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Old 06-19-2016, 12:53 PM
 
22 posts, read 22,935 times
Reputation: 68

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I am 25 years old (Female) and am currently living in Dunedin, FL which is a quaint beach town about 45 minutes north of St.Petersburg. I grew up in a nice suburb of Columbus, OH and attended the Ohio State University. Upon graduation, I decided to move to Florida for a change of scenery; however, despite having some cousins in St.Pete, I was afraid to move there because of crime statistics and chose Dunedin instead.

Dunedin has its charms, but overall it is a pretty dull, sleepy area. Shopping is limited and grocery stores are pretty crappy in my opinion aside from the new WholeFoods off of highway 19. I just feel very isolated here, as a young active person,compared to the metropolis I grew up in. I know I need to get out!

I want to live somewhere with many amenities and conveniences such as banks,coffee shops, theatres, book stores, art galleries and high-end grocery stores with abundant selections of produce (I know it will be hard to find groceries comparable to up north, but at least something decent). I am also a yoga instructor, so living somewhere that has a lively (athletic) yoga scene is important to me.

I am starting to think that St.Pete might fit this bill! However, I still have reservations due to the crime in St.Pete. I have read that it is one of the most dangerous cities in the United States despite its relatively small size. I have also observed, just from driving around down there, that there do not seem to be great stretches of nice, safe, areas like in Columbus. The good and bad seems to be very jumbled together, which can be scary to an outsider.

So basically, I'm just looking for experiences/opinion/insights (good or bad) from people who have lived or presently live in St.Pete, particularly from the perspective of a female if possible.

Yay or nay? I just really don't want to move there and get robbed/mugged/shot/raped.

Last edited by Sunscape; 06-19-2016 at 02:38 PM..

 
Old 06-19-2016, 03:47 PM
 
Location: Beautiful Pinellas County
1,466 posts, read 3,070,981 times
Reputation: 1116
I have many friends who live in St Pete and none have had any of the experiences you are afraid of.
There is crime in St Pete, check this link, Top 100 most dangerous places to live in the USA - NeighborhoodScout not finding St Pete on here, but there are lists and there are lists.
Have you been and explored the area? Downtown is fabulous, however housing is expensive. St Pete is a large city that encompasses almost the entire southern portion of Pinellas county, so there is st pete and there is st pete.
You may find more people interested in yoga in that area, but you need to check the area out first and see if you like it.
It is a fact one has to drive more here, we are at the southernmost tip of the USA so food shops tend to be 'improving' is how I like to put it! We relocated here from Europe almost 20 yrs ago now and had you moved here then as an adult you would have gone back I am sure - its really getting better in many ways.
 
Old 06-19-2016, 06:59 PM
 
27,206 posts, read 46,646,405 times
Reputation: 15661
St. Pete has some areas that come on the news a lot but that is a small area and you can check newspapers or online and aside from that is probably no different than every city is dealing with as crime is unfortunately part of the world we live in.

We spend a lot of time in St. Pete yesterday and had a great time. Down town area is great and near the Sundial is a very nice area with a movie theater, food center and some shops. There is a lot of security walking around and I assume that it might be to avoid that crime from the other areas will come to the Sundial area which is prevented by clearly showing that security is around.
 
Old 06-20-2016, 12:38 AM
 
35,309 posts, read 52,161,239 times
Reputation: 30999
Take a drive down to Gulfport,near beaches and a short drive to downtown might be a place to consider.
Gulfport Florida
 
Old 06-20-2016, 04:03 AM
 
Location: Central Mexico and Central Florida
7,150 posts, read 4,887,198 times
Reputation: 10444
I'll happily second Gulfport. I've lived here 3 years. I am opposite age spectrum of you....but similar needs/wants. I am early 60's, female. I love to walk....I walk a min. of 4 miles a day, including alone and after dark. Never a worry here in Gulfport. It's a nice laid back atmosphere here; lots of events.

I drive to Trader Joes in St. Pete (14 minutes) about once a month, shop weekly at Publix in S. Pasadena (6 minute drive). I walk and shop for veggies at the weekly Tues. Gulfport Market and supplement with walks/bike rides to the Gulfport Produce stand. I also walk or bike to Walgreens. If I had to live without a car here I could. In fact we bought a new car in Nov. 2014 and so far we've logged under 5K miles on it and that includes a driving trip up the East Coast. We often go 4 or 5 days without moving our car.

We eat out often ... there are 12+ non-chain restaurants I can walk to from my home over to Beach Blvd. There are bars here too that have live music almost nightly. Nice mix of people here; on our block we are only retirees, most are young professionals, often working from home. A few small families. LGBT couples (Gulfport is hosting a number of events during St. Pete's Pride celebration this week).

