Newcomer to Victory Neighborhood (Minneapolis, Robbinsdale: crime, houses, neighborhoods)

[ij1889]

Hello, my name is Ivan. I am 22 years old and my girlfriend and I have a 3 month old girl.I have submitted an offer for a house located on Sheridan Ave N close to 44th Ave.

I was always kinda worried about living in Minneapolis but after researching the Victory neighborhood most of my worries are gone (except for the schooling) but my girlfriend is still a little iffy about living in north Minneapolis.

I was just curious to see what people living in the area have to say about it and how they like it there.

Any positive information coming out of the schools in the area?

Also... we have some pretty nice cars, what is the likely hood of something bad happening to them if the are parked on the street?

Is it safe to go out for a run late at night on in the evening or early in the morning?

Thank you for all the info and help!

[Kebinminn]

I live nearby on the Robbinsdale side of the parkway.

It's a great place to live and raise a family, you'll see plenty of babies getting pushed in strollers.

I don't care for the schools on either side of the parkway, we've chosen to send our kid elsewhere and I know many people at the school my son goes to from your neighborhood that made the same choice. There's some who like it but there's many who don't. If you can open enroll elsewhere or go private the school isn't as big of a deal. Maybe you'll like it, I haven't heard anything about it being unsafe, just not the best academically. I've found that neighborhoods are different now with kids going to several different schools so it's not a big deal to not go to the neighborhood school.

I think a lot of people run at night or in the morning, I don't, but I've never heard of anyone who had problems and the parkway is a busy, active place.

[ij1889]

Thank you Kebinminn for your responce.

why have the surrounding schools in the area fallen off in their academics, do you know?

[Kebinminn]

I'm not sure. On the Robbinsdale side the test scores were low. I know they're not everything but that, word of mouth, and an uninspired visit to the school did it for me. From what I heard on your side the school just wasn't as advanced as other schools. It's hard to tell on a snapshot. Some people do like that school but I've met far more who left the district. I imagine they all have different reasons.

[west336]

Originally Posted by Kebinminn

I'm not sure. On the Robbinsdale side the test scores were low. I know they're not everything but that, word of mouth, and an uninspired visit to the school did it for me. From what I heard on your side the school just wasn't as advanced as other schools. It's hard to tell on a snapshot. Some people do like that school but I've met far more who left the district. I imagine they all have different reasons.

I've heard that the Robinson school district has really taken a beating in terms of losing funds for education. If I lived in Robinsdale before this happened I would move as a consequence of it happening. I refuse to live in an area that DISINVESTS in education -- period! It's so counter-intuitive that it's almost hard to comprehend why it happens in the 1st place.

[Camden Northsider]

Originally Posted by ij1889

Hello, my name is Ivan. I am 22 years old and my girlfriend and I have a 3 month old girl.I have submitted an offer for a house located on Sheridan Ave N close to 44th Ave.

I was always kinda worried about living in Minneapolis but after researching the Victory neighborhood most of my worries are gone (except for the schooling) but my girlfriend is still a little iffy about living in north Minneapolis.

I was just curious to see what people living in the area have to say about it and how they like it there.

Any positive information coming out of the schools in the area?

Also... we have some pretty nice cars, what is the likely hood of something bad happening to them if the are parked on the street?

Is it safe to go out for a run late at night on in the evening or early in the morning?

Thank you for all the info and help!

Hi Ivan- good luck on the offer you submitted on the house and congrats on the birth of your child (and house if things go through)- I'm pretty sure I know which house you're referring to- that's a great house/location at a great price (I keep a close eye on the MLS around here, and remember thinking 'what a steal').

We live in the Victory Neighborhood and are very happy here- we actually have a 4 month old, my wife just went back to work and I'm taking some paternity leave now- am going to be hanging out with a few stay-at-home moms on our block which should be fun!

That location is great- super close to the parkway, super close/walkable to 44th/Penn Ave and 42nd/Thomas restaurants, businesses, etc., and across the street from Loring Community School.

My (then-girlfriend) had some of the same concerns when we first bought our house, but they quickly went away within the first week or two of living here. You'll find great neighbors around and that the area is very quiet in general (not sure where you're coming from). Regarding going for walks, I see a lot of people out walking dogs/going for runs in early AMs, a good chunk of stay-at-home folks and retired persons out throughout the days/early evenings (has included me the past week/two), and although less in numbers- people do run/go for walks at nighttime hours as well- I don't think you'd have much if anything to worry about with nighttime running- I've never heard of any runners on Victory Memorial Parkway being victims of crime at any time of the day, and my wife and I have both walked home (together and alone) from neighborhood events, friends houses, and/or the schools at late hours of the night on ocassion and never experienced any problems.

Victory is a city neighborhood and definitely is not immune to things like the ocassional burglary and car break-ins, so with that in mind you'll want to use precautions- e.g. have security lights that work outside your house, use timers when you go out of town, I'm a sure a dog helps (although we don't have one), and make sure you have secure windows, doors, and don't leave valuables in clear view in your vehicle. It's not an area where you need to be in constant fear of these things, but using precautions and getting to know your neighbors early on (which usually isn't difficult in this neighborhood) should help put your mind at rest. I actually know a couple of your potential future neighbors, and I'd guess that there's a sense of block community/connectedness on that block.

You're right across the street from Loring, which is where we plan to send our daughter when she gets school age. We have a large handful of friends with kids at Loring who all have loved their (and their child's) experience at the school - these include folks that are teachers/administrators at other schools (including the Director of Education for another MPS-affiliated school), nonprofit director, and others. A number of our neighbors intend to send their kids to Loring as well - one thing to be aware of is that they use a lottery system to select students- I think children in the neighborhood get preference but am not sure it's a guarantee they'll get in.

Good luck again- feel free to direct message me if you have any specific questions that I could help out with!