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i am planning to move back east. i have accepted a job in downtown providence, ri. i have been looking at apartments in fall river.is the commute from fall river, ma.to providence as bad as hear it can be? any advice on apartments? or should i look in r.i.? i don't want to be downtown or near students. i don't mind driving, so being "minutes away" isn't a problem. any advice/suggestions would be great!
I'm sure you're going to hear how terrible Fall River is from a good number of people (many of whom know very little about it), but it can easily fit ones needs depending on what you're looking for (cheap rent I'm assuming).
As far as the commute goes, it shouldn't be too bad. You'll be taking 195 the whole way I'm assuming. It can get a little backed up heading into Providence between about 8-9am, but it's not normally horrible. Same with the commute home, it may get a little slow at around 5, but again, it's not terrible. If they're doing work on the Braga Bridge, then it can get backed up (and you may have to even detour), but that's the case anywhere they're doing road work. The commute from Fall River to Providence should take you no more than 15-20 minutes normally and 30-45 on a day when there's problematic traffic or incliment weather (snow).
I would pay close attention to the following areas when looking for an apartment as they're the best:
North End (just off of exit 8 on route 24); this area is more suburban in setup. There is a LOT of new construction in the North End and many of the apartment complexes are quite nice and almost brand new. They have the advantage of being on a large hill so many have water views and you're close to groceries, some restaurants (Barret's Ale House is a favorite and a nice hangout) and other amenities. The rents are very affordable here and the neighborhoods are quite nice. There are a LOT of young families, and it's a very safe area... and I mean safe in general, not just safe compared to the rest of the city. Check the Four Winds Apartments ( Four Winds in Fall River MA - Apartments for rent - Equity Apartments ), they are very nice and overlook the river and the country club... rents are very reasonable.
The Highlands: The Highlands is Fall River's premier neighborhood and it's a relatively large chunk of the city. It covers the immediate area surrounding the parallel streets of Robeson and Highland Ave from Charlton Hospital North to the end of Highland Ave (Route 24 interchange). While a bit less suburban than the North End, the buildings are not on right on top of each other and there are MANY beautiful old Victorian era homes that have been converted into beautiful apartments. It's another family oriented neighborhood so it's very quiet. Near the Center of the neighborhood is North Park which was designed by famed landscape architect, Fredrick Law Olmstead (who designed Central Park in NYC), it's a nice place to relax. When looking for apartments here, look for Robeson St, Highland Avenue, or any of their cross streets.
The area along Eastern Avenue, North of Bedford Street (Diman High School area) is nice too. There are many small homes and multi-unit buildings in this family neighborhood.
Point Gloria Condos is a nice high-rise apartment building on the city's waterfront just North of Battleship Cove. There are a few rentals in the building, but they are on the pricier end by Fall River standards. It's a great location, but I would check and see if there's availability as it's one of the more popular locations in town.
Finally, there is a beautiful waterfront condo complex (which has a good number of rentals) along "Shore Drive" just off of Almond Street on the city's waterfront just South of Downtown. The complex includes a marina and excellent views of Mount Hope Bay, the Braga Bridge, Borden Flats Lighthouse, Mount Hope Bridge, and of course, the incredibly ugly Brayton Point Power Plant (across the river). It's a nice complex if you can get in.
While people complain about crime in Fall River, it's not all that terrible and most of the crime that does exist is isolated to certain areas (particularly around housing projects). If you stick to the areas I've mentioned, you should encounter little to no crime, they're nice neighborhoods. I would avoid the Flint Village section of town (the area along Pleasant Street and Bedford Street), and a large chunk of the South End (everything South of I-195 with the exception of the Waterfront and the area around Maplewood Park).
If you don't like Fall River, check out Pawtucket along East Avenue and parts of Cranston and Warwick for the best rentals.
Fall River's a good bet for a nice apartment in a suburban or quiet urban setting if you buy in the right place. If you have kids that you're looking to put into public schools, Fall River is not a good bet, the schools aren't the greatest, but if not, go for it. You'll get good value for your money in Fall River. Good luck.
Well I agree that the commute isnt going to be too bad from fall river to RI. I also think that as far as rents as I said in another post that some people that live in other areas other than fall river think that rents are pretty reasonable. So if the rents fit ur average spending limit then go for it, just dont be expecting miracles from the city because that isnt going to happen.
Fall River is pretty much a crime infested dump like New Bedford, Brockton, Lowell etc as a whole. But there are nice sections of the city though. The affordable housing market is the best thing Fall River has to offer. It's proximity to Providence and Newport is also nice.
