Moving to Reseda, CA (San Fernando: neighborhoods, elementary school, gated community)

[Charles]

Originally Posted by firetraq

on the estate we lived in they always found dead bodies in the apartments, there were murders, muggings.. rapes.... assaults. robbery's.... graffiti.... you name the crime and it did its time in battersea.... is Reseda like that bad...?

So anyway how is Reseda really? When you say gangs, do you really mean kids hanging out and being kids or gangs with knives and guns.... because there is a huge difference.

Not that bad at all. I wouldn't feel nervous driving or walking around there. Working class for the most part, probably a lot of old timers too - people who worked in the valley in the 1950s and 1960s and are retired now. Yes, a lot of Hispanics, maybe the majority.

Reseda Elementary is a Great Schools 7/10, not too bad.

Reseda Elementary School - Reseda, California - CA - School overview

[firetraq]

Originally Posted by Charles

Not that bad at all. I wouldn't feel nervous driving or walking around there. Working class for the most part, probably a lot of old timers too - people who worked in the valley in the 1950s and 1960s and are retired now. Yes, a lot of Hispanics, maybe the majority.

Reseda Elementary is a Great Schools 7/10, not too bad.

Reseda Elementary School - Reseda, California - CA - School overview

Thanks Charles.... yeah so you see from where i used to live in the UK, its close to laughable when people say an areas bad, because i'm always like, "as bad as battersea"?

[Jay F]

I have fond memories of visiting my Dad in Reseda in the mid 1980s. It seemed pretty nice back then. I am curious about the section he lived in and what it's like now. If I remember correctly it was near Reseda Blvd. There was a strip shopping center with an Albertsons and a Carls Jr. He lived in a condo right across from the Reseda public library. Does anybody know the area of Reseda I am talking about? I walked all around there in the 80s and felt perfectly safe, I hope it hasn't changed.

[perek]

Reseda has some of the best ethnic eats in the Valley.

[Lovehound]

Originally Posted by Jay F

He lived in a condo right across from the Reseda public library. Does anybody know the area of Reseda I am talking about? I walked all around there in the 80s and felt perfectly safe, I hope it hasn't changed.

There is no Reseda public library. The only library in Reseda is the West Valley branch, a couple miles east of Reseda Blvd on Vanowen. It has only single family residences across the street.

There's an Albertson's Market on Reseda at Devonshire. The Northridge branch of LAPL is one block east at the corner of Darby St. The library is across the street from a strip mall and CSUN.

We have ethnic restaurants of almost every conceivable variety all over the San Fernando Valley. That's one of the good things about Los Angeles. You can find virtually any kind of restaurant you want.

Reseda is reasonably safe, with some residential neighborhoods very comfortable although many houses are small and old. It's everybody's chance at the American dream even if your financial resources are limited, as long as your needs are modest.

I can't think of any place in the San Fernando Valley that I wouldn't feel comfortable walking in the daytime. There are certainly neighborhoods that I wouldn't walk at night, a few of which wouldn't be a good place to drive at night. It's not difficult to tell which these ones are.

My comments are about a man walking alone at night. There's lots of neighborhoods that would be seriously risky for a woman walking alone at night. These would be the very seedy neighborhoods, commercial areas, and shopping areas off the main streets.


If you want to give a few more hints I might be able to narrow it down for you.

[atejams]

What are the areas in Reseda one should avoid living in? I will be working at the Tampa Blvd area.

[Charles]

Originally Posted by atejams

What are the areas in Reseda one should avoid living in? I will be working at the Tampa Blvd area.

Where on Tampa? (Tampa is almost ten miles long.)

In general, it is a little nicer the closer you get to Ventura Boulevard.

But to answer your question, which area to avoid living in, I'd say you'd know it if you saw it. And I'd say ugliness (power lines, billboards, hodge podge layout, poor planning - no master planning, etc) is the biggest negative.

Personally, I don't think Reseda is that dangerous. I think it is a basic working class neighborhood with lots of ranch style homes built in the 1950s and also lots of apartments.


It doesn't look too much different than this (late 50s, early 60s Tampa and Vanowen looking northwest, Simi Hills in the background, photo taken by my dad):



Here's a shot of some apartments on Gilmore in Reseda around 1961 photo also taken by my dad, view looking north, Santa Susana Mountains and Newhall Pass in the background

[Kymberleigh Richards]

Originally Posted by Fleet

I would guess mid-1960s for that map.

I'm the owner of the Transit Insider website, and I thank the original poster for creating a link to that map, which was a scan of the San Fernando Valley portion of a RTD system map issued in late 1969. (So the guess was not far off, and I did note on the page the map appears on that it would have been accurate for the preceding five years.)

There is a treasure-trove of old system maps, planning documents, and line-by-line timetable maps on my site, and I hope those with an interest in the Valley's transit service will enjoy the material compiled there. I make no money from the site; I created it just so the history would be preserved online.

San Fernando Valley Transit Insider: www.transit-insider.org

[Charles]

Originally Posted by Kymberleigh Richards

I'm the owner of the Transit Insider website, and I thank the original poster for creating a link to that map, which was a scan of the San Fernando Valley portion of a RTD system map issued in late 1969. (So the guess was not far off, and I did note on the page the map appears on that it would have been accurate for the preceding five years.)

There is a treasure-trove of old system maps, planning documents, and line-by-line timetable maps on my site, and I hope those with an interest in the Valley's transit service will enjoy the material compiled there. I make no money from the site; I created it just so the history would be preserved online.

San Fernando Valley Transit Insider: www.transit-insider.org

Neat site. I grew up in Canoga Park and used to take the 152 up and down Roscoe and Fallbrook in the 1970s.

Also, lots of interesting photos on the CSUN San Fernando Valley History website.


San Fernando Valley History Digital Library

[rebeccapomales]

I know this is a little late in the game to post this (hopefully people who view this in the future will benefit) but if you are thinking about moving to Reseda....DON'T! The crime rate in Reseda is more than 3 x's the national average. You should look up the crime statistics on any city you are thinking about moving to...especially if you have kids!