East side, fox point (although avoid streets right around brown for undergrad noise filtering purposes and west side around dexter park. I’d start there

dexter park is a junkie homeless needle nightmare now. definitely nowhere near there.

OP--there is no compromise. providence is a shithole. anywhere you move, you will have altercations with strangers, people will break into your cars, your catalytic converters will be stolen, and there will be a constant stream during the summer of kids on illegal vehicles in large, loud, menacing groups just being annoying at large. moving across the river was one of the best decisions i ever made.

i know a bunch of the providence kids will show up and be like oh look the boomer is afraid of menacing teens on bikes! but who the fuck has the time for that shit. there is nothing to move here for. it's a 10 minute drive from much better places to live. don't get all RI brained thinking that is a long distance; it is not. just drive it if you insist on thinking there is stuff to do in pvd. you will save so much money and sanity that way.

Well that’s some townie bullshit but you do you.

I’m around your age and I’d suggest East Providence. It’s more low-key with more families and less of a college crowd, but you’re still a quick ride away from downtown (depending where in EP, you could even walk/bike over on the bike path.)

Mids glass and mids opinions

i'm sorry it hurts your feelings so much to hear it but OP definitely needs to. he is gonna fuck up this poor girl's life because he thinks there's some kind of benefit to living in PVD. and you all are just gonna blow that smoke up his ass because you need to scam other folks into living there to feel better about your own bad life choices.

There are a number of apartments wedged around Angel and Waterman St on the east side that may be worth looking into. The area is walking distance to both Thayer Street and Wayland Square, which are more hip commercial areas. The neighborhood is safe and mostly comprised of apartments, medical offices, shops, restaurants, and law offices.

Another area to check may be the side streets off Hope Street on the east side. There are a number of stores and restaurants north of the intersection of Hope and Rochambeau that would be within walking distance.

About 90% of the east side would be considered safe (the only place I'd be cautious of would be west of Camp Street, south of Rochambeau Ave and north of Doyle). Even that area has improved, although parts of North Main Street look abit run down.

Best part about dab wooks is they act like smoking their 97% THC extract off a heated metal nail every hour on the dot so they can’t feel feelings doesn’t make them a junkie too

So move to EP with its abundance of trump signs and Gadsen flags and confederate flags? Ok. Noted. See what you’re going for there.

Good lord … you need to get a grip. You make it sound like Providence is some kind of war zone. I live near Dexter park, it’s nowhere near as bad as you make it. There are some unhoused people who use the park. In my experience they don’t bother anyone. I have yet to see a needle - not saying people don’t do drugs in the park, but I don’t see the evidence and I’m walking in/around that park daily. As for your other complaints - part and parcel of living in a city. Most people are fine/friendly. Some are loud, selfish, etc … The illegal dirt bike groups aren’t confined to Providence. You will find them in cities all over New England. They’re annoying, but not hard to just avoid.

Look it up. Better yet ask any EMT or emergency room worker. Driving around a lot - like you do if you live in the suburbs - is far more likely to cause your injury or death than walking around in the city if you know how to not ask for trouble.

I love and miss living in providence- from a purely financial standpoint however, Cranston around the east high school area is more bang for your buck rent wise and is 5 minutes from the city!

I'm sorry my post triggered you all so, so much that you want to talk personal shit on it. But seriously don't listen to these idiots enabling you to bring your girl to PVD, she will deeply hate it. You want to hear their perspective so you think they're good and right but they're baiting you into an awful decision. You want the "hippest" place to live in a dumpster and you're asking dumpster dwellers for advice, I get it. It's not gonna go well tho.

And if any of you think the dude who is saying move near Dexter park of ALL places in response to this post isn't either an idiot or a troll, god save you.

I just moved from directly adjacent to Dexter park, idk what to tell you but you're talking about a fantasy world if you have yet to see a needle there. You can't smell the piss when you're walking around there either, can you? Sometimes folks are trying too hard to be progressive to actually experience the world around them.

