SF to SD (Oceanside, Encinitas, Solana Beach: spring break, apartment, skatepark)

[hjf3173]

Been living in SF for about 4 yrs now, originally relocated from Illinois. At the time, had some family in Bay area (no longer the case). Anyway, I'n really wanting to move to SD. I'm sick of the crappy weather, the overpriced housing and the hipster-scenester attitude that permeates SF. I've been reading all these posts that seem to trash SD and I'm not sure how to take all of it. Yes, I know SD is expensive, but SF is much more costly (I think housing costs in SF are roughly 23% higher than in SD accd to a recent study) and I was able to move here without ending up on the streets

Ideally, I'd like to find something in the Ocean Beach ARea which seems to be similar to the area I'm in now. Looking at the city/neighborhood maps, I'm wondering what kind of commute am I looking at to say downtown area? ANy thoughts, suggestions, ideas are appreciated. Oh and I'm a 34 yr old single female that will most likely be living alone, so want to make sure I'm in a safe place. Basically, I guess what I want to know is if I could manage living/survivinh in SF for 4+ yrs, will I be able to manage SD?

[NYSD1995]

Originally Posted by hjf3173

Ideally, I'd like to find something in the Ocean Beach ARea which seems to be similar to the area I'm in now. Looking at the city/neighborhood maps, I'm wondering what kind of commute am I looking at to say downtown area? ANy thoughts, suggestions, ideas are appreciated. Oh and I'm a 34 yr old single female that will most likely be living alone, so want to make sure I'm in a safe place. Basically, I guess what I want to know is if I could manage living/survivinh in SF for 4+ yrs, will I be able to manage SD?

OB to downtown SD is maybe 30 minutes max. You don't even need to take the Freeway.

Safest part of OB is either East of Sunset Cliffs Blvd or South of Newport Ave. The "warzone" is the area between Dog Beach and Newport Ave south of Sunset Cliffs. That's where all the drunken tweakers are.

SD is a cakewalk compared to SF, especially the housing costs which are insane in SF. Only caveat is that you might get bored if you like to do "City Stuff".

[hjf3173]

Thanks for the info on OB! As far as city stuff, I could care less. I just want good waves and sunny days.

[Woof]

Good waves and sunny? Does that mean surfing? I don't remember any surfers at Ocean Beach ..... not my scene but it seems to me they were mainly in the area from Solana Beach to Encinitas and maybe on up to Oceanside.

I remember living briefly in Encinitas and seeing crazed surfers going into the water at all hours of the day or night.

[NYSD1995]

Originally Posted by Woof

Good waves and sunny? Does that mean surfing? I don't remember any surfers at Ocean Beach ..... not my scene but it seems to me they were mainly in the area from Solana Beach to Encinitas and maybe on up to Oceanside.

There are surfers in the water in OB all day every day. Popular breaks are the OB Pier, Dog Beach, Garbage, etc.

[hjf3173]

Yep. I know the spots down that way and yeah, surf is a necessity
Another question for Sassberto- you said
"Safest part of OB is either East of Sunset Cliffs Blvd or South of Newport Ave. The "warzone" is the area between Dog Beach and Newport Ave south of Sunset Cliffs. That's where all the drunken tweakers are."
Ok- so I was checking out apts etc and was using this as a reference but am confused as to where exactly the warzone is. South of Newport ave or east of Sunset cliffs blvd is ok, but but Newport ave south of sunset cliffs is bad...I'm sure this would make sense if I was more familiar with the neighborhood and streets etc but in looking at a map of the area (OB) I'm having a hard time determining where the bad parts are.

A;so- isn't there some huge skatepark they opened down that way???

[NYSD1995]

[quote=hjf3173;246190
Ok- so I was checking out apts etc and was using this as a reference but am confused as to where exactly the warzone is. South of Newport ave or east of Sunset cliffs blvd is ok, but but Newport ave south of sunset cliffs is bad...I'm sure this would make sense if I was more familiar with the neighborhood and streets etc but in looking at a map of the area (OB) I'm having a hard time determining where the bad parts are.

A;so- isn't there some huge skatepark they opened down that way???[/QUOTE]

Newport Ave is the main drag. That's where all the restaurants and shops are.

Stay South of Newport or East of Sunset Cliffs Blvd. The intersection of West Point Loma Blvd and Bacon Street is basically the entrance to tweakerville.

The skatepark opened some years ago, but unfortunately the weather and a bad concrete pour has made the small transitions very slow. They just repainted the park which apparently has not helped much. Still there are people that rip that park every day.

[hjf3173]

Thanks. While I'm at, I may as well ask what other neighborhoods should be avoided when looking for an apt? I'm not totally sold on OB yet and have been looking at many places. Any othe rinfo is appreciated.

Thanks-

[NYSD1995]

Originally Posted by hjf3173

Thanks. While I'm at, I may as well ask what other neighborhoods should be avoided when looking for an apt? I'm not totally sold on OB yet and have been looking at many places. Any othe rinfo is appreciated.

Thanks-

Even the 'warzone' in OB is not that bad an area. I lived on Cable and West Point Loma in a crappy apartment for years. There was a murder across the street (Dusty Harless) and a lot of drugs and petty crime, but overall I never felt it was unsafe.

Most of the areas you really want to avoid are in places you will never have any reason to go. Some areas to watch out for are Logan Heights, Southeast SD, City Heights. In the beach areas I have to admit I am not a big fan of Mission or Pacific Beach, too much drunken trouble going on down there. I am not much of a beach guy overall these days... I don't surf.

Interesting to note, in OB I had skateboards stolen twice, had my shoes, keys, and eyeglasses stolen on the beach, had a bike stolen, and had many near-mishaps with drunken fools at the bars. But in the neighborhoods I lived in since, in some of the grittier neighborhoods of the city of SD, I've never had a problem!

[hjf3173]

Good to know. I've spent some timein PB/MB area and yeah, sort of felt like I was in permanent spring break land

Not my thing...

Thanks for all the info!