Fall River is pretty much a crime infested dump like New Bedford, Brockton, Lowell etc as a whole. But there are nice sections of the city though. The affordable housing market is the best thing Fall River has to offer. It's proximity to Providence and Newport is also nice.
Maybe try wording your posts differently. It's obnoxious the way you make a very negative generalization of an entire city with no supporting reasoning or evidence. You seem to know (or share) very little about the cities you criticize. If you could infuse your posts with some useful information (may an explanation as to WHY these cities are "dumps" and where you get your crime statistics from), they may be a bit more helpful and less insulting to the entire populous of these cities.
On a positive, your username ("seldomseen") is quite accurate in that you are seldom seen except to trash on a random city in Massachusetts from time to time.
Maybe try wording your posts differently. It's obnoxious the way you make a very negative generalization of an entire city with no supporting reasoning or evidence. You seem to know (or share) very little about the cities you criticize. If you could infuse your posts with some useful information (may an explanation as to WHY these cities are "dumps" and where you get your crime statistics from), they may be a bit more helpful and less insulting to the entire populous of these cities.
On a positive, your username ("seldomseen") is quite accurate in that you are seldom seen except to trash on a random city in Massachusetts from time to time.
Do you think the fact you're a makes your post more informative and accurate? It's common knowledge that: Fall River, New Bedford, Lowell, Brockton, etc are "dumps". Try living in these cities and raising kids there!! Read the papers, police logs, etc. I'm providing common knowledge and/or first hand facts about these cities, but it's up to others to conduct research on their own if they want indepth information!
Before you criticize check yourself first! Your doesn't mean anything to me.
Last edited by CaseyB; 08-20-2009 at 08:15 AM..
Reason: personal attacks
Do you think the fact you're a makes your post more informative and accurate?
What on earth was that intended to say?
I do believe that informative posts (i.e. ones that use examples, statistics, and facts) are more useful than a quick, broad, stab at a certain area with little or nothing to support why you feel that way... I doubt many would disagree with that point. CLEARLY you dislike these places (which is fine) yet have never posted any reason why aside from the fact that these cities are "dumps." I think it would be a heck of a lot more helpful if you could elaborate on WHY they are "dumps." Not to mention, wording your post differently could be a lot less insulting (maybe a better word than "dump"... keep in mind hundreds of thousands of people live in these "dumps") to those who do live in those cities as well as add a bit more credibility to what post.
Quote:
It's common knowledge that: Fall River, New Bedford, Lowell, Brockton, etc are "dumps".
This is rich because, well, no it's not common knowledge. What it really is, is a common generalization of places that most people who make that generalization have NO idea about and are basing opinion (that's the key word there) on word of mouth hearsay.
Look, I'm not sitting here saying that these are all wonderful cities. The fact of the matter is that they have some serious issues (mostly economic, a lack of educated populous, and some spots of crime). There are reasons a reputation can build, but the reputation of Massachusetts' "gateway cities" is WAY out of hand in most instances.
My point is that every city that you so casually (carelessly?) write off as a "dump" has any number of redeeming qualities that may make it attractive to many people. For example (in addition to the recent posts on Fall River), New Bedford has one of the nicest downtown areas of ANY New England city. It's vibrant, active and home to many different cultural attractions. It also has a TON of unique history and some incredible neighborhoods and natural beauty. Sure, there are pockets of crime (note the word "pockets"... crime isn't rampant and widespread in ANY of these cities; check the papers and read where these crimes happen, it's usually a few of the same neighborhoods or projects... a mere FRACTION of each of these cities), but the trouble spots make up a small pocket of the entire city. The same can be said about most of the cities that you simply describe as a "dump."
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Try living in these cities and raising kids there!! Read the papers, police logs, etc.
Is everyone looking to move to these towns looking to raise kids? Absolutely not. Even those that are can do just fine doing so (find a good neighborhood, charter or private schools, and simple responsible parenting-- the lack of which is usually the biggest issue in these towns). You act like it's an impossible feat to raise a child in one of these towns! We're not talking about Kabul or Fallujah here!
