I LOVE New Orleans, but . . . (Metairie, Kenner: upper-class, crime, neighborhoods)

[Stephen Neil]

(Sorry for the silly thread title, I'm trying to get some diversity of opinion here and needed one that would attract attention.)

I'm thinking about moving to New Orleans.

I'm from north Alabama but I've done some traveling and lived elsewhere.

I'm 28 and have a BA in art. My interests are literally almost without end. I'm currently studying to be a pharmacy tech. I'm a pretty good cook and I love food, in a pinch I can work in a restaurant kitchen though I prefer not to any longer.

I love people and I'm very social, but I'm probably more discerning than average about my friends. I like to be around people who are as smart or moreso than myself. Not to be pompous but this isn't so easily found (especially in the South).

I have been to NOLA six or seven times but not since 2004 or so. I absolutely love it down there. I know it's "****ed up" in a dozen different senses of that phrase. I don't really know what to ask- I've heard people say "the city is dying." Is it?

I didn't come here to ask the same old questions you've all heard before- I assume that crime can be avoided if you have your wits about you and stay out the bad parts of town. I can deal with the heat and humidity. I'm not scared of another hurricane, though maybe I should be.

I'm just wondering how the city's doing, and want some thoughts from as many different people as I can. As I get older, being close to nature is more and more important to me, so I've decided I want to stay in the south rather than returning to Chicago, where I lived for a couple of years. But at the same time I need to feel confident that there are smart and creative people around me, and I'm hoping New Orleans isn't just full of idiot party people now.

I would elaborate but that will reduce the chances of people reading my post. I will add that I'm an atheist, and I hope that shouldn't matter much?

I'll also reiterate that I've been down there six times and I know I love the city. I'm just wondering how livable it is. I grew up not wanting for anything, I'll admit, but I have since learned how to live with less. I can adapt, in other words. If my intellect is stimulated and I'm eating well and have a few solid friends, I'm happy. Help me out! Should I move to NOLA?

[Innotech]

Move to the north bank. The area west of SLidell and north of the lake. It isnt nearly so flood prone and there is a bridge directly across the lake Pontchartrain into the city. Many people commute into New Orleans from there and the towns up there have all the amenities with much less crime and problems. You are also in a position for easy hurricane evacuation directly north into Mississippi if the need arises. Its probably your safest bet if you want to live new NOLA. I do not recommend living in NOLA directly unless you were intimately familiar with the streets and layout because there are patches of safe and dangerous neighborhoods all over the city.

[SaintTaris]

No such thing as the North Bank. I assume you mean North SHORE. The North shore is North of Lake Pontchartrain in St. Tammany Parish. The North Shore is basically a wonder bread suburb of New Orleans and is a great place to raise a family. The North Shore has Louisiana culture with a bet of suburban America thrown in. You will find chain restaurants as well as local restaurants. If you are a fan of strip malls with chili's, Applebee’s and Fridays, and are interested in being about 45 mins away from the New Orleans, then the North Shore is for you.

I'm not sure what your meaning of ****ed up is but New Orleans is not ****ed up. New Orleans is New Orleans. I would recommend The Garden District. You may get a kick out of sipping specialty coffee while blogging on your laptop.

[Innotech]

Originally Posted by SaintTaris

No such thing as the North Bank. I assume you mean North SHORE. The North shore is North of Lake Pontchartrain in St. Tammany Parish. The North Shore is basically a wonder bread suburb of New Orleans and is a great place to raise a family. The North Shore has Louisiana culture with a bet of suburban America thrown in. You will find chain restaurants as well as local restaurants. If you are a fan of strip malls with chili's, Applebee’s and Fridays, and are interested in being about 45 mins away from the New Orleans, then the North Shore is for you.

I'm not sure what your meaning of ****ed up is but New Orleans is not ****ed up. New Orleans is New Orleans. I would recommend The Garden District. You may get a kick out of sipping specialty coffee while blogging on your laptop.

