New family moving from DC, looking for nice area, walking distance to things. (Tampa: new home, schools)

[user8]

Originally Posted by jnichols2

Wow. Total BS.
Me and the people that I see must be imaginary then. I spend a great deal of time walking around my neighborhood and barely use a car on the weekends. I can walk to almost anything where I live in Palma Ceia, with the exception of the mall (which is no big loss). If you throw in a bike, then even better. Plenty of people walk around here, though I agree that Floridians in general are "drive to the mailbox" type people.

ok, walking around your neighborhood and walking to stores/bars/restaurants/whatever are two totally different things. hell, i walk around my neighborhood all the time; mainly for knee rehab. i still wouldn't consider this area walkable by any means.

you have a tiny fraction of things to walk to compared to where the OP is moving from. sorry, that's a fact. plus, i highly doubt you and your neighbors are out walking to stores in that area all the time.

[gypsychic]

I think people have a lot of different definitions as to what "walkable" means. Obviously NO place in Florida is going to be like places in the north or large cities where one literally can walk to get all their groceries etc. Even there I imagine one would have to travel to doctor appts. and the like.

I am not that familiar with what south Tampa is like these days, but the only two areas I AM familiar with that I think meets most people's criteria for "walkable" which I take it means you can walk to anything you need for daily living and entertainment like groceries, drugstores, movies, restaurants, cafe, library, bus station and more are downtown Sarasota and downtown St. Pete - that's it. At least that is all that I am familiar with. and of course these are nothing like big cities, but at least they pretty much have everything.

Otherwise, neighborhoods are like mine - I can walk to the bay, to a few restaurants, my dentist, my chiro, a 7-11, music store and if I include a mile up the road even Publix and a small Target.

I guess a lot of people coming from large cities just have no idea that Florida is all spread out, it's a more newly settled state compared to others, and most areas just don't have that urban type core. That's why there is so much "New Urbanism" going on in new developments - to meet those needs. That is always an option for people looking for that lifestyle.

[GoRays813]

Originally Posted by jnichols2

You will want to check out So. Tampa. If, like me, walkability is that important to you, you should concentrate on Palma Ceia and Hyde Park in particular. Especially since your spouse's job will be at MacDill AFB. In my opinion, these are pretty much the only areas in the entire city of tampa that have a combination of safety, good schools, and true walkability. No matter where else you look, you will have to sacrifice at least one of those. That being said, you will have to give up the beachfront in So Tampa, although you will at least have the option of being near bayshore.

Bottom line: walkability is EXTREMELY rare in Tampa, so you'll find that your decision of where to live become quite simple really.

Agreed!

[jnichols2]

Originally Posted by user8

ok, walking around your neighborhood and walking to stores/bars/restaurants/whatever are two totally different things. hell, i walk around my neighborhood all the time; mainly for knee rehab. i still wouldn't consider this area walkable by any means.

you have a tiny fraction of things to walk to compared to where the OP is moving from. sorry, that's a fact. plus, i highly doubt you and your neighbors are out walking to stores in that area all the time.

I am walking around my neighborhood TO GO TO restaurants, grocery, library, bars, specialty shops, salons, ice cream, dry cleaner, etc.

Not for 'knee rehab'.

You "highly doubt"? Really? Ok, then. If you say so.

I also highly doubt you have any idea what you are talking about. Fair enough?

[user8]

riiiight. get back to us in a few months when it's hotter than hell and let us know how much you're walking around.

[Pragmaticus]

Originally Posted by user8

riiiight. get back to us in a few months when it's hotter than hell and let us know how much you're walking around.

Is the question "Can the weather let you walk?" or "Can you walk to do day to day activities, if weather is OK?"

You seem to be changing your argument from one post to the other .

We all know Tampa ain't DC for walking. Question is: given what Tampa is, where are the bes places one can walk to do everyday things? And for that jnichols2 made the case.

[BBI]

Originally Posted by Evlyn11

Hello there! My husband, eight month old son and I are moving to the Tampa area from DC. I lived in FL for 20 years before heading up to DC, but lived just north of Orlando, but have no idea about the Tampa area! My husband will be working mostly in and near Macdill AFB, and we're looking for a family friendly (good schools, parks, safe) area. Walkability is very important to us, so we would like to have things at a close enough distance that we can enjoy the lovely weather and walk over to them, grocery store, park, movie theater... that sort of thing.
That being said, being within walking distance of the beach would be a massive bonus Price aside, are there any areas that meet those needs, or will there need to be compromises? Thanks for your help!!

Limited selection if you want walkability, and one compromise.

On selection, the way I use the term 'walkability' is that I can walk to fun stuff: restaurants, bars, concerts, parks, festivals, museums, farmers market, light shopping, the bay, movies, fishing, etc. Other people use that term to mean living without a car. If you mean "walkability" like I do, your selection in the bay area is limited. We found South Tampa and the Old Northeast neighborhood in St. Pete were the best options by a mile, and ultimately chose the Old NE. Lots of posts here comparing the two. But very limited selection of good "walkable" neighborhoods in the bay area, the way I use that term. If, to you, "walkability" means you don't need a car, then not only are you faced with limited selection, but you'll miss out on a lot of what the area offers since it wasn't designed with that in mind. But you're from Orlando, so you know that about FL already.

The compromise is proximity to the beach. The best beaches are on the gulf, and most folks on the barrier islands are tourists/snowbirds/retirees. So I wouldn't recommend the beach neighborhoods to you. Of course, you can get your water access fix elsewhere: Old NE has a great park system along the bay (including a little beach), South Tampa has a(n unattractive) walking/biking/jogging trail along the water, and, if you sacrifice walkabilty (or price truly is not an issue), there are a lot of homes/neighborhoods with saltwater in the back yard. But when we're jonesing for the beach, we drive to the gulf, and that seems to be what most people do. 15ish mins from our neighborhood isn't a big deal.

Happy hunting.

[user8]

Originally Posted by MeInDenudinFL

Is the question "Can the weather let you walk?" or "Can you walk to do day to day activities, if weather is OK?"

You seem to be changing your argument from one post to the other .

We all know Tampa ain't DC for walking. Question is: given what Tampa is, where are the bes places one can walk to do everyday things? And for that jnichols2 made the case.

meh, i guess you can call that area walkable if you scale down your idea of walkability. i just don't see many people there doing so regularly, despite his claim.

[tonyff67]

Soho is very walk able. I lived there for 13 years and other than for getting to work, I would have never needed a car. I lived at Horatio and Westland. My address got an 88 on walk score. It's hard to beat that, even in most of the northern cities.

[crazynip]

Originally Posted by jnichols2

I am walking around my neighborhood TO GO TO restaurants, grocery, library, bars, specialty shops, salons, ice cream, dry cleaner, etc.

Not for 'knee rehab'.

You "highly doubt"? Really? Ok, then. If you say so.

I also highly doubt you have any idea what you are talking about. Fair enough?

You must not get outside of your neighborhood much. I can count on one hand the number of places where you can do what you mention. And hyde park and palma ceia isnt it... unless you do all your shopping at a convienience store or one of those boarded up storefronts in hyde park