the truth about Highland Park (Chattanooga, East Brainerd: apartment, renters, new house)

[u4icmusic]

I have friends that live on Signal Mountain and they have a gorgeous home with a gorgeous view.

[etta]

Hi, I live in Highland Park. I feel safe & I love living super close to downtown. We ride our bikes to work. I've even walked downtown more than once, although it is a long walk. Driving is a breeze. I think Highland park is a large neighborhood & there are parts of it that are very nice & safe while there are streets I wouldn't live on. I live on a very nice street where kids play & neighbors wave & feed each others pets when out of town. When I first moved here a neighbor 2 doors down brought us fresh baked muffins. I thought that was nice. I have a friend that lives one street over. Their bike was stolen from there porch but We've never had any issues. I go for walks in the neighborhood alleyways often & I have never felt unsafe. I love looking at all the nifty large old houses. There are cars that ride by with loud base music but haven't noticed many people speeding. There are stop signs at almost every corner & speed bumps on quite a few streets. There is however, a large baptist university (Temple University) in the neighborhood & plenty of the professors & student live around here. But there are plenty of non conservative people, such as myself. The houses are beautiful & I love living walking distance from lots of friends houses.

Places to go in the neighborhood include: the pool @ warner park. It's an olympic sized public pool next to the zoo. We've been walking there all summer. Tienda Jalisco (for awesome tacos & pupusas) @ the corner of Main & Hawthorne. At the same corner the Chattanooga Bike co-op(newly opened) is very helpful & they have night time rides once a week. Folks in neighborhood meets there & go bike riding together. Wally's on McCallie. Being vegetarian, it's not my favorite breakfast in town but it's a few short blocks away & has a nice retro feel. Architectural Exchange on McCallie... great if you need an old claw foot tub for your new old house or other nifty antiques.

If you decide you like this area this is what I would do... don't even look at houses south of 12th street(unless there in ferger place). Don't look at houses east of Willow(or even a block away to be extra safe). Knock on the neighbors doors & meet them before you look at the house. Anything on Duncan, Chamberlain, Union, Kirby & Vance is golden. Anderson, Bennet & parts of 12th are pretty good. South of Main St. is lame other than Mornigside & Eveningside Dr. where the houses are amazing old mansions. I have friends that live over there & have had no troubles. But Hawthorne running south of Main Street looks so shady. Wouldn't even go there at night! See how complicated it is! This is probably why it's you get mixed messages about this neighborhood. Parts of it really do suck! & some of it is awesome! Hope some of this info helps! As for the other areas folks have mentions. This is what i think pros/cons... Red Bank-not bad but no sidewalks. Probably a great area for kids. Brainerd- I can't live there cause I hate driving. Jefferson Heights- Heck yeah! I think this tiny neighborhood is great! Cute, Urban & very close to downtown. But be aware it is very close to a chicken plant & sometimes there are terrible smells as a result. Signal Mountain- not fun to drive up that mountain everyday but the view is awesome.

[Jon F Moss]

etta - great post!

[JuliaTN1]

I have to take issue with one of the statements etta posted:

You will definitely find a more "polished" part of the neighborhood west of Willow (which is actually where Highland Park ends and Ridgedale officially begins) and down Chamberlain and Duncan. One thing to consider though, you are still only blocks away from a criminal element and the fact that there are "rich people" known to be on those streets really only makes you more of a target for petty theft. I live just off Dodds on a block of mostly nice but not showy homes. We don't really have much crime on my block (knock on wood) because we don't attract criminals at least not to the extent that I hear about on the HP list-serve.

If you are looking for relatively urban, Signal Mtn is not the way to go. If you are scared off by Highland Park/Glenwood/Ridgedale you might look at Glendon Place, the Belvoir area or the area of Brainerd between I-24 and Brainerd Rd. There are some really charming older homes around there.

By way of disclosure, I am a Realtor.

[Jon F Moss]

would any of you out-of-towners like us to take some video of the streets of Highland Park?

[etta]

Thanks TriDad!

JuliaTN1- -In between Willow, Bailey, Main & Dodds to be more exact... Where Highland Park meets Ridgedale. That is where I might not look if I had kids & wanted to hang out on my porch after dark. I do know folks over there with great houses. I've walked over to their houses after dark. It's a rather active area at night & I'm not talking joggers with their dogs like Highland Park closer to downtown. Chamberlain & Duncan seem pretty awesome through & through. & parts of Orchard Knob are pretty sweet. We walk over to that knob at night to gaze at the city. Have seen an occasional shady character. But mostly older folks waving to us form there porch. I don't feel like a target in my neighborhood even though we have a rather polished fab porch & gardens. We don't have a security system & we don't have a dog. I don't live in fear at all.

