Help me find an awesome neighborhood. (Kansas City, Overland: middle-class, skatepark, home)
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I like Lee's Summit, but my family lives in Johnson County (Shawnee, OP, Leawood and Lenexa) and we'll be using the airport a lot. We picked KC specifically to be close to my family, and Lee's Summit puts us around 40 minutes away from the nearest family I believe.
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Originally Posted by simpleinthecity
I totally understand and agree with what you are saying, kcmama. I live in Brookside and most of my friends that I hang out with live here as well. Most of them have either had something stolen from them or have had a neighbor have something stolen. And, yes, I guess you could say I am closer to Troost (off of Cherry) but I never even knew what gunshots sounded like before moving here. My husband and I have heard them several times. A few months back my daughter was playing outside with a neighbor friend during the afternoon and my neighbor called me and said there was two teenagers running through nearby yards with a big screen TV that they just stole from someone's house. It just makes me feel a little uneasy even though I adore the area and all that it has to offer. And it does make me consider moving to a safer neighborhood.
That's a really excellent point. Seeing crime might make me nervous with my daughter playing outside. I know that most of the crime has been theft related, but you never know, and I don't want to take unnecessary risks with my kids.
The KC area is so big that I'm finding the search to be mind boggling. There's just so many different areas, but I think once my house goes under contract I'll fly out and spend some time familiarizing myself with all the different areas in person. There are so many homes for sale! Once I get a chance to look, we're just going to have to decide how important walkability is for us. Our current home has it all, and I'm realizing we may have to compromise something. We love it being able to walk places but there are so many other factors. Both my husband and I work from home, so in addition to having enough bedrooms, we need an office space AND we like to entertain. We're trying to lower our cost of living, so on the budget we've picked- it's looking like it may be tough to find in an older home. It's going to be a major lifestyle change no matter where we end up in the city.
I really appreciate everyone giving their point of view. We've narrowed (I think, but it could change once we get there) to Prairie Village, Leawood, Brookside and possibly S. Plaza or the area around 39th St West.
I love Volker/39th St West and again I have no major concerns about safety here, but I doubt you'll find it significantly safer than Brookside. We just had our own shooting a couple weeks ago at 39th and Southwest Trafficway -- a woman walking home from SunFresh at 3:30 am -- and there are car-breakins and burglaries at least somewhat regularly. If you're on Facebook, request membership to the group Volker Watch -- you'll get a great birds-eye view of crime in the area.
Thanks for clearing up the FUD mongering (fear, uncertainty, doubt) about Brookside....
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Originally Posted by kcmama
I'm saying that was my personal experience. I lived at 63rd and Morningside for about 3 years. Several of these incidences came from the 7-11 a few blocks away. I guess 64th and Morningside is not technically Brookside, but definitely in the area that is commonly referred to as "Brookside." During that time, we heard gunshots on 8 nights. Every few months, we would have cops shining their flashlights in our windows while looking for someone. DH left his car unlocked once and had everything stolen. we had gardening supplies stolen from our fenced in yard twice. One of my good friends lives in the heart of Brookside and they have had police chasing criminals through their yard several times. They've had their car broken into 3 times and their garage robbed once. Everyone I know in Brookside has had something stolen at some point. None of them have been murdered or assaulted. But they do not let their kids run around the neighborhood.
I actually don't hate Brookside! In fact, the day we moved away was one of the saddest days of my life! It was months before I could drive through Brookside without getting choked up. But I knew I wanted to live somewhere where my kids could eventually ride their bike around the block, or walk to school or a friends house. This was a priority for me, and it sounds important to the OP so I felt compelled to share my experience.
Brookside is wonderful, but it's not perfect, as some of you want everyone to believe.
Quote:
Originally Posted by simpleinthecity
I totally understand and agree with what you are saying, kcmama. I live in Brookside and most of my friends that I hang out with live here as well. Most of them have either had something stolen from them or have had a neighbor have something stolen. And, yes, I guess you could say I am closer to Troost (off of Cherry) but I never even knew what gunshots sounded like before moving here. My husband and I have heard them several times. A few months back my daughter was playing outside with a neighbor friend during the afternoon and my neighbor called me and said there was two teenagers running through nearby yards with a big screen TV that they just stole from someone's house. It just makes me feel a little uneasy even though I adore the area and all that it has to offer. And it does make me consider moving to a safer neighborhood.
