What is Lawrence, MA like? (tenants, floor, move)

[isabellav]

I've lived in Lawrence my whole life and grew up in one of the worst neighborhoods. It's really not as bad as you people make it seem.. People exaggerate the things that happen in Lawrence, therefore causing it to seem worse than what it really is. Nothing bad ever happened to me living in Lawrence.. Point is, you look for trouble, you will find it. Mind your own and you'll be fine.

[isabellav]

Originally Posted by leeleebeelee

I've lived in and worked in Lawrence for the last 15 years, and I can say firsthand that it's ANYTHING but "up and coming." "Not safe" to say the very least---even the local pastor can't comfort the townspeople that come to church? Instead he tells them "it's not safe and we all know it?" Nice! That says it all...

Every aspect of this dirty city is sick, immoral and dysfunctional. Avoid it like the plague!

You are clearly exaggerating... If it's so bad, why are you still alive and living/working there?

[whatzthis12]

I'm in recovery from alcohol/drug addiction, and I could basically find heroin on any street I drove through in Lawrence. That place is terrible.

[Know Nonsense]

It was once a thriving mill town but all that Yankee ingenuity found a way to make stuff cheaper and capitalists found a way to have cheap labor so the mills were no longer needed. Now it is filled with crime, corruption, thugs and drugs. It has been known as the armpit of America among other terms. No 'progress' there.

So there you have it.

[Know Nonsense]

Originally Posted by MassYankee

Personally, I wouldn't recommend Lawrence. It's a pretty big town, so some neighborhoods are better than others, but overall, not a top choice. The last time I went there, I went to fillup my car, and noticed the gas station was different than most - you couldn't walk inside, and gave your money to the attendant protected behind thick bulletproof glass through a steel drawer.

Andover, just to the south as someone mentioned, is a completely different kind of town - close geographically, but another world.

Lawrence is cheap, but I'd rather have a modest place in a better town, than a big house in Lawrence.

Lawrence is actually a tiny city in size a 7.4 square miles. This intensifies the crime. It is not "pretty big".

[EUROLAWRENCE]

I'm from Europe, Very very far from Lawrence. I moved here to be with my girlfriend and I actually like it here a lot.

Do I recognise the social issues lawrence has? Absolutely. Do I also recognise EVERY densely populated town in USA and Europe have social issues? Yes I do.

Just like anywhere if you mind your own business you will be fine. Of course there are those "wrong place at wrong time" tragedies that occur but they occur worldwide.

I have been welcomed here with arms wide open and have experienced some of the best food of my life (I recommend pollo tipico for amazing Dominican food, best chicharron I ever had).


It's definitely not as bad as people are saying and bare in mind I'm from a country where firearms are illegal (doesn't seem to stop people in The city though, we have our fair share of gang violence).

I just don't like seeing people from "quaint Vermont" ****ting all over Lawrence because it's different than what they know. It's not fair to lawrence or to people thinking about moving in.

To summarise,


Yes it's safe. Like I said mind your own business and you'll be fine, just like anywhere. It's probably not the ideal destination for someone looking to raise a family simply because it's a small town with city like qualities. You might as well move to the city if you like that vibe. And if you want a tranquil quiet place than Lawrence might not be for you.

[tysmith95]

It's the poorest community in Massachusetts. It might have one of the highest crime rates in the state. However mass as a whole is a pretty good state. Even Lawrence is not bad compared to some of the worst in other parts of the country or the world.

Still I would not want to live there, but I would live in a place like lynn.

[Joel418]

If you are working in the area, but looking for an inexpensive and relatively safe/friendly area, I would recommend Bradford instead (it's technically part of Haverhill, on the south side of the river). Elementary and middle schools are great, but if you have or will have high school aged kids soon, they do have to go to Haverhill HS, which is still struggling pretty badly (it's also about a 10-15 minutes drive from most of Bradford, and that's in light traffic).

[OutdoorLover]

As to this idea that a city is safe as long as you mind your own business, I think that is bull. I have had a gun pulled on me by a couple of guys and I have had a couple of guys try to crush my skull with a brick, and both times I was minding my own business. I think that people who feel safe are living an illusion - you think you're safe because nothing has happened, but so what? It's like running a red light and thinking it's perfectly safe because nothing happened - sure, it's safe, until that time that it's not. If something happens, you need to understand that there is usually no one who can or will help you, it's between you and your attackers and whatever is going to happen will be over before any police can get there.

[Popfizz]

I met a guy on a dating site and decided to meet up and hook up in Lawrence. Now I didn't even know where Lawrence was as I am from Miami. He said he had a place so I picked him up and we went. The building was sketchy as hell.

We did our thing but then I found as we were leaving that this was a half way house his cousin was staying in ( but he wasn't there at the time) !!! No wonder the room looked so dirty and wierd. The attendant was upset because 2 people cannot go into a room if they are not from the half way house. . LOL.

Thank GOD we used protection .. that was my only experience in Lawrence and it was extremely ugly and basically like any other poverty stricken inner city in the US . There are many mill towns in the North East and they are all like this since all the jobs left. The only difference of Lawrence is that its in the middle of nowhere.

We did hook up again .. but this time it was in a way nicer house that he was painting the apartment so we hooked up on the floor since the new tenants didn't move in yet