Is This Orlando Neighborhood Safe? (Clearwater: crime, how much, hotel)

[canudigit]

There is a house in my dh's family that used to be occupied by his grandparents back in the 1950s-1980s and where his parents sometimes go for short stays during the winter months. They want us to come down and stay a few days with them in the next week or so, but I have some reservations, based on how the neighborhood looked the last time we stayed there twelve years ago. The house is a tiny, mid-century ranch with pretty flimsy windows and doors, and the last thing I want to do is travel all the way to Florida from Michigan only to end up staying in an unsafe neighborhood. My in-laws seem to be oblivious to how this area has declined and are more about how much money they are saving by staying there.

The house is on Sheryl Ann Drive, just off of Lancaster Rd. in the 32809 ZIP code. If anyone here is familiar with that area (just east of Lancaster and Orange Blossom Trail), any advice would be much appreciated.

Please don't get me wrong, I love Orlando and realize that there are many, many safe, beautiful areas there. I just don't want to go on vacation and end up feeling unsafe. It would ruin the whole trip.

Thanks!

[FloridaNative35]

I don't know the area well, as I live downtown. Looks dodgy when I pass it, though.

Try this: 32809 Crime Map Beta - Trulia

[LordHomunculus]

It's not a great area, but it's not the worst. I wouldn't go walking around OBT and if you're going to be operating around that area, you should at least exercise some street smarts. Anyways, wouldn't staying in one of those small ranch homes make you feel a little cramped? That would be enough reason to check out a hotel or something (just not a hotel off OBT. That would be an even worse experience.)

[canudigit]

Thank you, that's kind of what I suspected. Someone attempted to break into the house while it was sitting empty a few months ago (it's still fully furnished, it's just that no one lives there full-time right now until the family decides what to do with it), and my dh's uncle, who lived there alone until recently, made the comment to us when we were there twelve years ago that he "wouldn't walk down Lancaster Rd. without a sawed-off shotgun". The man is prone to exaggeration, but still...it makes one think...

My thought is to drive on down to Florida and get a nice hotel somewhere like Clearwater, and then invite the in-laws to come on over and share our room while we're there. They would get a few days at the beach, which they would jump on because it would be free for them, lol, and we would get safety and peace of mind. I do worry about their safety while they are there, of course, especially since they are elderly now, but they won't be dissuaded, even after some locals have cautioned them that it isn't "the best area" of town and they have been panhandled at some of the restaurants over on OBT. IOW, no matter what I think, they will still think I am being silly and paranoid and continue to stay there because it's cheap.