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I have a friend in Lakewood who keeps bugging me to move there when my lease is up next year. She loves it there and thinks I am more of a "Lakewood person" than a "Cleveland Heights" person. Whatever that means.
Anyhoo, I do like visiting her in Lakewood. She lives in the Westerly Apartments for seniors and the senior center that is attached to those apartments have a lot going for them. Also the big Lakewood Library has lots of stuff too. There only seems to be a couple of buses that go through Lakewood as far as I can determine though and I am bus-dependent. I am familiar with the one on Detroit AV because that's the one I take when I get off the Rapid to get to her place.
So does anyone have any opinions on Lakewood? It's certainly far from where I landed in Cleveland Heights but that was kind of a fluke so I am not really married to this suburb although I like it here. Friend just thinks Lakewood would have more to offer.
You guys are experts? Any opinions? Good, bad, otherwise?
I have a friend in Lakewood who keeps bugging me to move there when my lease is up next year. She loves it there and thinks I am more of a "Lakewood person" than a "Cleveland Heights" person. Whatever that means.
Anyhoo, I do like visiting her in Lakewood. She lives in the Westerly Apartments for seniors and the senior center that is attached to those apartments have a lot going for them. Also the big Lakewood Library has lots of stuff too. There only seems to be a couple of buses that go through Lakewood as far as I can determine though and I am bus-dependent. I am familiar with the one on Detroit AV because that's the one I take when I get off the Rapid to get to her place.
So does anyone have any opinions on Lakewood? It's certainly far from where I landed in Cleveland Heights but that was kind of a fluke so I am not really married to this suburb although I like it here. Friend just thinks Lakewood would have more to offer.
You guys are experts? Any opinions? Good, bad, otherwise?
How often do you visit University Circle attractions?
Would you be comfortable living perhaps as much as a half an hour further away from U.C. when using mass transit?
Would you enjoy the easier access to Lake Erie -- Lakewood and Edgewater Parks?
Would you enjoy the easier access to the Rocky River Reservation of the Cleveland Metroparks?
Is it OK living further away from the Cleveland Clinic?
How far away would you be from a "Cleveland State bus rapid" station, perhaps more important on weekends when other buses may not run as frequently?
Good questions. I don't visit the UC attractions all that often. They were nice when I first moved here but now it's kind of just every now and then. A half hour away on mass transit would be fine if I ever wanted to go to anything in that area but after looking at what the Lakewood Library has to offer and that included lectures and courses by CWRU professors, I would be happy with those.
One of the draws would be being closer to Lake Erie and Lakewood and Edgewater Parks. I have always lived near a main river; lake (Michigan in Chicago-Willamette in Portland) and would enjoy doing that again.
Same with the RR and Metroparks.
Cleveland State rapid station wouldn't be a loss. Actually, the number 26 bus line, if I lived in the senior housing runs by every 15 minutes weekdays and half hour weekends which would take me all through downtown Lakewood and to the Redline at the Cudall/West Blvd Transit Station whereas the two buses I now take in CH run every 40 minutes weekdays and every hour weekends.
I don't go to Legacy Village or Beachwood Mall very often. I would miss University Square shopping and Macy's. There's a Target there but there's also one at Westlake. It would be fun to live near West Side Market.
One big bummer would be living that far from Cleveland Clinic. I wouldn't want to give up my docs there so I would have to make the long journey. Sometimes though, the housing has a transportation system. There is also the number 66 bus I think goes that route. I would definitely have to check that out.
There is a branch of the Cleveland Clinic I believe in Lakewood where things like labs can be done. Who knows what will happen with the hospital? Maybe by the time I decide, that will be resolved. I have been following the issue online and so far it's still up in the air as far as I know.
All these questions are in my mind though, I will be going back to Lakewood just to walk around the area I would be living in just to get the feel of the place.
Once you're at Public Square, you could switch to the Healthline bus rapid to get to the Clinic. RTA treats transfers as a separate fare, but fares are discounted for seniors and you can avoid transfer fees if you use 5-trip farecards which have a 2 1/2 hour transfer rule (I've never used those, so I don't know how that works, e.g., do you have to request a transfer ticket from the bus driver?).
There's a Macy's at Great Northern Mall in North Olmsted and one at SouthPark Mall in Strongsville. Both malls also have a Dillard's. You can use Google transit, available at the RTA home page, to check mass transit connections to get to either mall. A Wal-Mart likely is cheaper for basic necessities, such as paper products than a Target.
Definitely experiment using mass transit to reach desired shopping locations, including in Westlake, before making your decision. This is especially true of a nearby grocery store, which you should check out for adequacy.