MANY people (again, hundreds of thousands) live in these cities and raise kids there. Most of them turn out just fine. You only hear about the failures and problems which is, again, the exception and not the norm. Bad publicity (you only hear the bad in the Globe or in regional news, never the good) has crushed the reputation of these cities. You never hear that New Bedford (I'm using NB as a specific example, but same goes for all of the other cities) drew hundreds of thousands of people a few weeks ago to the world's largest Portuguese feast. You don't hear that it's the highest grossing fishing port in the nation, you don't hear about the vibrant restaurant scene or the charming historic streets. You don't hear about the brand new successful public schools helping kids get to college. You don't hear about the positive events that happen on a daily basis. No, all that makes the news is the occasional homicide or gas leak. Instead of looking into that a bit further, you (and lots of others) make sweeping negative generalizations. It's easy to fear or dislike what you don't know/ don't understand.
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I'm providing common knowledge and/or first hand facts about these cities, but it's up to others to conduct research on their own if they want indepth information!
Where are you providing "first hand facts" in ANY of your posts? All I see is repitition of the word "dump" and "crime." Your "common knowledge" is really "common misconception." Others do conduct research (which is why they come to this site); if you're not going to give them any information, why even post? Does it make you feel better to bash these cities?
You don't need to post "in depth" information, but when you make a huge generalization that an entire city is a "dump" to someone who is on this forum specifically for valuable information, it wouldn't hurt to elaborate just a little bit, right? If you were looking for info and someone made a brief, broad generalization, wouldn't you want to know why they feel that way?
Quote:
Before you criticize check yourself first! Your doesn't mean anything to me.
What should I check? and what on earth does "your doesn't mean anything to me" mean?
I've made some terrible posts (usually on impulse) that I've regretted writing. More often than not, though I think out what I'm writing. Your posts are (generally) negative towards the Bay State's gateway cities and you post no supporting reasoning as to why you post so negatively. It's one thing to have an opinion (which you CLEARLY have and are more than entitled to), it's another to state opinion as fact which seems to be the case in many of your posts.
If you did check the "facts," you'd see that Fall River, New Bedford, Lowell, etc all rank O.K. on a national scale in terms of crime rate (the exception being Springfield which ranks in the top 50 worst, but not too high). No, they don't necessarily rank wonderfully (though cities like Fall River and New Bedford rank better than many cities considered "safe" for an urban area), but they're not too bad at all. Moreover, the crime in ALL of these cities is generally isolated to certain spots. This means that these cities aren't, in fact, crime filled dumps. They're cities with trouble spots. Which is why I like to point out that you can easily find a WONDERFUL home in a great neighborhood (not to mention, at prices better than you'll find anywhere else in Mass.) in some of these cities. Your generalizations tend to imply to someone unfamiliar with these towns that they're going to run the risk of being murdered instantly anywhere within the city limits. It's just not the case with ANY of those towns. These are cities with a good mix of trouble and bright spots... they're not nearly as bad as you imply. Certainly not as bad as MANY cities in this country. They can (and are), in fact, WONDERFUL places for many, many, many people.
If you want to post helpful info, give people something to work with. Don't generalize. It's relatively simple to do and it would make your posts more useful and less offensive at the same time.
If you dont mind quietness. - why don't you move out to Rehoboth or Dighton area? I'm sure you could find a quiet place. You'd only be about 5-10 miles from Porvidence down 44.
There's a lot of back country roads you can take too through the woods. to Pawtucket and then down from there if you wanted to avoid traffic.
Swansea Mass. or Somerset might be worth looking into.
They are about 5 miles from Providence and right on 195.
also a lot of back routes that can by pass the highway
Bristol or Barrington RI might be good to look into as well.
(EAST BAY)
Pawtucket, Greenville, Warwick, and Cranston are good choices as well
You could even live in the Attleboro / Mansfield area. both have commuter rail to Boston and Providence and are within commuting distance
Well, yes it is, that is if you 'live' near 'Fall River......and spend any 'time' there....... and your eyes are open.......
Right because every square inch of every one of those cities is a "dump." None of them have any redeeming qualities or unique features/neighborhoods that may not be terrible?
Come on... they're not wonderful by any stretch but these generalizations that they're all just useless and 100% cesspools are simply wrong.
For the record, I grew up 2 miles from the Fall River city line. Spent a LOT of time (still do) in Fall River/ New Bedford. I'm very familiar with both places and enjoy a lot of what they have to offer.
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It's common knowledge that: Fall River, New Bedford, Lowell, Brockton, etc are "dumps". Try living in these cities and raising kids there!! Read the papers, police logs, etc. I'm providing common knowledge and/or first hand facts about these cities, but it's up to others to conduct research on their own if they want indepth information! 
