My neighborhood becoming ghetto ? (Milwaukee, Wauwatosa: for sale, 2013, apartments)

[computer_programmer]

I am concerned my neighborhood is becoming ghetto. I live in the Grantosa section of Milwaukee. In the past three months there has been three shootings in my neighborhood. That type of activity never used to occur here. There was a shooting the Friday before Memorial Day on 99th and Grantosa. Also last week there was a shooting on 104th and Congress and just yesterday (Saturday) there was a shooting in the middle of the day on 102nd and Sharon Ln. What is going on ?? Until recently this type of behavior never occurred around here. I am seriously considering moving. Any thoughts from people that live or work in this area are greatly appreciated.

Thank you for your time.

[Milwaukee City]

Yeah it is, I used to spend a lot of time over there and it has become more iffy. It wasn't like that even 3 years ago, it's not like the area looks bad or had a bad reputation it was quiet sleepy but it's funny you bring this up because I just said the same thing to a friend of mine just a few weeks ago. I told him the area has changed. It depends on what block you live on but I would move based on what the area used to be to what it is now.

[computer_programmer]

Thanks for the response. The surrounding businesses are being affected too. The gyro place on 100th and Capitol went out of business about 6 months to a year ago. Also I quit going to the Mobil gas station across the street from the closed up Gyro place cause there are some pretty creepy looking people that go in there. The furniture store and Play It Again sports across the street from Mobil have been broken into multiple times.

Too bad the Gyro place went under I used to love their Gyros.

[Allan Trafton]

It has more to do with the rentals in the area. The homes are nice and taken well care of, but the apartments on Congress and Hampton are shabby and full of rent assistance residents. It's not really new. This has transpired over the past twenty years. Hampton between 76th and 91st looks sad. Too much litter. The buildings from the front look o.k., but in the back by the parking and dumpsters it's a disaster.

I don't know if it's becoming ghetto. It been this way for a while. Nice homes and bad rentals. In regards to the shooting. In a neighborhood like this, you could go 6 months with nothing and then three in a week. Hard to tell.

This area boarders Wauwatosa. It is only a matter of time until urban problems start to appear in near by suburbs. That idiot state senator(Leah Vulchner?), from Wauwatosa, should have kept this in mind when she was rallying for the removal of the employee residence rule. Now the areas surrounding Wauwatosa will become more stressed, not less. She had an iron collar around her town and now it is gone.

[MidwestRedux]

RIP Northwest Side of Milwaukee. Its been a long and painful decline, but I don't think this or any of the other similar areas are going to get better. They will probably continue to get worse. I don't live in Milwaukee anymore, but I still visit every year or so. Not seeing it everyday, the decline is even more pronounced.

I think Milwaukee's well deserved reputation as one of the most segregated cities is largely to blame. On paper, Milwaukee is quite diverse and demographically similar to many other mid-large US cities. The reality is quite different.

In most places "white flight' ended or at least slowed down a long time ago. In Milwaukee, it is taking place in large numbers as we speak. You are witnessing it. Look at the asking price of homes for sale in the areas you mentioned. They're being sold for a fraction of what they cost to build. That's because people can't get out quick enough.

Of course, can you really blame the family that leaves because there have been three shootings in their neighborhood? They're not leaving because their neighborhood is becoming more diverse, they're leaving because its become more dangerous.

The real tragedy is that in Milwaukee, more often that not, the two go hand in hand. Until that cycle ends, the future is pretty bleak for this and other similar areas.

[Allan Trafton]

I don't think white flight has ended in America. Take a look at Furgunson or anywhere in North St.Louis county. Southfield MI is another example of white flight or many suburban areas of Chicago. It is happening, but not like the 60's and 70's. Now it is city to suburb or suburb to suburb flight. Milwaukee's Northwest side is black suburbia, the same way the south suburbs of Chicago and north suburbs of St.Louis are the suburbs to their black population.

Milwaukee is far from the only metro area dealing with this problem. It's all over the US.

[MidwestRedux]

Its true that these problems are not unique to Milwaukee. However, the extent to which they exist and the lack of exceptions to them is an unfortunate Milwaukee legacy. This article is in no way an outlier:

Most Segregated Cities In America - Business Insider

Cities like St. Louis and Cleveland are some of the closest comps in this area and they also rank high (or low) on that list.

Again, the thing that stands out is that while the east side may contain more people that are accepting of different races/ethnicities, it's still pretty homogeneous.

Any way you cut it, and getting back to the OP's original point, the net effect is that the City of Milwaukee is continuing to become less livable.

[cheese plate]

Originally Posted by MidwestRedux

Any way you cut it, and getting back to the OP's original point, the net effect is that the City of Milwaukee is continuing to become less livable.

You're DEFINITELY wrong here.

Some areas are getting worse, while many others are getting better. One neighborhood's plight isn't indicative of the entire city. Overall, the city has grown positively over the past few years.

[MidwestRedux]

Originally Posted by cheese plate

You're DEFINITELY wrong here.

Some areas are getting worse, while many others are getting better. One neighborhood's plight isn't indicative of the entire city. Overall, the city has grown positively over the past few years.

Ok, so I am an average wage earner with family of four looking to buy a house in Milwaukee for about the metro area (not city) average of $150-$200k. I don't need a big fancy house, but I do need a 3+ bedroom SFR in a reasonably safe area with reasonably good and safe schools. How many neighborhoods meet this criteria? Based on the schools alone, do any?

[Allan Trafton]

You would be shocked how many middle class city residents use open enrollment to send their kids to suburban schools. Many suburban districts are over 30% enrollment city children. Menomonee Falls, St.Francis, Wauwatosa, Greendale, Greenfield and on and on. They need the city kids to keep their enrollment up. It's an open secret. Also, with the high income limits for school choice it has opened up many options for schools. I know a MPS seasoned long term teacher with an employed wife who sends his kids to an expensive private high school with a choice voucher.

To answer your question on what percent? I would put it well over 50% with the many school options families now have.