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Yes, I was thinking along these line too. I find it highly unlikely that the residents of Brightleaf and the Lakeshore Golf Course neighborhoods would consider their areas as "shabby". My friend who lives off Lumley lives in a lovely home which looks like a little piece of suburbia.
When I say Southeast I am talking about the area between Holloway and 147, sort of between Wellons Village and Durham Tech--not "far out Southest". It does extend a little north of there, too, maybe to up near Geer St., but I usually hear the "bad part of Durham" defined as "southeast" (central), not "Northeast".
Thank you all for your input - outstanding insights! We will be coming back to them again and again as we explore.
I am very interested in Durham now. It is much larger than the small areas in Columbus that I was comparing it too, and it sounds great. I also found www.durham-nc.com (http://www.durham-nc.com - broken link) (visitor site) which gave me a little more of an idea of what it's about. I am getting a fuller understanding that what some of you are saying is EXACTLY RIGHT.. Durham has likely acquired a sort of negative reputation that is really unwarranted. I can't wait to come down and check it out for myself now.... so now, we are heavily leaning toward DURHAM!
Ok, I just remembered one more question I forgot to ask, re: Recreation Centers. Rec centers will likely be a big part of our life. Are there any specific recreation centers that anyone can recommend that are active, inexpensive, culturally diverse, and offer a wide array of classes for both children and adults (arts/dance/sports/etc) ?? Any thoughts will be appreciated!
Last edited by RaleighSparkle; 12-20-2010 at 05:50 PM..
When listening to things about Durham, it is important to look at who the messenger is. Many people who live in Raleigh and Cary will talk Durham down almost by reflex. It's the city-sized version of sibling rivalry.
Secondly, as many have mentioned already, it's important to know what part of Durham the speaker is talking about. Like Columbus, Durham is large enough to have nice areas and . . . not so nice areas. Defining the whole city by either will give you a very distorted image.
In any case, I wish you luck as you explore our wonderful city!
Last edited by Steve Nicewarner; 12-20-2010 at 07:30 PM..
Reason: typo
RaleighSparkle (maybe you should to change your screen name! ) check out the Durham Arts Council website. They always have loads of interesting classes. And Durham Parks and Rec, website, too.
If you still want to sniff around in Raleigh, the Raleigh Parks and Rec has interesting classes as well. And just to round it out and create a Trinity, Cary Parks and Rec has great classes, too. I think I've taken classes through all three Parks and Recs! I live in Raleigh and I am in grad school in Durham, and I sometimes have business in Cary. So I try to take advantage of all the Triangle has to offer. Also, all three also sponsor fun events throughout the year.
Ok, I just remembered one more question I forgot to ask, re: Recreation Centers. Rec centers will likely be a big part of our life. Are there any specific recreation centers that anyone can recommend that are active, inexpensive, culturally diverse, and offer a wide array of classes for both children and adults (arts/dance/sports/etc) ?? Any thoughts will be appreciated!
We are members of the YMCA. They offer lots of different things & have activities going on all the time. Santa actually joined us during spin class last week for about 5 minutes
I personally take yoga & spin along w/using the nautilus equipment. They have a walking track, zumba, water classes, bikes available to take out on the American Tobacco Trail and many things I'm not remembering. We don't have kids, so I've never paid attention to those classes/options, but I know there are lots of families there & things going on all the time.
They have a couple branches right in Durham & if you go w/the expanded membership it gets you into a bunch of Y's in the area.
For us the Downtown (3 branch) membership is fine, but if you want access to more options the bigger plan might be a better fit.
You can check them out here: YMCA of the Triangle Area Home
I'll second the Y. There are 2 facilities downtown, the large on on Morgan St/Foster St, and a smaller one in the American Tobacco Campus. There is also a Y that is being renovated on Chapel Hill Rd in the Tuscaloosa-Lakewood area that should re-open this summer.
I love the Y so thanks for that reminder. I checked out the Rec Centers for the different areas... Raleigh's is great. I think we have been really lucky with our rec centers here in Columbus because it looks like Raleigh's is a bit more expensive for similar classes. However, overall, I think I would be pleased. I checked out Cary's as well, and they have a great selection.. again, more pricey than what I'm used to here. Durham seems a little less comprehensive and pricey at the same time which is kind of a bummer to me, but maybe I'm not navigating in the right places??
