Kind of a spinoff - how walkable is your neighborhood?

[Brenda]

I came across Walk Score (http://www.walkscore.com/), and thought of the "how much do you drive" thread. I thought it would interesting to see how walkable where we live is.

My neighborhood scored an 85/100, but I think it should be a little higher because it was missing the 3 closest coffee shops (2 blocks away) and 2 closest bookstores (2 and 3 blocks away).

[threecubs]

I came across Walk Score (http://www.walkscore.com/), and thought of the "how much do you drive" thread. I thought it would interesting to see how walkable where we live is.

My neighborhood scored an 85/100, but I think it should be a little higher because it was missing the 3 closest coffee shops (2 blocks away) and 2 closest bookstores (2 and 3 blocks away).

My neighborhood scored a whopping 14/100! It's very nice for taking walks, but not for walking to shops/stores/restaurants.

Out of curiosity, I plugged in our old address, and it got a 34/100. I do miss walking there! They had just put in a new bookstore by the university and there were nice little shops all around, and an older restaurant/shopping area as well. The neighborhood wasn't as safe for walking, however. A lot of uncontrolled intersections and cars whizzing around in the residential areas.

[darcy]

Mine's not bad, 65/100. Salt Lake has really good public transportation though, so that helps a lot. I don't own a car at all, so everything has to be in walking or public transit distance for me!

[collier]

75 out of 100. I think that is low and it is really 95 out of 100. We walk (or can walk) to: the grocery, the library, the ymca, the hardware store, the coffee shop, dozens of independent restaurants, 2 or the three elementary schools, one charter school, the list could go on and on.

I define walkable as within a mile and a half. FWIW, the grocery, library, and ymca are with 1/2 mile.

That is why we live here.

[Rosemary]

My current hood scored 88/100
My new hood scored 66/100

But it appears that they don't consider things more than a mile walkable. Not my reality.

[Anne]

My neighborhood scored a whopping 14/100! It's very nice for taking walks, but not for walking to shops/stores/restaurants.


My neighborhood scored the same 14/100. And I was going to type the same t hing--it's a lovely neighborhood for taking walks, but not for getting to stores or anything else.

[MorgnsGrl]

Ours is 35, but I don't think it's entirely accurate. The "park" that is closest is actually the city public parks department *office*, not a park. The "book store" is a Christian supply/bookstore that's in the process of closing. The "movie theater" is a Lighting Supply store. (???) It's a great neighborhood for walking, but the useful places that are within reasonable DISTANCE are only accessible by traveling on a very busy street with no sidewalks.

Interesting site, though!

[Jill]

We got a nine. Not even sure how we scored that high LOL....
It must be becasue of the parks.

[aleutsi]

They counted a realty office as a hardware store and a gas station as a grocery, LOL! Plus there are no sidewalks going to the places listed, you have to walk through rough terrain to get there - stepping out into traffic at times and along busy roads with high speed limits (45mph/40mph) that many drive at least 10mph over.

Now my dream addy to live: Main Beach Laguna Beach CA = 98/100 - very spot on!

[Mumbly]

Our neighborhood scored 35/100, but there are several walkable places listed that have closed. Albertson's closed which eliminates a grocery store and drug store less than a mile away, they have listed a nonexistant coffee shop and a nonexistant bookstore. They have the library 1.52 miles away but that's as the crow flies-it's actually about 3 miles away because the highway is in between. Jamba Juice is listed as a bar 1.56 miles away, but it's actually 3-4 miles from us.
From our neighborhood we can easily walk to one park, several schools, a convenience store, movie theater, and several restaurants. A lot of the places they have listed are across the highway and are a lot further away than what they are saying.
At the moment there is road construction just outside of our neighborhood so walking anywhere is difficult at best. Of the two entrances into our neighborhood 1/2 of one is open now and to immediate south the road is closed for 1/2 a mile and to the north there's all sorts of road work on either side of the road.

[Meagan]

I came across Walk Score (http://www.walkscore.com/), and thought of the "how much do you drive" thread. I thought it would interesting to see how walkable where we live is.

).

Mine is a 66/100, but it's missing quite a few restaurants and schools within easy walking distance. However, it also counted Quik Stop as a food market (not really...) and Waldenbooks. Waldenbooks? I didn't even know those still existed.

[Jengirl]

xx

[lunita]

Okay, it really messed mine up -- I got a 43/100 but that's overinflated.

The "grocery store" in walking distance is a tiny convenience store.

The "movie theater" is the community theater group housed at our local community center (actually a closed-down high school that community groups use mostly for sporting events). LOL.

The "library" is the school district film library at the school district office, which I didn't know existed. I must be where district teachers can check out educational films for their classes or something???

The "bookstore" is someone's house. What the heck? I think they must have a specialty mail order or online book business.

The "hardware store" isn't really. They sell redwood lumber and redwood products.

