Mission District ??? (San Francisco, Orland, Jackson: section 8, top neighborhoods, apartment) - San Francisco - Oakland - California (CA) - City-Data Forum

nomadic220 · 06-23-2009, 12:33 AM

A very informative person told me that if I did not care about the crime Mission District would be the cheapest spot to live.( search my other postings) Now bare with me guys. I have never seen a big city before. So some of these questions may seem stupid. But its just common sense to you. I took a virtual tour of the city, and it seems like mission does not have that whole big building, city feel. Where the hell are the subways,trains, etc.? It seems like the Post st./Taylor st. intersection had the real city vibe going.( Is that Midtown?) I'm sure it costs an arm and a leg to live in that area. But I was hoping to walk out of my apartment and be in the midst of tall buildings and trains every where. So maybe I should have asked where the cheapest scenic spot was at? How far are these locations from Mission; Train or subway, and the actual city itself. Not sure if thats gonna make sense to you... I welcome any info on this subject and thank you.

krudmonk · 06-23-2009, 12:36 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by nomadic220

Post st./Taylor st. intersection

not the Mission

uptown_urbanist · 06-23-2009, 01:01 AM

Do you mean you've never seen any big city before? Keep in mind that big city doesn't necessarily mean Manhattan (and for that matter, even parts of Manhattan are not all tall buildings). San Francisco has a different feel; less "urban canyon" than many parts of Manhattan, but still very dense, very urban, and has great street action. As far as subways go, they're underground so you don't see them. The Mission has some BART stations, but they don't look all that impressive from above because the action is below. I don't live in the Mission and haven't spent that much time there (yet), but I think you will find that the Mission does give you the "big city" feel you're looking for. It has a busy streetlife, tons of restaurants and shops, lots of public transportation options, etc. I'm assuming that you're not moving here sight-unseen. In that case by all means select a few top neighborhoods to focus on before your arrival, but leave a little time to visit them in person before you head out to find a place. Different areas have very different feels to them, and once you're actually walking around you may find that the height of the buildings doesn't have as much impact on that city feel you're looking for as does ground-level activity, and sometimes photos don't do certain areas justice in capturing that energy.

If you want affordable housing closer towards Union Square then you could look into the Tenderloin. It has a reputation as a high-crime area, but it definitely feels big city.

nomadic220 · 06-23-2009, 01:53 AM

Well i have been to Jacksonville,Tampa, and Orlando. But you would have to be there to believe me. Its just not the same thing. Every thing is sprawled out with minimum to no store front shopping(unless your downtown). I guess its because its to hot to be walking around in a Florida city plus theres no trains or subways. The city data forums on these cities will say the same thing. Plus..I cant ghost ride my whip. JJ.

Marlo Stanfield · 06-23-2009, 03:09 AM

Post and Taylor is the outskirts of the Tenderloin, not close to the Mission District. Rent would not be cheap there. Mission District is not cheap to live either.

Actually rent won't be cheap anywhere in SF unless you live in a real cramped room, in the ghetto, or have a nice thing going with Section 8.

As said before, the Tenderloin, or a place South of Market (6th and Mission) are the places close to downtown where you can get a "big-city feel" and the rent shouldn't be too bad, but you might have to walk past a few dozen crackheads and schizos on the way home.

nomadic220 · 06-23-2009, 02:15 PM

why is it called the tenderloin ? I'm not worried about crack heads to much. Florida. There in Melbourne to. I will deal with it just to be in San Fran until I can get a better job.

bellalunatic · 06-23-2009, 02:21 PM

If you're familiar with NYC Times Square circa 1985 or so, you should be fine in the Tenderloin....if not, then you may want to reconsider...

jfields · 06-23-2009, 02:49 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by nomadic220

A very informative person told me that if I did not care about the crime Mission District would be the cheapest spot to live.( search my other postings) Now bare with me guys. I have never seen a big city before. So some of these questions may seem stupid. But its just common sense to you. I took a virtual tour of the city, and it seems like mission does not have that whole big building, city feel. Where the hell are the subways,trains, etc.? It seems like the Post st./Taylor st. intersection had the real city vibe going.( Is that Midtown?) I'm sure it costs an arm and a leg to live in that area. But I was hoping to walk out of my apartment and be in the midst of tall buildings and trains every where. So maybe I should have asked where the cheapest scenic spot was at? How far are these locations from Mission; Train or subway, and the actual city itself. Not sure if thats gonna make sense to you... I welcome any info on this subject and thank you.

I think I responded to your other posts and wrote something about the Mission. It ISN'T THE CHEAPEST neighborhood in San Francisco; it is however one of the less expensive areas in SF. Post and Taylor isn't really the Tenderloin; the tenderloin is a few blocks to the Southwest of that intersection. Post and Tayor is right by Union Square which is right in the heart of SF. It would probably be very expensive to live there, although it wouldn't be that expensive in the Tenderloin, at least not for SF. However, the Tenderloin is filled with pimps, dealers, drug addicts and some of the craziest people you will ever come accross. There are alot of shootings, even more than in the Mission, and even more petty crime. I've always had the perception that although the Mission is a pretty rough hood, if you aren't banging, selling drugs, or participating in any other sort of underground activity, you will be fine if you use basic common sense; I don't have this perception of the Tenderloin. In fact I remember joking with a friend as I saw an ad for a furnished apartment in the Tenderloin; I told him that within a week, it probably wouldn't be furnished anymore, if you know what I'm saying.

As for the Mission, true there aren't many big, tall buildings there; however, you can walk right out of your place and be within walking distance of pretty much every thing that you need. There are two BART stations in the Mission as well; one on 16th and Mission and the other on 24th and Mission.

E14 · 06-23-2009, 02:52 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by nomadic220

why is it called the tenderloin ? I'm not worried about crack heads to much. Florida. There in Melbourne to. I will deal with it just to be in San Fran until I can get a better job.

some small town kid from florida in the TL?
everyone will probably just assume you're there to cop so you will get attention from the street "vendors" (learn how to deal with it or they will know you're a mark), unless you're wearing nice clothes, then you'll probably get robbed a lot

nomadic220 · 06-23-2009, 03:12 PM

Thanks again jfields ,you the man. Yeah you were the very informative person i was talking about. After you told me about mission i was gmapping it. But it does not clearly show any trains or anything else around. I believe though. What about subways?

To E14; how would I deal with a street vendor differferntly than I do here? I dress pretty urban. My clothes are pretty much gun related. LOL. When I was a kid we would find marks, and I wouldn't mark me. To much of a fight( Guns and knives carried always) plus a minimum amount of cash carried on me. But of course they don't know that. So how do I identify who is affiliated with who. If I beat someone down I want to know where or if the retaliation is coming from,you know? ( looks like I am leaning towards the mission area.)