DaveTheCat

(Hi there, Judy! and TIA )

Is 700, 9 Street SW a good place for a temporary (as in "6-12 months") residence? The building in question is called the O'Neil Tower and looks rather nice from the only photo I've been able to found on the web.

I'm going to work Downtown, so this dwelling is significantly more appealing to me than the other option I had (Sarcee Trail).

hot wasabi peas

I live fairly close to there ( that's not necessarity a good thing ) but I don't recognise the name of the building do you have the pic handy? Judging from the address it's 'downtown' (I live closer to 17th Ave, in the Beltline). It's hard to judge... it's near 'cocaine corner' (which Judy told me all about as we drove by ) but it's generally downtown is safe and livable (except for ambiance and food/groceries).

Pic?

Judy in Calgary

Yeah, I would say the location is fine for a relatively short term stay.

One of the good things about it is that it is on the C-Train line, and close to a C-Train station. You would be within walking distance of anywhere in the downtown core but, if you did not feel like walking, use of the C-Train along 7th Avenue South (the stretch of the C-Train that traverses downtown) is FREE.

The immediate surroundings are very much concrete jungle. Also, you'd be just a block from an intersection known as Cocaine Corner (namely, 7th Avenue and 8th Street SW). But my son lives a block from Cocaine Corner (albeit in the opposite direction from there), and it does not bother him. Aaah, I see HWP has told you about that.

If you just take the trouble to walk three blocks, you can reach the pleasant walking path along the banks of the Bow River. You also can cross the Louise Bridge and find yourself in the nice neighbourhood of Kensington (restaurants, funky shops, etc.).

For groceries you could go five blocks south to the Safeway at the intersection of 11th Avenue and 8th Street SW. Alternatively, you could go to the Safeway in Kensington. That Safeway is next to Sunnyside Station, which is the first station after the C-Train has crossed the Bow River going north. I would consider it to be within walking distance of O'Neil Tower, although I probably would not want to walk that far if I was carrying groceries. I guess you could use the C-Train to carry groceries, but then you're planning to bring your car from Quebec, aren't you?

If you lived downtown, you really wouldn't need a car for everyday purposes. My son doesn't have one. But it would be useful to have a car for shopping that was further afield (Costco, IKEA, etc.) and to go to the mountains on weekends.

Anyway, if I was choosing between the two locations you've mentioned so far, I would choose the downtown one. I'm basing that on location only, as I have not been inside either of the buildings in question.

My feeling is that the point of being in the 'burbs is to have space, a yard (garden), etc. If you're going to have to commute and live in an apartment building to boot, that seems to me to be the worst of both worlds. If you're going to live in an apartment, my feeling is that you may as well benefit from the convenience that can go with that, that is, escaping that dreaded commute.

HWP, here's a pic.

Butch Cassidy

Hi Dave (and Judy),

Theres also Coop (Midtown Mkt) on 10th and 10th for shopping.

Butch

Judy in Calgary

Good point, Butch.

Community Natural Foods, at the corner of 10th Avenue and 14th Street SW, also is a good place to get a few odds and ends that are not available at mainstream supermarkets.

Caledon

I thought I should give some advice here...

I work near that area of town and my Dad and his family lived in the O'Neill Tower for about 5 months.

I'm not going to sugar-coat it for you...it is CRACKHEAD CENTRAL. That particular corner is the absolute worst area of Calgary - homeless drug addicts congregate down that street all summer (and usually, winter too) and the police are never there to stop anything. It is also a pretty horrible residence block, too: there is very little security, homeless drug addicts sleep in the mezzanine all night, and the company that runs it are crooks. I would HIGHLY recommend anywhere else. The best place for accommodation is the "beltline" - which is between 10th and 17th Avenues SW, and between approx. 16th and 2nd St SW. I lived there when I first moved to Calgary, and it's pleasant, affordable, and within walking distance of Downtown.

claire bob and matt

Crackhead central huh? Nice! I'll be staying in the West Pointe Plaza for a month from the end of April, thanks for the info. will remember not to walk that way while I'm in town!

C

DaveTheCat

Hmm... I might just know what it's like; in a past life I lived in a big city Down Under, in the core o'Downtown. Not only that, but some 400m away there was this shelter for homeless people (on the same street); they never bothered me - even if many looked scary in broad daylight, when they used to congregate in front of the shelter, virtually blocking the pavement. They never entered my building (or other building in the area, AFAIK), they never assaulted passers-by (again, AFAIK), they never caused me any trouble; you should also take into account that I had a pretty regular (some may say "boring") life: I never roamed the streets after 10pm or before 7am or engage in activities that could have seemed territorially (or otherwise) threatening to them. But, well, that was Down Under. Not Calgary - or anywhere else, for that matter.

What I really liked about the Sarcee thingie was the very close proximity of a commercial complex which would have made (basic) life very easy. Sure, there was the commuting and the proximity with the Indian reserve (BTW - is this a major negative factor, crime-wise?), but had they had any available apartments, I would've gone and rented one (maybe a little too hastily, I can see that now).

DaveTheCat

Hi - and thanks for the reality check. I'd be very grateful if you could give me further details about the building and its security (or the lack thereof). Don't they have an intercom and/or electronic keys? what about its management? I've heard people complaining so many times about how bad tenanting with Boardwalk was, that I seem to be living in a dream: here, in Quebec City, I've been a tenant with Boardwalk for three years now - and I've never, ever had a problem with them. The building is very well kept, the staff is responsive (well, reasonably responsive) when something needs repair, there hasn't ever been a problem with water, heating or any other utilities (to my amazement, I read in another forum complaints about the fact that, in Edmonton, in a good-looking building managed by Boardwalk, the tenants were literally kept in the cold this winter -- some said that the temperature inside was around 12 degrees Celsius and the management ignored their SOSes repeatedly - unbelievable!)

DaveTheCat

Generally speaking, what are the good/bad areas of Calgary?

This http://www.telusplanet.net/public/di...algarycity.htm page used to give a politically correct description of the NW and NE parts of the city (eufemistically quoted as `making her think of the colours "yellow" and "brown" respectively`), but then the author changed her mind and estimated that the phrase in question was too ofensive and now the statement has been rephrased in a yet-more-PC manner as "like in most Canadian cities, new immigrants tend to segregate, likely because they feel much more comfortable living with people who understand their own languages and customs" - statement that, sadly, carries no information at all for anyone interested in Calgary and its areas.

rwin

I don't think so (major crime factor that is). Native Indians I don't believe are any more prone to crime than anyone else.

What might be an issue is that a casino is planned (and may even be under construction now) for the reserve. Depending on how close you are, this could be an annoyance.

Judy in Calgary

The BE Wiki article on Calgary addresses that question.

I urge you not to sign a lease until you have seen a building with your own eyes. It is not only the neighbourhood that determines if a building is okay. Even in generally good neighbourhoods there are individual buildings that are dirty, in a state of disrepair, etc.

Judy in Calgary

I second that [in the context on the Glamorgan apartment building].

Caledon

Well, I didn't live there myself, so this is second-hand information. But, I trust my family's word. Basically, the management were extremely unresponsive, and due its location, the building itself suffered from homeless people hanging around it and sneaking in after people to sleep in the corridors. Also, it's a building which allows children and pets, so you've got the added noise factor. It's probably not as bad as Wester Hailes, but I think it's worth looking around for somewhere better. The whole of the beltline is basically solid residential apartment blocks - you can find one of you look.