Oh, and the "fitness center" is a YMCA location that seems to primarily be a daycare center (after school care). They also run youth sports programs (at other locations) and coordinate swim lessons at pools belonging to various local high schools.

It's all very misleading.

[azul99]

The calculator left out some things less than a mile away, and we have lots of things about a mile away that weren't included at all.

[Tracy]

23/100 so I guess not very! Besides, 8 months out of the year it's too hot too walk around here so I give it a big fat zero.

[Seppie]

Mine scored 80/100 but I think that's really low.

They missed the Whole Foods that is 2 blocks away, and the Dairy Queen that is just a few blocks farther. They also missed at least 5 restaurants (but got the McDonalds, YUCK!), and my yoga studio, which is actually closer than the one they listed. We live in a really cool neighborhood that is right off the main drag, but tucked away so it's totally safe for the kids to play in the yard, etc.

We're just a couple of blocks from the 6+ mile bike trail that connects the east and west sides of town. And some of you might remember that we live right around the corner from my mom's, too.

If I figure out how to do it, I'll post a picture I took last week of the kids with our wagon full of groceries -- we can even walk to do our big shopping trips!

September

[Christi]

LOL! Zero here, too.

[Sue]

2/100. It should be lower because we live up a steep windy hill with no sidewalks tha tpeople regularly drive 40 mphs on for the nearst convience store (1 mile away)

[Holly]

My town scored a 45 but really I think that it should be higher. While I cannot walk to a large grocery store....we have a drug store that carries almost any grocery item I would need, as well as two convenience stores. I can walk to the bank, post office, schools, park, hardware store, swim club, little Mom/Pop diner, dairy bar. I absolutely cannot swim across the Ohio River for the nearest Kroger and library--although both are (on my side of the river) on the bus route.

[kokoro]

I got 0 out of 100 but my initial response was that it is a great place to walk! I didn't get the point at first. Our neighborhood rocks for taking walks. You can walk to many places of business, though. there are a few I could walk to but it wouldn't be anything practical. LOL!

[kokoro]

xx

Yeah, well, isn't your driveway along hundreds of miles long. ;)

[JaamE]

if i read it right we got a 0 :-)

[Peggyann]

25/100 for where we live now

78/100 for where we lived in Albany

But that should be much lower, considering how you have to dodge gangs and drug dealers in Albany.

I'd rather live somewhere safe and drive, tyvm :)

~PA~

[cinnamon]

OH COME ON, Holly. Excuses excuses. :P nt

[cinnamon]

Mine scored 80/100 but I think that's really low.

They missed the Whole Foods that is 2 blocks away, and the Dairy Queen that is just a few blocks farther. They also missed at least 5 restaurants (but got the McDonalds, YUCK!), and my yoga studio, which is actually closer than the one they listed. We live in a really cool neighborhood that is right off the main drag, but tucked away so it's totally safe for the kids to play in the yard, etc.

We're just a couple of blocks from the 6+ mile bike trail that connects the east and west sides of town. And some of you might remember that we live right around the corner from my mom's, too.

If I figure out how to do it, I'll post a picture I took last week of the kids with
our wagon full of groceries -- we can even walk to do our big shopping trips!

September

I'm putting mine here because from this description, I think my neighborhood is very similar to Seppie's. :) Mine scored 65, which (to echo many others here) seems low. It is a short, easy, sidewalks 90% of the way (the rest is parking lot walking) walk (we're talking 5-10 minutes max) to a small kiddie playground, the grocery, drugstore, banks, shopping center with Old Navy etc, lots of restaurants (both locally owned and chains), massage therapists, veterinarians, dry cleaners, convenience store, gym, dentists, doctors etc etc etc. Granted, it's *NOT* a cute, eclectic, hip business district but it absolutely meets our needs and wants.

We walk to the elementary school 1 mile away, and although it's not all sidewalk, the streets are quiet enough that we can walk/bike without fear of anyone getting hurt. Tomorrow (if it doesn't rain!) we are going to walk to the city library (1.4 miles away) which I challenged myself to find in the other thread LOL, and I think this walk will be very similar to the walk to the school. And actually, this library is located in one of those 'cute' business districts, and I'm excited to see what we find there! I know there is a local bakery. :yum:

Seppie, I would love to see your grocery wagon pic! I definitely want to do this when Lucy is a little older.

Brenda, thank you for this! It's been so neat!

[Sarah]

52 here. I would have put it higher.

[hamamelis]

It said a 3 for us, but I disagree with that and would give it a 0. The places they have listed as hardware stores and bookstores aren't. And the little general store they said was 1.87 miles away is more like 4 or 5.

[Hawthorne]

Mine is 83/100, because we're downtown. That still excludes a few things, but I would imagine if one was commited to it, you could get most of what you need downtown.

