Partially discharged

If you say so....most of the 'City' of Detroit is pretty craptastic....the contrast between 'Detroit' and the suburbs is quite striking. I was driving down a road this summer north of the Fairlane Town Centre and on one side it was the City of Detroit and the other was the City of Dearborn Heights and it was like night and day.

Have a drive around the State Fair and Chaldean Village areas....these are pretty typical

http://goo.gl/maps/zLBu

http://goo.gl/maps/try2

I agree with you that the suburbs and downtown is OK....but I would hardly say downtown is lively especially at night in a good way.....maybe around the Tigers stadium but generally it is pretty dead after 5 pm for most of the downtown.

G77

But why would you want to drive around the ghetto, unless you're curious in a morbid kind of way?

In 2 years, I think I've found myself in a shady area maybe 3 times out of the probably 50+ times I've been there and even then it was only for a few mins till I got back on track....

Partially discharged

I've visited the Windsor/Detroit many times over the last 25+ years and generally my experiences of the 'city' of Detroit have not been good. Other than the commercial hub of the City (which is quite small and quiet), much of the rest of the 'city' of Detroit strikes me as shady and rough. Google Street View and Bing Maps back this up.

By living in Windsor, I'm sure you are aware of the no go areas etc.....what I find unfortunate about Detroit is its over reliance on a 1 industry economy, its sprawl and the disconnect between the city and the outlying suburban areas (which often goes along black/white lines), its declining public school system and the fact that the current population is only 45% of what it was in 1950 with the same land area.

Here in Ottawa, our US channels are from Detroit and they don't portray a pretty picture of the city. Granted, the suburbs are quite safe and relatively thriving, but the core of the metropolitan area is rotten.

Just my thoughts.........take them for what they may be worth. My educational and professional background is in town and country planning.

G77

I agree, it's an embarrassment and stain on the self proclaimed "greatest nation on earth", but they'd rather just sweep it under the carpet and forget about it.

However, it doesn't detract from living in Windsor, those elements have no impact here - one can comfortably avoid them if one chooses. That was my point.

beverley59

Hi Cathy I moved to Leamington, Ontario 3 years ago with my son who was then 10.Previously I lived in London, North Devon and on the coast of Sussex. I was going to college in Chatham and made the decision after one year to move there just to be able to spend more time with my son and not so much time travelling. The areas outside of Windsor that you mention are all very nice, but what one thing to take into consideration is what each place has to offer that your children would enjoy. Leamington is the same size as the town that I moved from, but because Canada enjoys such a vast amount of space, nothing is very close together. In England I could visit the zoo, art gallery, castles pretty much all in one day in I chose to. Here you will find that is not so easy to do.
Now that I have finished college I intend to move back to Leamington. It doesnt have a huge amount to do, however it is ideally placed so that travel to Windsor or anywhere else is very easy.
My advice is consider where you will be working and also what you are looking for for your children.
This area of Canada is a little more laid back than England but you will not be disappointed at your decision to come here. I personally like the attitude of the Canadian people to encourage youth to go onto college and there are some wonderful colleges and universities throughout Canada for you to chose from. I wish you well and if I can give you any further help I would be happy to do so.
Beverley

The Davenports

Thanks for the replies everyone.
Can we keep things on track though, I am asking about the area of Windsor in Ontario, Canada. I am not moving to Detroit in the US so I don't need to know about there.
Any advice that you can give me on Windsor and the areas I mentioned will be gratefully recieved. Thanks to those that have kept the advice to what I asked.
Cathy.

Almost Canadian

Do people in England not encourage youth to go onto college? Where I lived, they all did.

beverley59

Yes they do , but I was just making the point that there is a positive view to going to college and university here. Def very hard for young people to get a decent job here without a diploma or degree.

adele

Hi The Davenports

I can't offer any advice on Windsor I'm afraid, I just wanted to wish you all the best on your immigration journey.

It's now nearly 2 years since I left Huddersfield, and I'm very happy in Vancouver. I'll be back in Hudds for a month in December to visit friends and family for my birthday & Christmas - I doubt much will have changed!

All the best

Adele

The Davenports

Thanks for the best wishes Adele, glad things are going well for you, hope it goes as well for us.
Where abouts in Huddersfield were you from?

manningl

Hi - I live in Windsor well Tecumseh and before I arrived 5months ago i definitely didn't want to be anywhere near to Windsor but honestly I think its beautiful especially around where I live and very friendly and safe

I met up with a few of the other expats who live around here last week and had a Timmies all very nice

Like G77 says the weather here is amazing (The 5 months I've been here) it was 25c today

2aT

Hi The Davenports:

First off good luck with your move. I have been in the Windsor area for almost 32 years. I have a 30 to 40 minute commute into Tecumseh/St. Clair Beach area depending on the traffic and the distance is 20 miles or so. The 40 minutes is at peak traffic times. So you can see not the stop and go in heavy traffic like the UK.

Hopefully you have a job/jobs to come to as unemployment is high in the area due to the downturn in the auto industry. Not sure what other areas are like for work but when speaking to people who have been laid off there isn't too much out there at the present time.

Guess it can't all be bad as I am still here. Windsor has a decent Uni and a community college, St. Claire, with a few campuses spread around the city. There are some quite good schools and in the Lakeshore area quite a few new ones. There is public transport in the city of Windsor and in the town of Tecumseh/St. Clair Beach. Outside of those areas though there is little in the way of transportation so you will need your own 'wheels.' There is a train station too.

The further out of the city the cheaper property prices. We are classed as the cheapest area in Canada for property. What you would pay for a modest, decent house in UK you would be able to afford something quite posh here with a fair sized yard. Not sure about renting as we built when we first emigrated.

Expect cold winters and very hot summers. During the hottest months of the summer air conditioning is a must (for me anyway) You'll probably find that any winter clothing you are planning on buying in UK will not be warm enough for any length of outdoor activity in wintertime here, so save your money and buy it when you get here. As you are coming in the run up to Christmas most stores will have winter stuff on sale before the holidays and for sure after.

Thirty odd years ago it was quite a culture shock for us but as frequent travellers back home we find that the UK is more North Americanized so you may not find it such a shock. Remember though, it is another country so you are not going to find everything you are used to over in the UK and it certainly isn't the same. It takes time to adjust and I still get home sick for a while after a visit back.

As someone else said in this thread, yes we are across the border from Detroit but we are not Detroit. There is a huge difference when you come off the Ambassador Bridge or the Tunnel to the Windsor side of the border. Detroit is safe if you know where you are going and where to avoid. We have been to concerts and shopping over there and only got spooked once when we got lost many many years ago.

Hope this helps you somewhat. Take care. 2aT

adele

Salendine Nook

fatabbott

There are advantages to being next to Detroit. Cheaper airfares with much more availability being one major one.

We have relatives in Lakeshore, it's a nice place, it's a simple way of life, lots of farmers, but as people have said, it has been affected badly by the auto industry decline.

We are looking to move there, and have nearly bought houses a few times, cheapest part of Ontario for houses for sure, but for a reason I suppose. It's not everyone's cup of tea but it's certainly mine.

G77

Not to mention shopping in Detroit is much cheaper, milk for $2 a gallon, eggs $1.50 a dozen etc etc. Plus petrol is $2.70 a gallon too Also there's many things you can get in Detroit that you simply cannot buy in Canada.