Sunset District (San Mateo, Hermosa Beach: house, to live in, moving) - San Francisco - Oakland - California (CA) - Page 2 - City-Data Forum

gizmo980 · 02-24-2008, 07:12 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by bigdave01

Thanks for all the replies, it is very helpful,

Can anyone recommend a good walkable neighborhood with good schools, and is "relatively cheap". I see the west(Richmond and Sunset) have the best schools, but what are the central districts like? Such as Portola, Bernal Heights, Glen Park, Castro, Diamond Heights, Twin Peaks, etc.

Thanks again

I live right next to the Portola district, and used to work at their library... it's a very walkable neighborhood since it's very flat, but isn't really the nicest place. It's not dangerous or anything (aside from a few yearly incidents), but is comprised of mostly lower-income Chinese immigrants. Nice people, for the most part, and they have LOTS of good food - just not sure if that's the environment you're looking for. Glen Park and Bernal Heights are both very nice little neighborhoods, but I wouldn't call them "walkable" due to the massive hills. I'd love to live in either place, though, so I'd otherwise recommend them. Diamond Heights and Twin Peaks are also really nice, and just as hilly as Bernal & Glen Park. Oh, but even though Bernal is very hilly, you can easily walk around their cool little main street (Cortland).

As for the Castro, it's definitely more walkable and close to public transportation... you can catch a number of buses & trollies from there, which will take you downtown in a matter of minutes. It is the "gay district," which I assume you already know, in case that matters. That doesn't mean much to most of us, but keep in mind that they do have a ton of nightclubs & it gets rather busy on the weekends. I'm guessing you have kids, since you asked about schools, so that's probably a bit too urban/crazy for them.

I used to live in the Sunset district, btw, and really liked it there... it's kinda far from downtown, but they have a few light-rails and express buses, so it's fairly easy to get around. And yes, it is extremely foggy there, which I personally loved! The Richmond is a great neighborhood - probably one of my favorites in SF - and I think it's rather walkable for the most part. All of that being said, for you I'd recommend the Richmond, inner Sunset, and possibly Potrero Hill. If you eliminate the "walkable" criteria, I'd also add Bernal Heights, Diamond Heights (just don't send the kids to MacAteer High), and Glen Park. Good luck!

bigdave01 · 02-24-2008, 08:13 PM

Thanks for all the replies. This is very helpful.

alexandragerteis · 06-01-2010, 01:30 PM

I think the Inner Sunset is quite happening these days...just missing a couple of good new spots such as a good trendy bar and trendy restaurants...what do you guys feel these days?? I'm looking to move there and was wondering how you would qualified the day and night scene?

andyadhi01 · 06-01-2010, 03:17 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by alexandragerteis

I think the Inner Sunset is quite happening these days...just missing a couple of good new spots such as a good trendy bar and trendy restaurants...what do you guys feel these days?? I'm looking to move there and was wondering how you would qualified the day and night scene?

Inner sunset is pretty good by SF standards except the really horrible weather. It is not trendy and does not have good bars! Its a reasonably functional neighborhood.

mayorhaggar · 06-01-2010, 04:13 PM

Inner Sunset is awesome. Lots of restaurants and bars and there are always a lot of people there. It and some other parts of the city like West Portal really feel like a more old fashioned, less yuppified part of the city but are still nice areas. It is almost always cloudy and chilly there compared with the parts of the city east of Twin Peaks though.

And I would say the Sunset and Richmond are walkable if you are near a major commercial street with a bus or light rail line, then it's the same as any other neighborhood. But there are definitely long stretches of houses with poor public transit access and few places to go shopping, especially deep in the Sunset.

andyadhi01 · 06-02-2010, 08:55 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by rah

but when you get a warm sunny day, it's the best, especially in one of the parks, or on the beach.

And 'when' exactly does that warm sunny day happen? In your dreams I suppose!

rah · 06-03-2010, 12:44 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by andyadhi01

And 'when' exactly does that warm sunny day happen? In your dreams I suppose!

I lived in the sunset for two years, and i currently work in the sunset, outdoors, 3 days out of every week. So once again, i know what i'm talking about. I never said the sunset is always sunny, but it does get way more sun than you give it credit for. You keep saying that it's always foggy, 24/7, when it's definitely not.

I know it may be hard for you, but also keep in mind that these few months in SF that you've so far experienced have happened to have been during an El Nino year...that is to say, our winter this year has been a bit longer, wetter, and colder than usual.

andyadhi01 · 06-03-2010, 03:45 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by rah

I lived in the sunset for two years, and i currently work in the sunset, outdoors, 3 days out of every week. So once again, i know what i'm talking about. I never said the sunset is always sunny, but it does get way more sun than you give it credit for. You keep saying that it's always foggy, 24/7, when it's definitely not.

I know it may be hard for you, but also keep in mind that these few months in SF that you've so far experienced have happened to have been during an El Nino year...that is to say, our winter this year has been a bit longer, wetter, and colder than usual.

No its not foggy 24/7..it gets about 2-3 hr of partial sunshine! Mornings before 11 AM or after 4 PM the visibility is about half a block and it drizzles non-stop! So technically you are correct but whats the point?

The fog has nothing to do with El Nino..Everyone who lives in the sunset knows this is normal.

tstieber · 06-04-2010, 10:07 AM

I hate the Sunset. No trees, rows and rows of identical looking houses, bad weather. To me, the Sunset is like the outback of SF. Even the beaches are rarely enjoyable due to the weather, and they are not scenic.

skyway31 · 06-04-2010, 12:58 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by andyadhi01

No its not foggy 24/7..it gets about 2-3 hr of partial sunshine! Mornings before 11 AM or after 4 PM the visibility is about half a block and it drizzles non-stop! So technically you are correct but whats the point?

The fog has nothing to do with El Nino..Everyone who lives in the sunset knows this is normal.

I had no idea the sunset got that much sun! Hell, most of the areas near the coast in Southern California have similar rates of sunshine this time of year! So, if the foggiest part of SF sees fog burn off for ~5 hours a day, I'm guessing eastern parts of the city get even more sun! That's better than I would have expected given the doom and gloom I read about here frequently.