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Old 04-04-2008, 01:38 AM
 
34 posts, read 176,545 times
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We're looking to buy a single family home and it seems that Mt. Washington is the only place we can really afford. Can anyone give me information regarding safety and activities? Also, is it practical to take local roads to Los Feliz (Sunset/Vermont) and Pasadena, or do you have to take the highway?

Any help would be much appreciated! Thanks!
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Old 04-04-2008, 05:46 PM
 
Location: CITY OF ANGELS AND CONSTANT DANGER
5,408 posts, read 12,620,395 times
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it should be fine, i have friends in glassell, cypress, montecito and mt wash and none of thm have trouble getting around. but nick would be the expert here. the only prob i have found is that some roads are narrow and steep.
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Old 04-05-2008, 10:26 AM
 
34 posts, read 176,545 times
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How about Safety? I've heard recently about the standoff in Glassell Park, as well as drive bys... do you know if any of that spills over in Mt. Washington?

Anyone know how safe the Mt. Washington area is?

Thanks so much!
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Old 04-10-2008, 11:55 PM
 
Location: Mt Washington: NELA
1,162 posts, read 3,224,609 times
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Quote:
Originally Posted by singlus View Post
How about Safety? I've heard recently about the standoff in Glassell Park, as well as drive bys... do you know if any of that spills over in Mt. Washington?

Anyone know how safe the Mt. Washington area is?

Thanks so much!
I have lived in MT Wash for 11 years, Montecito Heights (across the arroyo) for 3 years before that. Parts of Glassell Park are crappy, parts are nice- typical of the entire City, really. 'Drive-by's' are not part of my reality- Mt Wash largely sits over the hill (Mt Wash) west of Figueroa and away from Glassell Park. Cypress Park is grittier than GP- I would avoid that area which isn't really hard to do because you don't have to travel through it to get most places.

I live 5 houses from the Gold Line Station. That means I can take a train to Pasadena, downtown, etc. Very nice. Lots of farmers markets closeby, not to mention South Pasadena which is a very nice little town. We worked hard to secure a light rail station and boy did it pay off. The pedestrian traffic to and from the station seems to dissuade mischief and crime. Crooks don't like drawing attention to themselves.

I can see the green hills of Debs Park from my front deck and can walk my dogs to a little canyon closeby, not to mention drive them up to the Hermon dogpark- about 1 mile away. Never had a safety problem, though we do get the occasional chopper whirring above- not so much the last few years. It's a great area, just south of Eagle Rock. I highly recommend it.
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Old 04-10-2008, 11:59 PM
 
Location: Mt Washington: NELA
1,162 posts, read 3,224,609 times
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Quote:
Originally Posted by the one View Post
it should be fine, i have friends in glassell, cypress, montecito and mt wash and none of thm have trouble getting around. but nick would be the expert here. the only prob i have found is that some roads are narrow and steep.
The roads are slowly being paved higher up the hill. Some were pretty precarious, even walking our dogs up there. Then again, the views are spectacular and the area has a rural feel rare for the City. The hills have spoiled us- I'm never living in the flats again.
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Old 04-16-2008, 12:18 AM
 
34 posts, read 176,545 times
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Hi Nick,

Thanks for writing and sharing your insights! I'm glad to hear the opinion of an actual resident of Mt. Washington. I did notice that some of the houses, particularly off of Glenalbyn, are in dire need of repaving - in Google Streetview, they look like dirt roads at first! But upon closer inspection, they just look dusty from all of the construction.

Speaking of construction... Comment 13 on this website (Curbed LA: Weekend Open House Tour: Mt. Washington Edition) implies that homes built into the side of the mountain with dirt behind them are disasters waiting to happen. Do you live on the top of the mountain, or is your house also built into the hillside? The retaining walls behind the houses my wife and I are interested are a real cause of concern. Someone else who commented on that website also implied that some of the foundations of the homes could also turn out to be quite the money pit... there are a few homes on top of the hills that interest us, but if the foundations are potential problems, I'd be less inclined to buy there.

We also have a little dog that we like to walk in the neighborhood that we live in, and we're concerned that there aren't many places to walk to like parks in the area off of Glenalbyn and Bend Dr. We figure we'll mostly drive to certain areas and then get out and walk around...

Quote:
Originally Posted by nickdahammer View Post
The roads are slowly being paved higher up the hill. Some were pretty precarious, even walking our dogs up there. Then again, the views are spectacular and the area has a rural feel rare for the City. The hills have spoiled us- I'm never living in the flats again.
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Old 04-16-2008, 12:45 AM
 
Location: Mt Washington: NELA
1,162 posts, read 3,224,609 times
Reputation: 642
Quote:
Originally Posted by singlus View Post
Hi Nick,

Thanks for writing and sharing your insights! I'm glad to hear the opinion of an actual resident of Mt. Washington. I did notice that some of the houses, particularly off of Glenalbyn, are in dire need of repaving - in Google Streetview, they look like dirt roads at first! But upon closer inspection, they just look dusty from all of the construction.

