[janecity]

hi - i've lived all over michigan, but in the very distant past. i'm now stuck in another state and want to go back to michigan. jobs and k-12 schools and nightlife are not at all important to me, but these things are: safety, culture, urban life (where you can walk everywhere, know all different kinds of people, find things not offered in a rural setting), varied and "alternative" food choices in the markets, intelligent life, etc. does kalamazoo fit the bill?

and, finally, what is the area like that houses the apartments (gull prairie and gull run) across from meijer's on gull rd? thanks a lot for any help.

[cosgr1tl]

My boyfriend lived in Gull Run for two years, and they're fine. Space is decent (he was in a 1 bed/1 bath), large WIC, good sized vanity in bathroom. Kitchen was a little outdated but they are in a good location. We just packed him up last weekend and his stuff was packed in the open bed of a truck for 8+ hours and no one so much as looked in there, let alone stole anything. Lots of stuff nearby for food options. Downsides would be it isn't walkable to the downtown area everyone hangs out and goes to the bar, and there aren't really any breakfast spots nearby; you need to go downtown for that (and wait an hour because the brunch places are always crowded) or hit up Ihop in Portage.

[janecity]

cosgr1tl - thanks so much for your post. it was really helpful. could you tell me if it's a noisy place? i really need it quiet, and a few posters have mentioned that it's pretty noisy, and, from what you wrote, it seems that there might be lots of noise from people partying. thanks again!

[MS313]

You want an urban style environment but you want it to be quiet? More people = more noise. You can't have 30 homes on one city block and expect it to sound like suburbia. The area is not really urban but it is pretty safe. It's near a major street so it may have a bit of noise.

[janecity]

yes, marv, and are the buildings themselves quiet or are people partying all the time?

[MS313]

Originally Posted by janecity

yes, marv, and are the buildings themselves quiet or are people partying all the time?

For the most part, you would have to compromise one for the other. An urban area is usually not too quiet. Kalamazoo's most urban neighborhoods would be on the southside in the Edison neighborhood and in what they call the "student ghetto" near Old Central (S Westnedge & Vine area). But this area on Gull Rd is not really urban at all, it's on the eastern edge of Kalamazoo and it's suburban-ish at best. Actually, if you go another mile east up Gull Rd, you will start seeing cornfields. As far as alot of parties go, it's not anywhere near as bad as the complexes on the westside near WMU, that's for sure. You may see a few get togethers but the police in Kalamazoo are usually pretty tight on parties (they shut them down quick). I never really hear about too many parties over there so I think you would be ok. Take a trip through there on a Friday or Saturday night around 11 or 12am and see if it's ok to you. Or better yet, you should really talk to some of the tenants there.

[janecity]

thanks a lot, marv. now i feel like i have a better picture of both the immediate area, the apts, and the town in general. now to make a decision!