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Originally Posted by Kissum
That's a really excellent point. Seeing crime might make me nervous with my daughter playing outside. I know that most of the crime has been theft related, but you never know, and I don't want to take unnecessary risks with my kids.
I really appreciate everyone giving their point of view. We've narrowed (I think, but it could change once we get there) to Prairie Village, Leawood, Brookside and possibly S. Plaza or the area around 39th St West.
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Originally Posted by aragx6
I love Volker/39th St West and again I have no major concerns about safety here, but I doubt you'll find it significantly safer than Brookside. We just had our own shooting a couple weeks ago at 39th and Southwest Trafficway -- a woman walking home from SunFresh at 3:30 am -- and there are car-breakins and burglaries at least somewhat regularly. If you're on Facebook, request membership to the group Volker Watch -- you'll get a great birds-eye view of crime in the area.
As "FUD" as it might sound, as xenokc exclaims, I think it all boils down to what Kissum said that I've highlighted in bold. It seems like a lot of folks simply don't understand this. This same concern should also extend to men when they're thinking about their wife's safety. Perhaps this series of quotes I've put together will help the city booster's to really understand the other side of the argument.
Both kcmama's and simpleinthecity's quotes are more realistic anecdotes of what can happen as a result of being in a good neighborhood that is in such close proximity to really bad neighborhoods. You just can't sweep that under the rug, it's not difficult to figure out. For some people, it's not worth the extra risks for what amounts to materialistic gains.
As for Volker/39th St West - it's certainly less safe than Brookside. There are too many bars, drunks, street drunks/druggies wandering around - all on top of the same problems Brookside faces. 39th St West is more of a "going out" neighborhood for adults than a neighborhood with walkability to everyday/family-friendly amenities. And I wouldn't want to have kids in tow or have anybody I care about use the Sunfresh in this area as a regular grocery store. It's a magnet for all types of people you don't want to subject your children to or even yourself.
If I were Kissum, I would add downtown OP (just west of PV) and Waldo to my list in exchange for 39th West/Western Westport.
28-year Brookside resident here.... so I have a long frame of reference. Have there been break-ins in the neighborhood? Yes. Enough to be a big issue? NO. There will always be property crime in an area where there's close proximity of "haves" to "have-nots". Over 28 years the only personal experience my husband and I have had with crime is the theft of a potted plant and a planter box from our front porch. The neighborhood is FULL of families with young children who ride their bikes on the sidewalks, play ball in their front yards, and tote toboggans to the sledding hill. I've walked my dog (and the dog before him, and the dog before him) countless miles on the residential sidewalks of Brookside and have only witnessed crime-related activity in person ONE time-- a police chase of a car, which started and ended far from here. Do I occasionally hear gunshots at night? Yes, but sound carries a long way at night (I can also hear the distant whistle of the train that goes through Swope Park, and that's 5 miles away). And yes, occasionally, bad things have happened in the wee hours at 7-11 or outside of bars, but if you're not out in the middle of the night your likelihood of encountering crime is miniscule, in my experience. There are lots of people home during the day in this neighborhood-- retired folks or people who work from home or stay-at-home moms (or dads!)-- and people KNOW their neighbors and watch for anything that looks out of place. You will hear more sirens here than in the 'burbs, and the occasional police helicopter, but that's a trade-off I willingly make for the walkability, sense of community, and lovely architecture that are BROOKSIDE.
And I wouldn't want to have kids in tow or have anybody I care about use the Sunfresh in this area as a regular grocery store. It's a magnet for all types of people you don't want to subject your children to or even yourself.
MoKan
Wouldn't you want to expose your kids to all walks of life and maybe explain to your kid why the person is begging for money on the street or why this person has a pierced cheek with tattoos, why would you want to hide it from your kids, they are going to find out sooner or later. They are going to turn 19, get out of the house and be clueless about reality because they would have lived this sheltered life.
When I was 13 and 14 (In the early 90's when the inner city might have been worse) my friends use to ride the bus all the time to Milwaukee Bucks basketball games or the mall, and it went through bad areas but we never thought we would get mugged or snatched. We would roam around downtown milwaukee as well at a time when downtown wasn't the greatest. I think these kinds of exposures made me a better person. 90% of kids today probably don't know how to ride a bus and most of those kids are scared because they were never exposed to it, they just assume it's a transport for poor and minorities.