Speaking of construction... Comment 13 on this website (Curbed LA: Weekend Open House Tour: Mt. Washington Edition) implies that homes built into the side of the mountain with dirt behind them are disasters waiting to happen. Do you live on the top of the mountain, or is your house also built into the hillside? The retaining walls behind the houses my wife and I are interested are a real cause of concern. Someone else who commented on that website also implied that some of the foundations of the homes could also turn out to be quite the money pit... there are a few homes on top of the hills that interest us, but if the foundations are potential problems, I'd be less inclined to buy there.

We also have a little dog that we like to walk in the neighborhood that we live in, and we're concerned that there aren't many places to walk to like parks in the area off of Glenalbyn and Bend Dr. We figure we'll mostly drive to certain areas and then get out and walk around...
We live just between the 'flats' and where the hill begins, i.e. right by the Southwest Museum. I remember when the homes at the end of Museum Drive went up about 10 years ago. Nice, but out of place and they seemed precarious to me. Our home was built in '64, the house above us around 1900. The piles were dug deep down so we aren't going anywhere, in fact I have heard nothing about houses sliding around up here.

I walk my dogs every morning and (nearly) every night after work. Museum up from the SWM train station is not a bad walk, tho you'll hear lots of dogs barking depending on when you go. I always walk them to the 'canyon' just up Avenue 45 from Marmion Way. It is part of the Sta Monica Mtns conservancy and is a nice, quiet spot. Elyria Canyon is close-by as well but I have yet to make the trek.

Like Silverlake and Echo Park, the area has some great public stairways. They built them in the 20's so that people could cut through the new developments to catch the streetcars. Most dogwalkers and joggers use them for shortcuts now. They are very quiet and convenient.

There are so many great things about the neighborhood. Let me know if you want more info and I'll be more than happy to fill you in.
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Old 04-16-2008, 06:41 PM
 
Location: Los Angeles
137 posts, read 601,085 times
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Looks like Mt. Washington, more so Cypress Park, is listed on the top-12 gang ridden areas in LA and the focus of the Mayor's clean up 'plan':

Curbed LA: LA's Top 12 Gang-Ridden Neighborhoods
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Old 04-16-2008, 08:51 PM
 
Location: La Crescenta, CA
418 posts, read 1,728,189 times
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I was out there two weeks ago looking for a house in that general area -- Mt. Washington, Highland Park, Eagle Rock, Glassell Park. The main thing I found is that if you're in the hills, there seems to be much less crime than in the flat parts. Still, there are some parts of Mt. Washington that seem a little sketchy even though they're hilly; Isabel St. was a real turn-off. (I THINK that's Mt. Washington...but not sure.) But parts of it seem nice. I really do think you have to drive around and judge on a block by block basis.

As a side note, in Highland Park, my wife and I were driving down one street not far from Occidental (but south of York) at about 8 pm and a guy ran by our car as fast as he could go, carrying a huge gun. We both did a double take -- "Was he carrying a..." "Yes, he was." We cut that area out of our search right there.
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Old 04-17-2008, 01:10 AM
 
Location: Mt Washington: NELA
1,162 posts, read 3,224,609 times
Reputation: 642
Quote:
Originally Posted by Lumerian Feast View Post
I was out there two weeks ago looking for a house in that general area -- Mt. Washington, Highland Park, Eagle Rock, Glassell Park. The main thing I found is that if you're in the hills, there seems to be much less crime than in the flat parts. Still, there are some parts of Mt. Washington that seem a little sketchy even though they're hilly; Isabel St. was a real turn-off. (I THINK that's Mt. Washington...but not sure.) But parts of it seem nice. I really do think you have to drive around and judge on a block by block basis.

As a side note, in Highland Park, my wife and I were driving down one street not far from Occidental (but south of York) at about 8 pm and a guy ran by our car as fast as he could go, carrying a huge gun. We both did a double take -- "Was he carrying a..." "Yes, he was." We cut that area out of our search right there.
Isabel Street is one of the worst. That is considered Cypress Park- the street winds around to Glassell Park as well. Not quite sure what stretch you are talking about. If I'm not mistaken, that is where a little girl was shot while sitting inside her car (one of her parents apparently drove down the bad end of the street. That was sometime ago, but the area hasn't changed much.

As a rule, up toward the hills, any hills are safer. That applies to Echo Park, Silverlake, you name it. Dogs don't hurt either. Years ago, we looked at a rental on Vista Gloriosa (sp) street, up over Cypress Park. The approach off Fig, then up Amabel was really sketchy so we asked a cop about security. He said his mother lives in the neighborhood then asked if we have dogs (we did- two of 'em). He said we'd be fine: his mom had dogs, too.

Highland Park goes from one extreme to the other, it's pretty jaw-dropping sometimes. Great, funky little galleries and cafes popping up, people staying out late having fun. Then you hear about someone south of York shooting up the neighborhood. Then there's Eagle Rock closeby, which some say has a gang problem though I have never experienced that.
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