Northbury Colony Apartments in Warren, Ohio (Highland: rentals, crime, townhouse)

[jak3811]

Hello,

I am attending YSU for graduate school and I have decided (for the most part) of moving to Northbury Apartments in Warren (owned by Simco). I was wondering if anyone had any experience with these apartments, the surrounding area, or the Howland school district?

I have a daughter who will be starting kindergarten in the fall so the school is important to me, from what I can find it seems like a good school, and because I will only be at ysu for two years I am only worried abut K and 1'st grade before I have to move again.

If anyone had any thoughts on the area, or such, please let me know,
Thanks!

[UntamedOhioan]

Well, I don't know exactly where those apartments are, but I go to Howland. We are one of the highest ranked schools in the state. Very nice school district and teachers.

Just be careful with some parts of Warren. It's a very pretty place overall (Warren Photo-tour (Warning if you have dial-up) for pics) but some places are pretty bad. Don't let that scare, you though: every place has crime. I'd say 60% of Warren is ok to good, and 40% isn't so good. I wish I could tell you which ones are & aren't, but I don't know that much about it. I prefer to focus on the positive. . It's one of the more historic areas of Ohio. Some of the dining areas have a very "retro" feel, and there are plenty of large Victorian-era homes/buildings. It's hard to describe. The city is aged & slightly run-down but in an elegant, nostalgic way. Here is a great blog about the Warren area, Dare to Dream: http://dar2dream.wordpress.com/


Also, once you get there, go to the Hot Dog Shoppe. It's not even an option. If you ever go to Warren you MUST go there! I've known someone who traveled all over the place and now lives in LA return to the Hot Dog Shoppe and say they are the best hot dogs she has ever eaten. Not only that, but their prices haven't changed since the early 80's so it's dirt cheap. Same thing with Mocha House and get the Oreo Pie.

[CortlandGirl79]

^Northbury apts are those one's off or North Rd and Reeves across from Blessed Sacrament.

JAK, forgot to tell you earlier, if you are working (which i assume you are), you will have to pay a wage tax of 2% to the city of Warren if you live in Warren. Northbury is located in the city, so prepare yourself to pay that tax man.

[jeratboy]

Northbury Colony is ok, but not great. If you are going to live there, at least explore Blessed Sacrament School. You don't have to be Catholic. Howland schools are fine. I went there in the 60's and early 70's.
For your information the Hot Dog Shoppe is in a part of Warren you do not want to go to. If it is not NE, don't even go into Warren.
You may want to think about an apartment in Howland. You might have to wait for a long time for Warren police to arrive at Northbury Colony. Howland also has ambulance service. There is a day and night difference in services from Howland(township) to Warren(city).

[CortlandGirl79]

^Northbury Colony is a perfectly fine place to live, it's not like he's going to be living in the Highland Homes. I'm not sure what your idea of "great" is, but i can't think of any apartments around here that i would consider "great". What apartments in Howland would you suggest?????? I only know of one other complex that i would consider "nice", but some drug dealer got murdered there and it seems that many Howland people would like to forget that. Look, I didn't love the place, but i lived in Northbury for 2 years up until last fall and i saw the Warren Police patrol in there at least once a day and except for a few bad apples it's perfectly safe.

Also, i doubt someone who is going to grad school and has a child can or would want to afford catholic school. Howland schools are rated Excellent by the state and so are many of the other districts in our area.

As for the Hot Dog Shoppe, it's on a very busy corner and the area always has a ton of people around. As long as you're going there during daylights hours you'll be fine. I've been there a million times over my 31 years and as a female i would feel safe going there to eat or pick up food. If it was so dangerous i doubt so many families would go there, let alone the young teens that work there.

I do agree that Warren's NE side is the best, but that doesn't mean you shouldn't venture into other parts of town. Eastland is on the SE side, would you avoid St. Joe's hospital? What about North Rd. between 422 and old 82? Most of the area off of north Tod on the NW side is ok. Granted i wouldn't live on the SE side near 169 or 422 and i would never venture anywhere on the SW side unless i had to, but i think you've been living in the suburbs for entirely too long! I've walked around Courthouse Square by myself on a weekend and i know people that live downtown that love it. My friends and i go to the Mocha House and the Horseshoe Bar at times and i've never felt unsafe. The only way you're going to get murdered in Warren is if you're a prostitute, druggie or drug dealer.......perhaps a victim of domestic violence. Oh, and let me remind you, there are some pretty unsavory parts of Howland as well....Ridge Rd., the area near JFK, the neighborhoods off of larchmont, what about behind the Elm Rd Plaza???? Oh that's right, Howland people don't like to claim those areas, you must live "up the hill"......