28-year Brookside resident here.... so I have a long frame of reference. Have there been break-ins in the neighborhood? Yes. Enough to be a big issue? NO. There will always be property crime in an area where there's close proximity of "haves" to "have-nots". Over 28 years the only personal experience my husband and I have had with crime is the theft of a potted plant and a planter box from our front porch. The neighborhood is FULL of families with young children who ride their bikes on the sidewalks, play ball in their front yards, and tote toboggans to the sledding hill. I've walked my dog (and the dog before him, and the dog before him) countless miles on the residential sidewalks of Brookside and have only witnessed crime-related activity in person ONE time-- a police chase of a car, which started and ended far from here. Do I occasionally hear gunshots at night? Yes, but sound carries a long way at night (I can also hear the distant whistle of the train that goes through Swope Park, and that's 5 miles away). And yes, occasionally, bad things have happened in the wee hours at 7-11 or outside of bars, but if you're not out in the middle of the night your likelihood of encountering crime is miniscule, in my experience. There are lots of people home during the day in this neighborhood-- retired folks or people who work from home or stay-at-home moms (or dads!)-- and people KNOW their neighbors and watch for anything that looks out of place. You will hear more sirens here than in the 'burbs, and the occasional police helicopter, but that's a trade-off I willingly make for the walkability, sense of community, and lovely architecture that are BROOKSIDE.
Sounds like the inner rings burbs of most any city. It's really about what a family is accustomed to and/or can accept. Those who come from distant suburbs might freak out, those who are already accustomed to inner ring burbs might find Bside more subdued than other cities. My sister lives in Brookside and says it feels safer than the suburb she lived in Austin. She loves being able to walk to the grocery store and neighborhood shops/restaurants.
As "FUD" as it might sound, as xenokc exclaims, I think it all boils down to what Kissum said that I've highlighted in bold. It seems like a lot of folks simply don't understand this. This same concern should also extend to men when they're thinking about their wife's safety. Perhaps this series of quotes I've put together will help the city booster's to really understand the other side of the argument.
What I'm getting from that is that a persons perception of safety is fungible, and so help me I'm not trying to godwin this thread, but I think it relates to personal feelings on terrorism versus falling off of a ladder. One feels REALLY NOT SAFE, and the other one is way more likely to happen to you. If you can look at the numbers but still assess a neighborhood based off of someone's bombastic claims that's an understandable part of human nature. Go somewhere you feel safe and be happy!
But remember to wear a seatbelt and take care of your heart, since we've all got a pretty good chance of meeting our end with a heart attack or an accident
This same concern should also extend to men when they're thinking about their wife's safety.
Could you possibly be more sexist? I can take care of myself, thankyouverymuch.
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Originally Posted by MOKAN
As for Volker/39th St West - it's certainly less safe than Brookside. There are too many bars, drunks, street drunks/druggies wandering around - all on top of the same problems Brookside faces. 39th St West is more of a "going out" neighborhood for adults than a neighborhood with walkability to everyday/family-friendly amenities. And I wouldn't want to have kids in tow or have anybody I care about use the Sunfresh in this area as a regular grocery store. It's a magnet for all types of people you don't want to subject your children to or even yourself.
There's only two true bars on 39th St West unless you also count Missie B's (which isn't in the true heart of the district). You can also throw in Fric & Frac but there are always a ton of kids there. Actually have you been to 39th Street West? I would definitely NOT call it a "going out" neighborhood. It's always almost exclusively neighborhood types out on the weekend.
Additionally, A) SunFresh is not in Volker/on 39th St West and B) I have literally zero concerns about shopping there unless it's say 3 in the morning and you're walking home alone. That goes for everywhere honestly. What's wrong with the people there? They're a little trashy but I've never felt in danger and they have an off-duty cop there all of the time.
Yeah, Sunfresh is my primary store and I often bike to it. I have no idea what the concern is... because there are people from every race and demographic? Westport center in general has late night issues at times, but so do many city entertainment districts. Don't go after 11PM, not a problem.
The FUD people promote on this site is pretty amazing.
Anyone who's interested can go take a look and be scared at the number of burglaries, drug offenses, vehicle thefts, and sexual assaults there in the past month. Odds are, you have a friend or a friend of a friend who's been affected.
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