OP-If you want an entire peachy keen perfectly safe neighborhood I wouldn't suggest Highland Park. It is very transitional. I've seen houses get knocked down & completely rebuilt beautifully while some houses sit around looking dilapidated. Just around the corner from a totally ruined old house there is often a gleaming fully restored gem with 3 SUVs in the driveway. You just never know around here. A truly diverse neighborhood.

[jkmewright]

Originally Posted by TriDad

would any of you out-of-towners like us to take some video of the streets of Highland Park?

HAHA I was just thinking that. Except it would be photos from me. I am a techno idiot

[dasmarian]

Well if any of you are looking for a beautiful home in a truly superb neighborhood with the charm and feel of something gone . . . A hidden neighborhood in Chattanooga . . . I took a job back home in Indy so our house is for sale. We're offering an outstanding deal before the real estate agent gets it. Come take a look.

203 Brookwood Dr, Chattanooga, TN 37411 - Zillow

[Jon F Moss]

Originally Posted by jkmewright

HAHA I was just thinking that. Except it would be photos from me. I am a techno idiot

we think you're just fine

[Cadillac1978]

Personally, if I were you and looking for an inner city neighborhood in Chattanooga - I would look in either the North Chattanooga (or Northshore as the realtors have begun calling it) or St. Elmo. I have friends in the Northshore area and I personally live in St. Elmo (and have for the past 17 years.) I also had friends in Highland Park - and they've since moved far, far away from that area. My friends in the Northshore area love their neighborhood and have never had any problems to speak of - but even they admit that had they not bought when they did - they would not be able to afford the area with today's prices. While I'm not as ecstatic about St. Elmo, as I once was.....I don't think its any or not much worse than the Northshore area and given the price range you've listed -one should be able to get a large, elegant old home - fully restored, but still full of charm and character in St. Elmo. In fact, you should be able to find something decent for less than $200,000 in St. Elmo. Although, prices have begun to climb here (but its unlikely you'd find a tiny 2 bedroom in Northshore for less than $250,000 -unless its a tear down or....located in a really rough area.) Highland Park is not one of the safer neighborhoods to live in by a long shot. Mind you, there are some blocks that look really nice, with lovely restored homes, yadda, yadda, yadda - but dope deals in your front yard or back alley are the norm, as are prostitutes roaming the streets at all hours, and......if I'm not mistaken, Highland Park (or the areas immediately surrounding it) is the number one neighborhood in the city for home invasions (I know I'll get flack for saying that - but, whenever I hear of one happening - its usually in that area so.....perhaps I'm just ignorant of the statistics). Now......St. Elmo has its problems - too, I'm not going to lie to you and say that it doesn't. You'll find some people that say one end is better than the other and I've not seen any evidence to back up that statement. I live in the so-called bad end down near the state line and the crime (and the type of crime) seems no worse and no better than the so-called good end. Only difference I've found, is that the homes are smaller and not quite as grand at my end - but, what some people refuse to admit or believe - is that its the same neighborhood, regardless of which end one lives in. When something bad happens here - the newscasters don't say it happened in N. St. Elmo or S. St. Elmo - they just say it happened in St. Elmo. I see people jogging the streets around here on a daily basis, people riding bicycles, and there's also a very nice playground for children located about dead center of the neighborhood. So I would assume that the neighborhood is safe enough for the activities you've expressed an interest in.....at least during daylight hours. Mind you, the schools zoned for St. Elmo (I'll include Highland Park area in this - too) aren't fit to send a dead dog to - so, private or magnet schools would be encouraged if one cares about whether their children get good educations or not. Another potential negative for St. Elmo, is that it's a city historic district with all the rules and regulations that apparently only apply to homeowner's that want to restore their homes - as slumlord owned properties (and you can tell which ones are) these rules don't seem to apply. Normally, in most cities that I've had the pleasure to visit....historic districts are beautiful assets to those cities. However, I don't feel that applies to Chattanooga or St. Elmo, because the during the few occasions that I've visited our local Historic Society's offices - I've generally left very frustrated and wondered how these people got their jobs - when they don't seem to know the difference between a folk-Victorian and a double-wide. But...that's another story for another day. I wish you luck finding what you're looking for.