How do the bad parts of Phoenix compare to other rough parts of the country? (Mesa: high crime, loan)

[SMG]

I was born in Flint, lived in Detroit for ten years and then moved back to Flint. I have been here many years, about 35. I have been back to Flint and Detroit and am very familiar with them. Nothing here is remotely as bad as either of those cities for crime and blight. I do not think we have ghettos here, not in south Phoenix, the west valley or Maryvale. We do not have blocks of burned out buildings. We have poor parts of town, that does not make it a ghetto. Go look at YouTube at some Detroit or Flint footage, it blows my mind and breaks my heart.

[new2colo]

There are high crime areas of the Valley, OP. As you surmised, they are not on the level of an East St. Louis, Gary, Camden, Memphis, Chester, or Baltimore. I would say we are on the same level as a San Diego and San Jose when it comes to crime. We definitely have rougher areas, but it's nothing where you're best to stay away at all times. Maryvale is hardly beyond the point of no return when it comes to being run down. To me, Maryvale and South Phoenix are actually the most interesting parts of the city of Phoenix because they aren't so manicured and cookie cutter like the rest of the city. If you actually get off the major arterials in Maryvale (59th, 67th, Thomas, Indian School, for instance) and drive through the neighborhood, you will see homes in all sorts of conditions. There are the homes where people clearly have taken pride and kept up their properties (landscaping, nice furniture on the patio, and fresh paint) to homes with plywood covering the windows and doors, chipping paint, trash everywhere, bars on the windows, and cars that are parked in the front yard. The neighborhood seems intact and definitely has a feel that you won't get anywhere else in the city. So many other areas of the city just fee so sterile and dead. Maryvale seems to have a very strong community feel to it, even if it isn't the "nicest" area.

South Phoenix is similar. A lot of the newer development is more of that cookie cutter style crap that you see in the nicer areas, but there are still plenty of areas that have a more organic feel. Is there a higher violent crime rate in South Phoenix than many other areas? Yes. But, again, you can still drive through without feeling like you're going to have some of street scenes from the LA riots play out around you.

There are smaller areas scattered around that are less than ideal. The McDowell-Thomas corridor west of the 51 to about 40th Street, the area immediately south of downtown, Greenway Square, some areas of Chandler and Mesa, some areas of Avondale and El Mirage, etc. You will be fine going through those areas. Would I recommend living there, absolutely not. But there are very good chances that you are not going to get hit by a stray bullet just driving around or even getting out of your car.

[asufan]

Originally Posted by TempeAZnative

please educate me on the "bad" areas of Tempe it should be interesting.

The area around the cotton center is a crap hole high crime area.

[jaredC]

Originally Posted by Valley Native

True for the most part, except I would put Maryvale in the category of lacking hope & opportunity, mostly because nothing around there is worth revitalizing. It was already a bad area in the '70s & '80s because of the cheaper class of people it attracted, and just became worse over time. Some poorer areas like Sunnyslope and some of the areas south of downtown have neighborhoods that could be restored with a fair amount of investment & community interest. Overall however, not a lot of bad areas here compared to places like Detroit, Baltimore, etc.

My wife lived in Scaryvale (47th ave. & Indian School rd) when we met. She would tell me stories of how people would jump the fence and steal laundry hanging from the clothes lines. They also had a refrigerator outside in the backyard. They had to install a lock to prevent people from hopping the fence and ransacking it. It wasn't unusual for the lock to get cut a few times a year. Their house was also broken into several times. Nothing unusual for the neighborhood. Also, about 10 years ago they had problems with drive-by shootings. A few bullets went through a window or two. That too, wasn't unusual for the wonderful neighborhood.

[YAZ]

Originally Posted by SMG

I was born in Flint, lived in Detroit for ten years and then moved back to Flint. I have been here many years, about 35. I have been back to Flint and Detroit and am very familiar with them. Nothing here is remotely as bad as either of those cities for crime and blight. I do not think we have ghettos here, not in south Phoenix, the west valley or Maryvale. We do not have blocks of burned out buildings. We have poor parts of town, that does not make it a ghetto. Go look at YouTube at some Detroit or Flint footage, it blows my mind and breaks my heart.

Pontiac and parts of Saginaw too. Destitution seems to thrive there even during good economic times. One just doesn't see that many burned down or even vacant homes here in the Valley of the Sun. They don't stay that way for long when you do see 'em.

We live in the land of the "Flippers." Some folks see a dilapidated house, others see an easy opportunity to make a profit. There is a sense of hope here, and as a previous poster put it, people tend to NOT stay in the bad neighborhoods permanently.

[Zonie Jim]

You want bad area? Try Compton, or SE LA, Watts. If you go there, good luck.

[Colt AZ]

Originally Posted by Zonie Jim

You want bad area? Try Compton, or SE LA, Watts. If you go there, good luck.

Yep, Zonie Jim, those Fornies definitely have slipshod places galore.

[johnp292]

I've yet to see anything in Phoenix that comes close to the badlands in Philadelphia or Camden. But I don't get down there much either.

[Renegade007]

There are parts of Baltimore that make Maryvale look like Beverly Hills.

[i'm not a cookie]

Originally Posted by Renegade007

There are parts of Baltimore that make Maryvale look like Beverly Hills.

I agree with this, same goes with DC. There are areas of DC where you couldn't pay me to walk through, even during the day...can't say there is an area in Phoenix where I would say the same. Maybe parts of South Phoenix by broadway, but that's about it.