[gfrach]

78 is what it said for mine.

[libbylibbylibby]

I was trying to figure that out myself?
I think we are pretty darn walkable -- at least, all the people I see hauling their groceries home from Market Basket seem to think so, but you and I scored about the same, and where could we walk to from your house? Haffner's? Even the Dollar Tree and Dunky's were on a road that was so busy!

[Artemis]

72 out of 100. We are in an urban beach city. And it should have scored much higher...it missed several things that are just a few blocks away. The only thing that is just a tad too far to walk to is Whole Foods, which is about 3.5 miles.

[bannanabette]

95 out of 100 for me - honestly, I'm not sure what I'd need to do to be at 100!

Actually, now that I look at the data that the site gave, it's really wrong - very out of date. It ignores the fact that there's a playground/park literally 20 feet from the front door and a grocery store on the opposite corner.

I didn't answer the other poll, but not counting vacations, I probably average less than 10 minutes a month in an actual automobile of any kind, including cabs (I've been in a cab exactly twice this year so far). I regularly walk about 10-20 miles a week (maybe less in winter).

[Debra]

I came across Walk Score (http://www.walkscore.com/), and thought of the "how much do you drive" thread. I thought it would interesting to see how walkable where we live is.

My neighborhood scored an 85/100, but I think it should be a little higher because it was missing the 3 closest coffee shops (2 blocks away) and 2 closest bookstores (2 and 3 blocks away).

Hmmm, I don't think it's accurate. I looked at the expanded listing of things near me and it missed a lot of stuff (some are newer, some aren't). It gave me a 15/100. My guess is we are closer to 30/100.

[Nancy]

Yeah, mine was exactly like that as well, the "fitness center" they listed is a person who runs summertime swim lessons and doesn't actually have a building to go to, she rotates in differerent pools! The bookstore wasn't one, the coffeeshop is an overpriced smoothie place, etc. They did peg my beloved wine bar though, (2 miles away), which we've often threatened to ride our horses to, just so we can hitch them outside and freak everyone out!!

It gave us a 2, but I'd vote 0 as well.

Funny thing for me, though, is that I don't find most of the "amenities" necessary or anything I would walk to. I'm pretty content to stay home, driving only when necessary for work and visiting friends. Unfortunately visiting friends is not walkable, and work requires lots of driving, some of the time, so that my clients dont' have to drive anywhere.

[BlueMama]

Mine's 54, but it calculated the wrong shopping center. There is one that is much more convenient, but I guess it might be further away? It's only about 2 miles away and has Grocery, liquor, video, dry cleaners, pharmacy, shipping store, toy store, vet, orthodontist, 2 doctors offices, insurance, auto repair, oil change, 2 gas stations, etc. We bike there frequently.

My "town" is set up like that - each Village has a Village Center that is the "hub" of the area with food & supplies. Fairly large shopping areas. There's a main shopping center called Market Street that is central, but closer to the freeway, that has even better shopping. *Everything* is connected by bike paths!

[Brenda]

Hmmm, I don't think it's accurate. I looked at the expanded listing of things near me and it missed a lot of stuff (some are newer, some aren't). It gave me a 15/100. My guess is we are closer to 30/100.

It was fairly accurate for around me, but it looks like it isn't accurate overall for a lot of places. That is too bad because I think it is a neat tool.

[Hobbes]

Walker's Paradise Baby!!! 92!

I always new it. I mean I've got a knitting store just 4 blocks away, not to mention I don't know how many restaurants, library, museums, grocery stores, pet store, post office, etc, etc. all less than 5 minute walk :D

[Kathy]

I came across Walk Score (http://www.walkscore.com/), and thought of the "how much do you drive" thread. I thought it would interesting to see how walkable where we live is.

My neighborhood scored an 85/100, but I think it should be a little higher because it was missing the 3 closest coffee shops (2 blocks away) and 2 closest bookstores (2 and 3 blocks away).

We scored 51/100, which is certainly better than the old house at 34/100 - and I think that's *very* high for the old neighborhood. There was almost nothing less than a mile away, and very little useful at the one mile mark, either.

[Cat]

82/100. I think this may be low, though.

You can walk from our house to 4 grocery stores (including TJ and Whole Foods), public library, 2 movie theaters, bowling alley, Jewish Community Center (with indoor pool), 2 different commercial fitness centers, 2 big bookstores (a B&N and a Borders) and several independents, a record store, 2 game stops, tons of restaurants, clothing stores, jewelry stores, furniture stores, ethnic food stores, ice cream, coffee (independent and starbucks), movie rental, etc. We're located an easy (say 10-15 minutes) walk between the business districts of 2 different neighborhoods, so lots of choices. It would take about 20-30 minutes to walk the Natural History/Art museum and the biggest of the 3 universities within walking distance, but it's about 8 minutes on a bus that runs really frequently all day.

