Home › Forums › Open Discussion › What is it about Westwood area that people don't like?
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August 3, 2010 at 5:07 pm #700421
WSeaFam2MemberYour home looks just beautiful! I am sure you will rent it soon :)
August 3, 2010 at 5:07 pm #700422
JoBParticipantSue…
i agree about being right on delridge…
but suspect the rent is in line..
after all..
2 beds with attached baths
which means it is roommate friendly
and a bath on the main floor
and a fully fenced yard
and pet friendly…
and bus lines outside your door…
not to mention fairly easy walking distance to Westwood Mall and to White Center shopping …
i pay more than that for a much older rental a few blocks west of that location.
it’s hard to know isn’t it…
August 3, 2010 at 5:45 pm #700423
SueParticipantJoB, I figure it’s probably not out of line either, but like I said, since I haven’t looked over there recently, so didn’t know if things changed with the economy. One of the reasons mine is probably so cheap is an odd set-up: 1800 sq. feet but only one official (legal) bedroom – a former owner who was disabled took out a wall to make the 2 bedrooms into one huge room. Works for us – a couple with no kids – but makes it less in demand.
August 4, 2010 at 4:14 am #700424
kotaMemberWell, I’m happy to report that the place has been rented. Called the potential tenants and they verbally agreed. I’m happy to say the least, now the serous rental search in Portland begins!
I researched the rental prices around here before I decided on the amount, my wife and I decided it was more than fair. 2BR apartments are going for $1200 a month. I realize there are a ton of new construction townhomes around here for rent, but our home is the only new construction single family home in the area for rent.
Those of you looking for a rental, I will keep you guys posted as it’s not a “done deal” until I have the deposit in hand. Thanks again for all of your insights.
August 4, 2010 at 4:35 am #700425
GinaParticipantI warn people to be wary of cheap rents along Delridge near Longfellow Creek, because of the historical flooding. I advise to rent above ground level, and to make sure they are on higher ground. And if they smell damp, avoid it!
August 4, 2010 at 4:45 am #700426
WSeaFam2MemberSo glad to hear you are close to renting your house :)
August 4, 2010 at 6:03 am #700427
TheHouseMemberI had to chime in on this since I live in Westwood.
First off, I can rattle off approximately a dozen murders and bank robberies that have occurred in the Junction and Admiral areas in the past 7 years that I’ve lived in Westwood. Many more than I’ve ever heard in Westwood (and we have plenty of businesses here).
Second, in the one of two issues that I’ve come across in the past 7 years they have been related to either homeless people (it was a stalking issue with a neighbors kid) or teenagers. Both of these “classes” are found throughout any major metropolitan area and are simply par for the course in big cities.
Third, I am within walking distance to QFC, Target, Barnes & Noble, approximately 4 parks (only 1.1 miles from Lincoln Park), a community center, a public library, a fresh fruit stand, a liquor store, one of the best pizza places in WS (Gianonni’s), Eats Cafe, a ferry dock, a YMCA, a Sports Complex, a public High School, Middle and Elementary School, a Post Office, a great little coffee shop (Bird On A Wire) and am still pretty damn close to The Junction.
Fourth, you could live near me!
There is nothing wrong with Westwood and it is a great little community! Personally, I think it’s a great little place to call home.
August 4, 2010 at 3:35 pm #700428
JoBParticipantkota…
i am glad you have a prospective tenant…
as much as i love Seattle.. and i do.. the idea of looking for a rental in Portland stirs longing in my soul…
i miss the easy access to the gorge.. hot springs.. the beach.. the mountains and of course.. the food trucks :)
happy hunting.
August 4, 2010 at 8:44 pm #700429
thansenMemberI have lived in WS all my life, grew up in Admiral, lived in Genesee, then near Morgan Junction, and now in Westwood.
BY FAR Westwood is the best location. No parking hassles, quiet, don’t have to deal with the bridge, close to Lincoln park, etc…
August 5, 2010 at 4:55 am #700430
kotaMemberWell, I’ve spoke too soon, the prospective tenants backed out this evening. “We regret to tell you that we had been looking at another place…”. Basically, another landlord offered cheaper rent and they backed out on the verbal agreement.
