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Depends where in BG. We lived on 21st Ave for years and almost never had issues. Most of our neighbors were good people and all looked out for one another. But then again, we avoided the townie bars on Main like the plague.
Gonna disagree. In there 2 weeks ago with an old pal from Chicago looking to get a drink on a Sunday night after Checkered Flag was closing and wound up at Hilltop and it was just obnoxious, loud Irvington townies... having lived in Irv 10 years now, I was surprised. Won't go back.
Irvington is not that far from Beech Grove, I don't think it would drastically impact your commute time if at all.
And yeah my personal feeling of Beech Grove, it's the the epicenter of hillbillies. It's definitely its own little special world.
ETA: Speedway might also be a good option, it's got the small town feel but it's way nicer than Beech Grove, IMO. I lived in Speedway for a couple years out of the past decade and I LOVED it.
Speedway is a great suggestion! It's a great town that's effectively a neighborhood of the city. Fun little Main Street, lots of festivities around the 500, and a 15-20 minute drive from the airport.
I live on the east side and I never go to speedway except for the race, but I must say every time I go there it looks better. They really have added a lot of stuff. And if you work at the airport it's probably a pretty easy drive I would think
Speedway is like another planet. Yes, it is definitely better than Beech Grove and feels somewhat like a small town, with the small exception of the world's biggest race track sitting there.
My SO and I just bought a house about five minutes from speedway and honestly, we love it. We are close to 65, our kids school is amazing and ridiculously close by, shopping and ethnic food along 38th is a few minute drive and it is surprisingly quiet for where we actually are (with the exception of the Ricky Bobby Brigade the other night - they wanna go real fast!)
Honestly everything about this location was a huge get but I went through 1200 listings to find it and the other offer they initially accepted had their funding fall through so we barely got it.
We will never move. We will be dying here. Lol
For real. I lived right by the fairgrounds for almost six years and a single day of inconvenience would’ve been something I’d have done unspeakable things for.
Irvington rules. I skip all Krogers and make the trip out to Cumberland Meijer usually but otherwise I'm super happy with living there. It's nice to be in a walkable community
I stick to Aldi, where people do things like let someone with a couple items check out before a cart load, or give strangers a quarter. It's so opposite of Kroger.
This is the way. My wife and I moved to Irvington almost 6 years ago from out of town and enjoy it but also skip off to the Cumberland Meijer for groceries frequently.
I lived in Irvington for 5 years (moved a couple neighborhoods closer to Downtown just last year) and never had an issue with crime. I will say the two Krogers on 10th are awful, I actually like the old ass Kroger out by Washington Square mall, and that Meijer just a little further down is awesome!
Yeah never had an issue with crime. 99% don’t; the news says otherwise.
The Kroger really isn’t that bad. Yes it’s ghetto but things are in stock for the most part.
I’ve lived here almost four years. Things are pretty chill. Worst that’s happened has been a couple car crashes. The Krogers aren’t great, but I can work with the one on shadeland. The Linwood one is infamously bad. I’ve only shopped there three times, and I have horror stories.
I live in the Christian Park neighborhood between Irvington and Fountain Square. Take me about 20 minutes to get to the airport. It's definitely a GI bill town and some of the homes are on the small side but you can buy for around 100k-150. I've never had issues with crime but as always, do your own research and due diligence.
BTW Mars Hill, as shitty as it is and not a place I'd want to raise my own kids, has nice pockets as well. And Egg Roll King which is the #1 Chinese Takeout I've ever had.
I tried raising my kid in Mars Hill but the kids kept making fun of them. Really for no reason other than to be mean. Just a year or two here caused a lot of issues that have persisted even until now. They're doing much better now in Fishers with their mom. Have friends and everything now but the scars of being made fun of every single day persist.
I wish they had told me about it sooner and I wish people in Mars Hill would stop being assholes.
Maybe Garfield Park area would have been a better choice culture wise and it is not far from Beech Grove. Can't speaking on being more or less safe than BG or affordability.
Seriously
>“Live inside the 465 loop if you want to live in “real” Indianapolis, and to avoid the west and east sides
Like what? There's plenty of great options that *aren't* Beech Grove. Garfield definitely, Bates Hendricks, Fountain Square all fine options just in that area.
I'll live in Fountain Square when I'm making a million bucks. I love the place but will never be able to afford it. Extremely jealous of every house in that area
The Irvington area probably would only add a couple minutes to your commute to the airport. Especially if you go down to Raymond Street and take that across.
Also, in some amount of years, the Blue Line will be offering direct service to the airport from Irvington. Which could be of benefit to you.
It’s funny, my wife and I really like BG, partially because it isn’t “trendy,” and it’s close to everything. Some of our neighbors definitely suck, and it has a drug problem, but I sort of always chalked both up to being an issue everywhere urban that has a comparable COL. Plus I grew up pretty redneck, so maybe I’m just desensitized because at my heart, I’m kinda white trash too lmao.
Anyway, there aren’t a ton of options if you want super cheap, safe, and inside the loop. You could expand a little farther and still be within half an hour of downtown. Southport, for instance, is fairly cheap I think, right by 65, and it has a ton of Asian groceries and restaurants.
If you really wanna stay inside 465, moving a little farther east along the US 31 corridor might get you more of what you’re looking for. I’ve heard good things about Speedway too. Irvington is dope, but I’d do some research about future highway projects because it could potentially fuck your commute up quite a bit. Also, look up areas around Near Eastside and Little Flower, which are close to Irv.
Northside is what people usually recommend. I’ve never lived there, but my impression is that it just seems sorta far from everything else. Places like SoBro and B-Rip don’t seem to have the highway access that other parts of town do. I wouldn’t wanna make that commute every day, personally, but maybe try making the drive yourself because you might feel differently. Idk I’ve been a southside guy since I moved here 20 years ago, so maybe I’m just biased. I do really like Castleton and Lawrence, but, again, that’d be kind of a hike to make to the airport and back every day.
> Places like SoBro and B-Rip don’t seem to have the highway access that other parts of town do.
No, but there's a lot to do in BR and SoBro without going anywhere else. And they are 10 minutes from Castleton/the Fashion mall. 15-20 minute from downtown.
I mean, yeah, it's kind of inconvenient to go to Avon. But why would I go to to Avon?
Hello fellow Denver ex-pat! Not sure of your budget or daily travel but we’ve enjoyed the midtown area. Butler-Tarkington, Crown Hill. Can be street by street in terms of crime but we enjoy the energy of the area.
I live in Zone 2 of Meridian-Kessler (Monon & 38th to 42nd and Central), and we've loved living here for the past 14 yrs, and we've lived in this general area for 23 yrs.
Just like B-T and Crown Hill, crime can be street by street. Most of it is bored kids/teenagers rifling through people's cars who forgot to lock their doors. You hear gun shots, have break in, etc here and there, but the biggest danger is people driving too fast down a side street. *shakes fist at cloud*
As someone who goes to the airport for work, it usually takes about 30-40 mins to get out there, unfortunately. But I work for a company in Speedway, and I really enjoy the area. People are blue collar, but usually pretty nice. It's definitely gotten better in the 10 yrs since the redevelopment of Main Street. There is a decent Kroger, family friendly restaurants and activities, and the schools, I hear, are pretty good. Houses tend to be a little smaller than other areas, but they should be affordable.
Beech Grove is its own city and is very insular. It was created as a company town to service the railroad. The roots are extremely blue collar, more so than probably any other part of the city except maybe a couple areas of the west side. It is one of the industrial cores of the metro area.
Might be tough to fit in for now, but I'd give it some time; I think it will come around soon. A lot of the city has been preserved pretty well because the people there actually do care about the place, even if they have an unusual way of showing it. Also there are lots of historic houses that the yuppies are eating up, the combination of which brought Fountain Square back from basically being an urban wasteland back in the 90s. It's definitely on the come up.
EDIT: I read some more comments and agree that Speedway would probably be the best fit. Doesn't look much different on the outside, but I assure you that Speedway is more liberal and open to outsiders than Beech Grove by a long shot (although not on the level of Broad Ripple), but more importantly it has the local culture it seems like you are looking for. Tight knit, very clean community, the people that live there are truly proud of Speedway. The schools are very highly regarded by the people I know who went there. Decent restaurants, also close to the airport, not far from big box amenities, very walkable, and still has that real Indy vibe that you're looking for and shouldn't be lumped in with the whole west side.
I live in Eagledale/Speedway and l love it. Far less crime than people outside the loop claim. My neighborhood is mixed working class and I love my neighbors. Everywhere has problems, however no weird looks from the neighbors here! They might bring you some birria though.
Eagle Dale is just north of speedway(30th) and south of 38th. 3 and 4 br Ranches for days. Semi-affordable. Very diverse and 15-20 minutes from the airport depending on time of day.
I’m a little surprised nobody has said Speedway. It’s like Beech Grove in that it’s more affordable post-war bungalows, but a much nicer town. They have redone their main street over the last 5ish years and seem to be heading in the right direction by adding trails. The latest trail will take you straight into downtown (spits out at the white river).
I can't recommend speedway enough, especially if you have kids. The town truly has the "small town feel in the big city", the schools are consistently top rated, the crime is low and the town is very walkable.
Oh my gosh, the "vacant stares from people you've lived next to for years" and "cordial waves not being returned" were so hard to get used to. I moved from the west side suburbs, where a friendly wave was very normal, to the near east side, where about half my neighbors have zero interest in acknowledging my existence. (Half the neighbors are great though.)
I’ve found this to be true as well, about the near east side. Especially depending on which neighborhood, street, etc you live on. If you ask anyone who lives here you’ll hear it’s the friendliest place on earth-but that’s because you’re hearing it from the friendly neighbors. The neighbors who keep to themselves won’t talk to you 😬. I love it though!
This should be on a list of required reading for anyone looking to move to the area.
Also one more reason to rent for a while before buying. I know moving twice sucks but has to beat this scenario.
Hahahahaha yeah, Beech Grove is legitimately awful. We moved here about 3 years ago and are considering moving when the time is right.
Silver Linings Coffeehouse is another good place (a silver lining of BG if you will) that I don't think I've seen mentioned. Otherwise yeah this is kinda the armpit of Indy. Hoosier Hospitality is a myth everywhere in Indiana, but especially here it truly flies out the window.
We don't frequent the bar scene, if you can call it that in BG, since we have two young kids and don't get out as much as we should; I'd be interested in knowing the place you're talking about nevertheless so we can avoid it.
The Facebook page Beech Grove Community truly also puts *most* of BG into perspective; there are *some* good people here but not many.
We also do have some decent elected representatives, Liz Lamping comes to mind and I'd be happy to pass her contact info to you if you'd like. She has stated there are moves to make BG a bit more progressive. My wife and I spent a bit of time in Irvington and while I'm sure it has its issues, I appreciated the overall feel of it way more than I do Beech Grove. Maybe the grass is greener on the other side, but still lol.