East side (different than east providence) is full of students and rich boomers. There's Wickendon/Fox Point at the bottom, which is very hip. Then Thayer st. aka the college kid area, so cool but everyone there is 20. And slightly east of that is Wayland square, which is also hip but more calm. Extending up from there, all the way to the bottom of Pawtucket is Blackstone blvd and Hope st. Blackstone blvd is extremely posh so that area is really expensive/swanky and people there are older. Hope street and that area extending west to the cemetary is really charming, quiet and nice, especially up to Hope Village. Specifically beware University Heights, Ik some people have had nice experiences. When I was there everyone there called it the projects. It felt constantly loud and unsafe.

The west side equivalent is Federal Hill. At the top is Atwells aka little Italy. It's poppin with a large bar scene with valets all along the street. Broadway st. is kind of the center of Federal hill, lots of fixie bikes and coffee shops. That extends down to Westminster and Dexter Park. Fed hill has a reputation of being very block-by-block. Some feel run down and unsafe but one block over feels super gentified and fancy. Overall it's less consistently quiet and nice than the east side but imo feels more lively for people in their 20s and 30s. Past Westminster is the Armory District, which extends towards Broad st. The apts are cheaper and it's more just housing, rather than bars and stuff. Lived by Dexter park for a bit and the area was nice. Though you can definitely find yourself in a bubble of nice housing, encroaching on abject poverty as you go south across Cranston st. I generally feel safe in Providence but people talk about the noise pollution here. Living close to Cranston st. I found there was constant throbbing bass coming from one source or another, which was torturous for me. I think the west side of Dexter park by Messer st. is much more chill, east of it you're by a lot more subwoofers and firecrackers, as well as some pretty heavily policed section 8 housing. I've heard several people echo the sentiment that it's more pleasant if you try to stay north of Westminster.

Past that there's Onlyville, Downtown, Smith Hill, Broad st. Washington Park, Cranson, East Prov, Wanskuck Elmhurst and a couple other burrows. I haven't lived there so Idrk but a lot of that is surrounding suburbs, and most of them are pretty connected to everything.

Yeah, bought a house in elmhurst annnnnd

IM NOT FUCKING LEAVING

Hey OP-

Elmhurst crew checking in. If you can find the right pocket, this neighborhood is a gem.

I think some people view the world as filled with threats and some people view the world as filled with people. You seem to fall into the former category. If you need to live outside of Providence for your peace of mind then please, by all means do so. Also, maybe think about how your perspective is kind of extreme and not representative of most of the experiences people have living in PVD.

FYI she’s not weary, she’s either “wary” or “leery”; weary means tired those other words mean concerned/suspicious

Lol fuck up her life? I had a blast living in the city in my 20s. Think they’ll be okay.

Elmhurst

Man shut up. No one is “triggered.” Go jump in a lake.

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This is so dumb lol… I’ve lived ALONE as a young woman in Fox Point (probably one of the safer options) on a busy street for 6 years and have never had a break in of my car or home, or any sort of violent interaction. I love living here and I still would even if crime upticked a little bit.

OP is looking for safeish neighborhoods, and that’s what people are recommending. That said, +1 vote for Fox Point.

>claims to trigger everyone

>is the one triggered

https://www.reddit.com/r/providence/comments/u48qqq/is_washington_park_a_relatively_safe_area_to_live/

https://www.reddit.com/r/providence/comments/53v3u9/wondering_what_providence_is_like_for_mid_30s/

https://www.reddit.com/r/providence/comments/2xx0kl/relocating_to_providence_at_the_end_of_the_month/

https://www.reddit.com/r/providence/comments/nfq7lp/living_near_the_vavalley_area/

https://www.reddit.com/r/providence/comments/mn698j/apartment_hunting/

https://www.reddit.com/r/providence/comments/i114g2/advice_for_possibly_moving_to_providence/

https://www.reddit.com/r/providence/comments/fnvwta/safe_places_in_providence/

Ok define city. Warwick and west Warwick are both in Kent and have comparable neighborhoods to providence? They both fall under providence's metro area so you could argue they're part of the city.

