What are Tacoma's safe and not-so-safe areas? (Seattle: theater, shop)
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Thanks for the info. I imagine that this new transit line will come in handy!
Will get a lot closer to UPS than currently. He could conceivably be within walking distance of both. It connects to the Theater District, Downtown Tacoma, the Tacoma Dome Station/Freighthouse Square (Sounder/ST Express), and Amtrak. Currently free to ride, but don't know if it will remain so, after expansion.
Location: East of Seattle since 1992, 615' Elevation, Zone 8b - originally from SF Bay Area
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The biggest problem with Tacoma (and more so Gig Harbor) is just getting there. That stretch of I5 from Fife through Tacoma seems like it's nasty every day of the week and any time of the day. As a college student hanging around with others even the worst parts are not that bad, but I wouldn't want to have to raise a family there. We often go to one of the RV places there, and will stop for coffee at the Dutch Bros or to eat at the Poodle Dog, and I sometimes have to go to the Port. Hilltop has gotten better, but we still avoid it, too many memories of the traditional gang activity there. Gentrification takes years to go from gang-infested to safe.
I've never seen a Bigfoot in the forest, but I do hold up hope we'll catch one one of these weeks with our trail cam! We'll keep looking.
And... just to bring us full circle... I have a picture of me holding hands with Hansel and Gretel in Never Never Land.
When they took it all down, I guess the figures were stored in a warehouse for awhile, to hopefully be restored someplace else. Unfortunately, I think I read that the storage burned and they're all gone now.
Oh no! Those figurines are all gone! Poop. May Grandpa and Grandma RIP. Yeah, Tacoma is sort of an interesting city. I watched it from the front and back passenger seats of Grandpa's 1966 Buick Skylark. It was a much simpler time.
Thanks for your contributions to my post, Diana Holbrook!
That's it, Diana. Happy memories of my childhood. I had an upbringing that afforded me time to shoot pool, shoot baskets, watch Bewitched, Hogan's Heroes, Gilligan's Island, Green Acres, Green Hornet...on and on I could go. Edmonds, WA, was a great place to grow up.
Complete with this: if you're not able to open up your mind, turn the channel right now. This memory was back in 1972. I was 12 just about to turn 13. I was walking up an access road to the house Dad built us in Edmonds. On a fairly steep hill, the house was a 2 - story with a large center beam through the living room and an A-frame splitting through the middle. From there we could see Puget Sound shipping traffic, which included freighters, ocean-going ships of all kinds, small sailboats, speedboats, etc. Occasionally I could spot a ferry boat softly cruising through the dark blue waters of Puget Sound. Occasionally I'd spot a black submarine, too, but I could spot black submarines way more often from Grandpa's home in Gig Harbor.
As I walked up the hill, I could hear a dog barking down below in this large open field that was surrounded by 225 acres of tall forest to the eastern side and the northern side. It was University of Washington forest preserve land. Beautiful forest land, untouched by man's machinery. The little black terrier was entranced on something that was right on the treeline. Whatever this creature was, it was shaking a tree branch incessantly. Here's where the story gets weird. While it was shaking this tall Washington evergreen it was letting out this awful, shrieky howl that had as a foundation a deep, long set of lungs. I had goose bumps on my arms and the hair on the back of my neck was sticking straight up.
What the? I looked down the hill. Guys, this tree branch is the kind that gets real thick right at the trunk of the tree. The creature would need to be hellishly strong to shake that doug fir branch like that.
This little black dog just kept barking and barking the whole time. Since that incident I have learned that dogs will do this whenever there's a BigFoot around. I'm convinced that the creature was a cryptid. When it was done shaking the branch, it slowly walked back in to the woods, crackling branches under it's enormous weight. It was the same sound that Paul Freeman heard back in 1994 in the Blue Mts. near Walla Walla, WA.
Take a look at 4:47 on here for a look at a live BigFoot in the forest:
I think I'm getting a pretty good picture of Tacoma's layout. Thanks to those who've provided information about that. Now I have questions about two particular spots.
TACOMA MALL: People here have mentioned that a UPS student might want to visit Tacoma Mall. I see that the mall is located around the center of South Tacoma, which I understand is not a great area. If one of my nephew's friends had a car and a bunch of kids wanted to go to the mall, would it be safe to drive through South Tacoma to reach the mall? Would it perhaps be safe in the daytime but less so at night?