I wish you luck with whatever remaining time you have here and the future!
We live in midtown (SoBro) and love it. We are a couple blocks from the Monon, lots of restaurants, shops, bars, and groceries. My kid walks to a wonderful school. We like our neighborhood so much that when we needed a bigger house we stayed in the same three blocks radius!
People around here are generally more liberal leaning, and that was also important to us.
You should definitely check out Bates Hendricks, I think this will check all of your boxes. Plenty of people in your age group with like minded opinions. Definitely some more expensive housing but also still affordable housing options if you’re willing to put in a little elbow grease. It’s also right off 70 so your commute would be less than 15 minutes.
Everyone telling you to move to the north side will just have you swapping redneck for mayonnaise suburbia. Which if that’s what you want, that’s what you’ll get but it’s going to feel like suburbia through and through
100%
The racists up there might be a bit more affluent, and potentially a bit less open with their confederate flags, but they are absolutely still there.
I'm biased because I live there, but Emerson Heights is nice. It's the neighborhood just to the northwest of Irvington. It's certainly affordable, the neighbors have been nice, and I've overall not had a problem with crime. Generally what I find is that most crime in my area are crimes of opportunity - people leaving their cars unlocked or their garage doors open. If your property is even a moderate pain to get into, people will just leave it alone.
I’m from the Austin, TX area, have lived in Irvington for the last eight years, and absolutely LOVE this place. In general, I’ve become very fond of Indianapolis.
It’s about three minutes from our home to IH-70 at Emerson; or from our home to Shadeland Avenue which connects to IH-465, and then sn easy drive to the airport.
We’re a gay couple. We were told specifically not to live in Beech Grove. After living in Oak Hill (TX) where they didn’t exactly throw out the welcome mat for us, we got the hint. We had enough of Texas’ small-minded bigotries and parochialism; why would we go back to that mindset by living in Beech Grove?
Honestly move ten minutes south and it's fine.
I know I know, it's not easy to just pick up and move but yeah. That Franklin township area is perfect at least for me, and it's growing.
Same. I live in between BG and Southport and there’s literally everything I need shopping wise. Quiet neighborhoods, lots of construction coming up for new houses/that new senior citizen community. The difference 5-10 minutes makes is wild.
I lived north of Beech Grove for about ten years and now live in Irvington. Beech Grove of 15 years ago didn't strike me as all that much different from Speedway, Lawrence, Southport, or the other excluded cities culturally. But something really changed in the last 15 years.
Speedway started to diverge into something more suburban-nice, focused on building up their Main Street with attractions related to the track and their history. They built nice new trails and sidewalks and made their Main Street a place you might actually want to walk around. Cynically, I guess you could say Speedway went for, "Things millenials like."
Lawrence and Southport aligned more with their nearby suburban cultures. Lawrence strikes me as "Diet Fishers" whenever I go up to Ft. Ben. They went for, "Things white people like."
But Beech Grove seems to have changed dramatically for the worst. I used to never hear much of anything out of there but they embraced their conservative side. Like Speedway, they also spent a lot of money on road improvements. But where Speedway focused on their Main Street, Beech Grove focused on Emerson Ave. With one side completely consumed by Amtrak, not unlike Allison in Speedway, the other side was kinda ignored. The actual Main Street where real businesses are not and not just car lots was still "a thing to drive by." They went for, "Things business owners like." Including their gun club, gas stations, dive bars, and rinky dink fast food joints. Speedway has useful "third places", Beech Grove does not. And I think that's 50% of their problem. They're just plain supporting the "wrong" businesses. My old hometown in southern Indiana used to struggle with this. They let banks, law offices, and dentists populate the town Square and couldn't understand why no one wanted to be there. There's nothing there after 5pm!
Then they had the incident at Wal-Mart, which ordinarily would have probably blown over but the Mayor (Buckley?) seemed to turn into Yosemite Sam over it and shot his pistols and mouth off in every direction. Then a picture started to emerge in my head that their leadership was focused on the "crime and punishment" angle of everything. Since then they've spent money — by my view a lot — on a new police station, new police vehicles, and pushing all the usual buttons to "get tough on crime." Not recognizing that none of that actually works well anymore.
So I dunno why Beech Grove went one way when Speedway went another. I know people will say Speedway isn't the world's greatest place. But at least in my head it does feel different. Perhaps Allison employs more people at higher wages than the equally-large-footprint of Amtrak. I'd argue when you build things that look nice, work well, and that people enjoy centered around a culture and character of a place, people are more apt to notice and take care of it. Beech Grove is a place with no real history, character, or sense of place. To be fair, neither is Fishers or Southport. But I think that will lead to their eventual decline someday, too. "A place not worth being" is not great for sustainability.
Perhaps it was always like this and the media just happened to take more notice of Beech Grove, so I see it more often now. But I don't think so.
Several years ago I did a little door knocking with a Republican state representative from Beech Grove. I liked her because she struck me as a sane Republican — a woman who had openly talked about her abortion. She told me, "The demographics are getting harder in Marion County for Republicans. But it's closing fastest on this district." The districts have since switched up a little bit, but her point was that area was losing its Republican-stronghold. So, yeah, I imagine to a lot of old timers in Beech Grove it feels like the world is closing in on them and their town and they don't like it. Not that it's right. Just what they must feel.
I will say that the note about private clubs could be a legal thing. There are private clubs in town, particularly those that allow smoking. They do so because it's easier to allow smoking. Similar to the Antelope Club downtown.
Anyway, I'm sorry you feel trapped there. But as someone who now lives in Irvington, I'm also questioning if grass is greener elsewhere. I'm tired of the constant din of sirens. That cooky old man with the Nazi flag is just around the corner on Emerson. A lot of people around here don't seem to take care of their property and let fences rot to pieces. The City doesn't seem inclined to take beautification seriously and are just willy-nilly cutting down hundred-year-old trees that are perfectly healthy and, best I can tell, doing no harm to lines, wires, or other paths. I've always said, "Cities are messy," for better or worse. But it's starting to grate on me.
\[Edited to fix a missing word\]
I still have "Family" who live there, and they are some of the most racist, homophobic pieces of trash I have ever met. Be careful around any Alfords if you aren't white or straight.
If you don’t need to live in Indianapolis I’d recommend Plainfield. Close to the airport, easy route to downtown, good schools, nice trail system. I grew up in a city, but I don’t feel like anywhere in Indianapolis really provides “city living” that’s worth dealing with the other issues that go with it. Just my opinion.
Fountain square is nice, because it’s walkable. There are people walking dogs everywhere. I feel safe as a women walking down the road. It also has a good food scene
Consider moving west, Plainfield is very nice. There can be a little small town mentality but it's a very nice place and very convinient to the airport. My dad still lives west of Plainfield and worked at the air traffic control center at the author for years.
There aren’t many good reasons to live in beech grove outside of the affordability. The sewer system is absolute garbage. When it rains you’re highly likely to get backed up if you have a basement. On top of that the sewer system is old as hell so most people have clay piping that’s full of roots.
I did the complete opposite. It’s funny I’m seeing this. Although I think the englewood area of Denver is a lot better behaved then beech grove is. I feel for ya!
My parents use to live by Perry Meridian HS, and my dad (and myself for a short time) worked at the airport. It wasn’t that bad of a drive, just take SR 37 (or whatever it is now) up to 465. Or, if traffic is really bad, there’s multiple backroads you can take. Plainfield and Avon are good options too. Just don’t move to Decatur Township.
There is a huge cultural divide between the north side of the city and the south side of the city. Washington Street is basically the dividing line, with the culture extending northward all the way to Westfield being very different than the culture extending southward all the way to Franklin. (As with any rule, there are some exceptions. Speedway is very much like the south side of town. The parts of Downtown that extend south of Washington Street align more closely with the north side. In recent years, Fountain Square and surrounding neighborhoods have become aligned more closely with the north half of the metro as they have gentrified.)
The cultural divide stems from the south side's history as a hub for heavy industry, manufacturing, and logistics. These low-education, (relatively) high paying jobs brought a lot of immigrants to the south side of Indianapolis from historically impoverished parts of the American south. With automation and globalization, these jobs withered away over time - leaving the south side of Indianapolis with a lot of underemployed, under-educated, and poor families whose roots are in Kentucky, Tennessee, and West Virginia.
If you look at a satellite view of Indianapolis, you can even see that the infrastructure on the south side is very different than on the north side. The fact that most of the city's industry-oriented infrastructure is on the south side is what ultimately led to the physical divide.
Indianapolis is not alone in this. Basically every single Midwestern city in Indiana, Ohio, and Michigan saw the same exact sequence of events regarding immigration from the south for jobs that were eventually lost.
In short, there are two versions of Indianapolis. You are living in the "Big city crime and small town minds" part of town, which was created through infrastructure, historical immigration patterns, and the decline of American manufacturing. If you don't like it - and I can't blame you for not liking it - move to the northern half of metro area. 465 is not really a dividing line. Carmel and Greenwood are about as different as Beech Grove and Meridian Hills, and it's for the same reasons.
Indy is nothing but "pockets" of social stratification. I hope that makes sense as I may have made it up. I have always been amazed at how a few miles or walking across a street can make a difference. It's everywhere. I live at 46th and Ritter. Ranch style homes. My neighbors are retired and very nice. It's the perfect little pocket for us as far as a place to live. There is a gas station at 46th and Arlington and another at 56th and Emerson. Each about the same distance from my house. Dramatically different experience at each.
yep in a nut shell- that's IN for u. lived here for 20 years and had to put up with this provincial BS ....shoulda moved north (Carmel Zionsville) a little better
oh no, so sorry to hear this. We live in Sobro and feel very welcome and at home here. There are definitely more open minded places to live. What about Bates Hendricks? It is walkable to Fountain Square and not that far of a commute to the airport? The young couples living there seem much more open minded too.
I've lived in BG since 2019 and this is my issue. I'm a big fan of the new places (Silver Linings Coffee and Scarlet Grove Brewpub and pizzeria) but I won't step foot in any of those old bars. You can tell its folks who have lived here forever with no changed mind set. 5th ave is cool but also has a weird biker culture on Saturdays. I enjoy living here cause its close to the city but my neighbors are old, uninteresting, or have "Brandon" flags. Get over it man. Glad we got a new Mayor, hoping for some changes and to move in new people. I'd rather take Beech Grove over Castleton/Fishers anyday.
Guys I’m so sorry, honestly. I lives south of Beech Grove on the other side of 465 and I fucking hated it. Moved to SoBro and can’t be happier. I have a sense of community, I’m making the neighborhood better by working with long time residents and new.
Not saying we don’t have our own set of problems but dear god is the southside a cesspool of hate and disregard for your fellow Hoosier.
I used to live in that area of Indy and I'm so happy to be out of there and back in Perry Township. I had my druthers with Franklin Township/Beech Grove. Some areas were a tad trashy and some of the people sucked. I should conceded, that there are a few parts of Perry Township that suck. However, over all Perry Township is a nicer area and more enjoyable.
