AND ITS A BIG MAYBE CONSIDERING WHAT IVE READ SO FAR!!

Me and my girlfriend might be moving to 29th and Girard in April. The apartment is very nice, one of the brand new ones they are renovating in that area, all new floors appliances etc. The place is definitly worthy of my occupancy. My only concern of course is the area.

Is it really as bad as I've heard?? Has it really gotten better over the past couple years?? Is that fact that me and her are white going to give us problems? I'm only saying that because we have been taunted a lot where we are at now (38th and Pearl) due to Scooters Bar (get out of our city whitey, etc.)

Also, not saying to much (you never know who reads these), but lets just say my stuff I would be moving in with would definitly be easier for someone to steal then buy.

Any input would be great. I would love to move out of the city, but my girlfriend is still in school here. We would really like to move in the place is beautiful. Thanks.

If you want to at least feel safe then I wouldn't touch 29th and Girard. I don't know what you've heard, but it's probably all true. I don't live too far from Girard and feel safe enough, but for me Poplar is the cut off, I don't even go up to Girard or beyond, driving through that section and reading about the crime tells me all I need to know. Wasn't someone shot there just this past week?

There are plenty of better areas to move to, not too far away from 29th and Girard too. Shop around and ask around, don't cheap out, you'll only regret it.

It's entirely dependent on your comfort level. I would take a walk there during the day time and also spend some time there in the evening hours. I live in between poplar and girard and 29th and 30th streets. I am a white female and I feel ok walking around the corner to the mini market on girard during the day by myself, and at night with a friend. It's really not a terrible neighborhood the way many people make it out to be, but again, depends on what you are comfortable with.
As long as you have street smarts, and don't leave your valuables in your car, I think you'd be ok. No part of philly is 100% crime free...

Thanks for the input. I know pretty much any area in the city is going to have crime, some in more place less in others. I've never really been around that area as much as the rest of the city so I thought I'd ask. I'm sure its as much as a risk living there as it is where I am at now (38th and Pearl). We won't be doing much walking around we both have cars, but i guess parking will be an issue, but again that can't be much worse then where we're at now, we live next to 2 auto body dealerships, nothing but totaled cars parked in our spots.

Another thing I've noticed is that about 90% of murders in the city are drug/gang realted. Considering I don't sell drugs and not part of a gang, I think I'm probibly more subjected to robberies, maybe at gun point, but its all good. Actually the only time a gun was ever pulled on me was in Quakertown when I left school early and walking home I walked though a guys property and he pulled his shotgun aimed at me and threatend to shot me HAHA, typical hicks. Anyway, I have a .22 for protection and I think spending a little extra on renters insurance wouldn't hurt. I wonder if anybody would cover the place

I love this... I've never been there. and i can't confirm the reports but they are probably all true. I.D.T anyone?

I wouldn't say Poplar is the cut-off along 29th at all. This is a block-by-block area. I'm on Cambridge by 29th, which is above Poplar and below Girard. Our block feels safer and is cleaner/friendlier than many to the South and East of us. We have the benefit of front porches, so there are many "eyes on the street" in warmer months when people are gardening or talking anyway. If you are city-smart you'll be fine walking around.

As for that intersection itself: I've waited on 29th & Girard for the trolley during rush hour and (sometimes later at night) for a year without a problem.

It's very closed minded attitudes like this that keep areas like Girard from developing to their full potential. As a business owner and resident of Girard Avenue (for over 3 years), I can assure you that Girard Avenue is very safe - day or night. Yes, things do happen, but they happen EVERYWHERE, including in presumably safe and stable neighborhoods like Fairmount. To read that you actually have streets mapped out in your mind that you will not cross is VERY, VERY sad. Where do you think you are? You're in Fairmount? If you're that afraid of streets a block or two from your house, you should move to Gladwyne or Ardmore. By the way, the shooting you referred to, was the result of a scuffle between two men in Lee's Chinese Kitchen on 29th Street right below Girard Avenue. I don't know the latest details, but apparently one guy tried to rob another guy while he was waiting for Chinese food, and during the scuffle (caught clearly on the store camera), one guy got shot in the leg.

To the young couple that is thinking of moving to 29th and Girard...go for it. You currently live in what's called "The Bottom". That is a FAR worse place than 29th and Girard. And by the way, there are many, many young white singles/couples moving to that particular block you're interesting in, and the "locals" are very friendly. Be warned: there is a "stop 'n go" type deli at one corner, and it does attract lowlifes, including whites from below Girard who come up to get cheap beer at all hours, but 29th and Girard Avenue is a major intersection for SEPTA - trolleys on Girard, and several buses on 29th Street, so there's a large cross section of the community out at all hours waiting to get on or off of a trolley or bus. Your addition to the neighborhood would be very welcome, and it would continue the admittedly SLOW "trend" we're seeing of the neighborhood evolving into a desirable place to live - and open a business.

Seek out other opinions, even other negative ones, park and walk around at night, check out the scenery, then decide if it's worth it to you. Good luck!

Sad, so sad...to live such a prescribed, formulaic life! I hope she doesn't have pets or children...they're (either one) probably considered an accessory that is kept in a crate so her orderly house and life is not upset.

..and some of us who come up to get orange juice at all hours. As an aside, the 29th street wall of that building is ripe for a cleanup or mural.

Or contact me off-post about a mini-tour.

McAdams pretty much stated all of the points I was going to make.

But to add a little to the conversation, I have lived between 29th and 30th on Girard for over 3 years + I'm white. I also have three very young children and we, including my wife, feel very safe. There are several professionals that live on Girard Ave btwn 29th and 31st. Everything ranging from IT Professionals, School Teachers, Accountants, and Doctors. There are several people, like your girlfriend, in the stretch of homes that you are considering, that are grad students- most of them are also white. The other residents on the block are mostly elderly folks who raised their children on Girard. I have never had a problem with any of them, their children or their grand children. In fact, most of them are pretty neighborly- and they constitute the black residents of the block.

Two things I will reiterate that McAdams pointed out. 29th & Girard represents a public transportation hub, so there will always be a lot of people on those corners. Also, the Stop-N-Go attracts people from all directions because they sell beer. If you frequent the Stop-N-Go you may get harassed for spare change but otherwise I don't think there is much else to worry about- especially if your packin' that deuce-deuce.

Finally, if you're scared of black people and/or just don't like them, then you shouldn't move up here. Furthermore, don't take the advice of someone who said they wouldn't even touch Girard and doesn't cross Poplar. How can they even speak intelligently about my block if they don't even visit it? Walk around the neighborhood, talk to its inhabitants and make up your mind that way. You can PM me if you have any specific questions.

Best of Luck!