In general the areas to avoid would be the Olneyville/Manton/Atwells triangle. The areas around Charles, Douglas, branch, and lower part of Smith st. And the Lower south providence and Elmwood neighborhoods. Also the Upper cranston st area. Definitely avoid the areas around public housing. There are some nice parts of these especially in the Elmwood Lower south side so don't completely take them out of consideration. Olneyville is slowly being gentrified too.

The "good" areas are most of the east side, the west end, immediate dexter training ground areas and federal hill neighborhoods, upper Smith st along with the Elmhurst and Mt Pleasant neighborhoods along the north providence line. Silver lake and Washington park are ok.

I don't know what kind of crime filled city your gf thinks providence is but it's no where near comparable to parts of Philly, Bronx, Chicago, etc. No you won't get randomly stabbed, shot, kidnapped etc. Avoid problems and they'll avoid you. There's also crime hotspots even in the good neighborhoods, fox point iirc has the highest share of break-ins of all providence.

And since you work in the east side you should consider either Pawtucket and especially east providence. Easily take the Hendrickson bridge over and rent is alot cheaper too. EP as a whole is pretty nice

Hope village is where I would recommend. When you looking to move?? I may have a lead for you. Should be available June or July 2023. 2 BR & office. First floor, 1 car garage parking & 1 car driveway. On site private laundry

I am not surprised that user JohnProvidence didn't have this experience or that the current users of a forum dedicated to Providence don't broadly think it sucks.

But that does not make those characteristic experiences, this is a very particular subset of people commenting on this forum in the first place. And I can assure you most folks who have moved away and wouldn't bother thinking about r/providence now or ever have some variation on my experience as opposed to yours.

screw all your other points why are you in the Providence subreddit of all places if you hate pvd so much?

there is a big difference between being direct and aggressive or using a hard tone, and being triggered.

can you not tell these posters are angry and triggered that I confidently stated that PVD sucks for reasons they don't agree with?

I'll second the East Side of Providence as well! We lived right near Miriam Hospital for several years. The food is great and so much to do around you. However, our packages got stolen pretty regularly and cars parked in the driveway (other tenants') were broken into.

This. Crime is down. 9 homicides in 2022 was lowest since 1972. Property crime and violent crime also down (source)

It's not just that people "don't agree," you're just objectively wrong. I've lived in four different neighborhoods over 13 years and no one has ever broken into my car or stolen my catalytic converter. Which you said will absolutely happen no matter where I move. I've had 13 wonderful years here, and I look forward to many more. Sorry that upsets you so much?

Hi, interested in this lead. DM?

Lady is so fired up she might as well own rebelle bagel. Take chill pill, I live in the area for 5 years and love it.

honestly this is the only decent reply

yeah sure, I can let you know when the space goes on the market. Typically have used Zillow in the past. The rent is 2500/mth

So what should we do about this, as a society, do you think?

I'm more of a housing first kind of guy. I don't think though the homeless problem can be successfully addressed given the current state of federal legislation on a variety of drugs that really form the bedrock of the non-economic elements of the problem.

But this post isn't about solving the homeless and drug problem in America. It's about whether this guy should move his admittedly scared girlfriend into an apartment next to Dexter Park. Not moving your ass into a problematic area is not exactly NIMBYism. And even if it were, that would not make it a good idea for OP.

The could be s said for Riverside. There's some nice places to live that side of the bridge from Providence.

I get it, and my response wasn’t really necessary in this instance.