[elizabeth]

I came across Walk Score (http://www.walkscore.com/), and thought of the "how much do you drive" thread. I thought it would interesting to see how walkable where we live is.

My neighborhood scored an 85/100, but I think it should be a little higher because it was missing the 3 closest coffee shops (2 blocks away) and 2 closest bookstores (2 and 3 blocks away).

My neighborhood scored a 29, and that seems accurate, but they listed one restaurant as .42 miles away. Sure, if I have a boat! There's a major river to cross in there. The .42 miles is as the crow flies, I think I drive about 5 miles to get there.

They also list a grocery store that I have never heard of, and when I check the address, it's a house, and I know the people who live there and they don't run a grocery store out of their basement or garage!

They also list a movie theater in a place that is not zoned for commerical buildings, I think, judging by the name, it's a video to dvd conversion company run out of someone's home.

[mudcreekmama]

This really didn't work for me, my address (my whole town) scored a 3 because so few businesses are listed publically. But the reality is I live on the furthest edge of town and nothing is more that 1.5 km away and I live in a fair trade town full of organic groceries, coffee shops, fair trade clothing stores, a weekly farmer's market etc - and there is a university dead centre in town so you can imagine all the student services, restaurants, pubs, etc there are.

For "parks" it only lists the big provincial parks which are all far away but 2 km away is a HUGE provincial park/historical site/wetland) and we are surrounded by wild land, dykes, and a seaway to the ocean that is all public lands I can walk along this land for less than 3 km and be on the ocean! My town has the smallest port in the world. We have an orchard literally across the street which is open to the public as park land and if you cross it they even have a little amusement park there with a petting zoo, minigolf, paddle boats, and there is a huge swath of forested parkland in the middle of town (3 minute walk away) full of walking trails and it leads down to the university's arbouretum. So it really doesn't matter me to that Walmart is 6 km away (which is like another world away we live in such a micro culture here)

Pedestrians are GODS in this town - your street might not get plowed right away but by golly they'll make 4 passes on the sidewalks during the day!

I came across Walk Score (http://www.walkscore.com/), and thought of the "how much do you drive" thread. I thought it would interesting to see how walkable where we live is.

My neighborhood scored an 85/100, but I think it should be a little higher because it was missing the 3 closest coffee shops (2 blocks away) and 2 closest bookstores (2 and 3 blocks away).

Oh and I forgot to mention that it is considered to be so safe for walking there is no school bussing in town limits - none. My Girl walks to and from school on her own daily and its clar on the other side of town - 40 minute walk

[indigo]

I came across Walk Score (http://www.walkscore.com/), and thought of the "how much do you drive" thread. I thought it would interesting to see how walkable where we live is.

My neighborhood scored an 85/100, but I think it should be a little higher because it was missing the 3 closest coffee shops (2 blocks away) and 2 closest bookstores (2 and 3 blocks away).

It should be much lower. It's true that lots of shops are very close to my house. But you can't walk to them! You'd have to cross a 4 lane road with a speed limit of 55 that has no crosswalks!!

Like others said, it's a wonderful place for taking walks. There is a greenway that goes behind my neighborhood and it's lovely. You'd never know how close you were to so much traffic! There's wildlife and creeks and trees, etc. But I can't walk safely to any store.

[Dena]

Big goose egg here too. Which is reason number ONE that I want to move! I hate that I don't have ANYWHERE to walk to.

[sarahrose]

Honestly if i really wanted to walk I could but it's so darn hilly here that if I went to the grocery store listed I's have to walk up a whopping huge hill to get home. If I lived closer to down town I may walk to little shops or what not but not to do any major shopping. Unfortunalty my town has not tried to make their downtown shopping area viable. It's really struggling.

[Jessica]

57/100 Pretty close to what I would have rated it. Although the bookstore is closed and so is one of the restaurants.

[kathy caribe]

If they had data for us (and I didn't even check, but I'm pretty sure Mexico isn't in their database) we'd be a zero, but what Mexico does have going for it is the amazing public transportation. You can cab, colectivo or bus anywhere.

[MadAboutYou]

We got a nine. Not even sure how we scored that high LOL....
It must be becasue of the parks.

About a mile and a half away is everything you could want, several stores, lots of coffee places, etc. About 3 miles away is a huge mall and a Costco, etc.

We are a very residental neighborhood but still in the city and, I think, pretty close to stuff. Maybe not close enough to walk, but just barely, and definitely close enough to bike.

[~k~]

I came across Walk Score (http://www.walkscore.com/), and thought of the "how much do you drive" thread. I thought it would interesting to see how walkable where we live is.

My neighborhood scored an 85/100, but I think it should be a little higher because it was missing the 3 closest coffee shops (2 blocks away) and 2 closest bookstores (2 and 3 blocks away).