Back to square one. Sigh.
Those of you that were interested, I will post a link to the soon-to-be-ad.
:(
August 5, 2010 at 5:11 am #700431
kotaMemberAugust 5, 2010 at 6:28 pm #700432
JoBParticipantkota..
it’s a renters market out there…
did you ask if they had signed an agreement with the other landlord yet?
sometimes it’s about money..
sometimes there are other ways you can sweeten the deal for them.
if they are good tenants.. don’t give up the fight until it’s over.
btw..
you are still not showing up on housing maps.
is there something more you need to do on craigslist to show up?
August 5, 2010 at 7:39 pm #700433
kotaMemberJoB, I took your advice and emailed them with a better offer. We decided to lower the rent a bit, so here is the new listing.
http://seattle.craigslist.org/see/apa/1882386887.html
House is on Delridge, just before Thistle, has a bus stop in front of the property.
August 5, 2010 at 7:53 pm #700434
JoBParticipantgood luck!
August 5, 2010 at 8:27 pm #700435
villagegreenMemberThis is probably stupid of me to chime in at this late juncture, but I’ll get back to OP’s original question. So, yeah, the first thing that I’d say is your house is in Highland Park, probably not Westwood (although the border is kinda vague). Anyway, when I think of Highland Park, the first thing that comes to mind is the lack of sidewalks on certain streets. I’ve never understood this. Do we live in a real city or some rural outpost? The reason people live in urban areas is for the convenience of nearby businesses/services. Highland Park kinda feels like the city annexed it and then forgot about it. But that’s what you get when you call yourself a progressive city and then don’t have an income tax – the infrustructure suffers.
Secondly, I like Westwood Village for certain needs. However, I don’t know what it is, but everytime I go there I get a generalized depressed feeling. Even though it’s a ‘village’, it feels so suburban. Being able to walk to Target, Barnes and Noble, and Dress Barn just isn’t something that’s appealing to me. I’d much rather be closer to the shops in White Center. It’s a little seedier, but a lot more interesting.
Third, south Delridge is a visual travesty. With all the slapped-together condos and townhomes, it really got a raw deal with the developer boom of the recent past. And it’s loud. I purposely avoid the street everytime I’m driving back from White Center after 11pm since there’s a fifty-fifty chance there’ll be some type of police action going on. Call this hyperbole, but that has been my experience (especially on weekends).
OK – bash away. Call me sheltered or whatever. I can handle it.
August 5, 2010 at 8:35 pm #700436
JoBParticipantvillaggreen..
i agree with you that i would much rather be in walking distance to white center than to westwood village..
but although it may be further to white center from the OPs house than from westwood village .. it is certainly an easier walk :)
August 5, 2010 at 11:06 pm #700437
angelescrestParticipantI have to answer villagegreen:
I absolutely agree w/that feeling of ickiness at Westwood Village. I think the restaurant EATS is the one spot in the whole joint that transcends “suburban mall”. BUT, that lack of sidewalks in Highland Park? I am smitten. After dropping one child off at SSCC summer classes, we meandered around and found Sanislo’s playground and field: an oasis in the city! What a gorgeous site. And the greenbelt (are they canyons?) that back a lot of the area is so beautiful. There is a tiny espresso hut on the Zippy’s lot–a walkable necessity to me.
As school attendance is now firmly attached to where one lives, I imagine that that can play into the real estate thing, as well.
August 5, 2010 at 11:16 pm #700438
JoBParticipantLOL..
when did suburbia become urban blight?
a mall is nothing more than stores grouped together for convenience…
not my favorite walking destination
i would prefer to see traffic moved underground or stores raised to second levels…
but certainly clean, safe and acceptable.
You haven’t traveled enough or watched enough travel shows that highlight exceptional dining if you don’t realize that some of the most interesting restaurants are found in strip malls across America.
This mall also contains the neighborhood post office, a grocery, a drug store, snuggles between one of the most active sports stadiums and rec centers in West Seattle and a public park and is walking distance to a public library.
Urban blight?
In this case it is only a personal perception.
