So, my apartment complex just raised my rent, yet again, and recently my daughter broached the subject of us moving to Tacoma and sharing a bigger place than either of us could afford alone. There are three commuter train stations in Tacoma and I’m thinking of a neighborhood close-ish to one of them.
They are at:
The Tacoma Dome
Lakewood (1110 Pacific Hwy)
S. Tac on 56th ave.
Do any dopers know anything about the demographics of Tacoma neighborhoods? (I know, I know, I’ve heard it’s All Bad, but surely there are some reasonable areas? And it can’t be worse than where I live now, which has the reputation of being one of the more tacky bedroom communities outside of Seattle, I’m on the “good” side of town, but it’s on the edge of cracktown). I want to go as thug-free as possible.
Oh thank you! That they are! I did google, but must not have used the right search terms, because I didn’t run across your sites, which are much better. Plus, I always like to hear from real life dopers. They always seem to have such great, not to mention Up Close and Personal, information.
Of the three, I’d be drawn more to the 56th & South Tacoma Way area:[ul]
[li]The Dome is close to the East side, which is where the gangs migrated after getting booted (mostly) out of the Hilltop; and while there have been some pretty strenuous abatement efforts underway, it can still be a tad dodgy.[/li][li]Lakewood is, comparatively speaking, in the middle of nowhere (as well as being, literally, the end of the line).[/li][li]The South Tacoma district has been in decline for a number of years, but has turned the proverbial corner and is making its way back. It also seems to have a more “community” feel than the other two. Finally, it has considerably more housing options.[/li][/ul]
Just MHO from someone who was “bawn ‘n’ bred” in the City of Destiny, and who currently lives just outside the aforementioned Hilltop.
The Dome district, perhaps: it’s right next to where the Puyallup River — one of the primary lahar channels — empties into Commencement Bay. The other two areas mentioned are high enough and far enough away that the main worry would be ashfall.
Is the “Aroma of Tacoma” still a thing? A friend from Seattle spoke scathingly of it, saying that the stench from various mills and factories was overwhelming.
(I’m thinking it might just be a local rivalry thing. San Diegans make way too big a thing about Los Angeles being stinky…)
The AoT was primarily due to the presence of a copper smelter, at least one stockyard/slaughterhouse complex, and several pulp mills. And it was a definite — I’m tempted to say “palpable” — presence: I recall undergoing eye and throat irritation the first day or so when I came home on vacation from college.
Now the first two are gone (although the smelter has left some little surprises in the ground downwind) and what’s left of the third uses extensive stack scrubbing and, for all I know, Febreze™. None of which makes the slightest dent in the legend, especially to the denizens of the Emerald City.
I lived on the Olympic peninsula for several years and visited or passed through Tacoma on a hundred or more occasions. It never lived up to its bad reputation. Had some friends who lived in a beautiful neighborhood near Point Defiance.
I not only lived in Tacoma, but I’ve walked over its virtual entirety: from where Wheezer of the Our Gang comedies is buried in Parkland; to where the zoo poop is dumped in a remote section of Defiance Park; to a walk along the meth lab campsites to see the amazing graffiti on the walls of the railroad in the canyon below Stanley & Seaforts.
I’ll 2nd the vote for 56th & South Tacoma. The Dome area is on the edge of the new, sparkly downtown where the only aroma is from the Almond Roca factory, and it’s where hip Seattle urbanites can forget their anti-Tacoma predudices easiest. But 56th street is what is known in Chicago as the Bungalow Belt. You’ll find it more affordable, and if you are an evening urban hiker too, it hasn’t the one-block rich and alienating/next block poor and threatening that most inner cities have.
Thirty years ago, when I was a kid, we visited my Aunt in Tacoma and when we went outside to wander the neighborhood she said, “Whatever you do, don’t go down into the Gulch.”
I bet someone in this thread can enlighten me as to the nature of “The Gulch”.
I gotta agree with 56th as your best choice. The Tacoma Dome area is mainly industrial; it’s hard to walk around and there are no grocery stores. Downtown is only a half mile away and is a better choice, though there are significant homeless problems and it’s dead on the weekends.
Do you have a car? (And if you don’t have one, you’ll have to get one because the already poor bus service will be heavily slashed by year’s end.) If you do, pretty much all of Tacoma north of Sixth Avenue and Division street is very nice. The area around Proctor and 26th is especially good with a lot of local shops.
Hard to tell without knowing which “The Gulch” she lived near — the place is full of 'em (even a rank amateur geologist like me can tell that the area once spent considerable time under a glacier).
When I was growing up, TG about a block away was where the Bad People hung out, so it was important Never To Go There. A boogeyman, to be sure; but in at least one case years ago it was sad reality: a little girl (I think she was 8) wandered into the local TG from a nearby playground and was never seen again.
Agreed about the future of the bus service, though I don’t think it’s all that poor now. One advantage about the 26th & Proctor area (although it’s a bit spendier than other areas) is that it’s served by at least three lines, all of which end up at 10th & Broadway. And from there one can catch the Train to Nowhere to the Tacoma Dome Station, which is right across the street from the Sounder stop at Freighthouse Square. (A consideration here is that all Sounder runs stop at Freighthouse Square, while not all of them continue south to 56th.)
I have no advice about where to live in Tacoma but I was born their.
I’ve spent the vast majority of life thus far in So. Cal.
If you should ever move to Arizona I would recommend Flagstaff if you have to means to generate income on your own as it is a small town, but then perhaps you could land something.
I have since past through the city a few times over the years, (Tacoma that is).
Hope you find a nice spot if you should plant yourself their.
Where ever you should go just try and be the best neighbor you can be aii.
Thanks so much for all of the good advice so far! Especially those who live, or have lived there. I never noticed any smell when I drive through (on I-5 going to Lacey where my daughter currently lives).
I’m hoping to live close enough to one of the stations to either walk, bike, or bus. I currently live close enough to the light rail to do so, and would really like to (if possible) continue keeping any driving to a bare minimum.
A coworker lives in Spanaway, and her commute is ridiculous. She has to drive a half an hour to a parking lot 15 minutes away from the train station, and then take a shuttle from the parking lot to the train station. I really don’t want to have to resort to three separate (four if you count her 10 -15 minute walk from the downtown sounder station to our office) modes of transportation.
After reviewing my finances, I’m going to have to re-up my lease for 6 months and save for a last months rent deposit (my current apartment complex didn’t require one, so I won’t be getting one back when I move, I’ll only get a regular smallish deposit), before I move anyway, so I have more time than I thought I did.
