How is the Summer Hill Area? (Spring Hill: crime rate, houses, neighborhood)

[Lock-Os]

I've been looking for a house for a while now and I found a steal in the Summer Hill area. Great access to McKnight road, Downtown, and all my other favorite places, and should be a quick ride to work as well. Taxes seem to be fairly cheep as well for what you get.

Granted, the school district seems abysmal, but I don't plan on having kids, so that's not a big concern for me and honestly, unless dire circumstances hit me I don't plan on moving. Now, I know that their are some bad areas around Summer hill though to the south and west, but how does Summer Hill still fare? Is it still fairly safe? Are their any downsides that I haven't thought about?

[ferraris]

I think your initial assessment is pretty accurate, except I'm not ware of any problem areas to the west. It's cheaper than similar areas outside of the city because of the schools. It's a good location if you're okay with the suburban lifestyle and driving everywhere. Yes, it technically borders the Northview Heights housing project, but I don't think there is very much spillover crime. If the house is up in the northern part of the neighborhood, near the BP gas station, then I think Northview Heights is a non-factor.

[RogersParkTransplant]

I think Summer Hill is fine; there are some very pretty, quiet streets back there and some wonderful houses. Most of the problems in Northview Heights tend to stay within that community -- there are some drug-related shootings and domestic violence incidents, but they don't spill over into either Spring Hill or Summer Hill very often.

Please note that bluecarebear is very quick to write negative things about the city, but I have yet to be convinced that he or she has any first-hand experience in this particular area. Northview gets a lot of bad press, and it is indeed sad that their crime rate is so high, but there are also plenty of good people raising families there and just trying to get by. If the house is near Colby Street you might try riding the #15 or #6 bus to and from downtown one day -- it will give you a pretty good sense of how the demographics change as the bus goes through Northview, and it might be a nice chance to think about your own comfort levels with the general area. Of course as Ferraris said, this is a non-issue if the house you found is on the northern side of Summer Hill, and/or if you don't plan to take public transportation anyway.

[norcider]

The horror!:

https://www.google.com/maps/@40.4934...7i13312!8i6656

[bradjl2009]

That image is basically how all of Summer Hill looks or in other words, not that different at all from Ross and Shaler.

[erieguy]

Originally Posted by bradjl2009

That image is basically how all of Summer Hill looks or in other words, not that different at all from Ross and Shaler.

I like it. If I was interested in living in the area I would definitely give it a look.

[crae09]

I don't think mentioning that it was near northview heights was racist at all. if the OP is new to the city or doesn't even live here, maybe mentioning that a public housing project known for drugs and crime is around the corner was a good thing. there was literally just a shooting there over the summer. if I had a question about a neighborhood, I would hope someone would include the crime ridden area around the corner.

[erieguy]

Originally Posted by crae09

I don't think mentioning that it was near northview heights was racist at all. if the OP is new to the city or doesn't even live here, maybe mentioning that a public housing project known for drugs and crime is around the corner was a good thing. there was literally just a shooting there over the summer. if I had a question about a neighborhood, I would hope someone would include the crime ridden area around the corner.

Exactly. Thank you.

[eschaton]

I think it's important to realize that Summer Hill is a pretty long, skinny neighborhood, which only borders Northview Heights in a small area in its extreme south. Somewhere like Ames Street, right next to Northview Heights, does look a bit run down, but the streets off of Ivory Ave, which border Ross, seem like bog-standard 1950s suburbia.

Personally my biggest fear about buying there would be housing appreciation, but I tend to think if you're in it for the longer haul and don't plan improvements beyond the local market, it's probably no worse than the nearby suburbs.

[norcider]

Originally Posted by eschaton

I think it's important to realize that Summer Hill is a pretty long, skinny neighborhood, which only borders Northview Heights in a small area in its extreme south. Somewhere like Ames Street, right next to Northview Heights, does look a bit run down, but the streets off of Ivory Ave, which border Ross, seem like bog-standard 1950s suburbia.

Personally my biggest fear about buying there would be housing appreciation, but I tend to think if you're in it for the longer haul and don't plan improvements beyond the local market, it's probably no worse than the nearby suburbs.

To add on this, the entrances to the NV Heights complex are secure gates manned 24hrs a day by some sort of security personnel. Most of the crime related to this complex takes place WITHIN the NV Heights grounds.