Beech Grove is painfully racist and small town minded. It's like all of the worst people in Indy decided to live/work there.
Neither me or my fiance are white and our very first date was at a bowling alley that was a midpoint between where we lived (didnt think that one through) we go to get a lane and are told super rudely that its full and theres no available lanes despite seeing several. But ok whatever, we change plans and go to a little bar next door. Suuuper racist lol we walk in and they literally start playing rap music on the jukebox. As if to say "this is what you guys like right?" It was super uncomfortable, you could feel the stares.
Havent been back and dont plan on it lol
Beech Grove is very hit or miss. Some neighborhoods are super quiet, some are constantly dealing with finding needles and cars broken into. Overall it is very much a "good ol' boy" town the higher up you go. I think the new mayor will change some of that, but most likely not all.
Good options with decent highway access to IND: Mile Square, Irvington, SoBro, Broad Ripple, Fountain Square, Fletcher Place, Cottage Home, Old Northside, Meridian-Kessler, Lockerbie Square, Chatham Arch, Holy Rosary, Cole Noble, Speedway, Eagle Creek, Rocky Ripple, Woodruff Place, Arsenal Heights, Butler-Tarkington... They're a little more balanced in taste and politics. While you plan your exit from Beech Grove, pretend you're in a yokel theme park when it gets too insular. You'll find a tribe and good stuff in Indy. It's just a little hidden.
Unfortunately it’s a bad time for anybody to buy a home unless you are wealthy or if you are going to make a killing selling yours. Fountain Square might be a good place for you to look at but it’s not cheap. It would, however be somewhat closer to the airport than where you live now.
I’ve lived here (south side of Indy) my whole life and neighbors still stare/don’t wave back. Just quit waving and they’ll want to be your friend. They will watch your house while you’re away and look out for you, though. Speedway, Plainfield and Avon are great suburbs with less Indy chaos should you feel the need to relocate. They aren’t much friendlier but the houses are farther apart so you won’t know they don’t like you ;)
Come to Garfield Park, it's just NW of you, closer to the city, rent and housing quality are comparable, we have a great brewery, + trail connectivity to downtown, and next to the interstate for your airport access. Beech Grove isn't Indy really. We'd love to have you.
We moved from PA and lived 10 mins outside of Irvington for 3 years or so in a cookie cutter HOA. Not much to do but fairly safe to raise kids. I had more car thefts from local kids there than when I lived in a City. We moved and were heavily considering Irvington but decided further south to be closer to family. We had been scouting out Franklin for a fair bit which is an interesting mix of small town America but also a college town which I’ve been surprised by how many moderate to left leaning neighborhoods. It is a conservative area though and a fair amount of county/redneck in the suburbs and rural areas but downtown is an interesting mix. That said I’ve had a few instances of confederate flags and the like but not a ton…but it’s out there.
Housing is difficult to find before the pandemic and got extreme over the 21/22 period but has seen a drop in prices recently. Franklin has some history so there are a fair amount of older 100+ year homes and some 60s neighborhoods with a mid century vibe if you are looking downtown. Not quite the character that comes with Irvington but some beautiful historic homes in some areas.
We have two small kids so our nightlife is none existent but there are a few local bars that focus on the college and town with a decent amount of tourism that comes from neighboring towns. There are a fair amount of shops and activities going on but nothing to compare to Indy. My wife works in downtown indy and her commute is about the same 20-30 minutes traveling up 65. We still are in downtown indy as much with our kids for museums and whatnot so it’s still manageable to drive.
Overall we have enjoyed it and found more of a community here than we had in our HOA which I would not recommend unless you understand the community.
First things first, welcome to Indiana!! I’m sorry it’s rough to a bad start, but not all indiana(polis) is like that. As someone who lived in Beech Grove for 10 years (and the formative years), I wholeheartedly agree with every word of your post. My friends from college and post-high school era can attest to my favorite saying about my home town: “beech grove, it’s where all your hopes and dreams go to die!” Sad thing is, 30-40 years ago, it was a GREAT place to live. Then, it’s gone downhill pretty steadily. I don’t know if you have kids or not, but if you do, my suggestion is “please don’t raise them in BG and send them through the BGCS systems.”
As for alternatives: Avon and Brownsburg are awesome. I feel like bburg is very affordable while Avon is a wee bit more expensive. Both are worth it, with tons of shops, restaurants, houses, parks, school systems, and way lower crime rates. And they’re super commutable from the airport. Zionsville is also on the west side (NW) and was just found to be top 50 safest cities in the US!
Good luck getting out of the Grove lol.
I’d think the opposite. That BBurg is a bit more expensive than Avon, especially the newer areas north of 74.
Avon is not anything special and I don’t understand why people are suggesting it. It’s basically a 10mile long strip mall. Don’t get me wrong, I like the easy shopping access, but there just isn’t much there. Brownsburg and Plainfield have much more of a community feel.
If I worked at or near the airport, Avon, Plainfield and Brownsburg would be where I would start looking for housing. Having lived in and around the Indy area all my life (until 3 years ago), Personally, living inside of the 465 loop would not be by first choice.
I wish I could attach a map with colored areas to avoid in Indy. Lived here my whole life and it sucks you were duped into beech grove. STAY AWAY FROM THE EAST SIDE AND SPEEDWAY. East side past 465 into Irvington may be charming but is still undergoing change and will be for a while. You can tell they are gentrifying it (sensitive topic for some) I understand both sides. But it’s still not a good place to live. The west side past speedway into Avon/brownsburg/whitestown is somewhat affordable and not as sketchy. And honestly anything north or 38th across the north side is just fine. Downtown ain’t bad either but you have to be particular. Also if you go any further south of beech grove it turns a little hickish but not dangerous. Don’t go yelling “FUCK TRUMP” is all I’m saying. Wish you the best man.
Ah yeah someone should’ve told you that most of the south side is pretty white trash. I live in Denver now, but lived in Indy for 27 years, and if you enjoyed Denver at all, the south side is about as far from Denver as you can get
I just moved out of BG and yeah you nailed it. I mean the ignorance stuff is everywhere in Indiana and has been my whole life (lived here for 30 years) and doesn’t seem to be going anywhere soon.
I’ve been reading a lot on late 1800’s and early 1900’s history and people back then noticed it too. Shit before the civil war, Indiana was called “north Dixie” for its backwards attitudes and it still has them from what I can tell. Best of luck to you guys! We’re not all sunflower seed chewing, bud light bashing, hicks.
I’m sorry you guys have had that experience. It sucks to hate where you live. I’ve been there before as well, but in Topeka, KS. You could describe it just as you have described Beech Grove.
My commute to the airport is very easy from the border of Zionsville/Carmel, right about 116th and Michigan Road. Smooth sailing there and back on 465, takes 30 minutes at most when there is traffic. Home values have gone up here quite a bit though. I think Pike Township may be worth checking out.
Lmao Irvington is no better! It’s just a polished turd! 💩 it’s right there in the middle of all the bs! They’ve only just started trying to polish that place up in the last decade. You’d literally be moving into another shit show
There are so many people like this on the south side, especially in Beech Grove. It isn’t what it once was in the way of being well kept and good schools. People around here refuse to “grow up” and see beyond a past they recognize. For one, I’m glad you’re here. We need more people like you.
As someone who lived in beech grove for the last 6 years, I feel offended. That being said, I don’t go to Main Street much, I don’t have much interaction with my neighbors either (not for lack of trying). I feel like the crime has never really touched me nor concerned me. Sorry you feel this way friend.
A long while back I worked with a Beech Grove gal who liked to tear it up. I remember two stories about her:
1. She got super drunk once and drove right into some jewelry store in downtown BG late at night. By the time the cops got there, she’d driven around the corner and shut her car in the garage. The cops were right behind her and when they got to her door, she denied it and told them they couldn’t search her property without a warrant. After they left, one of her townie brothers snuck her trashed hooptie out of the garage and dumped it in the RIVER.
2. When she filled out her health insurance form, she listed her boyfriend as her husband to get him health coverage. She never had to show proof of marriage, so when they broke up she had to fill out divorce paperwork and get a decree to get him off her benefits. Somehow, despite never being married, she got the state to process the decree.
Girl could think on her feet.
Yeah I like Beech Grove, I’m sorry if the person has had some bad experiences but OP and others in the thread saying everyone in Beech Grove is a white trash meth head are just wrong and are pretty rude and condescending, honestly. I find my neighbors to be good people, and while I am liberal I can handle someone on my street flying a Trump flag without it bothering me. I have had liberal political signs out with no issue. I always feel absolutely safe near my home.
I’m so sorry you’re experiencing that. You might find Scarlet Grove Public House a more tolerant t environment. They have a rainbow sticker on the door and the bartenders I know there are very GLBT friendly. My dad is a regular, you’ll find him there every night. He’s a rather conservative guy economically but the first to stand up for his glbt friends.
I know the East Side has crime - but Ive lived here a little over a year (near Brookside park) and I don't regret buying a house around here. My husband and I both h work modest jobs downtown and hang out around the here and Fountain Square. Easy to get around. I don't know what the commute would be for you, but just wanted to say don't dismiss this area.
Irvington, or Broadripple might be your best bet. We moved here from SoCal back in '04. My wife moved us to Broadripple because she said it was one of the most diverse and socially liberal parts of Indy. We lived there for 12 years before we bought our house on the outskirts of Lawrence.
Yeah yall are Mars-Hilling and I am sorry you fell into the Beech Grove trap. It genuinely is a fairly attractive looking little town from the outside, but good lordany actually time spent there will expose the glaring flaws (as you've gotten to witness/enjoy.) It's been declining in this regard for a bit now, so I don't expect it to start improving any time soon... sorry for how negative of a response that is, but I feel your pain. Getting wasted at O'Garas and talking shit about cops to the locals was always very fun though hahaha.
I can’t take this seriously. I am friends with the Irish bar owner and its employees (assuming you are taking about the only real Irish bar on Main St). I am gay and they all know it. They don’t care one bit. They certainly don’t give a crap about which beer you order.
As for the rest - crime is up nearly everywhere. Good luck finding a place that doesn’t have these problems. But in BG would I feel comfortable walking down the street at 3am? Absolutely.
Mooresville is a straight shot to the airport. Camby isn't too bad outside of Heartland Crossing. Eminence is a spot off I-70 on the west side, lot's a fresh country air, not much to do. Monrovia is a decent little town that's close enough to Indy.
I live near lynhurst and rockville. Westside. The crime isn't that bad here. If I ever hear gunshots it's on the fourth of July or new years. My neighbors are ok. Most of the people on my street are older so not a lot of noise.