I feel like it is hard to tell how an area will be without spending some time there, and some people will find problems with anywhere/some will be OK anywhere. I don’t know why I decided to add to the internet conflict baiting machine, as I certainly do not wanna weigh in on anyone’s decision to live somewhere or not

[deleted]

Definitely the East Side of Providence. Wayland Square is great and is walkable without the gritty city vibes. Wealthy, but more young professionals, families, retirees than College Hill.

you are right! funny to see all these yuppies pressed asf providence has gone downhill they are just too blind to see it.

My friend, 27 is still very very young.

they're all online nearly 100% of the time and have no idea what it's actually like where they're living, if the comments in this post are to be taken at face value

Fox Point is much safer than the area near Dexter Park.

Check out Halstead apartments!!!

East Side, Fox Point.

You know what I love about it here? The wildlife! I regularly see squirrels (duh!) but nearly as often rabbits. On walks I see turkeys, chipmunks, raccoons, and ground hogs. More rarely opossums. Twice I saw a pair of wild minks, and once an otter 🤗

Lots of old established trees. It really doesn't feel like any city I've ever lived in (unlike the Silver Lake neighborhood, or Federal Hill 😣). Yet I can walk downtown in about 20 mins (or be there in 10 riding one of those accursed scooters lol)

Safety: I'm female. Never felt unsafe. Car break-ins happen. Even home break-ins (far more rare these days). But on the whole, the East Side is extraordinarily safe for a city.

Oak Hill just on the border in Pawtucket is adorable

Seeing a ton of comments mentioning the East Side, and their absolutely right. However, stay as far away from Camp st as possible and be as close to Brown as you affordably can. You’ll know it when you see it. Technically two streets up towards Hope St is the East Side, but the run up there (Cypress St and North Main) can be a little dicey.

Thayer being considered cool? Maybe in 2007...

Am I right in inferring that since you don’t agree with his (obviously wack) point of view, you perused his profile for something else to add to your insult? Weird time to be alive - hope you enjoy looking at my bike ;)

(I don’t mean this to be mean spirited or confrontational, just a tongue in cheek observation about something that seems peculiar to me, but deemed [acceptable/funny/a good takedown] by upvotes)

Lol, you also went to this curmudgeon’s profile to find something irrelevant to insult them about? And stigmatize marijuana use / drug use in general with the term “junkie”??? This is a weird thread.

Good luck with the housing search - fox point or east side is probably where you want to look for the concerned lady to feel safest (and maybe you too if you were unironically using the term junkie for marijuana users & unhoused IV drug users). Bonus - the streets & sidewalks are cleaner. Cheap apartment on the west side was fine safety-wise, but the literal trash was a bummer to live around.

He called other people a junkie first, also he was being an asshole. If your an asshole expect asshole responses

Also no one stigmatizing weed usage lol he shouldn’t call other people junkies if he’s doing drugs too, idc how mild. That’s asshole behavior

He definitely was an asshole and rightfully downvoted; people pulling irrelevant shit from his profile kinda reminds me of the adage about wrestling with a pig tho.

Good luck with the apartment hunt!

Riverside is so cute!

I feel like you in particular need this one.

https://www.reddit.com/r/RhodeIsland/comments/10ah90g/in_very_desperate_need_of_emergency_housing/

THIS is the characteristic experience of a Providence resident, regardless of the bubble you're living in. And what you're gonna want to say is oh, these are neighbor problems, oh, these are landlord problems. My guy they are Providence problems, as well. This isn't how it goes down in other places.

Jesus, get a hobby. Yes, some people have/had bad experiences in Providence but, one persons bad experience doesn’t make an entire city a shit hole. There are a plurality of opinions/experiences/feelings about PVD. I like it here. You don’t. Move on…

hey John, seethe more.

Not seething, my dear. Enjoy the rest of your day.

Tbh it probably took you more time to type that than for me to clickity click on his profile. Also, this guy is a known troll.

Your bike is cool.

Ahhh, even if it’s still sorta stooping to their level, the context of this person being a troll makes sense; i only pop my head in the comment sections from time to time and don’t tend to remember usernames.