Relocating from Boulder, CO to Pittsburgh (Lebanon, Oakland: renting, house, neighborhood)

[Gerbil]

I'll talk up Highland Park, since that hasn't really been discussed yet. It's a nice neighborhood with a fair number of families. There is a large park very closeby with a pool, trails, playgrounds, and of course the zoo.

Very walkable neighborhood, although the business district is small. But there are a couple of coffee shops around the neighborhood. One of them is located in a restored church that now serves as a sort of community center. I took a ceramics class there last summer.

It's not a particularly hip or artsy neighborhood, but it's got friendly people and a strong community. And it's not far from hipper places like Shadyside and Bloomfield/Friendship. The bus ride to Downtown isn't too bad either, but I wouldn't say it's in the "immediate Downtown area" at all.

[Nelson73]

Thanks again for everyone's advice.

Love the tiering approach CaptainO.

From the responses here Ben Avon is sounding more attractive than originally thought.

Gerbil - I'm glad someone finally made some comments about Highland Park. From everything I can find out on the net it seems that this would be a great place for us but we question it's proximity to some bad areas (we've heard East Liberty is not a place we should look at) and not sure about the school system for that neighborhood. Any insight on those angles for Highland Park? Would my wife feel comfortable staying home alone or walking the dog at night?

Thanks again....

[Gerbil]

Mostly Highland Park is fine, safety-wise. The area closer to East Liberty is more iffy, though. I recommend you try to get closer to the actual park. the close you get to Stanton Avenue, the more iffy it becomes.

I can't really comment on the schools. But I can tell you that the city schools have a magnet program that allows you to send your kids to school in another neighborhood, if you get them in (getting in is based on a lottery, last I knew). In my experience the magnet program is pretty good. My sister and I got a good education out of it at least.

[Nelson73]

Thanks again to all who replied. If you anyone has any other advice please keep it coming....

[mel55880]

Mt. Lebanon sounds excellent for my fiance and I, but I was wondering about diversity there? My fiance is from the Caribbean, would he be accepted by the community or would he feel completely out of place there? I'm white and he's black so I'm wondering about their views on interracial relationships in that area... Any help would be greatly appreciated. Thanks

[CaptainObvious]

Originally Posted by mel55880

Mt. Lebanon sounds excellent for my fiance and I, but I was wondering about diversity there? My fiance is from the Caribbean, would he be accepted by the community or would he feel completely out of place there? I'm white and he's black so I'm wondering about their views on interracial relationships in that area... Any help would be greatly appreciated. Thanks

I can't say I know anything specifically about Mt Lebo's view on interracial relationships. It is, however, decidedly white. I wouldn't necessarily call it a "progressive" community...it's full of families and old, old money. Having said that, I am not sure interracial marriages are "progressive" nowadays- at least I hope not. All in all, I doubt you'd encounter any resistance there. If there is one thing the Mt. Lebo crowd is is educated, and in my experience, education is kryptonite to bigotry. I think the hard-core Mt. Lebo'ers probably worry more about how much money you have instead of what color your skin is. You'd be fine there.

CaptainO

[morefromcali]

Originally Posted by mel55880

Mt. Lebanon sounds excellent for my fiance and I, but I was wondering about diversity there? My fiance is from the Caribbean, would he be accepted by the community or would he feel completely out of place there? I'm white and he's black so I'm wondering about their views on interracial relationships in that area... Any help would be greatly appreciated. Thanks

Hi Mel,

We are new to the area -- well ok, not quite there yet LOL -- but we've spent quite a lot of time in Mt Lebanon over the past year and while yes, it's not the most diverse place in the world, it did seem to be a very tolerant one. Some of the people on our street are openly gay, and several families that we met are adopting children from other cultures. We also saw a few interracial couples out and about. I would imagine it would be ok, but please locals -- correct me if I am under the wrong impression I sure hope I'm not!

[mel55880]

Thank you so much for the input! It just sounded like the kind of neighborly place we have grown used to in the Caribbean, but I wanted to make sure he wouldn't feel uncomfortable living there.

This is his first time moving and he has never been to the US before. We are looking at the Pittsburgh area because it seems like the most decent city near his family in Toronto. I know he'll have a lot of adjustment issues as it is and racism is going to be one of the toughest for him.

Any other areas in Pittsburgh that might be good for us?

[Sideblinded]

The school our son attends is in S. Squirrel Hill. It has a diverse population.

White: 245 (42.46%) African-American: 249 (43.15%)
Asian: 29 (5.03%) Hispanic: 5 (0.87%)
Multi-Racial: 47 (8.15%) American Indian: 2 (0.35%)

[mel55880]

Originally Posted by Sideblinded

The school our son attends is in S. Squirrel Hill. It has a diverse population.

White: 245 (42.46%) African-American: 249 (43.15%)
Asian: 29 (5.03%) Hispanic: 5 (0.87%)
Multi-Racial: 47 (8.15%) American Indian: 2 (0.35%)

Wow, that's pretty good! Is it near Mt. Lebanon? What is S. Squirrel Hill like? This moving thing is always so difficult! I still have to find a job in the area, and I'm doing it all from the Caribbean. thanks