Springfield, MA Safe for College Student to Commute on Bike/Bus to Western New England University? (Worcester: real estate)

[calen223]

My son may be attending Western New England University and we are planning to set up in a condo/town-home/apartment nearby that is within bike/bus commuting distance. My concerns are twofold:

1. Will there be real estate available in a safe area that is close enough to Western New England for bike/bus commuting? What about access to grocery shopping without a car?

2. My son has grown up in a rather isolated western town that is nothing like a big city. He has no street smarts and will need to learn quickly. Is it safe in Springfield for a somewhat naive 18-19 year old to be biking to college?

[CaseyB]

Downtown Springfield isn't real safe, but I understand the college is in a different area.

Why would your son want to come all that way for a college that's not very prestigious? It seems like a waste of money.

[timberline742]

Yeah, unless he's getting a free ride, this doesn't make a ton of sense.

[western mass and love it]

If he lives near the university it is very safe. No grocery stores really close though. And it is a great school for engineering and pharmaceutical. How about we be a little less judgemental and snooty and just answer the question.

[tovarisch]

The biggest problem is that, if next winter is like this one, he won't be able to bike, some of the time. He'll be forced to take the bus.

[sheena12]

Originally Posted by calen223

My son may be attending Western New England University and we are planning to set up in a condo/town-home/apartment nearby that is within bike/bus commuting distance. My concerns are twofold:

1. Will there be real estate available in a safe area that is close enough to Western New England for bike/bus commuting? What about access to grocery shopping without a car?

2. My son has grown up in a rather isolated western town that is nothing like a big city. He has no street smarts and will need to learn quickly. Is it safe in Springfield for a somewhat naive 18-19 year old to be biking to college?

Didn't you ask this about Worcester? (WPI)

Why are you following your son to college to "set up in a condo"? Why not just let him live on campus?

I went to Clark University in Worcester. My parents stayed home. I lived in the dorms for two years and in an off campus apartment for the rest of the time.

Over 25 years later, I'm still alive.

Young people become less naive by developing self confidence that is earned by negotiating life on their own. Please consider permitting your son to have some autonomy while he attends college.

[Minuteman777]

I live here and I bike down Wilbraham Rd. (in which WNEC is located) all the time. It's safe. And there is the Fresh Acres Grocery Store right down the road from the College.

Springfield is by far not a safe city considering it is placed on the top 100 violent cities in the U.S. every year, but as long as he stays away from certain areas and isn't a complete retard he should be fine.

[Minuteman777]

Originally Posted by western mass and love it

If he lives near the university it is very safe. No grocery stores really close though. And it is a great school for engineering and pharmaceutical. How about we be a little less judgemental and snooty and just answer the question.

What are you talking about? Fresh Acres is literally right there.

[western mass and love it]

I don't really consider that a full service grocery store. But more of a larger scale convenience store. But to each his own.

[RiverBird]

Originally Posted by calen223

My son may be attending Western New England University and we are planning to set up in a condo/town-home/apartment nearby that is within bike/bus commuting distance. My concerns are twofold:

1. Will there be real estate available in a safe area that is close enough to Western New England for bike/bus commuting? What about access to grocery shopping without a car?

2. My son has grown up in a rather isolated western town that is nothing like a big city. He has no street smarts and will need to learn quickly. Is it safe in Springfield for a somewhat naive 18-19 year old to be biking to college?

IMO, real estate within biking distance of WNEC is not real estate you'd want to invest in. If you have the $, you might look into the condos on State Street across from the main city library; a number of professionals live there, but I believe the monthly condo fees are high. I would not want to be walking around there at night, but then again, I'm not young. Spfld is not one of the safer cities on the planet, esp downtown and adjacent areas.