Im sorry, I meant Northshore yeah. I was thinking of the West Bank.
Im still kind of in a delirium from a 43 year old beloved team just doing what no one ever expected them to do.

[SaintTaris]

Originally Posted by Innotech

Im sorry, I meant Northshore yeah. I was thinking of the West Bank.
Im still kind of in a delirium from a 43 year old beloved team just doing what no one ever expected them to do.

Im right there with ya Innotech. Im not old enough to had endured all 43 years but I'm a life long Saints fan. Ohh, I grew up on the West Bank.

[Stephen Neil]

Originally Posted by SaintTaris

No such thing as the North Bank. I assume you mean North SHORE. The North shore is North of Lake Pontchartrain in St. Tammany Parish. The North Shore is basically a wonder bread suburb of New Orleans and is a great place to raise a family. The North Shore has Louisiana culture with a bet of suburban America thrown in. You will find chain restaurants as well as local restaurants. If you are a fan of strip malls with chili's, Applebee’s and Fridays, and are interested in being about 45 mins away from the New Orleans, then the North Shore is for you.

I'm not sure what your meaning of ****ed up is but New Orleans is not ****ed up. New Orleans is New Orleans. I would recommend The Garden District. You may get a kick out of sipping specialty coffee while blogging on your laptop.

If you aren't sure what my meaning of "f'd up" is, how can you make a claim about it?

I've talked to some people down there who say the city is very dysfunctional. I don't think you should take offense, because I love the city to death and I'm not really all that bothered by what I've read and heard and seen. Figured it couldn't hurt to probe for some more opinions.

I pick up a tone of sarcasm in your comment about specialty coffee. I drink black coffee and I don't own a laptop, thanks.

[Stephen Neil]

And thanks, by the way. I have just looked into Mandeville a little, but honestly, I'm single and have no intention of raising a family anytime in the next several years. I prefer life in the city proper. I suppose if it were a lot less expensive in a place like North Shore I might consider it. 45 minutes is a bit of a drive into NOLA, though....

[thepointykitty]

Stephen,

I had never been to New Orleans until April of 2008, when my husband and I "ran off and got married" there. I don't know what it was like before the storm, but I do know that no other place I've ever visited has grabbed my heart with both hands like New Orleans immediately did. We've been back many times since and will be moving permanently in the next few weeks. We just got back from our last visit about 12 hours ago.

Every time we go, we drive all over the city and mark good and bad areas on our map. We talk to people of all sorts. We have friends in Mandeville, Slidell, and Mid-City. We've also visited Metairie and Kenner and Gretna just to "be sure", but there's never been any question in my mind that I wanted to live in New Orleans itself.

I am 37 years old, caucasian, no children, and we own a small but growing costume business. We are from the city of Atlanta (not some gloriously mediocre suburb) and we know how to take care of ourselves. Sh*t happens everywhere, and you just have to be smart. We've never had a bad experience in New Orleans because we don't hang out with drug dealers or walk around at night in unfamiliar areas. We don't do that in Atlanta, either, or even in my in-laws' upper-class, whitebread suburb (where a young friend of the family was almost kidnapped last year by a stranger).

Get your butt to New Orleans and use your brain! In all of our visits, we have yet to meet a rude person, black or white, and the creative/artistic community there is incredible. I know there are criminals and thugs there, but the more good people that come the more outnumbered the bad ones will be. Life is what you make of it, and you get back what you put out. Focus on the positive and deal with the negative when necessary, but don't dwell on it. There are so many great neighborhoods in New Orleans. It is far, far from dead. Come on down, re-familiarize yourself and consider making the move. You could be a part of making a great city even better ;-)

[Stephen Neil]

I know how to fly under the radar and I do not attract attention to myself. I'm a Southerner but I have spent enough time in cities to know how to conduct myself.

Thanks for the encouragement! New Orleans has my heart too, it always has. When I get the city on my mind I can hardly think of anything else.

Costume business huh? That sounds fun. You're taking it to NOLA?

Hope things work out... I would like to see your shop!

[rdhbs93]

Life's too short...what are you waiting for? Go for it!