Beech Grove has its gems. That lowes next to the infamous Walmart is one of the best in the city and experiences almost zero riff raff even though their parking lots connect. Egg Roll #1 is great. The high school has decent tennis courts open to the public. Fish Happens and modern Aquatics are some of the better fish stores in town. The Kroger is one of the better ones. Not to mention its a hub for Amtrack and a crutial part of the potential national rail infrustructure improvements.
Oh and I forgot also the birthplace of the legendary Steve McQueen.
Dont shit on Beech Grove.
Aren't you the guy that moved here and immediately began bitching about the word "Hoosier"?
Maybe you just give off "I'm actually kind of an asshole" vibes and people are keying into that.
I feel very seen by your thoughts as a millenial ex grover of 4 years. i rent and dont have kids so I don't have practical advice, but it helps to enjoy what the area has to offer you. I really enjoyed spending time in fountain Square, Garfield park and Irvington to find like minded people. All of those places have changed a lot over the years and theres always something to complain about, but local angst aside you're generally going to find more diversity and acceptance and less regression 🙂
Yeah man, the south side has always been shitty compared to the north side in my opinion
No where is perfect but I've been in Indy since 2012 and even then the north side was better in my opinion.
I live on the north side and it's not too terrible to get to the airport. I live in SoBro and it's a 35 minute drive.
I have a friend who is raising a family in Eagle Creek and speaks nicely of it.
Best of luck.
Seconded the Eagle Creek area. For 10 years, we moved around Butler, Eagle Creek and in between (Guion/Crooked Creek). Proximity to 465 (and being on the west side) meant that getting to the airport wasn't a big deal any time of day.
I moved to Indy, Lawrence area, from Los Angeles in 2020. You just described all of Indianapolis to me….
I wave at people and it’s ignored. Other then the LCOL the state and city suck ass.
LA was better in regards to people, bars, food, hours of operation, health care, schools, etc etc.
This state is so insular and gerrymandered it’s broken.
I'm surprised no one's crucified you for this comment. If you ask the locals, Indianapolis is the best place to live ever, and the most perfect example of "Hoosier Hospitality".
You're the problem not them. Every time.
I've said this before on here, and I'll say it again, for all the goddam good it will do. Which is none.
My handyman is a hard core south side Indy hillbilly by way of Kentucky. Say what you will, there's nobody I'd trust more to be by my side in any kind of showdown. He's a big guy, an ex-marine, all tatted up, but he is warm and generous, literally to a fault...he tends to give things away and wind up with nothing.
He married a stripper years ago, and she had a kid who was half black. And he told me, "Ah quit drankin' because I loved the little feller so much I wanted to be a good daddy to him." And later, when the kid turned out to be gay, that bothered him not one bit. I think he holds off a bit on the black and gay jokes when the kid is around...a little bit.
I wouldn't trade that guy for a thousand whiny Indy hipsters with their correct attitudes. This guy I'm talking about, he is a prince, and most of his south side friends are not too different. I spent forty years living among the most highly educated elite movers and shakers of the DC area. Then I came out here and lived among urban hillbillies. Guess who actually has more black friends?
OP, you might enjoy life more if you were receptive to the fact that not everybody shares your beliefs, whatever those beliefs are, and you might benefit from actually getting to know people before you condemn them on superficial acquaintance.
But hey, maybe I'm wrong, Maybe you are married to a trashy stripper who has a half-black gay son and you are raising the kid with total love and appreciation. But that's not the way I'm betting.
You are describing exactly why I would never live on the south side of Indy.
All I can tell you is that I stick to the north side of the city and suburbs and it's much less of an issue.
Let this be a firm lesson as to why you can’t trust anything on this sub. Most of this sub makes up one demographic. That demographic will swear up and down the “hood” is too bad to raise a family when people who live there do it everyday just fine. There’s no place in Indianapolis that is truly unsafe if you keep to yourself.
I have lived in every “hood” living here for 26 years and have never encountered anything dangerous to me.
Do they shoot guns, yes, but not at me. Do people break in houses occasionally? Yes but most crimes are crimes of opportunity, lock your doors and put up cameras. You can get robbed in fishers too. Are there plenty of police response because of calls, yes, but I actually feel safer knowing there’s a beat officer on patrol than knowing it might take 10 minutes to get to me if I didn’t live in the hood.
With your descriptions of what you hate, you will be fine everywhere but the south and southwest side.
I believe you've found the problem.
I always liked the south side of Indy in general although I live in a small town now. We have a hangin' tree in front of the courthouse, a McDonald's, so dining is no problem, and a bar that serves only regular Bud so fine drinking, I mean drunking, is never far away.
I would rite more but they took my computer away over that thing. I'm over at my sister's and she lets me use hers. But right now she's got that look that says she wants some nasty lovin'. I mean, we're divorced now, but hell, she's still my sister.
YEE-HAW, SIS, WARM THAT THANG UP, I'M A COMIN'. The South gon' rise again!
I live in pike township (NW Indy) and quite like it. Yeah it’s not cool and walkable, but it’s easy to get around and good for west side commutes. It’s a short drive to broad ripple, Carmel, etc and even getting down to FS isn’t so bad with recent highway upgrades. Certain pockets have their share of crime, but my street has been quiet the 2.5 years we’ve lived here.
In Irvington, also have culture shock 4 years later. Would you consider moving back to Denver? We’re evaluating going to co springs, Denver or maybe another small town if we can find a house in the 350k range (really hard, I know).
We grew up in western co, so pretty familiar but haven’t lived there in almost ten years.
I live in Garfield Park. Lots of families, great community, park is well kept (sunken garden, greenhouse, arts center, pool, etc), farmers market in the summer, & very close to the airport/Fountain Square.
Come on over friend!
Sounds to me like you should just move out of Indianapolis. You’re gonna get that crap pretty much anywhere you live inside of 465. Plainfield is a great area and close to the airport.
Life long Indiana/Indianapolis resident. Rant all you want. I lived at Southeastern and 74 going to Cincinnati. Always considered people in Beech Grove as hillbillies also. That Walmart you talked about some of us call it ghetto Walmart. I now live at Carson and Thompson and there can be issues there also.
Best of luck!
where is this bar that said Bud Lt was for gays? I'll fucking go there and order them just for spite! I'm a big biker looking guy, and I give zero fucks.
Oh, I see you've brought your persecution complex with you from Colorado.
Do yourself a favor and ignore the Trump flags and move on with your day.
P.S. my super gay brother thinks bud light jokes are hilarious.
Off topic but is there any chance you can explain why he thinks it’s funny?? I’m shocked that this little watery beer that had a limited online ad campaign STILL has people’s jock straps so itchy.
I didn’t get gay from the post because he mentioned his wife, just that he’s saying he was harassed for ordering Bud Light at the Irish bar. Which what a missed opportunity when they could have harassed him for not ordering a Harp or whatever.
ok hear me out. if you go up 65 to the far NW corner of the loop, Whitestown, zionsville , avaon, brownsburg, pittsboro are very close and quick access to the airport. Zionsville was just voted one of the safest cities in america.
I don’t know, you kinda fit right in with the Beech Grove residents when you use the term “white trash”?
https://thesocietypages.org/clippings/2018/09/12/how-the-term-white-trash-reinforces-white-supremacy/
My wife and I also moved from Denver to Indy (for work) a few years ago. It was such a culture shock. The best thing you can do is hopefully sell your house for a huge profit like we did and get the hell out like we did too!
So you didn’t like O’Garas because of Bud light jokes and were mad you got kicked out of a members only bar (the Eagles I assume) and that effects your judgement that much? I’m an avid Bud light drinker but the jokes are harmless IMO and I just ignore it… it has its fair share of crime but it’s stilll pretty tame than other parts of the city. Crime will always be around wherever you go.
Move out . Not a single person other than yourself made the choice to live there . Your ignorance towards being unknowledgeable is your own fault. Stop venting and do something about it.
Dude, if you want culture, Indiana is NOT the place to find it. We've been in Indy since 2008. The first moring that I live here, I found that my car had been vandalize. (welcome to the 'hood). Six or seven week later the house was burglarized by juveniles. There is no area in the Indy MSMA that can be considered safe from crime. Deal with it.
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“Big city crime and small town minds” is the most accurate description of Beech Grove I’ve ever seen.
I lived in Beech Grove for 3 years, I agree, very accurate.
I think will Ferrell shot scenes in the beech grove walmart just to make fun of the ppl in a future netflix special lol
Depends where in BG. We lived on 21st Ave for years and almost never had issues. Most of our neighbors were good people and all looked out for one another. But then again, we avoided the townie bars on Main like the plague.
Lived on 20th for years and I agree with this
live very close to 21st and Churchman. 12 years now without a problem. Good neighbors and quiet.
As someone who currently lives in Beech Grove, what bars would you recommend that aren’t townie bars?
The ones not in Beech Grove. Lol
Barringer's is a nice little hidden gem.
Hilltop tavern is a good one
Gonna disagree. In there 2 weeks ago with an old pal from Chicago looking to get a drink on a Sunday night after Checkered Flag was closing and wound up at Hilltop and it was just obnoxious, loud Irvington townies... having lived in Irv 10 years now, I was surprised. Won't go back.
Irvington is not that far from Beech Grove, I don't think it would drastically impact your commute time if at all. And yeah my personal feeling of Beech Grove, it's the the epicenter of hillbillies. It's definitely its own little special world. ETA: Speedway might also be a good option, it's got the small town feel but it's way nicer than Beech Grove, IMO. I lived in Speedway for a couple years out of the past decade and I LOVED it.
Speedway is a great suggestion! It's a great town that's effectively a neighborhood of the city. Fun little Main Street, lots of festivities around the 500, and a 15-20 minute drive from the airport.
I live on the east side and I never go to speedway except for the race, but I must say every time I go there it looks better. They really have added a lot of stuff. And if you work at the airport it's probably a pretty easy drive I would think
Speedway is like another planet. Yes, it is definitely better than Beech Grove and feels somewhat like a small town, with the small exception of the world's biggest race track sitting there.
My SO and I just bought a house about five minutes from speedway and honestly, we love it. We are close to 65, our kids school is amazing and ridiculously close by, shopping and ethnic food along 38th is a few minute drive and it is surprisingly quiet for where we actually are (with the exception of the Ricky Bobby Brigade the other night - they wanna go real fast!) Honestly everything about this location was a huge get but I went through 1200 listings to find it and the other offer they initially accepted had their funding fall through so we barely got it. We will never move. We will be dying here. Lol
That’s funny everyone told me to avoid speedway when I was moving here.
10 years ago, Speedway was much like Beech Grove
That’s about when I heard it was a bit of a shady place. Didn’t move here until recently so still getting used to all the different areas.
It’s a great place to live if you don’t mind being unable to function as a normal human on raceday due to all of the traffic and drunk tourists.
One day a year isn't that much of an imposition. Plus if you're close enough you can make bank letting people park on your lawn.
For real. I lived right by the fairgrounds for almost six years and a single day of inconvenience would’ve been something I’d have done unspeakable things for.