I grew up in Durham but moved out in the 70s. I have been spending time there to visit family ever since. The best way to describe Durham is an extremely interesting work in progress. It has always moved more slowly than the other cities. For example, I watched Charlotte go from a sleepy redneck town to a flashy new south city in 10 years. Durham moves one business at a time. That being said every new thing in Durham (I'm not counting Southpoint area which is more suburban like) has so much character it seems as if it is part of a greater plan to develop the world's coolest city. It is nowhere near that point and may never be but it is sure is fun to watch and imagine what it will be like in just a few more years.
When I was in HS and college (and the drinking age was 18) we would flock to Chapel Hill as there was nothing to do in Durham. It was nothing more than a dieing tobacco town with a world class University that kept to itself. We always talked about downtown coming together but it never seemed to happen. I can finally say that it is at the point of no return. Even Duke is in on the act now. What you notice first about downtown Durham is a sense of community you don't find in many places in the US. Go to a restaurant and they buy from local farmers. Go to a pub and they will always carry locally brewed beer. Before a new business opens it is the talk of the town and everyone flocks there. In fact I went to busy restaurants on a Monday and Tuesday night during the depths of the recession.
Then there is the racial diversity and what some have described as patchy neighborhoods. Yes you have places like beautiful Forest Hills practically surrounded by questionable neighborhoods. This is all part of Durham. What I find most interesting though is the solid black intellectual and professional class. You see this most when you go to a black owned business such a Beyu. On a given night the clientele will be mostly white and then another night mostly black. In most other places in the US whites feel uncomfortable when they are a minority. In Durham it is a way of life.
Then there is the benefit of having two high powered Universities side by side. The intellectual energy is second to none. You could compare the vibe Durham has to a place like Austin but I would say it is more intellectual. In fact I would say it competes well intellectually with Boston, DC, the Bay area and even NY. In fact, Durham it feels a bit the way tribecca in NY was in the 80s.
As far a recreation goes for a city without mountains or a beach it has quite its share. Duke forest has great biking, and walking trails. Eno state park has many hiking trails and magnificent swimming holes for a hot summer day. There is a small section of the haw river for whitewater enthusiast the gets to about class III. There are plenty of mountain biking trials. There is a skate board park downtown. Someone mentioned American tobacco trail which can take you from downtown to I-40. At the point it is a mess to cross I-40 but on the other side it picks back up and takes you all the way to Chatham county. Not far below 40 the trail quickly becomes bucolic with a canopy of trees and creeks. If you like lakes there are two on either side of the city. If you want mountains or beaches, Wilmington is 2 hours and Boone is 2.5. If you want a day trip for a mountain hike you can make it to Pilot mountain in less than an hour and a half. Stop in Winston on the way back and visit Old Salem. If you like beer go to foothills brewery downtown and have great pub food with great beer. On another trip you could visit Elm street in Greensboro and eat at Natty's brewery. Can you tell I like my brewpubs?
If you just drove by or through the wrong areas of Durham you could easily be scared away before you saw all it has to offer. That is a primary reason it gets a bad rap. I use to have to drive along Alston avenue from southwest Durham and noticed how depressing it was. Then my sister moved to a house in the Hope Valley area and now the drive to see my parents is along 751 and University Drive where houses are nestled in forests instead of surrounded by manicured lawns. That is Durham in a nutshell. There are times I drive through Durham and think: what a dump. Then I turn a corner and find a place that has everything I love and I think: what character. So my official description of Durham is a dump with character.
Thanks for that excellent description viajero - just exactly what I was looking for! Most of what you described sounds absolutely wonderful to me.. I love the energy that it seems to have as you describe it. "A dump with character" sounds a little harsh though! (?) I will have to come down to check out the sketchy parts for myself to see which way they rub me.
I like most everything I've heard about Durham.. the Recreation Center issue is concerning me because I am hoping to be near a rec center that offers a wide variety of inexpensive classes for individuals and families such as sewing, piano lessons, soccer, photography, clay, tap dancing, etc. for both children and adults. What I found in Durham from searching the net seems limited and pretty expensive. We expect to use a rec center frequently enough to where it would be worth living in Raleigh (even if we prefer Durham) if Raleigh has much more to offer that is also more affordable - because we will be driving there constantly. We love the YMCA and will use it, but that is more for fitness activities and sports... we need something on the arts side too i guess.
If anyone has any more info on this, that would be great!
Although this isn't what you are looking for, I thought you might be interested. Near the downtown YMCA is the Scrap Exchange The Scrap Exchange
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We will be coming back to them again and again as we explore. 
(?) I will have to come down to check out the sketchy parts for myself to see which way they rub me.