That's funny - I would have thought my walk score would be higher because I have so many things within a mile, but most of those things are in the 3/4 mile range, which I guess must have brought it down? We had a 45, which they consider "not walkable"... but we walk to things relatively often. We would be rocking on a bikeability score, I think.

Pretty cool site.

[Annamarie]

mine too.

[Amylita]

It says my town is 60/100 but that is so not right. I am within a couple miles of lots of stuff but there are virtually no sidewalks, busy streets and a highway between me and a bunch of that. We walk to the park thats half a mile away because we can cut across sports fields to get there. If we had to take the street we wouldn't do it. I'd give my town a 30/100 in reality.

[Amanda_Reyasmom]

I came across Walk Score (http://www.walkscore.com/), and thought of the "how much do you drive" thread. I thought it would interesting to see how walkable where we live is.

My neighborhood scored an 85/100, but I think it should be a little higher because it was missing the 3 closest coffee shops (2 blocks away) and 2 closest bookstores (2 and 3 blocks away).

My neighborhood got a 20/100. I'd say that's about right. If we HAD to we'd be able to get most places, but it would be highly inconvenient.

[mudcreekmama]

Yeah I'm wondering how close do things have to be to be considered walkable??? My town is self sufficient a selection of restaurants, grocery stores, drug stores, hospitals and medical facilities, schools, university, public buildings like movie rental places a movie thewatre, libraries, sports facilities etc etc etc and everything is within a 3km radius which is what 2 miles - and we got 3/100???

[Hobbes]

I came across Walk Score (http://www.walkscore.com/), and thought of the "how much do you drive" thread. I thought it would interesting to see how walkable where we live is.

My neighborhood scored an 85/100, but I think it should be a little higher because it was missing the 3 closest coffee shops (2 blocks away) and 2 closest bookstores (2 and 3 blocks away).
They say there are problems with their methods: http://www.walkscore.com/how-it-doesnt-work.shtml

like it does "crow flies" so lakes and highways are mistakenly not considered impediments and they are looking into using google's driving directions to fix that.

also, they acknowledge that they use Google's API and that it is often not uptodate or misidentified.

So, that seems to explain why some people (like me, it actually missed 24hr Fitness just 3 blocks from here and several restaurants and two food shops, etc) think it underestimated and other overestimated.

Still, I think it's a great tool to get a relative feel for a neighborhood.

[candeo]

94/100- Walkers' Paradise! And that's without even counting the fact that I can walk to a little monkey's house. nt

[mudcreekmama]

But I also think it is using a consumerist mindset. To live in a walkable community just how many grocery stores do you need? Restaurants, etc?

[Ali]

Oy! Mine is a 3. I knew it would be bad where we are. You have to drive to everything!

[Nancy]

I had the same thought process, but kept it to myself! But now that it's out there, honestly the whole idea of a community being somehow "better" because you can walk to the coffee shop (when I can make coffee at home for 1/2 the cost and no disposable cups) and the fitness center (when I can and do run up my hill...free!) and the bookstore (when I have a library for free, no fees EVER because it is community run), etc, etc. I think that you can get yourself into a whole "I'm better....mindset" either way you look at it.

I personally think where/how you live is very very personal. I have had people come to my home (cough, cough) who FREAK out because I have no curtains and that's weird to many, but I get a feeling of true claustrophobia when I'm in a neighborhood where I can see everyone's backyards and curtains are required for privacy! Is my way better? Clearly it is NOT for those who like the convenience of walking to the store and the social benefits of close neighbors. But I personally don't see the factor of being able to walk to (TO ME) unnecessary places being a benefit. Nowhere on their list did it realize that I can walk up my hill and collect eggs every single day....or that I have 3 freezers full of beef, chicken, and pork available....yada yada yada.

Sometimes I take these things too seriously, I just saw this website as sort of a superiority thing and it probably wasn't designed that way.

[Hobbes]

But I also think it is using a consumerist mindset. To live in a walkable community just how many grocery stores do you need? Restaurants, etc?
true.. it does put some emphasis on shops...

though I like having a choice of two dozen restaurants within 1/4 mile :D :yum:

Though, looking at the algorithm a little closer it does seem that it's not an additive value, it levels off quite quickly for one type of place when it adds points (3 restaurants seem to do it). Also, in their defense they include schools, YMCAs, post offices, libraries, churches, parks and other very important things to living in a 'walkable' neighborhood.

My neighborhood has a lot of shops within walking distance, but it has also several parks, churches, the main library, a post office, two elementary schools, several adult education venues and other things.

What I'd like too see is a change that allows you to discount specific types of places and see how the score changes. Some people don't care if there is a school nearby and others might not really NEED all those restaurants :).. but not sure how that'd work mathematically.

