Moving to Lincoln
I received the following e-mail today:
I read your blog, it is good info. Especially for my wife and I, we are re-locating to Lincoln from Kansas City.
Quick Question- any “hidden gems” for neighborhoods to live in? We are looking at Country Club and East Campus, not really the type of people who want to move to a new suburban house out south.
Any thoughts?
Thanks
And I replied:
Thanks for writing! I’m happy to help however I can.
Since you mentioned the Country Club and East Campus neighborhoods, I’m going to guess that you prefer older homes. If that’s the case, you might want to take a look at the Near South. It’s an area bounded (approximately) by 17th, 27th, South, and A Streets. It includes some very neat houses. Portions of the neighborhood have a very high percentage of University professors. Like all old neighborhoods, the Near South has its rough edges, but it’s worth a look.
If it’s not so much older homes but just “non-suburbia” you’re looking for, you might take a look at the area bounded by Sheridan and Pioneers Boulevards on the north and south, and 40th & 33rd Streets on the east and west. It strikes me as a relatively quiet neighborhood with good schools nearby (Rousseau Elementary, Irving Middle, Southeast High), and it features a decent mix of well-kept housing.
I, for one, am partial to the College View area (draw a roughly 1/2 mile circle centered at 48th Street and Pioneers Boulevard). I consider it to be a bit of a hidden gem, but A) I grew up in the area, and B) I currently live in the area, so take that opinion with the appropriately sized grain of salt. The neighborhood schools are good (Calvert Elementary and Zeman Elementary, Pound Middle) and you’ll find a real mix of housing costs and styles (and thus, residents) throughout the area.
There are also a few neighborhoods around 56th & Randolph that might be considered “hidden gems”, depending on your definition. I’m only vaguely familiar with the homes in that area, but my wife and I did look at a few while we were house shopping two years ago. Very quiet, lots of mature trees.
And I just remembered University Place (aka Uni Place) near Nebraska Wesleyan University. It’s northeast of the East Campus area, around 48th & St. Paul.
As for Lincoln’s “bad” neighborhoods—well, there aren’t many. To the extent that the relative cost of housing can tell you about an area, it’s pretty clear which neighborhoods are in demand.
I hope that helps. If you would like opinions from my readers, I’m happy to post your request for info (without your name and contact information, unless you say otherwise) on my blog.
Again, thanks for contacting me. I’m gradually (very gradually) building up Lincolnite. My plans include a section for new and prospective Lincolnites to help folks with exactly these sorts of questions. Please don’t hesitate to ask if there’s anything else you’d like to know.
So what say you, loyal (and not so loyal) readers? Where did I do good, and where did I go wrong in my advice? (I can guess a couple spots some of you might disagree with.) Which neighborhoods are “hidden gems”? What’s so great about your neighborhood?
The Comments
D.M.B. January 25, 2006 at 6:32pm
I live in North Lincoln. Sometimes it stinks. I mean when the wind is just right the smell is really bad.
Mr. Wilson January 25, 2006 at 8:43pm
I’m trying to remember, D.M.B., are you out near the Purina plant? Or what’s the source of the smell in your area?
D.M.B. January 25, 2006 at 10:32pm
It sure doesn’t smell like what’s ingested, it smells like what comes out the other end.
NE part of town if that’s what you want to know. 70th and Adams.
osisbs January 26, 2006 at 8:36am
The Near South can be fine, but also can be a total nightmare. I think you’d be happier in the Country Club. The Near South can be the landing point for all the folks getting out the state pen, the regional center or the drug rehab centers. After all, they don’t go back to their hometowns after they’ve done their 14 years for 2nd degree murder.
The CC district has few rental properties and the high prices keep the rif-raff out. You’ll pay tons more, but there won’t be a six-plex built right next to you in five years. Also, the cops won’t repeatedly ticket your car if it isn’t moved in 24 hours like they do in the NS.
beerorkid January 27, 2006 at 10:35am
I am a near souther. In the russian bottoms area. Not to bad, many older homes. Mine was built in 1905.
I have lived in 3 different houses in the south of O, but near downtown area. I really like it.
Mr. T January 27, 2006 at 7:00pm
Well I can’t really comment on any other neighborhoods other than my own - a stone’s throw from the unicameral. I like it. Housing is cheap. Its not a high-income area, and a lot of folks are students or working class lincolnites.
Pros: Walking distance to downtown, Haymarket and UNL City Campus (big BIG pro); the Russ’s Market on 17th and Washington has evolved into a pretty cool grocery; the cafeteria and library in the Unicameral.
Cons: Very dense, apartments-oriented neighborhood and it can be frustrating to find parking on the street M-F 9-5; the train whistles from the Haymarket can drive a light sleeper nuts; not really any nice parks or jogging/biking trails.
Michael January 28, 2006 at 2:38pm
Based on what the writer said, East Campus seems like a good choice. As a “hidden gem” though, I’d like to submit my own neighborhood, Hartley.
It’s a short walk from my house to great Thai, Vietnamese, Mexican, and middle eastern food. If I’m feeling less exotic there’s a neighborhood pub (pizza, black bean burgers) a couple of blocks from here.
I have three local bike shops, each one an easy ride from here, one of them an easy walk.
If we want to see a movie or show, downtown’s just a minute or two away by car. Parking can be rough when the suburbanites come to the Lied Center, though, so we often just walk or bike.
We’re located between the downtown and east campuses of UNL. If she has time, my wife enjoys walking the three miles to her office at Wesleyan, too.
We have a nice set of neighbors, too. Cartographers, contractors, librarians, teachers, curators, painters, artists, etc. Tonight we’re going next door to a pot luck in celebration of the Chinese New Year.
Historic Wyuka Cemetery is four blocks up the street. You can almost see Charlie Starweather’s grave from here.
I live across the street from a “pocket park”, and if that’s not enough to meet your recreational needs. Peter Pan Park is a couple of blocks north and Woods Park is a couple of blocks south.
Our house was built in 1909, with oak woodwork, plaster walls, a cool set of back stairs to the kitchen, and French doors that look out our garden from the dining room.
The housing stock is older and generally well-preserved, and if you’re really looking for a hidden gem, available at bargain prices because anything north of O Street has an undeserved stigma among long-time Lincolnites. True, it’s not Country Club. The neighborhood has a more urban than suburban feel, with rentals among the owner-occupied houses. Many immigrants have settled here, and you’re as likely to hear Spanish or Vietnamese, Russian or Arabic spoken on the street as English.
Some people like that sort of thing, though.
Mr. Wilson January 28, 2006 at 2:45pm
Thanks for the tip, Michael. That’s a neighborhood I definitely don’t know much about.
For the curious, ask Wikipedia.