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by clauretano 4933 days ago
[citation needed] re: Belltown crime.

SLU is a former industrial neighborhood now filled with Amazon offices and cookie-cutter apartments. Basically the positive there is that you're close to work, the neighborhood itself is severely lacking in culture.

2 comments

Belltown is "dangerous" only for people who have never lived in a city with a real dangerous neighborhood. I have never so much as felt even uncomfortable walking around Belltown alone at night. I can't say the same about most downtowns of other cities I've been in, let alone sketchier neighborhoods.

Maybe I've just been desensitized, but I really feel like there is no cause for alarm in Belltown.

It's relative -- among Seattle hoods, I would (anecdotally and out of my ass, of course) say there is more violent crime there than in others. I'm also a fairly big guy and I've felt uncomfortable plenty of times there at night when the streets are semi-abandoned.

In the past year I've seen ambulances taking away normal citizens who've been beat down (twice) and I've had a stabbing perp run by me as he was chased by the cops. And this is with me almost never going to Belltown. I've never seen anything remotely like that while I lived in First or Capitol Hill (although I've definitely seen plenty of car break-ins).

I just moved from SOMA in SF to Belltown. Feels like Disneyland.
I have worked in or around Belltown for years. My feelings are...mixed. There is a lot of minor urban annoyances. Panhandlers, junkies, drug deals, public urination, etc. I don't feel unsafe (in daylight hours) but it does feel sort of bleak and depressing.

I respect that other people have different tolerances for urban annoyances.