Day or night, would it be best to avoid parking off at the far fringes of the parking lot? Best to park near the building housing the mall?
I've checked info on the transit system. It appears that it would be possible to ride the bus to the mall. Is the ride there and back likely to be safe? Does the bus stop right at the mall, or would you have to walk through some shady streets to get between the bus stop and the mall?
VIETNAMESE NEIGHBORHOOD (LINCOLN INTERNATIONAL DISTRICT): Appears to be a bit south of downtown, just into the South End, another area I understand has some crime issues. Are there ethnic restaurants in the Lincoln District that might draw college students to the area, or is there unlikely to be any reason a college kid would ever even go there? If students might want to go there, how safe is it? Is there any significant danger, or is the area more like, hey it's a city, so take the usual precautions?
Thanks for any answers to these questions, and for the info about Tacoma already provided.
If it makes you feel better, I'm a UPS parent of a girl from the Class of 2019. Tacoma seemed surprisingly poor and rough at first, but I grew to love it dearly. My daughter rode her bike all over the North End, alone day and night, without any trouble. Her closest brush with crime in four years was seeing her housemate's boyfriend's car burgled after he left his climbing gear inside. She's be happy to live there again, and I wish she would- I like to visit.
I've stayed many nights without incident at a BnB near where Hilltop and Stadium districts meet. At another BnB near Sixth Avenue, I was the guest of a retired dispatcher from the TPD. She confirmed that the nineties were very tough times in Tacoma. Vacant lots still sit empty from riots and fires there. But everything changed in one night, she said, when the cops arrested nearly 100 drug dealers in one fell swoop. That sent the other gangsters back southward, she said.
Overall, UPS is a pretty self-contained campus. Once you're matriculated into that "bubble," as my daughter called it, students tend to stick close to campus for the first two years when you're required to live in dorms. After that, they tend to drift into the abundance of charming, affordable Craftsman cottages surrounding campus. Tacoma's nightlife isn't that compelling, and Seattle is a long drive away.
Based on this, I'd say Tacoma is safe enough. it treated my kid well.But what do I know about risk? I chose to go to college in Memphis, a real bucket-o'-blood if there ever was one.
If you look at Tacoma's stats on this site, you'll see that all crimes are still above average. Statistics don't lie, but the situation seems to show steady improvement. Every state or region has one city that everyone else loves to dump on, and that seems to have been Tacoma's historic role.
Through the late 20th Century it suffered epic levels of air and soil pollution, as local industry literally dumped on itself. The entire North End is a Superfund remediation zone, and half the residential yards have been dug up for fresh soil to be placed. The largest copper smelter on the West Coast was at the point of the North End peninsula. Exposure to lead and heavy metals has been shown to increase human violence and criminality. That problem should be abating now. A secondary causal factor may be the young, transient population of military personnel at the local Army/Air Force base. On a weekend at Point Defiance Park, you'll hear the kind of loud mufflers on souped up cars that I see when I visit another military town, Colorado Springs.
Overall, Tacoma treated my kid well. Once on campus and inside the "bubble," as she called it, new students tend to stay close to home. Tacoma's nightlife is not that compelling, and Seattle's a long drive away. The town turned out to be safe enough... but what do I know about risk? I'm the one who chose to go to college in Memphis, a real bucket-o'-blood if there ever was one.
Last edited by Wheatridger; 07-27-2021 at 06:06 PM..
I wonder whether your daughter ever went to Tacoma Mall. I've been wondering about that since learning that the mall is located in South Tacoma, which I understand is a somewhat questionable district as far as safety goes. If several kids wanted to drive there with a student who had a car, would that work okay? Would it be safe to ride there on the bus?
Also wondering about the Vietnamese neighborhood the Lincoln District, located in the South End, another iffy area for safety as I understand it. Mostly I'm curious about whether the Vietnamese area has ethnic restaurants that might interest students. Otherwise I'm not sure there would be much reason for students to go there. If there is something to draw them there, is it reasonably safe to travel through the South End to get there?