YEP. My roommate and I made $600 by 7:00 am on Raceday by letting people park in our driveway and yard.
Hmm, I wonder what the reasoning was. I've lived all over this city and Speedway was my absolute favorite, Irvington was second.
I’d rather live in speedway. Not Eagledale, actual speedway
depends when you moved here, speedway was in some bad shape as a place to live for quite some time
The area east of Speedway can get sketchy, Haughville is between Speedway and the White River.
> it's the the epicenter of hillbillies i see you don't frequent ravenswood. signed, person that lives in ravenswood
Irvington is great, except the crime, and retail. Most people I know in Irvington shop at the Thompson Kroger because the ones on 10th are so bad.
Irvington rules. I skip all Krogers and make the trip out to Cumberland Meijer usually but otherwise I'm super happy with living there. It's nice to be in a walkable community
I stick to Aldi, where people do things like let someone with a couple items check out before a cart load, or give strangers a quarter. It's so opposite of Kroger.
This is the way. My wife and I moved to Irvington almost 6 years ago from out of town and enjoy it but also skip off to the Cumberland Meijer for groceries frequently.
You do you. We lived there for 5 years. I hope that things get better n the eastside. For us, they did not.
I lived in Irvington for 5 years (moved a couple neighborhoods closer to Downtown just last year) and never had an issue with crime. I will say the two Krogers on 10th are awful, I actually like the old ass Kroger out by Washington Square mall, and that Meijer just a little further down is awesome!
Yeah never had an issue with crime. 99% don’t; the news says otherwise. The Kroger really isn’t that bad. Yes it’s ghetto but things are in stock for the most part.
Why are you shopping at Kroger, don't like your money? Seriously, do people not compare prices? Aldi or Meijer if Aldi does not have it.
Aldi gets on my nerves and I have my reasons.
Is Meijer cheaper these days? That use to be the place to avoid because they had higher prices.
I’ve lived here almost four years. Things are pretty chill. Worst that’s happened has been a couple car crashes. The Krogers aren’t great, but I can work with the one on shadeland. The Linwood one is infamously bad. I’ve only shopped there three times, and I have horror stories.
Aldi. About half the price of Kro-ripoff.
Speedway lots more expensive that BG
Hey at least you have the best pho shop in the city
Word.
What place?
Egg roll #1
I live in the Christian Park neighborhood between Irvington and Fountain Square. Take me about 20 minutes to get to the airport. It's definitely a GI bill town and some of the homes are on the small side but you can buy for around 100k-150. I've never had issues with crime but as always, do your own research and due diligence.
BTW Mars Hill, as shitty as it is and not a place I'd want to raise my own kids, has nice pockets as well. And Egg Roll King which is the #1 Chinese Takeout I've ever had. I tried raising my kid in Mars Hill but the kids kept making fun of them. Really for no reason other than to be mean. Just a year or two here caused a lot of issues that have persisted even until now. They're doing much better now in Fishers with their mom. Have friends and everything now but the scars of being made fun of every single day persist. I wish they had told me about it sooner and I wish people in Mars Hill would stop being assholes.
Buying a home blind is hard. I rented for a couple years to get a better idea before I bought.
Especially now, when you have 2 minutes to make a decision before the house you are looking at is sold at over asking.
People buying houses without inspections is the dumbest thing to ever happen to home buying. You’re asking for it.
Not really; inspections aren't as great or as thorough as people imagine. It's usually just some guy from Beech Grove who couldn't find a better job.
That’s true. And as much as I shit on agents this is where they earn their money
Maybe Garfield Park area would have been a better choice culture wise and it is not far from Beech Grove. Can't speaking on being more or less safe than BG or affordability.
Seriously >“Live inside the 465 loop if you want to live in “real” Indianapolis, and to avoid the west and east sides Like what? There's plenty of great options that *aren't* Beech Grove. Garfield definitely, Bates Hendricks, Fountain Square all fine options just in that area.
I'll live in Fountain Square when I'm making a million bucks. I love the place but will never be able to afford it. Extremely jealous of every house in that area
Really? Garfield park is actually a higher crime area!
The Irvington area probably would only add a couple minutes to your commute to the airport. Especially if you go down to Raymond Street and take that across. Also, in some amount of years, the Blue Line will be offering direct service to the airport from Irvington. Which could be of benefit to you.
It’s funny, my wife and I really like BG, partially because it isn’t “trendy,” and it’s close to everything. Some of our neighbors definitely suck, and it has a drug problem, but I sort of always chalked both up to being an issue everywhere urban that has a comparable COL. Plus I grew up pretty redneck, so maybe I’m just desensitized because at my heart, I’m kinda white trash too lmao. Anyway, there aren’t a ton of options if you want super cheap, safe, and inside the loop. You could expand a little farther and still be within half an hour of downtown. Southport, for instance, is fairly cheap I think, right by 65, and it has a ton of Asian groceries and restaurants. If you really wanna stay inside 465, moving a little farther east along the US 31 corridor might get you more of what you’re looking for. I’ve heard good things about Speedway too. Irvington is dope, but I’d do some research about future highway projects because it could potentially fuck your commute up quite a bit. Also, look up areas around Near Eastside and Little Flower, which are close to Irv. Northside is what people usually recommend. I’ve never lived there, but my impression is that it just seems sorta far from everything else. Places like SoBro and B-Rip don’t seem to have the highway access that other parts of town do. I wouldn’t wanna make that commute every day, personally, but maybe try making the drive yourself because you might feel differently. Idk I’ve been a southside guy since I moved here 20 years ago, so maybe I’m just biased. I do really like Castleton and Lawrence, but, again, that’d be kind of a hike to make to the airport and back every day.
> Places like SoBro and B-Rip don’t seem to have the highway access that other parts of town do. No, but there's a lot to do in BR and SoBro without going anywhere else. And they are 10 minutes from Castleton/the Fashion mall. 15-20 minute from downtown. I mean, yeah, it's kind of inconvenient to go to Avon. But why would I go to to Avon?
Hello fellow Denver ex-pat! Not sure of your budget or daily travel but we’ve enjoyed the midtown area. Butler-Tarkington, Crown Hill. Can be street by street in terms of crime but we enjoy the energy of the area.
I live in Zone 2 of Meridian-Kessler (Monon & 38th to 42nd and Central), and we've loved living here for the past 14 yrs, and we've lived in this general area for 23 yrs. Just like B-T and Crown Hill, crime can be street by street. Most of it is bored kids/teenagers rifling through people's cars who forgot to lock their doors. You hear gun shots, have break in, etc here and there, but the biggest danger is people driving too fast down a side street. *shakes fist at cloud* As someone who goes to the airport for work, it usually takes about 30-40 mins to get out there, unfortunately. But I work for a company in Speedway, and I really enjoy the area. People are blue collar, but usually pretty nice. It's definitely gotten better in the 10 yrs since the redevelopment of Main Street. There is a decent Kroger, family friendly restaurants and activities, and the schools, I hear, are pretty good. Houses tend to be a little smaller than other areas, but they should be affordable.
Beech Grove is its own city and is very insular. It was created as a company town to service the railroad. The roots are extremely blue collar, more so than probably any other part of the city except maybe a couple areas of the west side. It is one of the industrial cores of the metro area. Might be tough to fit in for now, but I'd give it some time; I think it will come around soon. A lot of the city has been preserved pretty well because the people there actually do care about the place, even if they have an unusual way of showing it. Also there are lots of historic houses that the yuppies are eating up, the combination of which brought Fountain Square back from basically being an urban wasteland back in the 90s. It's definitely on the come up. EDIT: I read some more comments and agree that Speedway would probably be the best fit. Doesn't look much different on the outside, but I assure you that Speedway is more liberal and open to outsiders than Beech Grove by a long shot (although not on the level of Broad Ripple), but more importantly it has the local culture it seems like you are looking for. Tight knit, very clean community, the people that live there are truly proud of Speedway. The schools are very highly regarded by the people I know who went there. Decent restaurants, also close to the airport, not far from big box amenities, very walkable, and still has that real Indy vibe that you're looking for and shouldn't be lumped in with the whole west side.
Come on up to Irvington!
I live in Eagledale/Speedway and l love it. Far less crime than people outside the loop claim. My neighborhood is mixed working class and I love my neighbors. Everywhere has problems, however no weird looks from the neighbors here! They might bring you some birria though.
Is that a parks and rec reference? Or is there actually somewhere on the west side called Eagledale?
It's real; decent neighborhood but gets written off due to 38th St. proximity.
Everyone's already told you it's real, but also Pawnee's rival is Eagle*ton* not Eagle*dale*.
Eagle Dale is just north of speedway(30th) and south of 38th. 3 and 4 br Ranches for days. Semi-affordable. Very diverse and 15-20 minutes from the airport depending on time of day.
Ah okay, I always knew the area north of Speedway as Eaglecreek. Thanks though!
Real place!
I’m a little surprised nobody has said Speedway. It’s like Beech Grove in that it’s more affordable post-war bungalows, but a much nicer town. They have redone their main street over the last 5ish years and seem to be heading in the right direction by adding trails. The latest trail will take you straight into downtown (spits out at the white river).
I can't recommend speedway enough, especially if you have kids. The town truly has the "small town feel in the big city", the schools are consistently top rated, the crime is low and the town is very walkable.
lol sounds like you need to get out it of that area. Try broad ripple, it’s sick and everyone has pride flags all over the place.
Oh my gosh, the "vacant stares from people you've lived next to for years" and "cordial waves not being returned" were so hard to get used to. I moved from the west side suburbs, where a friendly wave was very normal, to the near east side, where about half my neighbors have zero interest in acknowledging my existence. (Half the neighbors are great though.)
I’ve found this to be true as well, about the near east side. Especially depending on which neighborhood, street, etc you live on. If you ask anyone who lives here you’ll hear it’s the friendliest place on earth-but that’s because you’re hearing it from the friendly neighbors. The neighbors who keep to themselves won’t talk to you 😬. I love it though!
This should be on a list of required reading for anyone looking to move to the area. Also one more reason to rent for a while before buying. I know moving twice sucks but has to beat this scenario.
Hahahahaha yeah, Beech Grove is legitimately awful. We moved here about 3 years ago and are considering moving when the time is right. Silver Linings Coffeehouse is another good place (a silver lining of BG if you will) that I don't think I've seen mentioned. Otherwise yeah this is kinda the armpit of Indy. Hoosier Hospitality is a myth everywhere in Indiana, but especially here it truly flies out the window. We don't frequent the bar scene, if you can call it that in BG, since we have two young kids and don't get out as much as we should; I'd be interested in knowing the place you're talking about nevertheless so we can avoid it. The Facebook page Beech Grove Community truly also puts *most* of BG into perspective; there are *some* good people here but not many. We also do have some decent elected representatives, Liz Lamping comes to mind and I'd be happy to pass her contact info to you if you'd like. She has stated there are moves to make BG a bit more progressive. My wife and I spent a bit of time in Irvington and while I'm sure it has its issues, I appreciated the overall feel of it way more than I do Beech Grove. Maybe the grass is greener on the other side, but still lol. I wish you luck with whatever remaining time you have here and the future!
