West Seattle vs Montlake/Capitol Hill (apartments, houses, neighborhoods)

[slcrebel]

Hello, all. I have been scouring the threads for advice on a potential move to Seattle. After much reading/searching, I've narrowed down my preference (and found apartments within my budget) to West Seattle (near alki beach), Montlake, or Capitol Hill.

I'm 30 and will be working downtown and will have a car (though public transport may be in the cards for me anyway). I enjoy going to dinner/drinks, but don't necessarily have to be right on top of it, as I also enjoy some nice peace and quiet.

If you could give pros/cons or provide some local's insight into these particular areas, I'd be grateful.



Thanks!

[tobester]

The nice thing about Capitol Hill would be the ability to walk to work. Big savings in time, stress, money. Sometimes the bridge from West Seattle can be a real mess with no alternate routes at all.

[Ira500]

Montlake: Sometimes called the " academic ghetto", it has a fair number of UW profs who live there. It's nice, mostly upper middle class, can get crazy busy during UW football games, a small but nice retail/restaurant area w/ an alehouse and good Italian restaurant. And some nice forested hiking trails nearby.

Capitol Hill: There's Capitol Hill and there's Capitol Hill, meaning it's a pretty large area and one part can be quite different than another. North Capitol Hill is somewhat Montlake like, less apartments and more pretty expensive houses, nice, respectable, maybe a little boring for younger folks who want to easily walk to stuff to do, but nothing's too far. The Pike/Pine corridor is one of the "hippest" neighborhoods in the city, one of the densest, and full of stuff going on, with great restaurants. A little too busy for my taste, but lots of people love it. The area around Group Health hospital, 15th Avenue East is pleasant, hip, but the residents are maybe a little older than the Pike/Pine corridor folks. 15th is a nice street with a good bagel bakery and a decent, long established Mexican place just off of it.

West Seattle is like Capitol hill in that one part is different than another. The Admiral District and the Alaska Junction neighborhood are not very far from downtown, but can be affected by bridge traffic...buses have their own lane of traffic on the bridge, so if you're taking the bus you'll be a lot better off. Those parts of West Seattle are pretty. I really like the Alaska Junction area, sometimes called the West Seattle junction. It's kind of lively and hip, but at the same time is reminiscent of a 1950's Main Street. Best bakery in the city. The eastern parts of West Seattle tend to be less nice, with some exceptions.

[azoria]

God Ira, you are such a patient soul. How can you answer these same questions again and again and again, year after year after year, and still remain sane?

My hat's off to ya. Keep it coming. You're such a sweetie.

Just sayin'.

[Ira500]

Originally Posted by azoria

God Ira, you are such a patient soul. How can you answer these same questions again and again and again, year after year after year, and still remain sane?

My hat's off to ya. Keep it coming. You're such a sweetie.

Just sayin'.

Thanks, Azoria, I guess.
1. I try to be helpful, but part of it is that I love reading my own words. It's not simply that I get satisfaction knowing that I've provided helpful information. I get satisfaction thinking that people read my words and say
" That guy is brilliant."

2. Still remain sane? For whatever reason: My wife, my family, my friends, business associates, clients, etc, nobody seems to hold that opinion of me. They think I was never sane to begin with

[exit82]

Best bakery in the city

What/where is it?

[Ira500]

Originally Posted by exit82

Best bakery in the city

What/where is it?

This place:
Welcome | Bakery Nouveau | A West Seattle Bakery Serving Pastry, Bread, Chocolate and More

I'm glad I don't live next door. I'd weigh 600 pounds.

[slcrebel]

Thanks, for the clarification. As Azoria mentioned, I am sure you get tired of hearing this stuff over and over, so thank you for your guidance. I tried to read as many threads as possible and get a fair comparison between a couple of areas. Looks like I may get the job, so this is exciting. Seattle seems pretty cool. Thanks again!

[usernametaken]

Second azoria's sentiment! Thanks for your posts Ira.

I hope to move to Capitol Hill for a few months next year. Would like to walk more and be around the hustle and bustle.