Moving to Monterey with fam- school help, please (Salinas, Vista: violent crime, house)

[shortNFiesty]

Our family is being relocated to NPS and we're trying to get a lay of the land. Seaside, Marina, and Salinas seem to be the most affordable locations, but the schools have poor ratings, and other postings talk about crime. We're big advocates for public school, and don't need a school with the best test scores, but we want one that is safe.

What are these areas really like? Are these really rough neighborhoods with poor schools, or do they only look bad in comparison to places like Carmel or PG? Can we hope for good spots in these affordable neighborhoods, or should we hope for a tiny place in Monterey itself?

Thank you for any advice or insight!

[Transitory]

In terms of schools, Monterey, Seaside, and Marina are in the same district, Monterey Peninsula Unified. Most of their schools are poor to mediocre, with perhaps two exceptions: Foothill and La Mesa (elementary) which are a bit better. Seaside High, Monterey High, and Marina high are all about on the same footing these days, with perhaps Monterey having some edge within specific programs.

Salinas itself is divided into 3 elementary school districts (Salinas City, Santa Rita, and Alisal). Most of their schools perform pretty badly, though Salinas City has a few that are okay (Lincoln, Monterey Park, Mission Park). It has one high school district with 4 high schools (5 come 2018). All of them are pretty bad save for Salinas High which is middle of the road.

As far as safety, Marina isn't too bad. It's a pretty middle of the road suburb that has a lot of sprawling housing developments, some better than others. Seaside is *fairly* rough south of Military Ave though it can vary widely block to block, some blocks with a view (closer to Gen Jim Moore) are somewhat well-off. Salinas is the worst of the 3 though South Salinas isn't total crazytown and some of the northeastern parts like Creekbridge (near Steinbeck and Creekside Elementary) aren't so bad. In those towns (Seaside and Salinas), most violent crime stays isolated but the petty crime can spill over (car thefts, etc.).

As to how safe is 'safe' and 'good' you want the skills probably depends a lot on your own perspective. Where are you coming from?

[shortNFiesty]

Thanks for your help, Transitory! That's a lot of really helpful information and we appreciate it.

We're coming from a suburb of Baltimore, which is rather middle-of-the-road. A few miles one way, and we're in Baltimore City, where crime, violence, and drugs are major problems in school. A few miles in the other direction, and it's a very affluent area where kids are virtuosos before age 7 and in college by age 12. (Ok, that's exaggeration, but you get the idea.) We're very comfortable being in the middle.

By "safe", I'm imagining a neighborhood where a kid can ride his bike for a few blocks without fear. Where he would be able to walk to a close school or friend's house without being mugged. A school where weapons, violence and gangs aren't major issues. I'm looking for schools (elementary through high school), where teachers are more focused on teaching than behavioral issues, and where they're not burned out in 2 years from fear for their own safety.

[Transitory]

Originally Posted by shortNFiesty

Thanks for your help, Transitory! That's a lot of really helpful information and we appreciate it.

We're coming from a suburb of Baltimore, which is rather middle-of-the-road. A few miles one way, and we're in Baltimore City, where crime, violence, and drugs are major problems in school. A few miles in the other direction, and it's a very affluent area where kids are virtuosos before age 7 and in college by age 12. (Ok, that's exaggeration, but you get the idea.) We're very comfortable being in the middle.

By "safe", I'm imagining a neighborhood where a kid can ride his bike for a few blocks without fear. Where he would be able to walk to a close school or friend's house without being mugged. A school where weapons, violence and gangs aren't major issues. I'm looking for schools (elementary through high school), where teachers are more focused on teaching than behavioral issues, and where they're not burned out in 2 years from fear for their own safety.

Well at least coming from Baltimore the price of housing isn't a total shock to you. The problem I seen in Coastal California is there is isn't really middle of the road anymore, at least not in the sense of where I see in other areas of the US. There you could find a very safe, average neighborhood that maybe wasn't elite, but was very safe and affordable if not in an ideal location. Because we have a lack of area to build new housing (both artificially and geographically), you get very polarized ranges: there's the nice, good schools areas and then there's the not-so-nice, bad schools with little in between. So, let me list the neighborhoods based on your criteria from best to worst and so you can help your housing search when you Zillow and tour in person. Keep in minds these rankings are highly simplified:

Rank. Neighborhood, safe to walk, safe/positive schools (which schools)

[the best]
1. Carmel, yes, yes (Carmel River, CMS, CHS)
2. Carmel Valley, yes, yes (Tularcitos, CMS, CHS)
3. Pacific Grove, yes, yes (Robert Down, Forest Grove, PGMS, PGHS)
4. Corral De Tierra & Toro Park, yes, yes with decline at HS (Toro Park, Washington Union, San Benancio Middle, Salinas High)
5. Spreckels and River Road (yes, yes with decline at HS (Spreckels, Buena Vista, Salinas High)

[the middle]

6. Monterey east of CA-1 and south of airport along Aguajito/Monhollan/Olmstead, yes, yes (La Mesa, Foothill, Walter Colton, MHS)
7. Monterey west of CA-1, yes, yes (Monte Vista, Walter Colton, MHS)
8. Seaside north of Military Ave, yes, kinda (Marshall, Los Arboles, Marina High)
9. Del Rey Oaks, yes, kinda (Del Rey Woods, Walter Colton, MHS)
10. Marina, mostly, kinda (Olson, Crumpton, Marina Vista, Los Arboles, Marina High)
11. South Salinas west of Abbott south of Market, mostly, kinda (Mission Park, University Park, Monterey Park, Lincoln, Washington Middle, Salinas High

[the not so ideal]

12. Salinas near north of Constitution and east of Natividad, kinda, not really (Creekside, Steinbeck, Harden Middle, Everett Alvarez High)
13. Seaside south of Military Ave, kinda, not really (MLK, Highland, Ord Terrace, Seaside Middle, Seaside High)
14. Northern Salinas west of Natividad, kinda, not really (all of the Santa Rita schools, Kamman, El Gabilan, North High)
15. East Salinas (the Alisal) south of Constitution and East of Abbott, no, no (All Alisal Union Schools, La Paz Middle, Alisal High)

Again, very generalized and some schools in those parenthesis are better run than others. Not surprisingly you'll find this ranking more or less follows housing prices in those areas.

Also, there are some charter options out there

[the best]
1. International School of Monterey (actually in Seaside)
2. Monterey Bay Charter (in Pg)

[the middle]

3. Bay View Academy
4. Dual Language Academy of the Monterey Peninsula
5. Millennium Charter

and skip the rest.

Lastly there is an often overlooked school northeast of Salinas called Lagunita. It is an extremely small K-8 district that is about 98% transfers. It's got a very positive climate but unless you live in that area (not much housing) you would need to drive your students.

Hope this helps get you a clearer picture. If you want more specific information about a school or district or neighborhood I'm happy to help.

[shortNFiesty]

Oh, my goodness, you are amazing! Thank you for taking so much time and effort to help a stranger. We really appreciate this! This really helps clear up a lot of my confusion. Thank you!