Heading down to Tampa Bay! (Clearwater, Palm Harbor: appointed, home, neighborhoods)

[xbillyx]

I'll be heading down to the Tampa Bay area at the end of this month to scope things out. I'm excited!

Here are the areas on my list to check out (thanks to you all for helping):

• St Petersburg (especially downtown and the neighborhoods between 275, 375, and 38th Ave)
• Palm Harbor (especially the neighborhoods near downtown)
• Dunedin
• Tarpon Springs

Questions:

1. Is Clearwater worth checking out? I have to say, the fact that it's Scientology headquarters kind of puts me off.
2. I'm considering checking out Ozona, Belleair, Gulfport and Safety Harbor (not a fan of the name of the town, though). Worth it?
3. Anything else I'm missing in the Tampa Bay area?

I don't think I'm putting Tampa/South Tampa on our list because 1) it's not close enough to the beaches and 2) the nice parts seem out of our price range. I may do a quick drive through South Tampa, though, just to take a look.

St Pete seems the most promising to me thus far, though I'm trying to not build it up at all. I'd rather be pleasantly surprised than disappointed.

I'll be sure to take pictures around the area for those of you also curious in moving. So many of you have been really kind and have helped a lot. I'd like to do the same.

[SacalaitWhisperer]

Back in the 80s I lived near Palm Harbor in a small marina town named Ozona.
Highly recommended. There was a funky good restaurant / bar named Molly Goodheads right up the road from
where i lived. Good fun.

Palm Harbor didn't really have a downtown when I was there...

The average age in St Pete is 55 or so... many retirees.

Clearwater is touristy, imho.
Frenchys on Clearwater beach had some REALLY good grouper sandwiches.

I prefered living on the outskirts of the metro areas....


This is me windsurfing South of the Dunedin Causeway. Honeymoon Island is in the background.

Caladesi Island would be to the left of this photo... across Hurricane Pass.

[gypsychic]

Originally Posted by xbillyx

I'll be heading down to the Tampa Bay area at the end of this month to scope things out. I'm excited!

Here are the areas on my list to check out (thanks to you all for helping):

• St Petersburg (especially downtown and the neighborhoods between 275, 375, and 38th Ave)
• Palm Harbor (especially the neighborhoods near downtown)
• Dunedin
• Tarpon Springs

Questions:

1. Is Clearwater worth checking out? I have to say, the fact that it's Scientology headquarters kind of puts me off.
2. I'm considering checking out Ozona, Belleair, Gulfport and Safety Harbor (not a fan of the name of the town, though). Worth it?
3. Anything else I'm missing in the Tampa Bay area?

I don't think I'm putting Tampa/South Tampa on our list because 1) it's not close enough to the beaches and 2) the nice parts seem out of our price range. I may do a quick drive through South Tampa, though, just to take a look.

St Pete seems the most promising to me thus far, though I'm trying to not build it up at all. I'd rather be pleasantly surprised than disappointed.

I'll be sure to take pictures around the area for those of you also curious in moving. So many of you have been really kind and have helped a lot. I'd like to do the same.

LOL - I have answered so many of your posts now you probably think I have nothing else to do! But I wanted to wish you happiness and fun in your explorations. Just to address your list:

1. St. Pete - well you know I love downtown, beaches are nice, too
2. Palm Harbor - nice but seems too suburban for me
3. Dunedin - haven't been there in awhile, a nice small town
4. Tarpon - love it, funky unique Florida town with the touristy Greek sponge docks area and a nice downtown
5. Ozona - not much to it but a neat area
6. Belleair - a rich area of Clearwater I think
7. Gulfport - very small, funky artsy area - place that "time forgot"
8. Safety Harbor - gorgeous, small quaint town, with the fabulous Phillippe Park and many immense shade trees - tucked away but just minutes from good Clearwater shopping and over the Courtney Campbell to Tampa - I love it.

I personally don't care for Clearwater, although many like it. Not much gets posted on this forum about Clearwater. While I don't have anything against the Scientologists per se, they do give a kind of creepy vibe to downtown, which IMO is not one of the better Florida downtowns.

Definitely worth it to check out all these places, and yes might as well take a drive through South Tampa. Don't rule anything out without seeing it, you never really know what's gonna "ring your bell." And even though you have ruled out Sarasota, it's an easy drive over the Skyway once you are in St. Pete, so if you haven't visited in awhile, come on down and see how nice it is these days.

[ferret111]

Even though Clearwater is the third-largest Bay Area city, there's really nothing there except for the beach.

I wouldn't rule out South Tampa altogether. You say you want to be near the beach, but how often will you really go, especially once the routine of work and daily chores kicks in?

[xbillyx]

Originally Posted by SacalaitWhisperer

The average age in St Pete is 55 or so... many retirees.

According to City-Data statistics, the median age in St Pete in July 2009 was 39.3 (on par with the state's median of 38.7). Maybe it's been getting younger since you were there?

