Moving to San Fernando Valley area

[YahooLV 0]

Ok, Ladies and Gentlemen,
I'm moving to a new area, and a new job.

I'm looking for a place to live, room to rent, (something) for a month or two while I find permanent digs.

Anyone have any ideas? Greatly appreciated.

Help! I start working on Dec. 19th..
Please pm me for more info.

Thanks, so much...Curt

http://www.curtisglennphotography.com

[GARYC24 3]

Does it HAVE to be in the Valley?
I used to live in Canoga Park..

[Michele 1]

And the Valley just gets better and better - Curt is coming!!!!!!!

As for a room, I haven't got one...and no, I don't know of anyone who does. But in the worst case scenario, you can have the couch for a bit, if you can deal with cats.

Let me know when you're here, and we'll go get dinner or something. And congrats for the new job, too.

Ciels-
Michele

~Do Angels keep the dreams we seek
While our hearts lie bleeding?~

[Vectracide 0]

Dude, whatever you do......dont live there, just work there. The Valley is a shitty area. I worked in several areas of the Valley in the early to mid 90's. Not a good place to live, unless your up in the hills, and very rich. Lets put it this way, in the early 90's, there was a car jacking a 1/2 a block away from where I was detailing cars for the Car Wash Guys, and the bullet the fuckface shot hit my truck. Not only did he shoot my truck (by accident) but he killed the woman for her car.....that she was giving him without resistance.

Of course this can happen anywhere, as I am sure those that live there will defend, but that is just one facet that is wrong with the area.

I would recommend looking into Canoga Park, Agoura Hills, Simi Valley, or even up into Ventura County depending on where in the Valley you will be working. I wouldnt want to drive much past De Soto, or Balboa Ave from that distance.

Good luck dude.

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Controlled and Deliberate.....

[Michele 1]

Sorry to hear of your experience, Vectracide...but I've got to disagree. As a single woman living in the Valley all of her adult life, I've not had that experience - nor one close to it - in my time here.

Depending upon where Curt is going to work, and how long a commute he can handle, I can recommend great areas that are not too expensive.

Ciels-
Michele

~Do Angels keep the dreams we seek
While our hearts lie bleeding?~

[Vectracide 0]

You can disagree all you would like, but perhaps you should look at the hard facts instead:

Crime statistics for Los Angles Co.
http://losangeles.areaconnect.com/crime1.htm

San Fernando
http://sanfernando.areaconnect.com/crime1.htm

Burbank
http://burbankca.areaconnect.com/crime1.htm

For Simi Valley just over the hill off the 118
http://simivalley.areaconnect.com/crime1.htm

For Thousand Oaks just up the road in Ventura Co. off the 101
http://thousandoaks.areaconnect.com/crime1.htm

There are also 7 separate gangs operating in San Fernando.

Proof is in the pudding. Just because you dont see it personally and havently witnessed it first hand, doesn't mean it doesnt exist.

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Controlled and Deliberate.....

[airtwardo 7]

So THAT'S why the wife keeps saying 'Thousands Oaks' is where in LA we should be looking...


Good luck with the new job and the res. search Curt!

~ If you choke a Smurf, what color does it turn? ~

[Michele 1]

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You can disagree all you would like, but perhaps you should look at the hard facts instead:

I am aware of the crime stats for my city as well as those others you've quoted...I also say I live here, and that my 83 year old father lives here, and neither of us has a reason to worry about safety. Consider also that using the entire Los Angeles city stats includes places like Encino (high rent, low crime) and Watts (low rent, high crime) in those compilations. Also consider that Los Angeles is something on the order of 450 square miles...and thus encompasses some really great areas as well as some poor areas.

If someone wants to move to an area, it's best to talk to those who currently live there. I do live here, which is why I offered to give Curt a hand. If I were to move to your town, I'd gladly take your assistance.

Ciels-
Michele

~Do Angels keep the dreams we seek
While our hearts lie bleeding?~

[Vectracide 0]

I also included San Fernando. It has higher crime than all of the towns north. It is where he asked about, and got info on.

Your personal experience doens't compare to stats 100,000's deep in individuals experience with the crime there.

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Controlled and Deliberate.....

[Michele 1]

No, you included the *City* of San Fernando. The vast majority of the San Fernando Valley is Los Angeles City incorporated.

Burbank, Simi, and TO are unincorporated...which is why the stats so rapidly drop. They haven't got places like Watts and Crenshaw (both over the hill from the Valley, as a matter of fact) to contend with.

I am very clear you had a bad experience in LA. I am sorry for that. But there are many many people who live in good, decent, working class neighborhoods and they are not victimized.

Anyway, Curt, PM me if you need a hand...

Ciels-
Michele

~Do Angels keep the dreams we seek
While our hearts lie bleeding?~

[YahooLV 0]

no, it doesn't have to be in the valley, I just don't know the area at all.

Just in the commute vicinity would be nice.

http://www.curtisglennphotography.com

[VanillaSkyGirl 6]

I am one of those "up in the hills" people, so I see the Valley in a totally different light. I honestly find it actually boring as heck because everything closes too early for my tastes, and I have to drive far to meet almost all of my friends because there is not much (nothing too exciting) to do around here. For the most part, it's quite suburban.

