South side of Arcadia (Phoenix: homes, safe neighborhood, buying)

[Valley Native]

Originally Posted by Uhuh

Camel back to Indian school is a lot different than Indian school to Thomas. If you live in Arcadia proper you don't have to worry about they same crimes in your neighborhood. Arcadia is a pretty expensive, and exclusive place to live in PHX. At least when my wife's family owned a house out there. If you are considering south of Arcadia price, Arcadia proper is 100+ times more. My inn laws sold their dinky place for a million, in some parts of Phoenix this house would have gone for 50k. And when I say exclusive I mean it. You need to have a lot of money to be accepted in this neighborhood. It is a pretty unjust place to live unless you are loaded. Some guy was shooting pigeons, the cops came and saw all the shells. The cop goes to talk to the man, and the cop comes back and starts on my inn laws, on how there is an overwhelmingly large amount of pigeons, and to just ignore their neighbor. Just one example of course.If I were you, I would drive by on Saturday nights, when the teenagers driving their parents escalades, cruising around with fire place pokers, smashing out the windows on all off street parked cars. Surprisingly, I bet you would find less crime going on south of Arcadia, or at least the crimes would not be concerning you.

Normally, I would ignore a posting like this because there is so much exaggeration and statements that don't have any facts behind them. I can tell you that there is a lot more crime in the neighborhoods south of Arcadia. The area around 40th Street & Thomas used to be a decent neighborhood many years ago, but that area now has homes that are havens for drug dealers, and more property crime than what you would find in Arcadia itself. The activity you described sounds more of what happens SOUTH of the Crosscut Canal than in Arcadia or Camelback East. Maybe not as bad as Maryvale or parts of south Phoenix, but it's still not a very good area. For instance, the shopping center formerly known as Tower Plaza now seems to be a hangout for just about every sleazy character you can imagine.

[AZJ0SH]

I grew up near 52nd St and Thomas, not far from the area you're talking about. I never had any issues, the area seemed nice to me growing up.

[NotQuiteNative]

Originally Posted by observer53

Quite a lot of exaggeration here, to be taken with large grains of salt.

Yeah, I personally haven't experienced the Devil's Night antics described here, and I've been spending time in and around Arcadia proper for about 35 years now. Are we not thinking of Detroit, perhaps?

Bad things that have happened to me in Arcadia:

A great dane (dog) chased me on my bike once.

Some little kids rolled oranges under my car as I was driving down Lafayette.

A guy in an MGB gave me a nasty look as I waited for his parking space at the Safeway on Indian School. He was wearing one of those twill caps and seemed to not like my pickup. That sneer . . . it stays with me. Sometimes I can't sleep. I went on to vote Republican in every election just to spite him.

I had a lousy date at the Garcia's near where the Village is now.

Aside from that. . . no, not much. . . .

[Kimballette]

Originally Posted by Uhuh

It is a pretty unjust place to live unless you are loaded.

Originally Posted by NotQuiteNative

Yeah, I personally haven't experienced the Devil's Night antics described here, and I've been spending time in and around Arcadia proper for about 35 years now. Are we not thinking of Detroit, perhaps?

Bad things that have happened to me in Arcadia:

A great dane (dog) chased me on my bike once.

Some little kids rolled oranges under my car as I was driving down Lafayette.

A guy in an MGB gave me a nasty look as I waited for his parking space at the Safeway on Indian School. He was wearing one of those twill caps and seemed to not like my pickup. That sneer . . . it stays with me. Sometimes I can't sleep. I went on to vote Republican in every election just to spite him.

I had a lousy date at the Garcia's near where the Village is now.

Aside from that. . . no, not much. . . .

We call them the mean streets of Arcadia.

[VOC1]

Originally Posted by observer53

Unless you are talking about the attendance area for Arcadia High School, which may extend that far south, the boundaries of the residential area known as Arcadia don't go beyond the canal that is just south of Lafayette Blvd. There are some perfectly good neighborhoods south of Indian School and south of Thomas, but they are not the same as the ones in the Arcadia neighborhood.

So Arcadia High School isn't in Arcadia?



According to the city of Phoenix:

"The district boundaries are from 44th to 64th Streets and the Stanford Drive alignment to Indian School Road "

http://phoenix.gov/PLANNING/arcspd.pdf

The link also mentions the Lafayette boundaries people keep throwing out as "Central Arcadia".


The most amusing thing about Arcadia (besides the newsletter chock full of plastic surgery and dental ads) is the amount of snobbery involved in defining 'Arcadia'.

[Kimballette]

Originally Posted by VOC1

Arcadia (besides the newsletter chock full of plastic surgery and dental ads) is the amount of snobbery involved in defining 'Arcadia'.

So you consider accuracy to be snobbish?

[VOC1]

Originally Posted by Kimballette

So you consider accuracy to be snobbish?

Considering the city of Phoenix itself does not agree with you: yes.


It really is funny to watch it in action. The immediate follow up to meeting a fellow Arcadia resident is "Which part?" and the reactions depending on who is in the more 'real Arcadia' area are priceless.

[observer53]

Originally Posted by VOC1

So Arcadia High School isn't in Arcadia?



According to the city of Phoenix:

"The district boundaries are from 44th to 64th Streets and the Stanford Drive alignment to Indian School Road "

http://phoenix.gov/PLANNING/arcspd.pdf

The link also mentions the Lafayette boundaries people keep throwing out as "Central Arcadia".


The most amusing thing about Arcadia (besides the newsletter chock full of plastic surgery and dental ads) is the amount of snobbery involved in defining 'Arcadia'.

I've read on another link I found in response to a similar thread that the south boundary is the canal, not Lafayette and not Indian School. I've not seen the Stanford alignment definition before. To me, Arcadia doesn't cross Camelback. Once you get out of the irrigated green lawns which to me are a big part of what defines Arcadia (and those are not there from Camelback north) you aren't in Arcadia any more.

[VOC1]

Originally Posted by observer53

I've read on another link I found in response to a similar thread that the south boundary is the canal, not Lafayette and not Indian School. I've not seen the Stanford alignment definition before. To me, Arcadia doesn't cross Camelback. Once you get out of the irrigated green lawns which to me are a big part of what defines Arcadia (and those are not there from Camelback north) you aren't in Arcadia any more.

Well the link there is from the city's planning department.

I'd agree about the big irrigated green lawns, but those can be found south of the Canal also, particularly in the Osborn strip between 44/48th and 56th, and even south of there a few blocks.

[observer53]

Originally Posted by VOC1

Well the link there is from the city's planning department.

I'd agree about the big irrigated green lawns, but those can be found south of the Canal also, particularly in the Osborn strip between 44/48th and 56th, and even south of there a few blocks.

There's irrigation in those areas, yes, but the houses and lots are smaller; they weren't carved from citrus groves like many of the Arcadia lots.

I was just driving around Arcadia yesterday, showing it to a friend who hadn't been through there and will be in home buying mode soon. There's really no other place in the Valley like it.