August 6, 2010 at 12:50 am #700439
angelescrestParticipantUrban blight? I don’t think anyone used that term. Perhaps it’s the large-scale parking lots–and all the traffic and havoc they bring–in the middle of residential areas that give way to MY perception of “ugh”; kind of a downer that chokes out that neighborhoody feeling that I do love.
And those un-sidewalk streets!
August 6, 2010 at 5:03 pm #700440
JoBParticipantangelescrest..
i walk that neighborhood nearly every day with my dogs… and talk with my neighbors as they stop to pass the time while i am working in the front garden…
there is a real neighborhood here not so far away from that icky mall that isn’t so icky as malls go… not so much havoc either…
it’s cleaner and safer than the junction.
August 6, 2010 at 5:17 pm #700441
angelescrestParticipantI repeat: agreed, amazing neighborhood.
Less beautific, in my opinion, the shopping center, particular spots especially.
Perhaps a mural could be painted on that huge wall one runs into (visually) from the entrance past the post office off Trenton…some sort of natural continuity from the ball fields to the park on the other side. And, sorry, but it’s a hard parking lot to negotiate w/a child in hand.
August 6, 2010 at 7:15 pm #700442
miwsParticipantFor the most part, I actually like the latest incarnation of Westwood, and the looks of the buildings.
I think a big part of it is that I despised the previous renovation, around ten years earlier. I thought the “improvements” in that one looked cheap, and plastic.
That big, arch shaped sign that adorned the Barton St. side of the mall between Pay-n-Save/Payless Drugs, and the backside of QFC, was hideous, and probably the cheapest looking part of all. It had those vertical, cylindrical, perforated columns that should have never made it to the architectual drawings, let alone off of them.
Not only did I not like their appearance, they were dumb in a practical sense as well. They were the perfect invite for those that choose to litter to cram their crap through.
Then, of course, the grounds maintenance staff is stuck wasting their time, fumbling around, trying to dig the crap out of them, with a broom, or whatever, from the gap between the bottom of the cylinder, and it’s base. I wonder how often they got a talking to for taking too much time to do their rounds because of that wasted time.
There’s no way the design team should have been surprised that that problem would arise, they just thought it looked cool.
The only thing that bothered me about seeing that previous version go, is that being done only ten or twelve years earlier, it seemed like an incredible waste of the then new materials. Even if some could be recycled, I’m sure that much went to a landfill.
All that being said, it does seem to have a bit of a more spread out feel to it, IMHO, which is kind of ironic, since there was talk off and on for many years of slapping a lid over the original main section.
Mike
August 7, 2010 at 1:44 am #700443
JoBParticipantclosing the center street and slapping a lid over it would drastically improve the walkability of the mall.. but i am guessing it might cost places like radio shack business.
August 7, 2010 at 4:10 am #700444
miwsParticipantYeah, I think it would be much more difficult with the new layout, than with the original.
Mike
August 7, 2010 at 6:20 pm #700445
sophistatikiMemberJust checking WSB for rentals when I found this. Im hoping I can find a nice little house for my cousin to rent so he stays in Seattle.
as far as WESTWOOD….. I’m very happy I landed here. I’ve lived in neighborhoods all over the city before I purchased my fab mid -century modern one block from Westwood Vilage. the location is great. It was even better before all the trees came down on the corner of my block. They provided alot of privacy from the increasing traffic going to the mall. Even though I find OFC obnoxiously over crowded I still like the convienince of being able to walk to all needed services. I can walk to just about everything I need in any direction. Dont see much more crime here than anywhere else. A lot of artists moved down here from the north end because we could afford to buy here, and once artists start moving in and bringing little spots of cool, money moves in and starts tearing down the old and building the new.thus turning the genuinely quirky and interresting into the pre- packaged socially acceptible version of “boutique or artisan” whatever! We’ve got about 5 more years before it gets completely gentrified. I’m glad I dont live in the middle of all the fauxhiemen trappings of the Junction or the smugness of Admiral dist. Westwood still feels like its got enough room to breath but has all of the basics covered. Screw sidewalks! I prefer not having one infront of my house, it keeps nosey people from looking at my garden.
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