a little nervous about my new neighborhood (Milwaukee, Greenfield: apartments, lease)

[tazox]

Hi all

I'm 19 and just signed a contract for my first apartment with a close friend of mine in Milwaukee. We are moving in a few weeks. It's on wells street, pretty close to the eagles club if that gives you an idea of the neighborhood. Anyway, it was a perfect place for us because it's SO close to our jobs and it was a good price.

I've managed to scare myself about robberies / murders though. When I mentioned to my brother where my new place was, he seemed very concerned and warned me not to go outside at night. He also said that two clean cut white kids were perfect targets and that we'd more than likely be taken advantage of. I don't know exactly what he meant but it made me a little nervous.

To make things worse, a friend of mine just posted a status on Facebook today about how someone was just shot and killed on her street in Milwaukee.

I'm feeling a little anxious about it and am starting to regret signing the contract. Is that neighborhood really that bad? Can anyone help reassure me? I've lived in the suburbs my whole life so this is going to be a big change. If it means anything, there is a middle school very close nearby and I would assume crimes don't really happen around middle schools...right?

[zoomkay]

Yeah...I would not have signed the lease for that area.

Unfortunately, your intuition was correct. I am not saying you would be a target based on your race (anyone is fair game in that area), but I would not recommend going for leisure walks past 9 p.m. by yourself either.

If can't break your lease, just be sure to be aware of your surroundings at all times. Do not walk with earplugs/headphones on, and do not walk and text. Walk with no distractions whatsoever. Do not leave anything, I mean absolutely nothing in your car (if you have one), and keep it locked at all times. Do not answer your door for anyone if you are not expecting visitors (have all your visitors call your cell phone first). If you have to, set up a PO BOX so that packages can be delivered directly to the post office.

Make sure you have emergency contacts programmed into your phone (ex: ICE Mom, ICE Dad, ICE Roommate).

Crime can happen anywhere, even near schools in broad daylight. I am not trying to scare you, but you have to be prepared for urban living.

[Vegas_Cabbie]

Good answer from Zoom.

Try your best to get out of the contract and get out of there... There's nothing wrong with going from a suburb upbringing to a city-livin young adult... But that area will not provide for a fun city experience and you might be turned off by the city life because of this particular area. There honestly isn't much good that can be said about that area. I echo Zoom's comments... You will have to heighten your sense of awareness big time. Truly consider everything you do and how it might leave you vulnerable.

You mentioned that the price was low... There's a reason for it. Try and break the lease. Lots of considerably better options within a reasonable distance of that area.

[thefragile]

Originally Posted by tazox

Hi all

I'm 19 and just signed a contract for my first apartment with a close friend of mine in Milwaukee. We are moving in a few weeks. It's on wells street, pretty close to the eagles club if that gives you an idea of the neighborhood. Anyway, it was a perfect place for us because it's SO close to our jobs and it was a good price.

I've managed to scare myself about robberies / murders though. When I mentioned to my brother where my new place was, he seemed very concerned and warned me not to go outside at night. He also said that two clean cut white kids were perfect targets and that we'd more than likely be taken advantage of. I don't know exactly what he meant but it made me a little nervous.

To make things worse, a friend of mine just posted a status on Facebook today about how someone was just shot and killed on her street in Milwaukee.

I'm feeling a little anxious about it and am starting to regret signing the contract. Is that neighborhood really that bad? Can anyone help reassure me? I've lived in the suburbs my whole life so this is going to be a big change. If it means anything, there is a middle school very close nearby and I would assume crimes don't really happen around middle schools...right?

Just keep your wits about you, keep your eyes open & like zoom said, leave nothing of value in your car. No it's not a great area but you'll find Marquette students in the area so you won't be the only white guys. It's the city, like any city you just stay aware of your surroundings. Don't worry, you'll be fine. Enjoy!

[MidwestRedux]

As other have said: Any chance you could back out at this point? It would probably be worth losing a little money to do so.

If someone was moving from the south Bronx, this neighborhood wouldn't seem all that bad. However, for someone coming from the suburbs, it may take a while to get used to this area at the very least.

The chances of being randomly gunned down in the streets are very minimal. However, robberies, assaults, burglaries and the like aren't so uncommon in that area.

If its any consolation, there are worse neighborhoods in Milwaukee that you could be moving to. One of the few positives of this general area is that its not an urban wasteland, as much of the north side of Milwaukee is. Because of its proximity to Marquette and Downtown, there is a fair amount of activity in the area, and not all of it is drug dealing and prostitution. During the day, you should be ok if you keep your wits about you. At night you will want to be extra, extra cautious.

[tazox]

Thanks for the replies. We might be able to back out of the lease but we're just a few signatures away from getting the keys. I was looking at a crime map, and although there were a few scattered burglaries in the area, there did not seem to be any in close proximity to our apartments. In our specific circumstances, we really need to move out for a couple of different reasons. So it's a really tough choice for us...maybe we'll sit down and talk about it a bit more before making the final decision.

I did read that the west side isn't nearly as bad as the north or south side but..yeah, still a bit shady and scary. We are very modest people though, very quiet and work focused. Hopefully these are variable characteristics to deter criminals.

[cheese plate]

That area is worse than the south side. I wouldn't live in that neighborhood. I mean, if you follow the advice above, you should be fine, but I'd rather come-and-go as I please than have to worry about that crap.

[brrabbit]

In addition to everything mentioned above -
- don't be afraid (it shows and attracts bullies attention)
- be friendly (to a reasonable point)
- don't get involved unless you have to
- don't carry too much cash, but do have some at all times (be willing to part with it easily and with good smile - something like "I can see you guys need it more than me")
- don't be afraid to switch sides of a street, take a detour, or run away if you see trouble approaching you
- if you cannot run away, punch first and try to stay on your feet as long as possible (cover your head, neck and vital organs when down). Even if you have no chance to win, they wouldn't start another fight with you if you make it unpleasant enough for them in the first time.
- go to some good fighting school, like classic boxing, Krav Maga, or Thai boxing.

[Allan Trafton]

It sounds as if the apartment is in the Marquette University housing zone or right next to it. It seems to me that thousands of MU students do just fine living in this neighborhood. I wouldn't worry, just use common sense. My daughter lives in the MU area and I don't worry. MU police and MPD watch the area closely and do a good job.

[Allan Trafton]

Originally Posted by cheese plate

That area is worse than the south side. I wouldn't live in that neighborhood. I mean, if you follow the advice above, you should be fine, but I'd rather come-and-go as I please than have to worry about that crap.

This depends where on the south side. I would take 20th and Wisconsin over 10th and Greenfield or 6th and Cleveland anyday of the week. No question about it.