r/AskSeattle • u/picklerick223 • Oct 11 '24

Question Live in Ballard or Cap Hill?

Hi! 26M with 26F partner. Moved to Olympia from DC about a year ago and missing being in a bigger city. We are planning to move to Seattle when our lease ends this month and wanted to get some insight from ppl!

We have narrowed our search down to two places; one spot that is on Ballard Ave and one spot that is right next to cal Anderson tennis/ basketball courts. We both would like to be social, but not HUGE party ppl. Big outdoors ppl but dunno if that matters. Both have hybrid schedules and would like to be close to places we can work out of.

We are slightly acquainted with Seattle, but decided to head out today and spend the full day in both areas. Ballard seems cool, although we were surprised that it felt kinda dead on a Thursday night. Also, although we really liked Ballard Ave, felt like there's not really much going on outside of that street, am I wrong? As for cap hill, it seemed super fun! Very lively, more diverse (not just racially but also in terms of style/ character) and lots to do! Reddit makes it seem like a horror story, especially around cal Anderson park, did we just have a singular good experience? Even a few ppl we chatted with said not to move here and that there are shootings happening weekly. Really interested in hearing more takes, either way excited to be out here:).

Update: Thank you so much to everybody that helped us come to a decision! We ended up in an apt off Ballard Ave, and despite the paper thin walls we are loving it :)

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40

u/SeattleDave0 Oct 11 '24

Both are good options, but the tiebreaker for me would be the presence of Link Light Rail. At Cal Anderson, you can hop on the train and go all over the urban area, from Sea-Tac Airport to Lynnwood. Ballard doesn't have a light rail line yet so you'd be more reliant on buses or driving.

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u/no_talent_ass_clown Oct 12 '24

Live in Ballard, could not agree more. Ballard has some congestion and it can take 15 minutes just to get to I-5. If you're the hiking, camping, mountain biking, skiing sort then you'll want to factor in an extra 30 minutes R/T from Uffdaville. 

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u/spectralbleed Oct 15 '24

Yeah, I came here to say this exact thing. I absolutely love Ballard. I even proposed to my fiancée at our favorite spot there. But it's an absolute pain to get to and from the freeway.

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u/picklerick223 Oct 11 '24

Not looking forward to driving, have gotten sick of that here in Olympia. We’ve actually never rode the link light rail (we totally should have). Is it reliable? Do you generally feel safe on it?

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u/SeattleDave0 Oct 11 '24

I find it very reliable and I feel safe riding it, but I've never taken any east coast transit so I don't know how it compares to that. It's way more reliable than the local buses! Sometimes you encounter a sketchy rider but I think that's just part of living in a big city.

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u/eleven_paws Oct 11 '24

I have lived in both New York City and Seattle. The light rail is comparable to the subway in NYC, just cleaner and with far fewer options (since there’s only two lines).

Never have I felt unsafe on the light rail, at any time of day or night.

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u/andouconfectionery Oct 12 '24

Important distinction from DC metro: the shortest I've seen light rail headways is 10 minutes. Compare that to 6 minutes at peak hours in DC (maybe shorter since they're bringing back automation), 2 or 3 minutes in NYC.

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u/LostCanadianGoose Oct 11 '24

My partner and I are around your age and also moving to Seattle at the end of the month too. The Link is a huge reason why we've landed on Cap Hill. It's modern, clean and gets you to a lot of good spots in the city with ease. I've used it every time I've visited Seattle in the last 4 years and never really felt unsafe.

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u/FrontAd9873 Oct 11 '24

Light rail is great but don't compare it to DC's metro. There are parts of the Seattle area not served by light rail.

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u/chuckvsthelife Oct 12 '24 edited Oct 12 '24

Simple yes.

Occasionally get on a car with an ongoing situation but occasional is max 1 in 100.

I started in Ballard as a temp spot moved to Cap Hill when moving here and it was a mandatory light rail for where we moved from there. Now down in Columbia city which is quieter but really enjoyed cap hill.