[UntamedOhioan]

Originally Posted by jeratboy

Northbury Colony is ok, but not great. If you are going to live there, at least explore Blessed Sacrament School. You don't have to be Catholic. Howland schools are fine. I went there in the 60's and early 70's.
For your information the Hot Dog Shoppe is in a part of Warren you do not want to go to. If it is not NE, don't even go into Warren.
You may want to think about an apartment in Howland. You might have to wait for a long time for Warren police to arrive at Northbury Colony. Howland also has ambulance service. There is a day and night difference in services from Howland(township) to Warren(city).

Oh brother, I've lived here my whole life & been around town a million times and never had any trouble. Just don't be an idiot and make sure to lock your car doors after leaving. The Hot Dog Shoppe parking lot is crowded 24/7. Crime should not be a deterrence to doing things in ANY city.

Seriously don't listen. He'/she's right about the whole Blessed Sacrament thing though- it's been my family's church since it was built and their schools are great.

[Droolrockworm]

If you live in Warren or the surrounding area its manditory that you go to The Hot Dog Shoppe! I have lived in the area my whole life and go there all the time and never have had an issue. The Appts. in question are fine I have a few friends that lived there and they never had an issue. Lets point out that if you are going to YSU that the area around the campus is much more of an issue than the Hot Dog Shoppe area.

[HippieMom06]

Wow...I live in one of those areas near larchmont and my street is fine, but the next one over looks junky. On our street we know each other and look out for each other and very rarely experience crime. The hot dog shoppe isn't in a bad area as long as you go there and go home, just don't go for a leisurely drive around there at night. Howland schools are good, I went in 7th grade and my neighborhood kids all attend. My only issue with howland is that the school is huge, lots of students. When I moved from here I went to a school with 56 in my class rather than 560. Northbury Colony is ok. Its not first class living but its nice. My cousin and her fiance have lived in both an apartment and a townhouse and they're nice for a small family.

My ysu grad school interview is in august so hopefully I will be joining you and good luck on the living arrangements!

A previous poster was right about Mocha House, but you will go back repeatedly before you even begin to try all the desserts you want!

[Cisco GT]

I currently live in Northbury Colony & have for the past 2 years. I spent my first year living in a townhome (Hi Cort! lol) on the backside of the neighborhood and thoroughly loved it. Last year, my girlfriend & I moved to an apartment at the front of the complex... that's a decision that I've regretted making ever since.

I can't honestly say that what I'm experiencing now didn't exist a year ago, because it probably did to some extent... I just didn't notice it as I was tucked away back in the corner. I have however noticed that things have taken a turn for the worse over the past 6 months...

At one point, it wasn't uncommon to see walkers, joggers or bike riders out at any given time, night or day. Neighbors were often outside on their patios, talking it up, having cookouts or enjoying a cold beverage on a hot summer day. I'm sad to report that you don't see that here anymore. The once quiet neighborhood has become a home for a lot of unwanted activity lately, especially around the center of the complex near the playground/basketball court. The streets are now flooded with the sounds of obnoxious car stereo systems, people racing down the streets going twice the speed limit, teenagers yelling at one another (or worse yet, fighting) & children screaming at the top of their lungs for no apparent reason other than the lack of parental supervision. The overall feel of the neighborhood now could be accurity described as 'kaotic', especially during the early evening to late night hours.

As previously stated, the neighborhood was once well patrolled by on duty & off duty Warren police officers but lately their presence here has been due to numorous complaints of vandalism, unrulely behavior, noise complaints & even thefts. I spoke with an officer last night who reported that the number of complaints has more than doubled in just the past few weeks. He also confirmed that many of the people whom the complaints were made against were indeed, not residents, but often "guests" of residents who live here.

I wouldn't go as far as to say that Northbury has gone comepletely down the tubes, but I'd strongly urge anyone who's considering a move here to do their research beforehand... It's not the same neighborhood that it was even a year ago. Take a few drives through the neighborhood at various times of the day & night & make your decision based from what you've seen firsthand. It's also noteworthy to add that Simco recently (within the past year) slashed the rental rates of their townhomes & apartments @ Northbury in order to entice people to move in (or to keep it's current residents for that matter). While the idea of paying less was great at first, I think the higher rental rates were the neighborhood's 'security fence'.

In closing, Simco does do a pretty good job of maintaining it's rentals & providing it's residents with nice units but that's where it ends. Personally I think a lot more could be done by the on site management to make this a nicer place to live... history has proven that. Policing the neighborhood shouldn't be the sole responsibility of it's residents, it should be theirs as well. If they enforced THEIR rules it would be a much nicer & more enjoyable place to live. It would be my suggestion to look at the townhomes & avoid the apartments all together... the difference in rental rates between the two make it well worthwhile!

[YtownGuy]

I have been to the Hot Dog Shoppe many times over the years and never had a problem at all. The Mocha House is also pretty safe. Welcome to Warren and enjoy your time at YSU!