South County Area (St. Louis, Oakville, Mehlville: neighborhood, best school, live in)

[DespicableMe]

Its kind of obvious that no matter where you live you need to go out to meet people and have fun. Doesn't matter if its South County, West or the downtown if you stay at home.

I know many people who prefer living in a more affordable community and drive to the downtown/Wash Ave areas on weekends to have fun. Just depends on personal preference but if there is some way living in any area would increase my chances of being active, do let me know and I'm ready to move by the time my lease expires.

[BoomBoxing]

My property taxes are practically half of what they would be if my house was in south county. The city is more affordable as long as you don't have kids. Not to mention how much less gas we buy since all the places we like to go are 5 to 10 minute drives tops.

I don't think that just by moving to the city you automatically will inherit some sort of active lifestyle. But just by being so close to stuff you are more inclined to do them more often, at least in my experience. Plus the city is more pleasant to walk around in and with more stuff to walk to. The parks are better and more plentiful and it's much safer to ride a bike in. Many neighborhoods on the south side have crime rates comparable to most of south county (IE: low) and even ones with much higher crime rates are relatively safe if you practice street smarts.

But that's just my experience. Like I said, south county is just fine for many people and I was not miserable there. It depends on the person and individual preference, but I am much much much happier in the city.

[MUTGR]

Originally Posted by STLgirl20

I would say that South County is more diverse (has more African Americans, hispanics, etc) than Kirkwood and other West County Areas.

I'm not saying Kirkwood is this paragon of diversity, but I think it has South County beat unless there is something going on there I'm not aware of.

The last I read, the Kirkwood School District was about 25% African American, which I'm guessing is a much higher proportion than Oakville, Lindbergh, Mehlville, etc. Two years ago, my son was in an elementary class in Kirkwood that was basically 50% African American. Can't say there is any hispanic population in Kirkwood to speak of.

And I guess technically most people would lump Kirkwood in with West County, but I've always looked at Kirkwood and Webster as kind of stand alone suburbs. I mean, they are quite different than Ballwin, Chesterfield, Ellisville, etc.

Just my two cents worth.

[imperialmog]

In terms of diversity, have to consider that in terms of hispanics and asians South County doesn't deviate from the metro as a whole since the St. Louis area has low percentages of asians and especially hispanics compared to almost every metro area at this point.

Also have to note is that South County has a much higher percentage of older residents than other places. The reason is that most of the residents are people who have lived there for decades and have had their children grow up and move out. (also is the reason why if you look at numbers there is population decline the last two decades there) South City is similar but is through the phase where these homeowners die off and younger people can move in. My guess is South County starts having this occur in the near future where younger people start moving in to replace long-time homeowners. The wild card is if a large immigrant influx occurs in this time period and they start moving in an area of South County.

[DespicableMe]

Originally Posted by BoomBoxing

My property taxes are practically half of what they would be if my house was in south county. The city is more affordable as long as you don't have kids. Not to mention how much less gas we buy since all the places we like to go are 5 to 10 minute drives tops.

I don't know about that. I rent a nice apartment in Kirkwood for $600 a month. I'll have to pay around $850 or more to get a similar one in Clayton, downtown or the CWE.

Dogtown might be a little cheaper though.

Re: Gas costs, it doesn't come around much when you think that I'd have to pay for a secure garage if I'm living inside the city.

I don't think that just by moving to the city you automatically will inherit some sort of active lifestyle. But just by being so close to stuff you are more inclined to do them more often, at least in my experience. Plus the city is more pleasant to walk around in and with more stuff to walk to. The parks are better and more plentiful

Agree on that. Forest Park is amazing, while there are other areas in close vicinity to west county like Creve Couer park and castlewood, Forest Park & Tower Grove park are something different.

and it's much safer to ride a bike in. Many neighborhoods on the south side have crime rates comparable to most of south county (IE: low) and even ones with much higher crime rates are relatively safe if you practice street smarts.

While I agree that the city is a safe place in general you cannot compare it to the suburbs. There is statistical evidence to disprove that.

But that's just my experience. Like I said, south county is just fine for many people and I was not miserable there. It depends on the person and individual preference, but I am much much much happier in the city.

I'm not talking about the south county in general here and while I'd love to live in the city, there's much less hassles living in the west county and downtown is only 12 - 15 miles away and I won't be out on the town on weekdays anyways.

[BoomBoxing]

Originally Posted by DespicableMe

I don't know about that. I rent a nice apartment in Kirkwood for $600 a month. I'll have to pay around $850 or more to get a similar one in Clayton, downtown or the CWE.

Dogtown might be a little cheaper though.

Re: Gas costs, it doesn't come around much when you think that I'd have to pay for a secure garage if I'm living inside the city.

Agree on that. Forest Park is amazing, while there are other areas in close vicinity to west county like Creve Couer park and castlewood, Forest Park & Tower Grove park are something different.

I think we're on the same page but I wanted to clarify a couple of things. South city is full of two and four family flats, as well as a few complexes that are some of the most beautiful apartments in St. Louis. Better yet, most of them are between $500 and $800 a month. There are a ton in my neighborhood, check out some pictures here:

St. Louis City Talk: North Hampton Neighborhood

Where did you get the idea you have to have a secure parking garage in the city? I don't have one and haven't had any problems. As long as you don't leave valubles you will not likely have your car broken in to. Further, most apartments like the ones I just mentioned have off street parking for free.

While I agree that the city is a safe place in general you cannot compare it to the suburbs. There is statistical evidence to disprove that.

I'm not talking about the south county in general here and while I'd love to live in the city, there's much less hassles living in the west county and downtown is only 12 - 15 miles away and I won't be out on the town on weekdays anyways.

I think you misread my statement about safety. I was saying it's much safer to ride a bike in the city, not that it was safer crime wise. I also see a lot more people riding in the city, especially as a form of transportation and not just recreation.

I don't really agree that there are much less hassles living in the county. I count traffic as a major hassle and haven't really been stuck in it since I moved and am able to avoid the mess known as I-270. Then again I am lucky enough to work downtown. I imagine if I worked out in Chesterfield or St. Charles county I'd be battling traffic regardless of where I live.

Still, it's mostly subjective. Kirkwood is rather different from south county. Loads of charm and a good number of non-chain businesses. I definitely prefer it to south county

[stlcitygirl]

There is no comparison between Kirkwood and South County. Kirkwood is by FAR the better place to live in terms of pretty much everything. I haven't had secure parking in the four years in the city and have never had a problem. Basically, you just don't leave anything out in your car and your good to go. If you are that worried, just slap a club on the car, it works.

[DespicableMe]

Not with my Audi.

[stlcitygirl]

Umm, so no one in the city drives Audis? On my street alone there is a BMW, Lexus and Jaguar, they have never been touched and they are parked in the street. Thugs are more likely to mess with the really easy cars like a Jeep Liberty.

[DespicableMe]

I didn't mean that, I was responding to your "slap a club on the car" idea.