If you don't have good friends in Cleveland Hts., but you have one in Lakewood, that would seem like a big positive.
Also living close to a good senior citizens center would be a big plus.
I do use the $5.00 tickets all the time. They are great because I don't have to remember to save my dollars. I always buy a ticket when I do my grocery shopping at Dave's. According to a bus driver I recently asked, each trip is a separate stamp so you can't use it as a transfer. I am not sure he was right about that though. So I just bought an all day pass for only $2.50 to go from bus to Rapid and back. Very cheap, one of the few compensations of being old.
I am going to call the RTA and check it out for sure.
I've just begun taking the Rapid so I need to know about the transfer. Normally I only need one bus to get me to where I need to go.
Thanks for the info about Macy's being at Great Northern, I didn't know that. I just checked out Westlake because it's an easy bus ride from the Westerly. I order clothing online from catalogs but I do like to browse Macy's every now and then.
The Beck Center looks great. The Barton Center for old geezers which is right in one of the Westerly buildings has a lot to offer too. I go to the senior center in CH but they really don't have much that interests me. I am not big on card playing and dominoes. There isn't anything offered on weekends. The people there are very nice though.
The library at Lakewood has plays and science lectures and all kinds of different concerts. There is something going on seven days a week.
I understand what my friend is saying, I really like Cleveland Heights and it's great for a lot of things but I also see where living in Lakewood there is so much more for people of different ages and it's easier to get around by public transportation if you live along Detroit AV which is where the Westerly is.
There is a Giant Eagle about three blocks from the Westerly which is on Olivewood. I think. My next trip will be to get off at Bunt and Detroit where the store is and walk to it. That's the most important part. Usually every town has some sort of senior transportation system. CH has one that will take seniors to grocery shopping and doctor appointments. But I prefer to get to anywhere I can get to on my own steam.
This would be a big move for me from one end of the city to another but what the heck, I have already moved from one part of the country to another so if you look at it that way, it would be a piece 'o cake.
And you are right, having a friend there would be really nice.
Have you ever checked out the $10 Smart Seats at PlayhouseSquare? With a friend, they would be a great bargain for a couple of flexible retirees. There are no bad seats in the Hanna or Allen Theatres.
Dillard's, unlike Macy's, has real sales, typically end-of-season clearances. Sign up for their website. You can order stuff online from them and return it to stores. The online sales typically begin at midnight on Fridays (Thursdays for card holders) and have big selections.
If you're only doing one-way trips with a transfer each way, the 5-day farecard might save you 50 cents over a day pass. However, I don't know how those free transfers work. E.g., if you need two transfers (e.g., bus to rail rapid to Healthline bus rapid to get to the Clinic), are both transfers free within the 2 1/2 hour limit? How do you get the free transfers?
<<I don’t ride often, and when I do, it is normally one-way only. What should I do? All one-way riders who transfer can avoid extra charges by using RTA's 5-trip farecards, which have built-in 2-1/2 hour transfer privileges. All one-way riders who transfer should select whichever type of farecard best fits your needs:
Bus/Rapid
Park-N-Ride
Loop/Trolley
Senior/Disabled with RTA ID, or Medicare card and photo ID
Farecards can be purchased online, at the RTA Customer Service Center, Tower City, or from 150+ stores located throughout Greater Cleveland.>>
Frankly, Lakewood looks like a great place in which to be a retired senior citizen.
There are many good restaurants there, or in the easily reached Market and Gordon Square (see the discussions in the following travel article) Districts.
I have a friend in Lakewood who keeps bugging me to move there when my lease is up next year. She loves it there and thinks I am more of a "Lakewood person" than a "Cleveland Heights" person. Whatever that means.
Anyhoo, I do like visiting her in Lakewood. She lives in the Westerly Apartments for seniors and the senior center that is attached to those apartments have a lot going for them. Also the big Lakewood Library has lots of stuff too. There only seems to be a couple of buses that go through Lakewood as far as I can determine though and I am bus-dependent. I am familiar with the one on Detroit AV because that's the one I take when I get off the Rapid to get to her place.
So does anyone have any opinions on Lakewood? It's certainly far from where I landed in Cleveland Heights but that was kind of a fluke so I am not really married to this suburb although I like it here. Friend just thinks Lakewood would have more to offer.
You guys are experts? Any opinions? Good, bad, otherwise?
I have always believed that if you want Cleveland Heights vibe, attitude, and ethos, but want to/have to live on the West Side, then it's pretty much Lakewood and nothing else, at least for the suburbs and not city neighborhoods. Cleveland college professors have also thought this and told me so, though they all seem to live within the same few blocks from each other in Cleveland Heights. (Maybe they get together and talk about which jacket with the elbow patches they're going to wear to class the next day.)
