Lafayette - is South Lafayette bad to live? (Salem: violent crime, houses)

[Meenie]

I'm seeing some nice houses listed there but my husband says it's where the factories are and they're stinky AND a lot of railroads run thru there so traffic is bad.

Where's the cut-off area to stop looking for a home?

[sponger42]

It's one of the uglier parts of the city, especially in the winter when the corn is down. It's all flat open farmland and, yes, the big factories; SIA, Staleys, Alcoa, etc. are on the horizon, pumping out smoke. Staleys doesn't smell as bad as it used to.

However, it is the area with the most big-box stores, the mall, and chain eating places. If you're looking for "American Suburbia", it fits the bill. Lots of roads, huge parking lots, big new hastily-built frame houses on small treeless yards, superstores, lots of SUV's, and no sidewalks as everything is too spread out to be walkable.

Anything south-east of the section blocked out by SR-26 and SR-25 is part of this section. You are pretty far from the factories and there are some pretty spots near the creeks/rivers once you get East of I-65, but that's a pretty long drive to town.

[Meenie]

What about the east or west section of town above the southern portion? in town, I pretty much just see old victorians built like 100 years ago!!

My husband is looking toward Vinton Woods and Eagle's Nest.

[Toxic Toast]

My lady friend's sister used to live on the south side of Lafayette in a subdivision off 9th and Twyckenham. I never noticed a smell, and you can take the bridge over the tracks on Twyckenham, so the traffic is not really that bad.

[sponger42]

I think Vinton Woods is RIGHT NEXT to Staleys West, and I KNOW it gets stinky as a good friend of mine used to live there. Otherwise it's nice, lots of trees. You can't see the factory but you sure can smell it if the wind blows in the wrong direction.

What are you looking for? New construction? Price range? Schools? Amenities?

The West Side is pretty nice with Purdue and all, but not much else.

[Meenie]

Originally Posted by Toxic Toast

My lady friend's sister used to live on the south side of Lafayette in a subdivision off 9th and Twyckenham. I never noticed a smell, and you can take the bridge over the tracks on Twyckenham, so the traffic is not really that bad.

Thanks Toxic Toast, that's good info to know. Do you happen to know the name of the subdivision?

[Meenie]

Originally Posted by sponger42

I think Vinton Woods is RIGHT NEXT to Staleys West, and I KNOW it gets stinky as a good friend of mine used to live there. Otherwise it's nice, lots of trees. You can't see the factory but you sure can smell it if the wind blows in the wrong direction.

What are you looking for? New construction? Price range? Schools? Amenities?

The West Side is pretty nice with Purdue and all, but not much else.

Oh dear, Sponger, really? I thought Vinton Woods was well away from the factories

We don't mind new construction but not looking specifically for that. We are looking for a nice price range as I'm preparing to retire once I sell the house here and my husband plans to work 8 - 10 more years then probably retire, so we don't want to be "house poor" When hubby does retire, we want to be able to continue a nice lifestyle. We're looking at up to around $210 or so, but have seen some very nice looking homes at enticingly lower prices - but they're mostly in the southern area.
Not worried about school districts as our kids are grown and we have two very young grandkids.

Of course we also don't want to get into any areas that might be dangerous, but don't know where those areas are yet.

You said the west side is nice with Perdue but not much else? What does that mean? I was under the impression that the West Laf. was the more "cultural" side due to Perdue - with more activities, restaurants, etc? No?

Thanks for all your input I do appreciate it.

[Meenie]

OH and we're also looking either for a ranch or a 2 story with the mbr on the first level. Hubby loves to cook so want a nice kitchen. Love outdoors so a screen porch and a nice deck would be great. Fenced yard for future dog

[sponger42]

Originally Posted by Meenie

Oh dear, Sponger, really? I thought Vinton Woods was well away from the factories

2245 Sagamore Pkwy N, Lafayette, IN

That's the address for Staley's West. I used to mow the lawns of factories around town. Funny thing is; it doesn't stink up close. Smells like soap. I think that's next to Vinton Woods, but maybe I'm wrong. Google map it to be sure. Alcoa and SIA don't smell (they're just kinda ugly; but not too bad.). Just the corn-syrup processing plants stink.

We're looking at up to around $210 or so, but have seen some very nice looking homes at enticingly lower prices - but they're mostly in the southern area.
Not worried about school districts as our kids are grown and we have two very young grandkids.

The city's only hospitals are now located on the south end of town, FYI. The central locations are abandoned/reduced capacity.

Of course we also don't want to get into any areas that might be dangerous, but don't know where those areas are yet.

Not many of those. The worst parts of town are down by the river north of Salem Street. That's by the TRW plant and the railroad. After 52/Sagamore pkwy it's all cornfields and fine.

I've heard the neighborhoods around Columbian Park are kind of mixed, but probably okay. There's not much violent crime in Lafayette. Mostly teens with nothing to do but act tough and a few older bad characters.

You said the west side is nice with Perdue but not much else? What does that mean? I was under the impression that the West Laf. was the more "cultural" side due to Perdue - with more activities, restaurants, etc? No?

Downtown is the culture center, epicenter at the river/plaza/pedestrian bridge. To the West is the Levee with younger eating places and some bars leading to Purdue. To the East is downtown proper with some boutiques.

Careful about living out in the countryside; winter storms can strand you and knock out the power for days. Ice is the worst. It's good to have a backup heat source like a generator or a wood-burning fireplace.

The neighborhoods around University Farms on the West Side might be good for you. There are plenty of nice spots away from the factories south of town too, you'll just want to look in person.

[Meenie]

thanks Sponger! You're a wealth of information I appreciate it!!