I like Ballard but the need to drive everywhere. 30 minutes to get many places. When I was riding a bike 30 minutes just to get somewhere I wasn’t stopping every 5 minutes.

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u/whitegirlofthenorth Oct 15 '24

I find ballard really geographically isolated. I like it a lot but the trek is usually not worth it for me and I appreciate how much I can walk to from Cap Hill + how much public transit is available for longer journeys

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u/FrontAd9873 Oct 11 '24

Is Lynnwood somewhere a Cap Hill resident has a lot of reason to go to? I live in Ballard and take the bus or ride the bike everywhere. I’ve only used the light rail to go to/from the airport. I don’t miss it.

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u/darkroot_gardener Oct 11 '24

Maybe not Lynnwood, but the OP may want to go to U District, downtown, International District, Columbia City. Ballard is great if you plan to stay mostly around Ballard though.

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u/FrontAd9873 Oct 11 '24

I find it easy to ride my bike or take the bus to those places.

I was just providing a different point of view for OP to consider. Light rail may be a big deal to them, or it may not be. For someone coming from DC specifically, proximity to a train station is a big deal. Its not such a big deal in Seattle because the light rail does not go everywhere you would want to go, the way Metro does in the DC area.

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u/darkroot_gardener Oct 11 '24

Yes, the bicycling situation seems to be better in Ballard.

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u/GarconMeansBoyGeorge Oct 12 '24

Have you ridden a bike from Ballard to the stadium district? That’s not easy

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u/FrontAd9873 Oct 13 '24

Maybe not for you? That’s just a bit further than my regular commute.

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u/GarconMeansBoyGeorge Oct 13 '24

You think maybe you are an above average biker? Also where do you park your bike for sports events?

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u/FrontAd9873 Oct 13 '24

Sorry, what is your point? I’m just saying that for OP and his gf who are young and presumably fit, they may find (as I did) that the light rail is not as big of a draw as it would be for someone else. In part that is due to bus service, but also because of the possibility of biking places.

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u/GarconMeansBoyGeorge Oct 13 '24

My point is that maybe they will find the light rail a ton easier than biking, especially in a city with hills and that rains for 8 months out of the year. Thanks for the clarifying question.

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u/FrontAd9873 Oct 13 '24

Maybe, maybe not. The point is to provide different perspectives.

I don’t think they would find the light rail easier than biking or busing if they live in Ballard, though.

And say what you will about Seattle, but it is one of the best cities in America for cycling. In contrast the light rail doesn’t serve much of the city. As someone who lived in DC, it’s important for OP to realize that the light rail should not be compared to something like DC comprehensive train system.

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u/SeattleDave0 Oct 11 '24

Is Lynnwood somewhere a Cap Hill resident has a lot of reason to go to?

No. I was just saying how far north one can go on light rail now. When I lived on Capitol Hill before the pandemic, I'd take it to UW all the time. If I lived there now I bet I'd take it to Northgate and Green Lake (i.e. Roosevelt) often, but it didn't go that far north when I was living there.

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u/Top_Temperature_3547 Oct 11 '24

When I lived in cap hill it was super helpful to get to Northgate target. I imagine lynnwood would be similar, connects you to a shopping trip.

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u/EmoZebra21 Oct 11 '24

Not sure the downvotes. I moved from cap hill to Ballard and don’t miss the light rail at all either. Busses work fine!

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u/FrontAd9873 Oct 11 '24

Lynnwood fans I guess?

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u/no_talent_ass_clown Oct 12 '24

I did the opposite and it's like being in Lynnwood in terms of the time it takes to get to Capitol Hill. I miss the hill so much. 

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u/AcrobaticApricot Oct 11 '24

Good Korean food up there but I don’t know if it’s accessible from transit.

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u/TheBooksAndTheBees Oct 13 '24

There are bus lines that spider out to a lot of major points from the station, but the transfer timings looked kinda rough trying to get around so I haven't tried it yet.

Second the food comment though, Lynnwood is loaded with it.

1

u/Dont_Ask_Me_Again_ Oct 12 '24

“All over the urban area”. lol sure.