. There will be a sensation like a great weight on your spirit from the sheer quantity of W people and the volume of their rhetoric. If you can insulate yourself from the constant onslaught, ignore the signs and overheard snide comments, not worry about local politics, then come on down. There are like-minded people here. In fact, we really could use you. I should be urging you to move here. But you need to know. Many moderate-to-liberal folk fear to speak out here. One can lose one's job or face eviction if one does not pretend to follow the gospel of W. Is that legal? Heck no. It still happens.

Yes, you can find right wing wackos in Dallas, but it is generally a very moderate city. In the 2006 elections Dallas county went Democratic. The city of Dallas went that way a long time ago. We came close to electing a gay mayor last year. Dallas is not Berkley, SFO or NYC by any means, but the picture that was painted for you in the comment above is not representative of Dallas as a whole and certainly not representative of the inner city neighborhoods to which we have referred.

[cityconvo]

In fact, Kerry beat Bush in the city of Dallas by 53,902 votes. And Bush won Dallas County by about 7,000 votes. So, it was closer than I initially thought in Dallas County.