Moved to the block 2 blocks north of Fairmount this summer and couldn't be happier. Ditto what's been said about buses. I generally feel safe but prefer to take a taxi from jsq or downtown at night.

Btw, we looked at units in 333 Fairmount when whe were house hunting. At the time, there was not much available. The units coming out now look amazing.

I've lived on the block for 5 years. Agree with most of the comments here. There are a few problem buildings that are getting better, although they are not there yet.
There has been some crime - I try not to deal drugs and usually have no issues. jk
I've walked around during many late hours (I'm female) and never felt threated or worried. Most nights it's absolutely quiet on the block. On a Saturday night in the summer, there is more likely to be people outside hanging out. I haven't had any problems with late night noise at all.
The access to public transit (buses and JSQ) is great. The architecture of those buildings are fantastic, and they have really invested in both buildings over the past couple of years. Lincoln Park is fantastic, as well as the local resources as mentioned. It's easy to park on the block (or within a block). Cab fare from JSQ is $4.50. There is more awareness than ever for McGinley Square and St.Peter's college is continually investing in the area as well. I've seen more new people on the block so I think the investment in the neighborhood is on the rise again. Good luck with your decision!

Wasnt that near the corner where 4 police officers were blown away by the 2 criminals they were chasing, back to an apartment??? With a shot gun and automatic weapons?
Just last Summer????

For the past ten years I have lived a few hundred feet from that condo conversion at 333. I can see a portion of the building from one of my own windows. I walk the block btwn Kennedy and Bergen at least once every day, sometimes more frequently.

I've never felt threatened.

That's not to say I like the street life I see in front of the larger building just east of 333 and the two even further east that are set back behind the paved over "cement garden." It's is rare day that there are not people hanging around, talking trash, drinking and letting their ugly dogs leave slippery messes in the middle of the sidewalk.

When the weather permits it, a lowlife in one of those two set-backs performs a local service for the deaf by putting loudspeakers up against open windows and blasting noise to the neighborhood.

To be kind - and to be fair - it is a block in transition. The condo conversion at 333 and the one that is taking up the entire block of Boland have the potential of making that anti-social behavior difficult to sustain. Yes, there is drug dealing. But I think that's true of many places around town.

I know of two murders within a few hundred feet of Bergen and Fairmount. One was last summer; the other about three or four years ago. Both were in broad daylight. One to stop a dealer from testifying to get immunity after being caught during a traffic stop with a few hundred thou in his car. The other was a juvenile dealer "collecting" an overdue debt from another dealer.

It's otherwise a great neighborhood. Although the number of storefront vacancies along Bergen Ave seems to be slightly up, the shops are almost entirely locally owned, non-franchise. The exceptions are a Dunkin Donuts and a Burger King.

It would be nice if we had a better supermarket than over-crowded Shelly's - but their secret weapon is they are a successful wholesale meat supplier to restaurants and other markets. So, their own retail meats are excellent and reasonably priced.

The green grocer on the corner of Fairmount and Bergen is one of the best I've ever patronized. My only complaint is they don't carry McIntosh apples. I have to go elsewhere for them.

Without exception, the store owners are friendly and sincere. Even the guys who run the pawn shop are gentlemen. Lee Sims Chocolates has been operated by the same family for more than 50 years and now has customers all across the country, thanks to the Internet. The Puerto Rican bakery on Bewrgen just north of Montgomery has the best Cubano in town, and cheap. The excellent food in the Dominican Restaurant (Sanchez) revives memories of 3.5 years living in the DR.

The thing I like most about the neighborhood is the rich choices of bus transportation either from the corner of Kennedy and Montgomery or from the corner of Bergen and Montgomery. With the exception of the terminal areas at Journal Square and Exchange Place, no other intersections have so many options for getting to Manhattan.

BTW - I have never had a problem walking from Journal Square even at 1 or 2 in morning. I'm not as fast as I used to be but even so, it's now almost exactly 15 mins on the nose.

Hope that helps.

I own a condo a block away, between bergen and JFK. I don't feel particularly threatened coming home in the evening, as Bergen is usually busy, and there are at least a couple of buses that will drop you a few steps from your door, but if I am coming home quite late, I always take a cab from Journal Square. Be sensible, as you would anywhere else. Other than that, I think you'll find the area very convenient. Everything is kind of block by block around here, and I looked at Fairmount before buying here, I just happened to like my apartment better. The crime map referenced previously is useful, but not terribly descriptive, as noted.

http://www.nj.com/news/bythenumbers/

Check the Star Ledger crime map for JC. You can drill down by street address. At a glance this area of Fairmount generates a lot of police activity...but I did not drill down into the numbers or incidents.

Incidents aren't always what they seem, either. Put in my street address on Sherman Pl and you see two assaults across the street...both happen to be part of a cycle of spousal abuse. Sad indeed, but no real threat to the neighbors.

Hi, I am looking to buy a condo, and there are 2 large conversions going on on Fairmount bet. Bergen/JFK. Can anyone comment on safety of the area, by night? Also, anyone buy there, or thinking of buying? Comments?

Thanks
Poppy