Moving from NY to San Diego. Which Neighborhood? (San Francisco, Corona: apartment, rentals)

[i_love_autumn]

Originally Posted by Pedro2000

It's not that the big cities don't have kids, it's that most people with kids don't live in those areas. They live in places like Carmel Valley and so on. Suburbia. Anybody that can afford it, won't live in areas where the schools stink. Which means you won't get walkable communities. At least not walkable compared to NYC.

Obviously,you have not looked at the 'walk scores' of any of these downtown neighborhoods,and if no one with kids moves into these neighborhoods,I highly doubt that there would be 2-3+ bedrm places for rent/sale there!

I'm sorry,but I can't believe how you condemn all of downtown SD,and claim no families live there! According to you,families can only be found in the suburbs!

You can keep your suburbs,because I sure don't intend to move out in the sticks!

[kettlepot]

I believe most of these responses are too pessimistic. I think you can get the urban neighborhood you want in the price range you have indicated. However, there will be compromises on the school issue. You may have to find a charter school for the kid rather than the local elementary school.

The neighborhoods you want are:

South Park
North Park
University Heights
Normal Heights
Kensington

Other possibilities are Hillcrest, Little Italy, and Golden Hill. However, I think they would be too urban for a kid. Mission Hills and La Jolla would be outside your price range.

[i_love_autumn]

Originally Posted by kettlepot

I believe most of these responses are too pessimistic. I think you can get the urban neighborhood you want in the price range you have indicated. However, there will be compromises on the school issue. You may have to find a charter school for the kid rather than the local elementary school.

The neighborhoods you want are:

South Park
North Park
University Heights
Normal Heights
Kensington

Other possibilities are Hillcrest, Little Italy, and Golden Hill. However, I think they would be too urban for a kid. Mission Hills and La Jolla would be outside your price range.

Agree with these neighborhoods,but may I ask why you think they would be too urban for kids?

Don't you think parks and walkability counts for a lot for them,also?

[kettlepot]

Regarding Hillcrest, Little Italy and Golden Hill, I just have feeling that they are too noisy, gritty, crowded and fast-paced (high automobile traffic volume). Not all of these neighborhoods have these issues, but each have some of these issues. I like the other neighborhoods better.

[Pedro2000]

Originally Posted by i_love_autumn

Obviously,you have not looked at the 'walk scores' of any of these downtown neighborhoods,and if no one with kids moves into these neighborhoods,I highly doubt that there would be 2-3+ bedrm places for rent/sale there!

I'm sorry,but I can't believe how you condemn all of downtown SD,and claim no families live there! According to you,families can only be found in the suburbs!

You can keep your suburbs,because I sure don't intend to move out in the sticks!

Obviously you don't have children. At some point it becomes more about what's best for your kids over "I want to live in a cool urban environment."

I agree that Carmel Valley is pretty blah, but it's expensive because people move here for the schools. That's really it. If you can move to a place where your kids have an opportunity to go to the better schools, you jump at that chance.

And walkability is a bit overrated once you become a parent. It's cool to have bars/restaurants/stores around you, but the reality is, you aren't going to most of those places when you have kids anyway. Especially when they're young.

I take hikes with my kids all the time, I parked at the edge of Solana Beach (near via de la valle) and we walked all the way down to cardiff by the sea and visited the beach, the stores, the train stop, etc. We do the same thing in Encinitas, Poway, and so on. I don't need to live in North Park to walk to places my kids have no desire to go to.

Hell, there is a Whole Foods in Del Mar that has a small childrens playground area. It works wonders after food shopping or before. Or Whole Foods or Jimbos(in carmel valley) have small shopping carts just for kids. So my son can push that around and feel proud he's buying his own food.

I can visit various playgrounds on the beaches (del mar & solana beach) where other children are playing and my kids can play as well. I can walk to the schools. I can visit the UTC mall and they have a childrens playground their now.

Have you ever tried walking with young kids? I used to live in Mission Hills and walked to Ralphs, Trader Joes, and Whole Foods. It's nice, but I never visited any of the restaurants in those areas. I rarely ever saw families with young kids walking the streets of Mission Hills, Hillcrest or North Park. But I can go to the few plazas in Carmel Valley or Del Mar and there are children everywhere. Huge difference.

Yeah if it's all about you, why live in Suburbia. But if it's about your kids, you probably don't live in an area where the schools stink and there are more bars/restaurants than childrens playgrounds.

[Pedro2000]

And I don't even know why it's a debate. The reality is most people with kids would love to send their kids to the best schools possible. Many people would send their kids to the La Jolla Country Day school if they could afford it or they would send their kid to TPHS and so on.

It's no comparison when you compare below average schools to above average schools. Yeah places like Carmel Valley are kind of boring and blah, but again, it's not about living next to a bar or restaurant or shops once you have kids. At least it shouldn't be because your kids don't give a damn about those places and most of the time you aren't going to those places anyway.

There are bars/restaurants close enough to where I live now that I never visit. I can't and don't have the time. I visit them as often as I visit North Park or Hillcrest. Which is rarely ever. If I lived in North Park or Kensington, etc it would be the same thing. I would never visit any of these places most of the time.

My kids and I walk everywhere. I've pretty much walked and biked most of my life. When I worked up in Silicon Valley I biked back/forth to work and that was about a 20 mile trek. But the reality is, it's stupid to think you can do that when you have kids. Even if your kids walk often, young kids get tired, get bored, the sun isn't good for long periods of time. They like playing with other kids. They like playing with other kids who they are friends with. If you send your kid to charter schools or private schools and that's the only friends they have and those schools are not near you, your kid rarely plays with his friends. Is that really a good thing? No.

Sorry for the long rant, but sometimes people without kids don't seem to have a clue what it's like to raise a kid. Or there are parents out there that don't give a damn about their kids and they do whatever they want. If you speak to most parents anywhere, most would love to send their kids to the best schools. But most people can't afford it, so they do the best they can. Somebody who can afford to send their kids to better schools but chooses to live in an area where the bars are better and the nightlife is better, probably shouldn't be a parent.

[i_love_autumn]

Re:Pedro2000, It's just so weird that you have such a 'HATE ON' for SD,and yet I don't see you moving to DC or NYC which you can't seem to sing the praises for enough?

Obviously you don't have children. At some point it becomes more about what's best for your kids over "I want to live in a cool urban environment."

I have 3 adult children,and 3 grandchildren,and what my kids have let me know that they hated the most about where we live is the crappy weather and lack of nearby things to do!

Actually,I used to take them walking everywhere when they were little until they were in middle school,since I did not drive until then!They were all great kids and no trouble to take anywhere,so I have no idea what you are talking about it being hard to walk with kids?

From all the other threads that I have read on SD,I just do not believe for one minute your rants that neighborhoods like North Park,South Park,University Heights,Normal Heights,Kensington,all are crap neighborhoods, with crap schools!

Not according to many other posters.

We are not sure yet if the mother will let my tween granddaughter move with us,or if we will only get her in the summer,so it is possible that schools will not be an issue,but I don't believe they are that bad in these areas as YOU claim,anyway!

And BTW, 'BARS' are not even thought about as a qualification for location!

Balboa Park IS,and restaurants,and shopping.

[Cardiff Kook]

i think Pedro has a love/hate relationship with SD lol

[i_love_autumn]

Originally Posted by GMUAlum08

i think Pedro has a love/hate relationship with SD lol

LOL,where's the love?

[Cardiff Kook]

Originally Posted by i_love_autumn

LOL,where's the love?

I guess the fact that he's still living here??