26 year old couple moving to Phoenix area for MMI... how's Tempe? (Mesa: apartment complexes, foreclosure)

[sablebaby]

Originally Posted by nytotxtoaz

Yeah, I'm going there to go to MMI... not just because I want to leave Austin. It's a good school to go to if I want to be a motorcycle tech (which is what I want).

Oh, and vegetarian restaurant: Green Vegetarian, 2240 N. Scottsdale Rd. #8, Tempe, AZ

Do you guys live in Tempe or do you live someplace else but just think it's ****?

I'd say take a trip out here and check it out. I never thought Tempe was that bad of a place. I probably would never live there due to the college kids, but my bf lived there for a while and he'd move back in a heartbeat. He LOVES college towns.

Thanks for the tip on the restaurant, I guess we missed that one!

[vegaspilgrim]

Originally Posted by nytotxtoaz

Do you guys live in Tempe or do you live someplace else but just think it's ****?

I live there. I'm not saying don't move to Tempe-- just don't be under any illusions that you're "safe" there.

BTW, what is this "MMI" and where is it?

[lukeache]

Originally Posted by sablebaby

I'd say take a trip out here and check it out. I never thought Tempe was that bad of a place. I probably would never live there due to the college kids, but my bf lived there for a while and he'd move back in a heartbeat. He LOVES college towns.

I am sorry but Tempe is not a college town, it is a suburb that happens to be where Arizona State University is located. Austin is a real college town

[Steve-o]

I dont live there, but I thought Tempe sucked royally (just my opinion of course). You should look more towards Old Town in Scottsdale, its far better IMO.

[Bill-]

Originally Posted by lukeache

I am sorry but Tempe is not a college town, it is a suburb that happens to be where Arizona State University is located. Austin is a real college town

Austin is a big city with a population of 1.5 million in it's metro area and it's also the capital of Texas. You certainly have a different definition of a "real" college town than most.

[FrAZToCO]

I live in Tempe I've never felt unsafe and I live in the older area north of the freeway not not on the south side that is considered better. It is a college town and there are bad parts you want to avoid but overall I can't think of a place I'd rather live in the metro area. Like someone said "Cars are king" here in Phoenix but Tempe does have Bike lines and shuttle buses. Walking would probably depend the location you choose to live and what you want to walk to. I've never been to Austin so I can't compare but I just wanted to say Tempe isn't as bad as some of the posts I've seen.

[nytotxtoaz]

Yeah a visit is definitely in order. I'm just trying to get some information first.

MMI is Motorcycle Mechanics Institute, there's a location in Phoenix and in Miami. We hate Florida... so that leaves Phoenix. Plus I have a thing for the southwest, I love it. The school is sponsored and endorsed my manufacturers like Kawasaki, Honda, Harley-Davidson, BMW, Suzuki, etc. They offer job placement as well. I'm really into motorcycles (of all kinds... sport, street, dual-purpose, dirt, cruisers), mopeds, scooters and even bicycles. So it's only natural for me to seek a career where I'm constantly surrounded by bikes.

We would really only be there for 60 weeks... maybe 72 depending on how many electives I choose. An elective is considered a manufacturer specific course... for example, I will have 36 weeks of pre-requisite courses where I learn the basics and take non-manufacturer specific courses. After that, I can take an all Kawasaki course, then a BMW course, a Suzuki course (depending on how much I want to learn and how long I want to be in school). Each course is 12 weeks long.

So basically, we're looking for a nice, somewhat safe place to live for about 2 years. If it sucks as bad as everyone says, we'll leave, if not, we'll stay.

I kind of think it's funny that such a crappy place can have such a high population and a bunch of people who hate it there but won't leave.

[ghostman]

Instead of just bashing Tempe, I'll try to answer your question. I lived in south Tempe for several years and came to like it quite a lot. Specifically, I lived near McClintock and Guadalupe. That area, while it does indeed have a proliferation of strip malls, has a couple nice coffee shops, a number of wonderful (and cheap) restaurants, several grocery stores, a couple schools, a few parks, and a bookstore that just won Publishers Weekly Bookstore of the Year, the top award an American bookstore can win. There are affordable apartment complexes in this neighborhood, so theoretically you could indeed walk to all these places, though, as it's been pointed out, no one here really walks anywhere. The traffic is definitely hazardous to pedestrians and cyclists, the blocks can be super long, and the roads are extremely wide. That's not to mention the heat in the summer, which can make walking a very unpleasant experience. Not to scare you off—I love Tempe—but I think the 'walkability' factor of a neighborhood is probably not the best criteria to have when looking for a place here. Outside of the ASU campus, which I think is also a nice place to live even if you aren't going to school there, there just aren't that many walkable neighborhoods in Tempe.

You might find walkscore.com helpful. You can plug in an address and it will rate its walkability. It's not perfect, but it helps give you an idea of what you can expect. Here's a link to the neighborhood I suggested above: Walk Score - McClintock and Guadalupe

Best of luck!

[sablebaby]

Originally Posted by nytotxtoaz

Yeah a visit is definitely in order. I'm just trying to get some information first.

MMI is Motorcycle Mechanics Institute, there's a location in Phoenix and in Miami. We hate Florida... so that leaves Phoenix. Plus I have a thing for the southwest, I love it. The school is sponsored and endorsed my manufacturers like Kawasaki, Honda, Harley-Davidson, BMW, Suzuki, etc. They offer job placement as well. I'm really into motorcycles (of all kinds... sport, street, dual-purpose, dirt, cruisers), mopeds, scooters and even bicycles. So it's only natural for me to seek a career where I'm constantly surrounded by bikes.

We would really only be there for 60 weeks... maybe 72 depending on how many electives I choose. An elective is considered a manufacturer specific course... for example, I will have 36 weeks of pre-requisite courses where I learn the basics and take non-manufacturer specific courses. After that, I can take an all Kawasaki course, then a BMW course, a Suzuki course (depending on how much I want to learn and how long I want to be in school). Each course is 12 weeks long.

So basically, we're looking for a nice, somewhat safe place to live for about 2 years. If it sucks as bad as everyone says, we'll leave, if not, we'll stay.

I kind of think it's funny that such a crappy place can have such a high population and a bunch of people who hate it there but won't leave.

I say if you really want to go to this school, then go. I'd live real close to the school though and sacrifice the "wants" and go with the "needs". If it's only for 2 years or less, who cares if you can't walk to a coffee shop. If it's for your career then you just do it. Many people sacrifice a whole lot more for education and careers.

[sablebaby]

Originally Posted by vegaspilgrim

I live there. I'm not saying don't move to Tempe-- just don't be under any illusions that you're "safe" there.

BTW, what is this "MMI" and where is it?

Motorcycle Mechanics Institute. It's on Deer Valley and 29th ave.