Nighttime Safety Along Centre Avenue (North Oakland/Shadyside/East Liberty Areas) (Washington: apartments, lease)

[SteelCityRising]

Howdy!

On Saturday, November 20 I will be in town again, and I'll hopefully be signing a lease on a studio at 333 Melwood Avenue in North Oakland (between Centre Avenue and Baum Boulevard). I've also just applied for a position with Whole Foods that just opened up today, and I think given my extensive history throughout high school and college in a retail/customer service orientation (some of which included working at a grocery store) I'll be a pretty strong candidate for the job (please say a prayer for me!)

Anyhow, just judging from aerial satellite imagery this is approximately a mile distance door-to-door, so I'd hope to walk back-and-forth as much as possible. I just wanted to gather some of your opinions as to nighttime safety in this area in general. I spoke to my 88-year-old prospective landlord on the phone earlier for roughly 40 minutes, and he advised me that North Oakland was the "good" part of Oakland (I'm inclined to agree). Would it be a good idea to consider walking back-and-forth between this presumptive studio at 333 Melwood and this hopeful position at Whole Foods, or would I stand a good chance of running into trouble?

My life is finally starting to come together, little by little. I'm not in Mt. Washington, where I had originally anticipated I'd be, but now I'm truly starting over fresh.

[SteelCityRising]

Whoa nelly! I may be crossing this place off my list after all and sticking to trying to find a studio in Shadyside (which seems to be a rarity!)

Landorslum.com: The landlord rating website

He sounded like such a sweet old man on the phone, too. (Sigh). Nothing about my move can go easy, can it?! LOL!

[PreservationPioneer]

Don't believe everything you read/hear. I lived in West Shadyside and walked through North Oakland all the time. It's not better than any other part of Oakland. It is near the Hill District, so some people walk over from there, but it's also near Shadyside and Bloomfield, which are great areas. Safety was never a concern for me when I lived over there, just use street smarts.

[BrianTH]

For future reference, there is a little street crime in North Oakland--in fact way back, I knew someone who got mugged in that area--but I don't think it is generally enough to deter living there, and in fact I would say the same thing about Shadyside. Walking back alone late at night . . . that isn't necessarily a great idea, but you would probably be fine.

Oh, and lots of North Oakland is student ghetto territory, as those writeups basically attest.

[greg42]

Those places between Baum and Centre never look that great from the outside; I used to drive on Melwood all the time there. You'll be all surrounded by students though, maybe not the most appealing arrangement for non-student. That street is mostly small apartment buildings and perhaps a few houses turned into apartments.

Can't speak to the security or condition of the particular building, but generally walking from there to Whole Foods would be fine IMO. On the other hand, based on other things you've brought up along the way in your quest, this is not really where you want to be.

[Burghgirl17]

Some of those places are deplorable. Some parts of North Oakland are nicer, some are pretty run down and strike me as unsafe. Make sure you see the apartment before signing a lease, and if you're not totally sure you want the place, do NOT feel pressured to lease. I am sure that the landlord will tell you he's got like 3 other tenants who want this but he wants to give you first shot.

Judging from the reviews on the Landlord Or Slum website, and that there are more than 1 or 2 saying the same thing, I would run far, far away.

[groar]

i wouldn't worry much about the neighborhood (your biggest concern would be loud drunk college students annoying the crap out of you) or the walk, but the landlord sounds like the kind of student housing slumlord that is pretty typical for that neighborhood. like burghgirl said, it would be one thing if it was just 1 or 2 bad reviews but there are quite a few.

[SteelCityRising]

The landlord is what really concerns me because he sounds like a slumlord, and given all that we talked about last night (and then the voicemail he left me to add more) he sounds exactly the way he was portrayed on that web site. I think I'm going to give him a call today (gulp!) to let him know I've changed my mind and have chosen a different route. I scheduled an appointment with him at 2 PM on Saturday, and I'm not in the business of standing people up (especially since he loves Whole Foods, and if all goes well I hope to interview for a position there).

What are your opinions on Polish Hill? I am in LOVE with this place:

Spacious loft style apartment (http://pittsburgh.craigslist.org/apa/2056400806.html - broken link)

Do you see it declining as part of the Hill District or benefiting from the resurgence in nearby Lawrenceville and Bloomfield in the coming years? I'm now hedging between an efficiency along Alder Street in Shadyside for $375/month or this unit in Polish Hill for $550/month. For an extra $175/month (I think I could swing that) the difference is night and day!

[Burghgirl17]

I don't know much about Polish Hill (and, btw, Polish Hill isn't what I would consider part of the Hill District), but the place does look nice. However, I am always a skeptic and hope that these aren't just exceptionally nice photos. It appears nice, and a good price.

Alder Street in Shadyside is pretty nice. Convenient to a lot - Ellsworth and Walnut, and so close to East Liberty and those growing amenities. I lived on Spahr (which intersects with Alder) for 2 years - loved the location (hated my landlord, but that's another story). Alder would be very convenient to Whole Foods.

[fleetiebelle]

Polish Hill usually pops up when we're talking about underrated city neighborhoods: //www.city-data.com/forum/pitts...lish-hill.html