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11-06-2001, 01:45 PM
Hi everybody,


Here's the situation. My girlfriend and I are moving to the Bay Area. She will be attending law school in San Francisco. I am an electrical engineer. We've come to the conclusion (with some help from natedogg and others) that the only sane place to live would be in the vicinity of Oakland. Hopefully, I will be able to get a position in the East Bay somewhere making the commute not SO bad, and we will avoid having to live in the hell commonly known as Silicon Valley.


So now my questions. Where in Oakland??? I would like to be someplace safe (obviously), but my girlfriend and I would both like to be nearby to some nightlife (either that we could take public transport to or walk to if possible).


What about Alameda? It looks beautiful but probably not much going on there. What about downtown Oakland? Lake Merritt area or North Oakland? Someone please help with some info. We are both about 27 years of age. I guess the most important things would be safety, closeness to public transport, and a little "style" (shops, restaurants, parks, anything but not typical American suburbia).


Any and all suggestions appreciated.


Thanks everyone,

Puggy

11-06-2001, 06:52 PM
I'd vote for Alameda. It's got a great ice cream parlour, but you might have meant something else by "nightlife."

11-06-2001, 07:59 PM
Lake Merrit or College Avenue. Downtown is also not bad. Key is to live within walking distance of Bart Station.

11-06-2001, 08:09 PM
I hope you've at least visited the bay area to make that kind of decision. I am biased because I LIKE the east bay.


That said, the nice areas of Oakland (are we speaking in code?) are Lake Merrit, anywhere in the hills, Piedmont and Temescal.


Translation:

The places where you probably won't see a drug dealer in daylight or an abandoned house with a crackhead in it or a liquor store with bars on the windows are: the area around the Lake, anywhere close to highway 13, especially ABOVE highway 13, anywhere along Piedmont avenue north of Macarthur, the area between 51st and 41st street West of piedmont. Night life? There's a bridge to SF .... (for now).


In terms of shops, restaurants parks and stuff, even if you don't live within walking distance of those sections, they are easy to get to. Jack London square, Lakeshore/Grand area, Piedmont, all easily accessible and a short drive from any point in Oakland.


One big difference between the east bay and the city, and also the between the east bay and silicon valley for that matter, is that getting somewhere by car does not seem to be such a hassle comparatively. Could be just my experience though.


natedogg

11-07-2001, 02:40 AM
I'm in albany (just northwest of berkeley) and it's great here. nice street of shops/restaurants on solano ave. pretty close to the city (ten minutes without traffic), on the bart line. a lot faster to tahoe/reno (a little closer, but no bridge/maze traffic. also, ten minutes up 80 to casino san pablo, and ten minutes down 80 to the Oaks club.

I'd look at el cerrito/albany, and point richmond if you have a car.

11-07-2001, 09:26 AM
Thanks for all the responses guys. We'll be staying with my brother who lives in Napa for the first few weeks while we check out the area and make our final decision, but I want to get a headstart on knowing where exactly we should be looking, do some internet research on apartments, etc.


One question about public transportation. Suppose we live in either Oakland or Alameda and would like to go out in San Fran. I see that there is a night bus which leaves from San Francisco every hour through the night and has a stop at 14th and Broadway in Oakland. Furthermore, there is a transfer to a night bus which services Alameda. Sounds very good.


My question is is this safe? Is that area in Oakland OK to be at at 4 in the morning? It seems rather close to Lake Merritt, but I really have no idea. I WAS at the Transbay Terminal in San Francisco after dark, and was not very excited about being there - a lot of shady people walking around there. But is it dangerous?


Anyone have any experiences with taking this night bus? (I believe it's line A).


One more question. Since I'll probably be working in the East Bay somewhere like Fremont or Pleasanton, the Lake Merritt area seems better in terms of the commute to go to work (over the College area). But what is the Lake Merritt area? Does it stretch to the Federal Towers on the west and how far east? I've heard some comments like "Lake Merritt is good. But don't go 3 blocks away." Any comments?


Thanks again,

Puggy

11-07-2001, 11:48 PM
"natedogg" wrote:

"That said, the nice areas of Oakland (are we speaking in code?) are Lake Merrit, anywhere in the hills, Piedmont and Temescal."


No need for "code". It's an ugly situation, no matter how you write it. At the root of it is arrogance. The same arrogance, for which the U.S. paid a price on "911". "You (not you, Nate), shall reap, what you sow"...ultimately.