Memphis's changing neighborhoods

[tigerphan]

Good article posted on CNBC (A NYT piece) about a neighborhood in Memphis that's been seeing change:
As renters move in, some homeowners fret

[Mouldy Old Schmo]

Originally Posted by tigerphan

Good article posted on CNBC (A NYT piece) about a neighborhood in Memphis that's been seeing change:
As renters move in, some homeowners fret

People buying old homes and converting them into rental properties has been going on for several years in the side of town I live in. What usually happens is that the original owners died and their children have moved away, and couples with a lot of money prefer larger homes. It may or may not be coincidental that we have been having problems with teenagers hanging out at a local park and leaving a lot of trash.

[JoeCartpath]

I lived in that subdivision (Hillshire) many years ago when it was new. I had a new house built at the end of a cove there, and lived there for 13 years - and it was a nice area for the price. We left (just owing one more year on the mortgage!) and moved into Bartlett about 23 or 24 years ago because the neighborhood was already in decline at that time. They were cheap starter homes. The original owners tended to take pride in the homes and in the neighborhood. When those owners sold, the second owners, for the most part, didn't have the same level of pride and the houses and yards started looking run down - and the ones that became rental homes fared even worse.

I've never understood the mindset of people who don't care about the appearance of their surroundings - whether they are owners or renters. Like most people, I started off renting...and I left every place I ever rented (or owned) looking better than it did when I arrived.

[tigerphan]

Originally Posted by JoeCartpath

I lived in that subdivision (Hillshire) many years ago when it was new. I had a new house built at the end of a cove there, and lived there for 13 years - and it was a nice area for the price. We left (just owing one more year on the mortgage!) and moved into Bartlett about 23 or 24 years ago because the neighborhood was already in decline at that time. They were cheap starter homes. The original owners tended to take pride in the homes and in the neighborhood. When those owners sold, the second owners, for the most part, didn't have the same level of pride and the houses and yards started looking run down - and the ones that became rental homes fared even worse.

That whole area out there north of I-40 around Whitten or Shelby Oaks is a strange vestige of a time when anything went in Memphis from a developer standpoint. I bet almost nothing was out there when Hillshire was developed with the exception of some businesses along Summer. Whitten road itself is a strange mix of production housing, light industrial use, distribution centers, and auto-body shops. I think things would be different if there was even moderate restraint on what was built along Germantown parkway in the 1990s. The area south of I-40 out there isn't much better.

I really wish the city would do more to improve the asthetics of that area. A little landscaping in the public right of way, decorative street lights, and new pavement would go a long way. It's much more organized when you get into Bartlett.

[WTRIGG]

Its been a bunch of BS of what is and what is not South Memphis, who is, who is not South Memphis. Westwood is just as much, might as well say more South Memphis than Bunker Hill or any other hood near Hamilton or BTW. Geographically, Westwood is the southernmost neighborhood in the city. So common sense Westwood is undoubtedly South Memphis. Part of my point is a bunch of people so quick to claim East Memphis especially the ones not living in the East Memphis limits. But a bunch of people want to divide South Memphis by saying what is, what not South Memphis. Months ago I wrote on You Know You're From South Memphis facebook page South Memphis Stand Up! mentioning bunch of the neighborhoods in South Memphis including Westwood. I got plenty of likes for that. People need to cease this division and make South Memphis a better community.

[MrOtiose]

They are planning to put a giant 'W'....
People only need to visit this area in Broad Daylight and never after dark. The Hotels and motels in area which are very few, have high security for a reason.
I love Graceland and the connection of the King of Rock and Roll, but this is merely a tourist trap.
The city of memphis is wasting tax payers money on a road to the jungle room, and a pink Cadillac.
For many years, Graceland has been Tennessee's Top attraction, because of the emotions Pelvis planted in our lives at a young age, fans will continue to revisit and write on the stone wall.
But remember W means WARNING.

[eastmemphisguy]

As it happens, there's a new full service hotel in the works for the Graceland area. The area is not where I'd want to live, but many thousands of tourist visit each year with few problems. The most dangerous part of going to Graceland, or just about anywhere, is the drive. Cars are very dangerous, but the same folks who obsess over crime, but drive all day long, never stop to think about that.

[jabogitlu]

I'd agree that driving in Memphis, especially parts of Memphis like South Memphis, can be very dangerous! LOL!

Now they're saying the airplanes might be removed.