I prefer to live at the beach, but I find the Valley (well, my parts of the Valley) to be quite safe and decent. I grew up in very private, guarded areas, so I truly cannot say what the rest of the SF Valley is truly like. Still, I've lived in various cities in the Valley, LA, the West Side (Santa Monica, within walking distance to the beach) and practically lived on the beach in San Diego. My brother lived both right on the Strand in Manhattan Beach and in the heart of Brentwood, two of my favorite cities, but he decided to build a home in Calabasas, which is the next city over from SF Valley. I still find much of the SF Valley, in general, to be extremely safe.

For the record, I'm not necessarily a big fan of a city like Canoga Park. I went out that way once last year to go to an auto dealership, and I found it to not be as nice as it used to be back in the early to mid-80's. (It was never great...always had the potential to be a little shady.) I would say that the nicer parts of the Valley are, if you are south, past Ventura Blvd. or if north, like me, past Devonshire. If you want to live south of Ventura Blvd, I recommend the Encino, Sherman Oaks, Studio City areas because it's more lively on that part of the boulevard. North of Devonshire, like where I live, is filled with gated communities/homes, so you might not dig that, either.

Let me know where you'll be moving to Curt, so we can hang out together. Steve Stratton lives in Thousand Oaks, Gia moved to Ventura County and I live in Porter Ranch. We should all get together and paint the town!

Oh, and Vectracide, the CITY of San Fernando IS SCARY! You couldn't pay me enough money, not even give me enough free tunnel time, to live there! That is one city in the Valley (one that I actually forgot about), that most people would agree is dangerous and a very poor representation of the SF Valley as a whole. The San Fernando Valley is so BIG, that many times, people forget that there is a really nice and really ugly side of it. I agree that it can be unsafe in some areas, but I am pretty certain that Curt isn't looking into those cities as potential new neighborhoods.

[Vectracide 0]

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Burbank, Simi, and TO are unincorporated...which is why the stats so rapidly drop. They haven't got places like Watts and Crenshaw (both over the hill from the Valley, as a matter of fact) to contend with.

Thousand Oaks and Simi isn't even in LA county. Its Ventura Co. Yes, they dont have nasty places like you said....thats my whole point. Thanks for proving it even further for me.

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Controlled and Deliberate.....

[cocheese 0]

Go watch the movie:
Falling Down
Rosa, you can't see the valley from the hills.
If you still move there, go find the trails up to Topanga where the hang gliders launch. It overlooks the hole. Smoke em if you got em and wonder why you live there.

[VanillaSkyGirl 6]

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Rosa, you can't see the valley from the hills.

Jeff, what on earth are you talking about? (Silly guy!)

I have GROWN UP within the San Fernando Valley and have lived here (as well as in non-SFV cities) for MOST of my life, much like Michele has. I know much of the SF Valley extremely well. I do NOT make it a habit to spend time in the worst and most dangerous parts of the Valley, like you did day in and day out when you worked here. With all due respect, you have had VERY limited experience out here and only within the very poor/bad areas only, due to your past job.

The SF Valley is huge, and some areas within it are quite flawed. To go from one side of the SF Valley to the other by freeway, it takes easily 45 minutes. Yes, there are going to be some "bad areas" within such a large district. There are various safe and even quite nice cities in SFV, where people can live and never see any of the things that you or Vectracide have experienced.

Look at the attached map of the SF Valley. Sure, I live in a more sheltered area, NW hills of Porter Ranch, but it is STILL very much within the SF Valley. Also, I spend my days in the Northridge and Sherman Oaks/Studio City areas. Actually,I lived in Studio City right after the Northridge earthquake, while my home was rebuilt, but I have lived in the NW part of Chatsworth for the longest amount of time. (That is off of the 118, the next city over from Simi Valley.) I went to junior high in Chatsworth, high school in West Hills and briefly lived in Sherman Oaks right after high school. My first home city in SoCal, after my family moved from NY back in '77, was briefly Northridge, then Granada Hills. Yes, those areas were much nicer back then, but it's still quite safe. Currently, my brother lives in Calabasas (just west of SFV), where I've been spending more time, lately. I've also worked in various cities of varying socio-economic levels within the SF Valley.

So you see, I've obviously spent time throughout MANY areas of the Valley for many years...off and on for almost 30 years, since my family first moved here from NY. I know quite well the cities of Chatsworth, Porter Ranch (by NW side of Chatsworth), Northridge, West Hills, Studio City, Sherman Oaks, etc. HERE is more information about SFV, although it may not be up-to-date.

Btw, Conundrum lives with her boyfriend maybe 15 minutes away from me in Granada Hills, and she knows the Valley well, also. Maybe she will also chime in.

You guys can also PM me with any questions.

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[VectorBoy 0]

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Ok, Ladies and Gentlemen,
I'm moving to a new area, and a new job.

I love the movies made in the San Fernando! Are you going to be making more movies in your new job there?

[ltdiver 3]

**Bump**

Good luck in your new endevour, Curt. We're going to miss you in -our- little valley. Hope the SF Valley knows how good a man they're getting!

ltdiver

Don't tell me the sky's the limit when there are footprints on the moon