[Storymama]

The neighborhood is very walkable, but it doesn't freaking GO anywhere. I'm on a military base separated from the actual community by a lot. Ultimately, that adds up to Not Walkable At All, under the guidelines used by that site. Our place in Florida was the same way. Insular housing development, no services. Grrrr, I hate that.

[cinnamon]

I had the same thought process, but kept it to myself! But now that it's out there, honestly the whole idea of a community being somehow "better" because you can walk to the coffee shop (when I can make coffee at home for 1/2 the cost and no disposable cups) and the fitness center (when I can and do run up my hill...free!) and the bookstore (when I have a library for free, no fees EVER because it is community run), etc, etc. I think that you can get yourself into a whole "I'm better....mindset" either way you look at it.

I personally think where/how you live is very very personal. I have had people come to my home (cough, cough) who FREAK out because I have no curtains and that's weird to many, but I get a feeling of true claustrophobia when I'm in a neighborhood where I can see everyone's backyards and curtains are required for privacy! Is my way better? Clearly it is NOT for those who like the convenience of walking to the store and the social benefits of close neighbors. But I personally don't see the factor of being able to walk to (TO ME) unnecessary places being a benefit. Nowhere on their list did it realize that I can walk up my hill and collect eggs every single day....or that I have 3 freezers full of beef, chicken, and pork available....yada yada yada.

Sometimes I take these things too seriously, I just saw this website as sort of a superiority thing and it probably wasn't designed that way.

I do think it is relative, i.e. there is no across-the-board "BEST" place to live. It absolutely depends on what YOU consider valuable.

For ME and my family, the pros of living in the country (beautiful land, quiet, room to roam) did not outweigh the negatives (the huge amount of time and money spent commuting and not enough friends/social opportunities nearby).

Edited because I had to run before I finished my thought, which Trey kinda touched on below:

The website Brenda shared wasn't billed as a "Best Community" score... in spite of the site's shortcomings, it was scoring communities based on whether or not you could walk to places, and so a rural community (where people probably live on acreage, the houses are far apart, it's not close to a city/town on purpose) isn't going to score highly. That doesn't mean that a rural area is a BAD place to live, or that a walkable area is a GOOD place to live, it just means that if you're interested in walking to shopping, errands, community events etc well then yes, a place with a higher walk score might be better than one with a low score. I don't see how that's a value judgement?

I also agree that it wasn't just "consumerist" features that were incorporated in that score- schools, parks, public spaces, libraries, workplaces were in theory being counted, too. (Obviously from the replies here, the algorithm doesn't necessarily catch all of those!) And I'm a little perplexed about the consumerism thing- regardless of whether you buy your coffee by the cup at the coffee shop or by the bag through your organic co-op, you are still *buying* the coffee.... so aren't we *ALL* consumers?

[Hobbes]

I had the same thought process, but kept it to myself! But now that it's out there, honestly the whole idea of a community being somehow "better" because you can walk to the coffee shop (when I can make coffee at home for 1/2 the cost and no disposable cups) and the fitness center (when I can and do run up my hill...free!) and the bookstore (when I have a library for free, no fees EVER because it is community run), etc, etc. I think that you can get yourself into a whole "I'm better....mindset" either way you look at it.

I personally think where/how you live is very very personal. I have had people come to my home (cough, cough) who FREAK out because I have no curtains and that's weird to many, but I get a feeling of true claustrophobia when I'm in a neighborhood where I can see everyone's backyards and curtains are required for privacy! Is my way better? Clearly it is NOT for those who like the convenience of walking to the store and the social benefits of close neighbors. But I personally don't see the factor of being able to walk to (TO ME) unnecessary places being a benefit. Nowhere on their list did it realize that I can walk up my hill and collect eggs every single day....or that I have 3 freezers full of beef, chicken, and pork available....yada yada yada.

Sometimes I take these things too seriously, I just saw this website as sort of a superiority thing and it probably wasn't designed that way.
It is relative, and I for one wouldn't mind either a very walkable urban area or a very peaceful rural spot. Either one works for me.

I think it's missing the point of this site though. It's not about commercialism, though shops are definitely included, it also includes libraries, schools, churches, parks and all the other great free stuff within walking distance, including community.

But I agree, some people would prefer rural home with acreage (put me there as 50/50) and other would prefer suburbia (or we wouldn't have millions and millions of suburban developments).

There is definitely some advantages to living in a walkable urban neighborhood. Walk more (fitness), drive less (financial, environment), community, but I see advantages of living in rural places like being outside more, being a bit more self-sufficient, less crime, quiet, community.

There definitely is a drive (pun unintended) for people to buy homes in more 'walkable' areas, these don't have to be urban, I've seen a lot of very walkable villages in rural areas and suburbs (Pittsford NY was perfect for that). With gas prices, environmental concerns and health concerns, houses are selling better when they are in 'walkable' areas.

