Moving to Berkeley or Oakland - Specific Advice?

[sakosf]

North Berkeley & Elmwood Dist of Berkeley, Rockridge area of Oakland are all rather nice. Those neighborhoods have become rather expensive though. I don't like the politics of Berkeley or for that matter, the Bay Area as a whole......I do like the moderate climate in the Berkeley area, the variety of restaurants & cafe's, independent bookstores & shops ... other cultural amenities the area has to offer. There are no gun shops in either city. You may have some difficulty finding vendors that will ship ammo to Oakland. But, some will ship to Oakland & SF also. There is a gun show several times a year, in Daly City, just outside the SF city limit

This gun shop is close to Berkeley

http://www.oldwestgunroom.com/

https://www.crossroadsgunshows.com/purchase/?d=&s=CA

Example of what you find in Rockridge area.

http://www.rockridgemarkethall.com/

[heisenberg]

Check Oakland PD crime map for stats. http://gismaps.oaklandnet.com/crimewatch/

I've been in Oakland for the past 25 years and work at UC Berkeley. UCB is the 3rd most dangerous campus in the entire nation, largely due to the spillover from Oakland, and students are pretty easy targets. But, we're in a gun free zone, so what's there to fear??? My biggest pet peeve with Berkeley is their high tolerance for homelessness and the 5150s that reside in that town. Telegraph is a toilet with the lid up, but north Berkeley is nice. Obviously very liberal and not the most gun friendly town in America.

Oakland is a great city in terms of weather, food and beautiful scenery up in the hills. But, the politics are totally corrupt. We have Mayor Quan running this city into the ground and a city council that believes in social programs over more police. The officers I know with OPD hate the mayor and OPD has a very dysfunctional relationship with her, so we've got that going for us. Property value is also sky high, and rent isn't cheap either if you want to live in upper rockridge, or Montclair districts, generally considered the nicer parts of Oakland. Forget about Piedmont unless your annual income is over $300k. In Oakland, crime is rampant in the flatlands, so be aware of your surroundings, especially when you're on any numbered street/avenue, or MLK, Macarthur, San Pablo or International blvd.

You could live through the tunnel in Walnut Creek/San Ramon/Pleasant Hill. It's a little cheaper, but hotter (both in weather and women) in the Summer. But, you're farther away from the bay, so a trip to the City would take you a solid 45 minutes without traffic through the tunnel. They have crime, too, but it's not nearly as bad as Oakland.

Bottom line, weigh out your pros and cons. Believe it or not, cities way out off highway 4 like Antioch and Brentwood are turning into really crapholes as the riff raff is getting pushed out there due to cost of living. My .02 cents...

[nickel plate]

I'm bay area raised-simple and precise answer-don't.

[waffenfabrik_]

Albany

Try to find a place in Albany. Its Right next to Berkeley.

[RickD427]

Our family moved to Piedmont in 1952, it is the only city in America completely surrounded by another city which in this case is Oakland.

Unless you count Broadmoor which is completely surrounded by Daly City.

Don't forget about the city of San Fernando, completely surrounded by the city of Los Angeles

[sakosf]

Even in the nice neighborhoods in Oakland, there is some risk of spill over from the bad areas. Just about every list of the 10 most dangerous cities in America, has Oakland on the list.

http://www.spotcrime.com/ca/oakland

http://www.cityrating.com/crime-statistics/california/oakland.html

http://www.cityrating.com/crime-statistics/california/berkeley.html

[American Samurai]

I hope you like liberal women, there's a whole lot of them.

[nn3453]

In Oakland, it really depends on where you live. There are apartment communities with locked gates and kids running around. You will be fine there with your guns.

Then there is good chunk of the city where you don't want to be day or night.

Either live closer to the hills (expensive) or closer to Alameda, or better still, in Alameda. Avoid the part in the middle, which is the city proper.

Jack London Square is an awesome place to hang out, day or night. Weather in the East Bay is also better than in the city. Sunny & warm.

[bruss01]

Advice!

If you ignore every other post in this thread, READ THIS ONE!

Try zachary's pizza. If you have a dog, go to point isabel off leash dog park. Eat at Juan's Place and Picante. Drink Peet's coffee, preferably after a refreshing morning walk at Sibley volcanic park. Take BARTeverywhere possible, traffic and parking suck. Barney's restaurant, I like the portobella burger but you have to ask them to add the burger or it comes veggie. Avoid Richmond... seriously. Discover hot tubs and if you really want a time machine ticket to 1969 then go up north a ways and visit Harbin hot springs. Go spend a morning running the dog at Stinson beach in marin county... beautiful. While you are up north of town, stop and take a stroll through the majestic giant sequoias at Muir Woods.

You can thank me later.

[Creampuff]

Born and raised in Oakland.

The thing about the Bay Area is this place is a commuter area. When you say you will likely live in Berkeley or Oakland, is there a reason why you have to live in those areas? Would you be willing to drive 1/2 hr on the way to work? If yes, then you open up more options.

[Hugga Nugga]

Berkeley is berserk, but no worse than anywhere else under the thumb of the Sacramento Legislature.

You need to check the "California list" to see what firearms you may bring it. Sell or store out of state anything not on the list.

The AR's require a bullet button, which is a special magazine release which requires you to poke it with the tip of a bullet or other pointed object.

Therefore your AR may need to be modified first. Our resident Librarian will likely chime in with relevant exceptions -- he's good about that.

If you really want to have a carbine rifle without a bullet button, sell your AR and upgrade to a Ruger Mini.

That's funny.

[Librarian]

You need to check the "California list" to see what firearms you may bring it. Sell or store out of state anything not on the list.

No.

The Roster does not apply to moving here.

See also the Calguns Foundation Wiki -- http://wiki.calgunsfoundation.org/Mo..._with_firearms

[SPROCKET]

Consider Alameda.

+100

I lived in both Alameda and Oakland for years. If you want to live in that area Alameda is the only way to go. Unless you can afford a place high in the hills, any place in Oakland is a stones throw from the savages. Berkeley has all the same problems as Oakland, because it's right next door to Oakland.

[dyson]

I would have to digress. The violence there is undeniable and constant. Ask any Oakland medic or OPD officer. I do lots of work by Lakeshore, 1st ave and Lakepark and Grand ave.

I have friends i visit there sometimes. Seems like more young professionals are moving in, bars have pretty good crowds, and weekends have a ton of people everywhere with food festivals, etc.

[sakosf]

I have friends i visit there sometimes. Seems like more young professionals are moving in, bars have pretty good crowds, and weekends have a ton of people everywhere with food festivals, etc.

Because of the high cost of renting in SF, you see more young professionals choosing Berkeley as a place to live and certain areas of Oakland. OP, I would suggest you concentrate on the north east area of Berkeley. The area between University Ave & Solano Ave....east of San Pablo Ave. Elmwood Dist of Berkeley & Clairmont/Rockridge area of Oakland, although desirable neighborhoods, they are $$$ .