We moved here from AZ and Central MX so we could help care for my elderly FIL. He recently passed away and we are once again free to live wherever we want. We've decided we love Gulfport and will stay here.
 
Old 06-20-2016, 06:38 AM
 
163 posts, read 183,118 times
Reputation: 273
I'm always surprised to see so many people concerned about crime in St. Pete. I just moved here in March, but so far it's one of the safest cities I've ever lived in. If you concentrate on Northeast St. Pete and stay South of 38th and west of 275, you should be able to find a very safe place to live that's minutes from almost all of the action. There are also some other good areas (like Kenwood) that are west of 275.

If you're looking for a suburban feel with gated communities and a lack of diversity, St. Pete isn't it. But if you're looking for a place with a lot going on, good restaurant scene, beautiful older homes, and old growth trees, Northeast St. Pete should fit the bill. It has all the things you're looking for. I live here and am within 1.5 miles (at most) of at least 5 yoga studios, several nice Publix stores, Trader Joes, Fresh Market, Rollin Oats Market, the weekly Farmers Market, tons of restaurants, several great locally owned coffee shops, the Bay, dozens of parks, breweries, art galleries and museums, and pretty much everything I need is less than a 10 minute drive, 15 minute bike ride, or 30 minute walk, all through safe and beautiful areas.
 
Old 06-20-2016, 07:10 AM
 
261 posts, read 259,830 times
Reputation: 194
When you first move here you are really blinded till you get to know the area a few years, Sun and beaches can brighten reality. St Pete has its bad areas like every city. Its not as bad as larger cities and criminal strongholds such as Philly, Detroit, Chicago LA st Louis that an entire different level of problems. The problem with Pinellas County and St Pete is you never know who you are dealing with as people from other states moved here with great frequency with criminal background or warrants and come here to get away from there problems; so with that said crime can be unpredictable here than some locations. Its harder to crime map for law enforcement with the constant people coming its extremely transient. I would kind of compare the crime level of the Tampa area to a Vegas due to this.


Lived in both Urban Hillsborough and Pinellas areas both so lived in Tampa Bay about 16 years so I have some knowledge of this area. Traffic and Pedestrian safety i would say is worse than crime for worries for me. Tampa is ranked one of the most pedestrian unfriendly areas in the world. I seen personally people get hit in Pinellas on bikes and motorcycles in my 16 years. I wouldn't suggest bike riding here on the roadways anywhere from my experiences here.

Last edited by paradiselost; 06-20-2016 at 07:28 AM..
 
Old 06-20-2016, 10:25 AM
 
Location: Tampa, Fl
4,091 posts, read 5,995,147 times
Reputation: 3415
Quote:
Originally Posted by paradiselost View Post
When you first move here you are really blinded till you get to know the area a few years, Sun and beaches can brighten reality. St Pete has its bad areas like every city. Its not as bad as larger cities and criminal strongholds such as Philly, Detroit, Chicago LA st Louis that an entire different level of problems. The problem with Pinellas County and St Pete is you never know who you are dealing with as people from other states moved here with great frequency with criminal background or warrants and come here to get away from there problems; so with that said crime can be unpredictable here than some locations. Its harder to crime map for law enforcement with the constant people coming its extremely transient. I would kind of compare the crime level of the Tampa area to a Vegas due to this.


Lived in both Urban Hillsborough and Pinellas areas both so lived in Tampa Bay about 16 years so I have some knowledge of this area. Traffic and Pedestrian safety i would say is worse than crime for worries for me. Tampa is ranked one of the most pedestrian unfriendly areas in the world. I seen personally people get hit in Pinellas on bikes and motorcycles in my 16 years. I wouldn't suggest bike riding here on the roadways anywhere from my experiences here.
The advice you gives makes me wonder if you've even been to Florida, much less the "Tampa Bay Area." You live in unincorperated Hillsborough now, I'm wondering where in Pinellas you lived. Driving through the big cities on your way to work does not make you an expert in said area.
 
Old 06-20-2016, 10:36 AM
 
Location: Tampa, FL
27,798 posts, read 32,335,022 times
Reputation: 14611
maybe it's time to purchase and carry a concealed weapon/hand gun......
 
Old 06-20-2016, 11:12 AM
 
Location: Tampa, Fl (SoHo/Hyde Park)
1,336 posts, read 4,956,828 times
Reputation: 1039
Move to the soho area in south tampa, its the closest thing to what you are looking for in the bay area.
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