[Jeb]

Edited! I'll be! I can add my address provided I add the country too. Shock...we rate 0%. While all we can do outside our door is either walk or drive, nothing is within walking distance. We have forests and farms galore around us, but nothing else. It's safe any time of night or day. But it's still not near a store or any place of business.

[Bonny]

I came across Walk Score (http://www.walkscore.com/), and thought of the "how much do you drive" thread. I thought it would interesting to see how walkable where we live is.

My neighborhood scored an 85/100, but I think it should be a little higher because it was missing the 3 closest coffee shops (2 blocks away) and 2 closest bookstores (2 and 3 blocks away).


I got a 49/100, but like yours, it missed several things - all of them, I think, being the smaller mom & pop businesses. I think that if it hadn't just included the bigger chain businesses, my location would have scored quite a bit higher.

[Bonny]

75 out of 100. I think that is low and it is really 95 out of 100. We walk (or can walk) to: the grocery, the library, the ymca, the hardware store, the coffee shop, dozens of independent restaurants, 2 or the three elementary schools, one charter school, the list could go on and on.

I define walkable as within a mile and a half. FWIW, the grocery, library, and ymca are with 1/2 mile.

That is why we live here.

now that you mention it, the ymca isn't listed on mine, either, and it it quite a bit closer than several that are listed (which I've never heard of LOL)

[Sarah]

I got a 49/100, but like yours, it missed several things - all of them, I think, being the smaller mom & pop businesses. I think that if it hadn't just included the bigger chain businesses, my location would have scored quite a bit higher.

On mine it neglected the huge grocery store two blocks away, the YMCA around the corner, three coffee shops, two bookstores and four salons. Two parks. An organic veggie store.

But it did give us a movie theater that doesn't exist and a 'grocery' that is really a corner store. :dunno: :rofl:

It was kind of fun to see the things it did pick up that I honestly didn't even consider -- the pet store, the feed store, the race track, the two hockey rinks.

[mirage1]

Mine scored a 44... I could think it should be higher because there is just about everything you could ever need within 3 miles, including job opportunities. Here's a quick list of what I know is within 1.5 miles:

Two parks
Safeway, Fry's, Basha's (all with pharmacies)
Sunflower Market (like a Whole Foods as far as target audience)
Starbucks
Super-Target
McD's, BK, Wendy's, Sonic, Coldstone Creamery, Jamba Juice
Chili's, Einstein Bros. Bagels, Village Inn
Waldenbooks
L.A. Fitness and a fake Curves
Home Depot
Three or four car repair places
At least 20 other restaurants from sit-down to take-out
Pet grooming and boarding
Goodwill
Multiple bar & grill places
Domino's
Multiple nail shops :p

If you go out three miles you get a library and a 16-plex movie theater.

If I had to never drive again I could get along just fine here.

But on the other hand, the price of all that retail stuff is that much of the walking has to be done on sidewalks along 3-lanes-each-way streets where people drive 50 mph, past lots of entrances for parking lots. If I just wanted to WALK for exercise, there's plenty of suburban streets that are good for that, though.

[mirage1]

I have had people come to my home (cough, cough) who FREAK out because I have no curtains That's not me, is it? LOL...Just because in the middle of the night I suddenly having "Texas Chainsaw Massacre" thoughts doesn't mean I didn't love, love, LOVE your wall o' windows!

[Meagan]

One interesting thing somebody mentioned above: how is this score calculated? How many coffee shops does a person need?

I considered our old town almost 100% walkable, because there was nothing I needed that I couldn't get to on foot. I might make the occasional trip to Target for clothes or toys or something like that, but day-to-day stuff was all within easy reach. But there was basically only one of everything. I wonder if it's done on a per-capita basis or something?

Here, there are about 50 restaurants, and 5 schools, and a few groceries, and eight parks, etc etc, but having MORE of each thing doesn't mean I'm using each one more.

[Nancy]

LOL, yeah, I was referring to you...though you aren't alone, Carrie had a similar experience!

[mudcreekmama]

Well, I live in a town of 6600 people, it occupies 2.5 square miles. There are 10 galleries, 2 movie houses, 3 theatres, 5 listed churches, 8 clothing and shoe stores, 5 daycare centres, a high school, middle school, elementary school, montessori school, and a private school that specializes in adhd - day and boarding, 10 craft/gift stores, 2 bookstores, 3 grocery stores, 3 convenience stores, a health food store, and a year round organic farmer's market, 10 hair dressers!!!, 2 spas, 4 massage therapists, 2 gyms listed (plus the university sports complex - I'm not including any campus services here because the municipality sees them as seperate), 24 listed medical offices (doctors, dentists, chiropractors, naturopaths, and vets), 24 restaurants, plus all the other things I can't imagine listing - professional offices, libraries, drug stores, hardware stores etc - there are too many to list. Plus we're Canada's first fair trade town. Still, we rated a *3* for walkability. I don't get it?

