New Orleans Question

[Mama Geek]

Dh will be working in Norco for 6 months. What areas are fairly safe in looking for a place to stay. I have seen some stuff in Kenner, some in Metairie and some in Harahan. Are any of these reasonable and are they within a reasonable drive as far as traffic goes?

[*lifeoftheparty*]

We lived in LaPlace and my whole family lives in Metairie, Kenner, Chalmette, etc. My mom says Kenner is the closest and is a reasonable commute. So is Metairie, I don't know about Harahan.

 

I don't know what you consider "safe".... The entire New Orleans area has a large amount of poverty, and a poor education system, that always comes with crime. Even where we used to live in LaPlace, there are burglaries and people getting mugged and shot at street lights. (It's not common, but it does happen.) I don't know of ANY family members who live in Metairie or LaPlace who DON'T have burglar bars on their windows/doors. It's just a way of life there.

 

Several of our family members have had their homes and/cars broken into... again, it's just the way it is. Your DH shouldn't be scared or anything, it's not THAT bad, I'm sure I'm making it sound way worse than it is, but he should make sure that he is very aware of his surroundings and not leave valuables in the car, etc. If he's driving and a kid throws a rock/brick through his car window, or ANYTHING like that, don't stop. It's a ploy to get you to stop so that the kids gang can jump out of the bushes, beat you and take your money and car. (This actually happened to my aunt, luckily, she didn't stop, b/c she heard about the trend on the news.)

 

The majority of the criminal element down there have no morals or conscience, they are like wild animals, don't mess with them. Don't get road rage and flip someone off. They will beat you to within an inch of your life for $5 in your pocket. My cousin's Grandma-in-law, just a few years ago, was SAVAGELY beaten to death in her home and then they stole all her things/money. It was bad. My other cousin is Nicaraguan and has been harassed on mulitiple occasions when just walking down the street.

 

Again, I'm only focusing on the bad, the reasons why our family left and never looked back. I would never, EVER, move back there to raise my kids, but I would go for only 6 months. And I wouldn't mind, or be worried, if DH was going for 6 months. I would just want him to realize that the outlying areas of New Orleans, and it's inhabitants, are NOTHING like small-town PA where he grew up, and still NOTHING like the suburbs of DC where we live now.

[craftyerin]

We live in north Kenner (between I-10 and the lake), and it's perfectly safe (suburban!). Norco is an easy drive from here. Metairie is the same, suburban, with some perfectly safe areas. There are also lovely areas of New Orleans itself to live in. The city has a bad reputation, but really, it's a wonderful place to live. Like any large city, there are areas with crime and poverty, but they're easily avoided. I wouldn't live in NOLA itself and commute to Norco, though. Kenner or Luling would be my first choice for that commute.

Edited August 16, 2012 by craftyerin

[craftyerin]

I don't know of ANY family members who live in Metairie or LaPlace who DON'T have burglar bars on their windows/doors. It's just a way of life there.

 

 

:confused: All of our friends live in Kenner, Metairie, and New Orleans, and I know NO ONE who has bars on their windows/doors.

 

The life she described does not fit with my reality in the least.

[Mama Geek]

Bump - anyone else? Dd and I will likely be staying with dh most of the time.

[craftyerin]

if you end up in the Kenner area, I'm part of a wonderful MOPs (Mothers of Preschoolers) group and you'd be welcome to hang out with us while you're here!

[Mama Geek]

Thanks! I'll contact you when we get out there.

[higginszoo]

There are specific areas in all of those areas that aren't safe (my grandmother lived near the corner of Transcontinental and Veterans for years, and did end up having bars put on her windows), but most of those areas are very safe. There are even nice pockets inside of not so safe areas. (I lived in one at Causeway and Jefferson Highway, so further into town than you're looking -- not generally nice/safe, but there was an area of several blocks that was fine.) My home of record for most of my childhood was near West Esplanade and Power, and is a very safe, yet affordable, neighborhood.

[*lifeoftheparty*]

:confused: All of our friends live in Kenner, Metairie, and New Orleans, and I know NO ONE who has bars on their windows/doors.

 

The life she described does not fit with my reality in the least.

 

Maybe you just aren't noticing it? Or you are so used to it, you don't think about it?? I find it hard to believe, especially about New Orleans. My dad lives near Audubon Park and not all those nice houses have them, but everywhere else around does. My family lives in Metairie off West Metairie, near Transcontinental, and that's one of the things that DS8 commented on... "Why do all these houses have bars on the windows?"

 

My family has lived in that area since long before I came along. I've known/visited a lot of people... I would say a majority of houses, at least in Metairie have burglar bars on the windows and doors. And we were never allowed to walk to Cleary playground if it was anywhere near dark, and now my aunt says it's even worse.

 

I don't know what to tell you, I'm not making those stories up, and I've got more... I know it has gotten better since Katrina because a lot of the scum left for good and ended up in Houston.... which is why Houston's crime rate shot up after Katrina. I don't want to offend you or anything, but it's one of the least safest places we have ever lived.... and I went to college, and lived, in downtown Atlanta.

[Kelly1730]

I don't know much about the areas of New Orleans but my dd served with a missions organization in NOLA for the past year and she lived in Covington. There were no safety problems that I was aware of.