Quote:
Originally Posted by Wheatridger
If it makes you feel better, I'm a UPS parent of a girl from the Class of 2019. Tacoma seemed surprisingly poor and rough at first, but I grew to love it dearly. My daughter rode her bike all over the North End, alone day and night, without any trouble. Her closest brush with crime in four years was seeing her housemate's boyfriend's car burgled after he left his climbing gear inside. She's be happy to live there again, and I wish she would- I like to visit.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Wheatridger
I've stayed many nights without incident at a BnB near where Hilltop and Stadium districts meet. At another BnB near Sixth Avenue, I was the guest of a retired dispatcher from the TPD. She confirmed that the nineties were very tough times in Tacoma. Vacant lots still sit empty from riots and fires there. But everything changed in one night, she said, when the cops arrested nearly 100 drug dealers in one fell swoop. That sent the other gangsters back southward, she said.
Interesting that you mention the '90's. I recall that the Pierce County/Tacoma area was featured frequently back then on COPS.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Wheatridger
Overall, UPS is a pretty self-contained campus. Once you're matriculated into that "bubble," as my daughter called it, students tend to stick close to campus for the first two years when you're required to live in dorms. After that, they tend to drift into the abundance of charming, affordable Craftsman cottages surrounding campus. Tacoma's nightlife isn't that compelling, and Seattle is a long drive away.
Based on this, I'd say Tacoma is safe enough. it treated my kid well.But what do I know about risk? I chose to go to college in Memphis, a real bucket-o'-blood if there ever was one.
If you look at Tacoma's stats on this site, you'll see that all crimes are still above average. Statistics don't lie, but the situation seems to show steady improvement. Every state or region has one city that everyone else loves to dump on, and that seems to have been Tacoma's historic role.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Wheatridger
Through the late 20th Century it suffered epic levels of air and soil pollution, as local industry literally dumped on itself. The entire North End is a Superfund remediation zone, and half the residential yards have been dug up for fresh soil to be placed. The largest copper smelter on the West Coast was at the point of the North End peninsula. Exposure to lead and heavy metals has been shown to increase human violence and criminality. That problem should be abating now. A secondary causal factor may be the young, transient population of military personnel at the local Army/Air Force base. On a weekend at Point Defiance Park, you'll hear the kind of loud mufflers on souped up cars that I see when I visit another military town, Colorado Springs.
All that pollution doesn't sound good, but I'm glad that they've been cleaning it up.
Funny that you mention the military base. Back in the '50's my father was stationed there at Fort Lewis (now Joint Base Lewis if I'm not mistaken) for two years in the Army. So I've actually lived in that area, in family housing right on the base. Only thing is, I had just been born when my dad's Army hitch started, so of course I don't remember any of it. I wonder what Tacoma was like in those days.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Wheatridger
Overall, Tacoma treated my kid well. Once on campus and inside the "bubble," as she called it, new students tend to stay close to home. Tacoma's nightlife is not that compelling, and Seattle's a long drive away. The town turned out to be safe enough... but what do I know about risk? I'm the one who chose to go to college in Memphis, a real bucket-o'-blood if there ever was one.
Speaking of real buckets o' blood, I also have a niece who, after a year of COVID-related online classes, will be starting her first year in residence this fall, at a college in Baltimore. Now that really does have concerned. I've also got a thread at the Maryland forum to ask about that. Even though Tacoma has a history of being sort of rough, I'm sure that Baltimore is in a different league altogether crime-wise.
The main reasons I'm checking about Tacoma are to assist my nephew's mother, my sister, in knowing as much as possible about safety in the city her son will be going to for college, and some concern I have because my nephew is totally a suburban kid, who's rarely set foot in the city in his life. He and my sister and their family live in a major metropolitan area, but they're total suburbanites--live in the suburbs, work in the suburbs, shop in the 'burbs, eat out in the 'burbs, go to the moves in the 'burbs. About the only reason the city even exists for them is the rare occasions when they travel and need the airport.
There are several members of my family, myself included, who can give my nephew advice on life in the city, but I'd be more comfortable if he'd already developed some street smarts of his own, at least at the basic level. As for my niece--also a totally suburban kid--well, if you survived Memphis, I guess she'll be all right in Baltimore.
Anyway, thank you very much for the picture you've provided of life in Tacoma as a UPS student.
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Questions about two places in particular