That said, there are distinct differences, starting with demographics.
1)The African American/Jewish segment so historically prevalent in Cleveland Heights, is really not present in Lakewood. Tiny Jewish population, some black kids (esp in schools) but nothing like CH. Race relations is an omnipresent factor in loving or hating CH, depending on the ability to coexist with others not like you. CH has, in many ways, mastered this more than anywhere in Greater Cleveland, has worked on this organizationally and officially for decades, and outright touts it. Lakewood also has, kinda-sorta. I think they're still learning.
2)Both places have a gay community, but for all the "gay bashing" Lakewood jokes, Cleveland Heights has more of a strong united gay community, not to mention it's more embraced by the suburb. Lakewood certainly has it, but not like Cleveland Hts., surprising to those who call Lakewood the "gay suburb." Cleveland's Edgewater neighborhood often erroneously gets called "Lakewood," and that neighborhood is indeed perhaps the most visibly gay (flags, community activism, restaurants/bars, etc) in the metro region.
3) Both communities talk a good game when it comes to their school district, and support school activities (and certainly school levies) more than other suburbs, but seem to have a love-hate relationship with the "rough school kids" causing concern, fear, and such from those within the older population. CH even more than Lakewood. Ironically, even in "nuclear-free" Cleveland Heights, race is a part of this.
4) Both suburbs have fairly excellent RTA access, though griped about, it's quite good both places. Lakewood's perhaps better on this. But both good.
5) Both are inner-ring suburbs that have many detractors (look for my created post on "Lakewood is not a Ghetto") for more on this.
6) Both towns bike friendly, great parks and great libraries, and unlike many other communities in NE Ohio, the residents overall back them and support them till their dying day. Money gets poured into infrastructure improvements for "quality of life" activities in both communities for its residents. Perhaps the strongest parallel between the two places.
7) lots of rentals (esp. Cleveland Doubles and older apartment bldgs.) as a strong rental presence in both places. People will gripe about renters, but it's a massive part of the population in both places and not as prejudiced against.
8) Cleveland Clinic branches are close by (Lutheran, Fairview, Westlake, Avon) but their branch in Lakewood is leaving, at least as acting as a full-fledged hospital goes. Typical inner-ring suburb stuff in today's health care world, sad to say.
My take on it is, if you like CH, and are now West Side, Lakewood's your best (and some would say ONLY) bet if you want something similar to Cleveland Heights. By a landslide.
Plus, you get a Lake in the bargain.
This one would be tough for me. I kinda like the CH feel a little Better than the Lakewood feel. Something just a tad more urban about it. However, being closer to Rocky River Reservation and Lakewood Park would be very desirable for me since I love parks/nature so that would be a hard choice. OTOH CH has some nature and Lakewood has some culture, but I would say the other supersedes in both. I think I could be happy in either place, so it's a tough call but if you don't visit the cultural attractions that much and enjoy being near the Lake, Lakewood wins. PS: any word on when the construction for the new Lakewood Park will be finished/how it's looking?
Edit: as far as West Side communities having that feel, I would say Oberlin packs a very powerful punch in that sense, only problem being that it's then more removed from the city.
Thanks for all the information and opinions. That's what I am looking for.
According to the RTA website. I can use my $5.00 bus ticket to transfer to another line as long as it's within the time period stamped on the ticket. It doesn't matter how many trips I take. According to the instructions, you dip the card the first time you use it on the first trip to get the time stamp, then you swipe it to use it as a transfer.
Now I had a bus driver tell me I would need to time stamp the card each time as in I wouldn't be able to use it as a transfer. So tomorrow I am going to call RTA tomorrow and find out for sure.
I carry a little card around with me that I got when I got my RTA ID card that has all the fares on it so I know which to buy in case I want a different kind of ticket.
Thanks for all the information and opinions. That's what I am looking for.
According to the RTA website. I can use my $5.00 bus ticket to transfer to another line as long as it's within the time period stamped on the ticket. It doesn't matter how many trips I take. According to the instructions, you dip the card the first time you use it on the first trip to get the time stamp, then you swipe it to use it as a transfer.
Now I had a bus driver tell me I would need to time stamp the card each time as in I wouldn't be able to use it as a transfer. So tomorrow I am going to call RTA tomorrow and find out for sure.
I carry a little card around with me that I got when I got my RTA ID card that has all the fares on it so I know which to buy in case I want a different kind of ticket.
If you're talking about the day pass, you can use that all day with unlimited travel. As a senior citizen, don't you pay $2.50 for the day pass?
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