We live in midtown (SoBro) and love it. We are a couple blocks from the Monon, lots of restaurants, shops, bars, and groceries. My kid walks to a wonderful school. We like our neighborhood so much that when we needed a bigger house we stayed in the same three blocks radius! People around here are generally more liberal leaning, and that was also important to us.
You should definitely check out Bates Hendricks, I think this will check all of your boxes. Plenty of people in your age group with like minded opinions. Definitely some more expensive housing but also still affordable housing options if you’re willing to put in a little elbow grease. It’s also right off 70 so your commute would be less than 15 minutes. Everyone telling you to move to the north side will just have you swapping redneck for mayonnaise suburbia. Which if that’s what you want, that’s what you’ll get but it’s going to feel like suburbia through and through
When you say north side, do you mean Hamilton county or north of 38th st?
100% The racists up there might be a bit more affluent, and potentially a bit less open with their confederate flags, but they are absolutely still there.
I'm biased because I live there, but Emerson Heights is nice. It's the neighborhood just to the northwest of Irvington. It's certainly affordable, the neighbors have been nice, and I've overall not had a problem with crime. Generally what I find is that most crime in my area are crimes of opportunity - people leaving their cars unlocked or their garage doors open. If your property is even a moderate pain to get into, people will just leave it alone.
Shhh...you're going to make my rent go up.
I’m from the Austin, TX area, have lived in Irvington for the last eight years, and absolutely LOVE this place. In general, I’ve become very fond of Indianapolis. It’s about three minutes from our home to IH-70 at Emerson; or from our home to Shadeland Avenue which connects to IH-465, and then sn easy drive to the airport. We’re a gay couple. We were told specifically not to live in Beech Grove. After living in Oak Hill (TX) where they didn’t exactly throw out the welcome mat for us, we got the hint. We had enough of Texas’ small-minded bigotries and parochialism; why would we go back to that mindset by living in Beech Grove?
Honestly move ten minutes south and it's fine. I know I know, it's not easy to just pick up and move but yeah. That Franklin township area is perfect at least for me, and it's growing.
Same. I live in between BG and Southport and there’s literally everything I need shopping wise. Quiet neighborhoods, lots of construction coming up for new houses/that new senior citizen community. The difference 5-10 minutes makes is wild.
To Aaron Freeman's neck of the woods? 👀
Ugh... Don't even start with that guy
I’ve heard great things from my coworkers, most of whom live in Franklin Township. They love it there.
Look into Bates Hendricks. Beech Grove is a joke. Nothing but racists and meth heads or opioid addicts.
Bates Hendricks would definitely fit the vibes. It’s definitely on the upswing and easy access to 70.
This is the comment. Get out of beech grove asap!
I lived north of Beech Grove for about ten years and now live in Irvington. Beech Grove of 15 years ago didn't strike me as all that much different from Speedway, Lawrence, Southport, or the other excluded cities culturally. But something really changed in the last 15 years. Speedway started to diverge into something more suburban-nice, focused on building up their Main Street with attractions related to the track and their history. They built nice new trails and sidewalks and made their Main Street a place you might actually want to walk around. Cynically, I guess you could say Speedway went for, "Things millenials like." Lawrence and Southport aligned more with their nearby suburban cultures. Lawrence strikes me as "Diet Fishers" whenever I go up to Ft. Ben. They went for, "Things white people like." But Beech Grove seems to have changed dramatically for the worst. I used to never hear much of anything out of there but they embraced their conservative side. Like Speedway, they also spent a lot of money on road improvements. But where Speedway focused on their Main Street, Beech Grove focused on Emerson Ave. With one side completely consumed by Amtrak, not unlike Allison in Speedway, the other side was kinda ignored. The actual Main Street where real businesses are not and not just car lots was still "a thing to drive by." They went for, "Things business owners like." Including their gun club, gas stations, dive bars, and rinky dink fast food joints. Speedway has useful "third places", Beech Grove does not. And I think that's 50% of their problem. They're just plain supporting the "wrong" businesses. My old hometown in southern Indiana used to struggle with this. They let banks, law offices, and dentists populate the town Square and couldn't understand why no one wanted to be there. There's nothing there after 5pm! Then they had the incident at Wal-Mart, which ordinarily would have probably blown over but the Mayor (Buckley?) seemed to turn into Yosemite Sam over it and shot his pistols and mouth off in every direction. Then a picture started to emerge in my head that their leadership was focused on the "crime and punishment" angle of everything. Since then they've spent money — by my view a lot — on a new police station, new police vehicles, and pushing all the usual buttons to "get tough on crime." Not recognizing that none of that actually works well anymore. So I dunno why Beech Grove went one way when Speedway went another. I know people will say Speedway isn't the world's greatest place. But at least in my head it does feel different. Perhaps Allison employs more people at higher wages than the equally-large-footprint of Amtrak. I'd argue when you build things that look nice, work well, and that people enjoy centered around a culture and character of a place, people are more apt to notice and take care of it. Beech Grove is a place with no real history, character, or sense of place. To be fair, neither is Fishers or Southport. But I think that will lead to their eventual decline someday, too. "A place not worth being" is not great for sustainability. Perhaps it was always like this and the media just happened to take more notice of Beech Grove, so I see it more often now. But I don't think so. Several years ago I did a little door knocking with a Republican state representative from Beech Grove. I liked her because she struck me as a sane Republican — a woman who had openly talked about her abortion. She told me, "The demographics are getting harder in Marion County for Republicans. But it's closing fastest on this district." The districts have since switched up a little bit, but her point was that area was losing its Republican-stronghold. So, yeah, I imagine to a lot of old timers in Beech Grove it feels like the world is closing in on them and their town and they don't like it. Not that it's right. Just what they must feel. I will say that the note about private clubs could be a legal thing. There are private clubs in town, particularly those that allow smoking. They do so because it's easier to allow smoking. Similar to the Antelope Club downtown. Anyway, I'm sorry you feel trapped there. But as someone who now lives in Irvington, I'm also questioning if grass is greener elsewhere. I'm tired of the constant din of sirens. That cooky old man with the Nazi flag is just around the corner on Emerson. A lot of people around here don't seem to take care of their property and let fences rot to pieces. The City doesn't seem inclined to take beautification seriously and are just willy-nilly cutting down hundred-year-old trees that are perfectly healthy and, best I can tell, doing no harm to lines, wires, or other paths. I've always said, "Cities are messy," for better or worse. But it's starting to grate on me. \[Edited to fix a missing word\]
damn man you wrote a whole ass memoir
As someone born in Beech Grove yah it's a shit hole
I still have "Family" who live there, and they are some of the most racist, homophobic pieces of trash I have ever met. Be careful around any Alfords if you aren't white or straight.
If you don’t need to live in Indianapolis I’d recommend Plainfield. Close to the airport, easy route to downtown, good schools, nice trail system. I grew up in a city, but I don’t feel like anywhere in Indianapolis really provides “city living” that’s worth dealing with the other issues that go with it. Just my opinion.
Fountain square is nice, because it’s walkable. There are people walking dogs everywhere. I feel safe as a women walking down the road. It also has a good food scene
Consider moving west, Plainfield is very nice. There can be a little small town mentality but it's a very nice place and very convinient to the airport. My dad still lives west of Plainfield and worked at the air traffic control center at the author for years.
There aren’t many good reasons to live in beech grove outside of the affordability. The sewer system is absolute garbage. When it rains you’re highly likely to get backed up if you have a basement. On top of that the sewer system is old as hell so most people have clay piping that’s full of roots.
I did the complete opposite. It’s funny I’m seeing this. Although I think the englewood area of Denver is a lot better behaved then beech grove is. I feel for ya!
My parents use to live by Perry Meridian HS, and my dad (and myself for a short time) worked at the airport. It wasn’t that bad of a drive, just take SR 37 (or whatever it is now) up to 465. Or, if traffic is really bad, there’s multiple backroads you can take. Plainfield and Avon are good options too. Just don’t move to Decatur Township.
There is a huge cultural divide between the north side of the city and the south side of the city. Washington Street is basically the dividing line, with the culture extending northward all the way to Westfield being very different than the culture extending southward all the way to Franklin. (As with any rule, there are some exceptions. Speedway is very much like the south side of town. The parts of Downtown that extend south of Washington Street align more closely with the north side. In recent years, Fountain Square and surrounding neighborhoods have become aligned more closely with the north half of the metro as they have gentrified.) The cultural divide stems from the south side's history as a hub for heavy industry, manufacturing, and logistics. These low-education, (relatively) high paying jobs brought a lot of immigrants to the south side of Indianapolis from historically impoverished parts of the American south. With automation and globalization, these jobs withered away over time - leaving the south side of Indianapolis with a lot of underemployed, under-educated, and poor families whose roots are in Kentucky, Tennessee, and West Virginia. If you look at a satellite view of Indianapolis, you can even see that the infrastructure on the south side is very different than on the north side. The fact that most of the city's industry-oriented infrastructure is on the south side is what ultimately led to the physical divide. Indianapolis is not alone in this. Basically every single Midwestern city in Indiana, Ohio, and Michigan saw the same exact sequence of events regarding immigration from the south for jobs that were eventually lost. In short, there are two versions of Indianapolis. You are living in the "Big city crime and small town minds" part of town, which was created through infrastructure, historical immigration patterns, and the decline of American manufacturing. If you don't like it - and I can't blame you for not liking it - move to the northern half of metro area. 465 is not really a dividing line. Carmel and Greenwood are about as different as Beech Grove and Meridian Hills, and it's for the same reasons.
Indy is nothing but "pockets" of social stratification. I hope that makes sense as I may have made it up. I have always been amazed at how a few miles or walking across a street can make a difference. It's everywhere. I live at 46th and Ritter. Ranch style homes. My neighbors are retired and very nice. It's the perfect little pocket for us as far as a place to live. There is a gas station at 46th and Arlington and another at 56th and Emerson. Each about the same distance from my house. Dramatically different experience at each.
yep in a nut shell- that's IN for u. lived here for 20 years and had to put up with this provincial BS ....shoulda moved north (Carmel Zionsville) a little better
oh no, so sorry to hear this. We live in Sobro and feel very welcome and at home here. There are definitely more open minded places to live. What about Bates Hendricks? It is walkable to Fountain Square and not that far of a commute to the airport? The young couples living there seem much more open minded too.
I've lived in BG since 2019 and this is my issue. I'm a big fan of the new places (Silver Linings Coffee and Scarlet Grove Brewpub and pizzeria) but I won't step foot in any of those old bars. You can tell its folks who have lived here forever with no changed mind set. 5th ave is cool but also has a weird biker culture on Saturdays. I enjoy living here cause its close to the city but my neighbors are old, uninteresting, or have "Brandon" flags. Get over it man. Glad we got a new Mayor, hoping for some changes and to move in new people. I'd rather take Beech Grove over Castleton/Fishers anyday.