[xbillyx]

Originally Posted by gypsychic

LOL - I have answered so many of your posts now you probably think I have nothing else to do! But I wanted to wish you happiness and fun in your explorations. Just to address your list:

1. St. Pete - well you know I love downtown, beaches are nice, too
2. Palm Harbor - nice but seems too suburban for me
3. Dunedin - haven't been there in awhile, a nice small town
4. Tarpon - love it, funky unique Florida town with the touristy Greek sponge docks area and a nice downtown
5. Ozona - not much to it but a neat area
6. Belleair - a rich area of Clearwater I think
7. Gulfport - very small, funky artsy area - place that "time forgot"
8. Safety Harbor - gorgeous, small quaint town, with the fabulous Phillippe Park and many immense shade trees - tucked away but just minutes from good Clearwater shopping and over the Courtney Campbell to Tampa - I love it.

I personally don't care for Clearwater, although many like it. Not much gets posted on this forum about Clearwater. While I don't have anything against the Scientologists per se, they do give a kind of creepy vibe to downtown, which IMO is not one of the better Florida downtowns.

Definitely worth it to check out all these places, and yes might as well take a drive through South Tampa. Don't rule anything out without seeing it, you never really know what's gonna "ring your bell." And even though you have ruled out Sarasota, it's an easy drive over the Skyway once you are in St. Pete, so if you haven't visited in awhile, come on down and see how nice it is these days.

Not at all! I'm glad you answered. I've really appreciated your help on the forum. I'm getting to know a handful of people around here and you're one of them. It's nice.

I haven't been to Sarasota in several years. I really enjoyed eating at Tropical Thai in downtown.

[Mike1306]

Parts of Clearwater are on the bay, extends north past Dunedin, south almost to Pinellas Park and of course west to the Gulf.

There is plenty in Clearwater besides the beach and Scientologists.

Safety Harbor is nice as is Ozona, Crystal Beach, Gulfport etc.
Check out as much as you can as the areas do offer a wide choice.

[MAniacTHW]

Originally Posted by ferret111

I wouldn't rule out South Tampa altogether. You say you want to be near the beach, but how often will you really go, especially once the routine of work and daily chores kicks in?

About as often as the rest of us go. FWIW, I haven't been to the beach in over two years.

[jambo101]

XbillyX
Looking forward to your take on the area once you've scoped it out..

[cariad]

Originally Posted by xbillyx

I'll be heading down to the Tampa Bay area at the end of this month to scope things out. I'm excited!

Here are the areas on my list to check out (thanks to you all for helping):

• St Petersburg (especially downtown and the neighborhoods between 275, 375, and 38th Ave)
• Palm Harbor (especially the neighborhoods near downtown)
• Dunedin
• Tarpon Springs

Questions:

1. Is Clearwater worth checking out? I have to say, the fact that it's Scientology headquarters kind of puts me off.
2. I'm considering checking out Ozona, Belleair, Gulfport and Safety Harbor (not a fan of the name of the town, though). Worth it?
3. Anything else I'm missing in the Tampa Bay area?

I don't think I'm putting Tampa/South Tampa on our list because 1) it's not close enough to the beaches and 2) the nice parts seem out of our price range. I may do a quick drive through South Tampa, though, just to take a look.

St Pete seems the most promising to me thus far, though I'm trying to not build it up at all. I'd rather be pleasantly surprised than disappointed.

I'll be sure to take pictures around the area for those of you also curious in moving. So many of you have been really kind and have helped a lot. I'd like to do the same.

Enjoy your trip! As I've said before there are so many different neighborhoods that offer so many things, I couldn't pick just one area to recommend. For us it came down to the first "how can we pass this up" home we found. It happened to be Palm Harbor, but could have easily been any of the other areas you mention.
Don't let the name of safety harbor fool you, with the bay, marina, phillipe park, and funky, quaint eclectic downtown(no grocery store though, nearest 2 are about 1 1/2M from downtown at Enterprise and McMullin Booth), it is well worth checking out and another place we would happily live.
I love Dunedin downtown, and along bayshore, but the rest runs the gamut from sketchy to typical suburbia.
St, Pete, downtown, Shore acres and coffee pot bayou are my areas of choice there.
I thought I'd like to live in downtown Tarpin Springs, but the longer we lived here the more I think of it as just a good place to visit and take out of town guests.

I'd live in Ozona or Crystal Beach in a heartbeat. I put Crystal beach first only because of the sunset festivities in the park.
Downtown Palm Harbor is small, historic and primarily restaurants, bookstore, barbershop, and a few small shops,the western boundary is alt 19(commercial/business) the rest is all residential. The closest grocery is sweet bay on Tampa Rd. (If you are a walker, it is within walking distance).

clearwater has some beautiful residential neighborhoods, especially countryside and near the safety harbor border off the bay, but they all are more suburban than urban, so probably not to your preference.

And when DH wins the powerball we will buy a place in Pass A Grille.