[jump4joy]

42, but it missed nearly everything around us! As far as I can tell, it missed 2 grocery stores, one supermarket, 3 schools, 4 parks, about 10 restaurants, etc. etc.

[macaquinha]

I came across Walk Score (http://www.walkscore.com/), and thought of the "how much do you drive" thread. I thought it would interesting to see how walkable where we live is.

Weird. I scored 86/100, but the yaapster who lives within a quarter-mile scored 94. That makes no sense to me, since we can walk to the same things. She's closer to the school and the library, but I'm closer to the grocery stores -- but only by about a tenth of a mile! I'm curious how these things are weighted. I'd say her score is accurate, given that I can walk to almost anything I want except edible ethnic food.

[macaquinha]

95 out of 100 for me - honestly, I'm not sure what I'd need to do to be at 100!

You get the last 5 points for being able to walk to another yaapster's house. Other than that, I can't imagine what you might be missing....

[~PQ]

75/100 which is generally true.

[Hobbes]

Weird. I scored 86/100, but the yaapster who lives within a quarter-mile scored 94. That makes no sense to me, since we can walk to the same things. She's closer to the school and the library, but I'm closer to the grocery stores -- but only by about a tenth of a mile! I'm curious how these things are weighted. I'd say her score is accurate, given that I can walk to almost anything I want except edible ethnic food.
Ah yes... but edible ethnic food!!!! That's worth 8 points in my book !! LOL

[macaquinha]

Ah yes... but edible ethnic food!!!! That's worth 8 points in my book !! LOL

That's what would get us up to the full 100, I think. :p

[mudcreekmama]

I do think it is relative, i.e. there is no across-the-board "BEST" place to live. It absolutely depends on what YOU consider valuable.

For ME and my family, the pros of living in the country (beautiful land, quiet, room to roam) did not outweigh the negatives (the huge amount of time and money spent commuting and not enough friends/social opportunities nearby).


I also agree that it wasn't just "consumerist" features that were incorporated in that score- schools, parks, public spaces, libraries, workplaces were in theory being counted, too. (Obviously from the replies here, the algorithm doesn't necessarily catch all of those!) And I'm a little perplexed about the consumerism thing- regardless of whether you buy your coffee by the cup at the coffee shop or by the bag through your organic co-op, you are still *buying* the coffee.... so aren't we *ALL* consumers?

Well I do think its counting the number of *stores* and the more there are the higher the walkability rating. I don't think its a valid algorythim to equate MORE stuff with more walkable. I posted my town size and the ammenities in it. I *know* my town is extremely walkable but this gave us a *3* and I really don't get how that is possible. Maybe it just doesn't work if you aren't in the United States. I pulled my list of resources from the board of chambers from my municipal website to list what was directly in my little town. If I can walk to 24 restaurants and they're all within a mile of me (never mind all the other services including parks, schools, etc) and we rate a *3* what exactly are they using to judge walkability? I include stores, libraries, doctors offices, parks, schools etc in my term "consumers" - If you can *meet your needs* within walking distance that makes it walkable, so how are they judging *needs* other that MEGA choice? Places that have TONS of shops (and the population density to support all those stores etc) rate highly on this, but that choice of 100 restauants within a mile doesn't really make that community any more walkable does it? So I do think it is equating consumer choice with walkability.

I tested this out by using my old address - which was not really walkable by my standards at all (and I was/am a hard core pedestrian! I have no issue with walking a couple of miles to get somewhere) but its a richer area with more consumer goods available. There are more stores and restaurants listed there but none any closer than what I have here and *no essential services like doctors, dentists, etc* within walking distance and it scored an *8*.

I'm not even addressing the idea that I'm in a town with sidewalks versus before where I lived rurally and the road we had to walk *on* was a highway - this site acknowledges they can't take that into consideration. But I really think they are using service density as a guage, instead of distance.

[mirage1]

I *know* my town is extremely walkable but this gave us a *3* and I really don't get how that is possible. If you put in your address does it actually show the places that you know exist? From what I read it gets the data from Google API, and if the places aren't in there, then it won't consider them because it's only as good as the data it has.

[mudcreekmama]

No, and I think thats the issue with us being in Canada but when I did it between my last address and this one there are a wider range of services listed here than at my old place - the difference between the two was here I have about one of everything listed in town all within 1.5 km, there I had *several restaurants* listed within the same distance but no essential services - and it missed the grocery store and hardware store that were 300 metres from my house. This address with more basics and less choice scored a 3, that address with several restaurants but no basics scored an 8

[Kimd]

We got a nine, too. And there were things that weren't correct like the closest school was some transportation school - I'm guessing a driving school? And a couple of the parks they listed aren't really parks. One is just a boat launch ramp. It didn't seem to miss anything, but it did miscategorize things.