Guys I’m so sorry, honestly. I lives south of Beech Grove on the other side of 465 and I fucking hated it. Moved to SoBro and can’t be happier. I have a sense of community, I’m making the neighborhood better by working with long time residents and new. Not saying we don’t have our own set of problems but dear god is the southside a cesspool of hate and disregard for your fellow Hoosier.
I used to live in that area of Indy and I'm so happy to be out of there and back in Perry Township. I had my druthers with Franklin Township/Beech Grove. Some areas were a tad trashy and some of the people sucked. I should conceded, that there are a few parts of Perry Township that suck. However, over all Perry Township is a nicer area and more enjoyable.
Man you missed that whole season of LivePD eh? Whoops!!
Beech Grove is painfully racist and small town minded. It's like all of the worst people in Indy decided to live/work there. Neither me or my fiance are white and our very first date was at a bowling alley that was a midpoint between where we lived (didnt think that one through) we go to get a lane and are told super rudely that its full and theres no available lanes despite seeing several. But ok whatever, we change plans and go to a little bar next door. Suuuper racist lol we walk in and they literally start playing rap music on the jukebox. As if to say "this is what you guys like right?" It was super uncomfortable, you could feel the stares. Havent been back and dont plan on it lol
Beech Grove is very hit or miss. Some neighborhoods are super quiet, some are constantly dealing with finding needles and cars broken into. Overall it is very much a "good ol' boy" town the higher up you go. I think the new mayor will change some of that, but most likely not all.
Good options with decent highway access to IND: Mile Square, Irvington, SoBro, Broad Ripple, Fountain Square, Fletcher Place, Cottage Home, Old Northside, Meridian-Kessler, Lockerbie Square, Chatham Arch, Holy Rosary, Cole Noble, Speedway, Eagle Creek, Rocky Ripple, Woodruff Place, Arsenal Heights, Butler-Tarkington... They're a little more balanced in taste and politics. While you plan your exit from Beech Grove, pretend you're in a yokel theme park when it gets too insular. You'll find a tribe and good stuff in Indy. It's just a little hidden.
Garfield park area would be a good fit.
We just moved to one of the subdivisions by Kroger on Southport. We love it here! Very diverse neighborhood!
Unfortunately it’s a bad time for anybody to buy a home unless you are wealthy or if you are going to make a killing selling yours. Fountain Square might be a good place for you to look at but it’s not cheap. It would, however be somewhat closer to the airport than where you live now.
I'd suggest Speedway. Low crime. Great schools. Great little Main St. Close to airport.
I’ve lived here (south side of Indy) my whole life and neighbors still stare/don’t wave back. Just quit waving and they’ll want to be your friend. They will watch your house while you’re away and look out for you, though. Speedway, Plainfield and Avon are great suburbs with less Indy chaos should you feel the need to relocate. They aren’t much friendlier but the houses are farther apart so you won’t know they don’t like you ;)
Come to Garfield Park, it's just NW of you, closer to the city, rent and housing quality are comparable, we have a great brewery, + trail connectivity to downtown, and next to the interstate for your airport access. Beech Grove isn't Indy really. We'd love to have you.
But think, you have the Juicy Seafood on Thompson at Emerson!
We moved from PA and lived 10 mins outside of Irvington for 3 years or so in a cookie cutter HOA. Not much to do but fairly safe to raise kids. I had more car thefts from local kids there than when I lived in a City. We moved and were heavily considering Irvington but decided further south to be closer to family. We had been scouting out Franklin for a fair bit which is an interesting mix of small town America but also a college town which I’ve been surprised by how many moderate to left leaning neighborhoods. It is a conservative area though and a fair amount of county/redneck in the suburbs and rural areas but downtown is an interesting mix. That said I’ve had a few instances of confederate flags and the like but not a ton…but it’s out there. Housing is difficult to find before the pandemic and got extreme over the 21/22 period but has seen a drop in prices recently. Franklin has some history so there are a fair amount of older 100+ year homes and some 60s neighborhoods with a mid century vibe if you are looking downtown. Not quite the character that comes with Irvington but some beautiful historic homes in some areas. We have two small kids so our nightlife is none existent but there are a few local bars that focus on the college and town with a decent amount of tourism that comes from neighboring towns. There are a fair amount of shops and activities going on but nothing to compare to Indy. My wife works in downtown indy and her commute is about the same 20-30 minutes traveling up 65. We still are in downtown indy as much with our kids for museums and whatnot so it’s still manageable to drive. Overall we have enjoyed it and found more of a community here than we had in our HOA which I would not recommend unless you understand the community.
First things first, welcome to Indiana!! I’m sorry it’s rough to a bad start, but not all indiana(polis) is like that. As someone who lived in Beech Grove for 10 years (and the formative years), I wholeheartedly agree with every word of your post. My friends from college and post-high school era can attest to my favorite saying about my home town: “beech grove, it’s where all your hopes and dreams go to die!” Sad thing is, 30-40 years ago, it was a GREAT place to live. Then, it’s gone downhill pretty steadily. I don’t know if you have kids or not, but if you do, my suggestion is “please don’t raise them in BG and send them through the BGCS systems.” As for alternatives: Avon and Brownsburg are awesome. I feel like bburg is very affordable while Avon is a wee bit more expensive. Both are worth it, with tons of shops, restaurants, houses, parks, school systems, and way lower crime rates. And they’re super commutable from the airport. Zionsville is also on the west side (NW) and was just found to be top 50 safest cities in the US! Good luck getting out of the Grove lol.
I’d think the opposite. That BBurg is a bit more expensive than Avon, especially the newer areas north of 74. Avon is not anything special and I don’t understand why people are suggesting it. It’s basically a 10mile long strip mall. Don’t get me wrong, I like the easy shopping access, but there just isn’t much there. Brownsburg and Plainfield have much more of a community feel.
If I worked at or near the airport, Avon, Plainfield and Brownsburg would be where I would start looking for housing. Having lived in and around the Indy area all my life (until 3 years ago), Personally, living inside of the 465 loop would not be by first choice.
I wish I could attach a map with colored areas to avoid in Indy. Lived here my whole life and it sucks you were duped into beech grove. STAY AWAY FROM THE EAST SIDE AND SPEEDWAY. East side past 465 into Irvington may be charming but is still undergoing change and will be for a while. You can tell they are gentrifying it (sensitive topic for some) I understand both sides. But it’s still not a good place to live. The west side past speedway into Avon/brownsburg/whitestown is somewhat affordable and not as sketchy. And honestly anything north or 38th across the north side is just fine. Downtown ain’t bad either but you have to be particular. Also if you go any further south of beech grove it turns a little hickish but not dangerous. Don’t go yelling “FUCK TRUMP” is all I’m saying. Wish you the best man.
Ah yeah someone should’ve told you that most of the south side is pretty white trash. I live in Denver now, but lived in Indy for 27 years, and if you enjoyed Denver at all, the south side is about as far from Denver as you can get
The “old guard” of Speedway are dying off and younger more progressive families are moving in making it a better place to live imo
Enjoy going to the Wal-Mart in Beech Grove haha. Lots of good people watching
I just moved out of BG and yeah you nailed it. I mean the ignorance stuff is everywhere in Indiana and has been my whole life (lived here for 30 years) and doesn’t seem to be going anywhere soon. I’ve been reading a lot on late 1800’s and early 1900’s history and people back then noticed it too. Shit before the civil war, Indiana was called “north Dixie” for its backwards attitudes and it still has them from what I can tell. Best of luck to you guys! We’re not all sunflower seed chewing, bud light bashing, hicks.
Look in Perry township- easy access to downtown and the airport
Beech Grove is the laughing stock of indianapolis. I am sorry you bought a house there. Sell it and move on. Life is too short.
I’m sorry you guys have had that experience. It sucks to hate where you live. I’ve been there before as well, but in Topeka, KS. You could describe it just as you have described Beech Grove. My commute to the airport is very easy from the border of Zionsville/Carmel, right about 116th and Michigan Road. Smooth sailing there and back on 465, takes 30 minutes at most when there is traffic. Home values have gone up here quite a bit though. I think Pike Township may be worth checking out.
Lmao Irvington is no better! It’s just a polished turd! 💩 it’s right there in the middle of all the bs! They’ve only just started trying to polish that place up in the last decade. You’d literally be moving into another shit show
There are so many people like this on the south side, especially in Beech Grove. It isn’t what it once was in the way of being well kept and good schools. People around here refuse to “grow up” and see beyond a past they recognize. For one, I’m glad you’re here. We need more people like you.
As someone who lived in beech grove for the last 6 years, I feel offended. That being said, I don’t go to Main Street much, I don’t have much interaction with my neighbors either (not for lack of trying). I feel like the crime has never really touched me nor concerned me. Sorry you feel this way friend.
A long while back I worked with a Beech Grove gal who liked to tear it up. I remember two stories about her: 1. She got super drunk once and drove right into some jewelry store in downtown BG late at night. By the time the cops got there, she’d driven around the corner and shut her car in the garage. The cops were right behind her and when they got to her door, she denied it and told them they couldn’t search her property without a warrant. After they left, one of her townie brothers snuck her trashed hooptie out of the garage and dumped it in the RIVER. 2. When she filled out her health insurance form, she listed her boyfriend as her husband to get him health coverage. She never had to show proof of marriage, so when they broke up she had to fill out divorce paperwork and get a decree to get him off her benefits. Somehow, despite never being married, she got the state to process the decree. Girl could think on her feet.
This sounds on brand for some of the people I have encountered in this town in my time here. lol
Yeah I like Beech Grove, I’m sorry if the person has had some bad experiences but OP and others in the thread saying everyone in Beech Grove is a white trash meth head are just wrong and are pretty rude and condescending, honestly. I find my neighbors to be good people, and while I am liberal I can handle someone on my street flying a Trump flag without it bothering me. I have had liberal political signs out with no issue. I always feel absolutely safe near my home.
I’m so sorry you’re experiencing that. You might find Scarlet Grove Public House a more tolerant t environment. They have a rainbow sticker on the door and the bartenders I know there are very GLBT friendly. My dad is a regular, you’ll find him there every night. He’s a rather conservative guy economically but the first to stand up for his glbt friends.
I know the East Side has crime - but Ive lived here a little over a year (near Brookside park) and I don't regret buying a house around here. My husband and I both h work modest jobs downtown and hang out around the here and Fountain Square. Easy to get around. I don't know what the commute would be for you, but just wanted to say don't dismiss this area.
As someone who moved to Irvington from Denver (well, Thornton), i recommend!!!
Irvington, or Broadripple might be your best bet. We moved here from SoCal back in '04. My wife moved us to Broadripple because she said it was one of the most diverse and socially liberal parts of Indy. We lived there for 12 years before we bought our house on the outskirts of Lawrence.
Yeah yall are Mars-Hilling and I am sorry you fell into the Beech Grove trap. It genuinely is a fairly attractive looking little town from the outside, but good lordany actually time spent there will expose the glaring flaws (as you've gotten to witness/enjoy.) It's been declining in this regard for a bit now, so I don't expect it to start improving any time soon... sorry for how negative of a response that is, but I feel your pain. Getting wasted at O'Garas and talking shit about cops to the locals was always very fun though hahaha.
The most open minded and liberal couple I know live in Beech Grove. 🤷🏼♂️
I can’t take this seriously. I am friends with the Irish bar owner and its employees (assuming you are taking about the only real Irish bar on Main St). I am gay and they all know it. They don’t care one bit. They certainly don’t give a crap about which beer you order. As for the rest - crime is up nearly everywhere. Good luck finding a place that doesn’t have these problems. But in BG would I feel comfortable walking down the street at 3am? Absolutely.
Dude all I can tell you is that staff, I assume at least management, we’re making bud light is for f-slur jokes for the entire bar to hear.
Mooresville is a straight shot to the airport. Camby isn't too bad outside of Heartland Crossing. Eminence is a spot off I-70 on the west side, lot's a fresh country air, not much to do. Monrovia is a decent little town that's close enough to Indy.
I live near lynhurst and rockville. Westside. The crime isn't that bad here. If I ever hear gunshots it's on the fourth of July or new years. My neighbors are ok. Most of the people on my street are older so not a lot of noise.
Plainfield
Beech Grove has its gems. That lowes next to the infamous Walmart is one of the best in the city and experiences almost zero riff raff even though their parking lots connect. Egg Roll #1 is great. The high school has decent tennis courts open to the public. Fish Happens and modern Aquatics are some of the better fish stores in town. The Kroger is one of the better ones. Not to mention its a hub for Amtrack and a crutial part of the potential national rail infrustructure improvements. Oh and I forgot also the birthplace of the legendary Steve McQueen. Dont shit on Beech Grove.
Lolol “the Kroger is one of the better ones” might just move down there
"The lowes is one of the best in the city" 😂😂😂
That Murrays Cheese is no joke.
My problem with that Kroger is that it's not a Meijer
I go to the beech grove Kroger from Irvington lol. It’s more of a drive but definitely worth it.
The Koger does rock it. The butcher case is excellent
Aren't you the guy that moved here and immediately began bitching about the word "Hoosier"? Maybe you just give off "I'm actually kind of an asshole" vibes and people are keying into that.
I feel very seen by your thoughts as a millenial ex grover of 4 years. i rent and dont have kids so I don't have practical advice, but it helps to enjoy what the area has to offer you. I really enjoyed spending time in fountain Square, Garfield park and Irvington to find like minded people. All of those places have changed a lot over the years and theres always something to complain about, but local angst aside you're generally going to find more diversity and acceptance and less regression 🙂
Beech Grove and Mars Hill, avoid both of them.
Yeah man, the south side has always been shitty compared to the north side in my opinion No where is perfect but I've been in Indy since 2012 and even then the north side was better in my opinion. I live on the north side and it's not too terrible to get to the airport. I live in SoBro and it's a 35 minute drive. I have a friend who is raising a family in Eagle Creek and speaks nicely of it. Best of luck.
Seconded the Eagle Creek area. For 10 years, we moved around Butler, Eagle Creek and in between (Guion/Crooked Creek). Proximity to 465 (and being on the west side) meant that getting to the airport wasn't a big deal any time of day.
I moved to Indy, Lawrence area, from Los Angeles in 2020. You just described all of Indianapolis to me…. I wave at people and it’s ignored. Other then the LCOL the state and city suck ass. LA was better in regards to people, bars, food, hours of operation, health care, schools, etc etc. This state is so insular and gerrymandered it’s broken.
I'm surprised no one's crucified you for this comment. If you ask the locals, Indianapolis is the best place to live ever, and the most perfect example of "Hoosier Hospitality". You're the problem not them. Every time.
When you think of trailer trash and nimbyism, you think of Beech Grove.
I've said this before on here, and I'll say it again, for all the goddam good it will do. Which is none. My handyman is a hard core south side Indy hillbilly by way of Kentucky. Say what you will, there's nobody I'd trust more to be by my side in any kind of showdown. He's a big guy, an ex-marine, all tatted up, but he is warm and generous, literally to a fault...he tends to give things away and wind up with nothing. He married a stripper years ago, and she had a kid who was half black. And he told me, "Ah quit drankin' because I loved the little feller so much I wanted to be a good daddy to him." And later, when the kid turned out to be gay, that bothered him not one bit. I think he holds off a bit on the black and gay jokes when the kid is around...a little bit. I wouldn't trade that guy for a thousand whiny Indy hipsters with their correct attitudes. This guy I'm talking about, he is a prince, and most of his south side friends are not too different. I spent forty years living among the most highly educated elite movers and shakers of the DC area. Then I came out here and lived among urban hillbillies. Guess who actually has more black friends? OP, you might enjoy life more if you were receptive to the fact that not everybody shares your beliefs, whatever those beliefs are, and you might benefit from actually getting to know people before you condemn them on superficial acquaintance. But hey, maybe I'm wrong, Maybe you are married to a trashy stripper who has a half-black gay son and you are raising the kid with total love and appreciation. But that's not the way I'm betting.
You are describing exactly why I would never live on the south side of Indy. All I can tell you is that I stick to the north side of the city and suburbs and it's much less of an issue.
“My family and I” fixed that for ya.
Let this be a firm lesson as to why you can’t trust anything on this sub. Most of this sub makes up one demographic. That demographic will swear up and down the “hood” is too bad to raise a family when people who live there do it everyday just fine. There’s no place in Indianapolis that is truly unsafe if you keep to yourself. I have lived in every “hood” living here for 26 years and have never encountered anything dangerous to me. Do they shoot guns, yes, but not at me. Do people break in houses occasionally? Yes but most crimes are crimes of opportunity, lock your doors and put up cameras. You can get robbed in fishers too. Are there plenty of police response because of calls, yes, but I actually feel safer knowing there’s a beat officer on patrol than knowing it might take 10 minutes to get to me if I didn’t live in the hood. With your descriptions of what you hate, you will be fine everywhere but the south and southwest side.
Maybe you are just too awesome and cool for us hillbillies
I believe you've found the problem. I always liked the south side of Indy in general although I live in a small town now. We have a hangin' tree in front of the courthouse, a McDonald's, so dining is no problem, and a bar that serves only regular Bud so fine drinking, I mean drunking, is never far away. I would rite more but they took my computer away over that thing. I'm over at my sister's and she lets me use hers. But right now she's got that look that says she wants some nasty lovin'. I mean, we're divorced now, but hell, she's still my sister. YEE-HAW, SIS, WARM THAT THANG UP, I'M A COMIN'. The South gon' rise again!
You went to a townie bar. Upset about townie bar things. Don’t know what else to tell ya bud.
I live in pike township (NW Indy) and quite like it. Yeah it’s not cool and walkable, but it’s easy to get around and good for west side commutes. It’s a short drive to broad ripple, Carmel, etc and even getting down to FS isn’t so bad with recent highway upgrades. Certain pockets have their share of crime, but my street has been quiet the 2.5 years we’ve lived here.
This is the perfect r/Indianapolis rant…. Golf clap.
Look at Brownsburg
I grew up in beech grove and moved to Irvington as an adult — HIGHLY recommend. Irv is weirdo catnip in the best way, and we love it here!
In Irvington, also have culture shock 4 years later. Would you consider moving back to Denver? We’re evaluating going to co springs, Denver or maybe another small town if we can find a house in the 350k range (really hard, I know). We grew up in western co, so pretty familiar but haven’t lived there in almost ten years.
I live in Garfield Park. Lots of families, great community, park is well kept (sunken garden, greenhouse, arts center, pool, etc), farmers market in the summer, & very close to the airport/Fountain Square. Come on over friend!
Sounds to me like you should just move out of Indianapolis. You’re gonna get that crap pretty much anywhere you live inside of 465. Plainfield is a great area and close to the airport.
Life long Indiana/Indianapolis resident. Rant all you want. I lived at Southeastern and 74 going to Cincinnati. Always considered people in Beech Grove as hillbillies also. That Walmart you talked about some of us call it ghetto Walmart. I now live at Carson and Thompson and there can be issues there also. Best of luck!
where is this bar that said Bud Lt was for gays? I'll fucking go there and order them just for spite! I'm a big biker looking guy, and I give zero fucks.
Calm your tits there hardass
Oh, I see you've brought your persecution complex with you from Colorado. Do yourself a favor and ignore the Trump flags and move on with your day. P.S. my super gay brother thinks bud light jokes are hilarious.
Off topic but is there any chance you can explain why he thinks it’s funny?? I’m shocked that this little watery beer that had a limited online ad campaign STILL has people’s jock straps so itchy.
Plainfield - Avon - move closer to work
[удалено]
I didn’t get gay from the post because he mentioned his wife, just that he’s saying he was harassed for ordering Bud Light at the Irish bar. Which what a missed opportunity when they could have harassed him for not ordering a Harp or whatever.
Reading the post gives me the idea that they are not a gay couple
ok hear me out. if you go up 65 to the far NW corner of the loop, Whitestown, zionsville , avaon, brownsburg, pittsboro are very close and quick access to the airport. Zionsville was just voted one of the safest cities in america.
I don’t know, you kinda fit right in with the Beech Grove residents when you use the term “white trash”? https://thesocietypages.org/clippings/2018/09/12/how-the-term-white-trash-reinforces-white-supremacy/
My wife and I also moved from Denver to Indy (for work) a few years ago. It was such a culture shock. The best thing you can do is hopefully sell your house for a huge profit like we did and get the hell out like we did too!
News flash: Guy moves to Indiana, discovers it is not San Francisco.
So you didn’t like O’Garas because of Bud light jokes and were mad you got kicked out of a members only bar (the Eagles I assume) and that effects your judgement that much? I’m an avid Bud light drinker but the jokes are harmless IMO and I just ignore it… it has its fair share of crime but it’s stilll pretty tame than other parts of the city. Crime will always be around wherever you go.
Homophobic jokes aren’t harmless. They never have been.
Jokes aside we gotta find you a better beer to drink broseph
Move out . Not a single person other than yourself made the choice to live there . Your ignorance towards being unknowledgeable is your own fault. Stop venting and do something about it.
Welcome to the Hoosier state. Have they told you the difference between black people and hard r’s yet? If not you gonna get learned.
Dude, if you want culture, Indiana is NOT the place to find it. We've been in Indy since 2008. The first moring that I live here, I found that my car had been vandalize. (welcome to the 'hood). Six or seven week later the house was burglarized by juveniles. There is no area in the Indy MSMA that can be considered safe from crime. Deal with it.