Thats it...F#ck Harrisonburg

[toneloc]

I can't say much about the degradation of JMU considering this is only my second year here, but I can't comment on the crime rate. Last week my brothers car was tampered with, somebody tried to break into the via the passenger side rear window, and we were left ghetto rigging the window at 10 pm just so it would stay up properly. Why should I have to waste my study time and freeze my ass off just to fix a problem somebody else created.

As you said, somebody got shot at a party literally 50 ft. away from where I live right now. My roommate said he heard the gunshots and it sounded like they were right outside the window. That is insane and let me say, I knew Hunters Ridge was ghetto, but damn.

I will be SO glad to gtfo of Hunters Ridge next year. I put in a work order for my broken window on AUGUST 1st, this was before I even moved into the place, and as we speak, I feel a breeze blowing by me. I wake up in the morning and my room feels like a meat locker. I might as well sleep outside.

Additionally, I'd like to rant about the privacy issue's here. I have a serious problem when I get in the shower, step out and see a maintenance man standing in my apartment with absolutely no warning. That is absolutely ridiculous that they cannot call a person before showing up. That is how people get shot, and the first time it happened, if I had a gun it would of been me behind the trigger.

So, I do understand where you are coming from on this one. People are going rampant around here, and it is not what i am used to, but I'm not going to let it kill me.

[balactm]

I think you have to take the good with the bad really. I work for Chanellos delivering pizza as my job. A while ago, I delivered to this guy at Eagle on campus that wanted to haggle about the price of his pizza with me because we got it wrong the first time or something. The guy wanted his $8 pizza for half price since he had to wait so long. I told him I couldn't and it wasn't up to me and that he would have to call my manager, so he pulls a pistol he had tucked in his belt and waves it around. Needless to say he got his pizza for half price. But really come on, if you're pull out a pistol you better make it worth it. What a dumb mofo. All that not because he wanted the $200 i probably had on me from the night, or my wrx sitting 2ft away idling, he just wanted his pizza for half price hock:

holy crap. that's insane.

on topic...i'm trying to live on the other side of campus, crappier buildings but away from the party scene. and I think that when RJ related JMU to VT and their respected surrounding areas, i think that was a good idea. Although, hburg and JMU are fairly similar in their political views, but rockingham county is different. so i think that could play a part. I also think that, as said before, a lot of the violence does come from gang members traveling here. but in response to adam's story...i have no idea, maybe he just had the munchies

hock: hock: hock: hock: hock: hock:

[.RJ]

You can have guns on campus?

Sorry, but I dont think most college students are mature enough to keep one on campus without shit going wrong.

[flintster55]

You can have guns on campus?

Sorry, but I dont think most college students are mature enough to keep one on campus without shit going wrong.

I totally agree with you. This proves your point completely. Drunk or high college students certainly don't need one either which is quite common as we know.

And no you can't have guns on campus, especially in the dorms. I should've called the police but i just wanted to finish up my runs and go home since it was 3:30 in the morning. :?

[Ryan T]

I agree with RJ. I've owned guns since I was 12 years old, but I didn't bring them to JMU with me for the first 4 years for a reason. I wasn't mature enough to safely keep them and I knew I wasn't. I have most all of them up here with me now, but I also have the sense to keep them unloaded and keep them in a safe in my room. It takes a certain level of maturity and respect for people to keep multiple firearms in your home.

And firearms are banned on campus, cant' even carry one if you have a license to carry a concealed weapon.

[Feersty]

Pulling guns on people. That is beyond belief. Especially on campus. How long is the Police Log in the Breeze these days?

[balactm]

adam, i was going to ask why you didn't call the police, but i guess your safety was the most important thing. sh-t is ridiculous.

[ScottyB]

when I get in the shower, step out and see a maintenance man standing in my apartment with absolutely no warning.

hey boy...you got a perty mouth... :lol:

[Dave]

Holy crap; I knew JMU was going down the toilet, but I didn't realize that it was already in the sewer...

For you guys that are looking for a place to live still, I can highly recommend The Greens, over on 33, just past the Nissan dealership. The rent might be a little high, but the facilities were fantastic, great maintenance and condition of properties and overall a fantastic place to live. It is a little far from campus though, and I'm not sure that the transit system reaches that far.
FWIW, at one point I had 4 or 5 cars in one parking lot that I owned, + Lindsey's Escort, and I also worked on my cars in the parking lot, and not once did I ever catch any greif from management about it. There was also a hose closeby for washing your car, a year-round hot tub, and a pool, and it always felt safe. The ONLY thing that I didn't like was the apartment complex right across the street seemed a little ghetto, so I was always a little leery of that.

[Feersty]

I mean be it that the Commons was a crap hole, I knew I would be out of there after 2 years, and living wise it wasn't bad at all. I would love to see what my old apartment looks like now, but I would probably have "bouncers" at the door blocking me. I cdna't get over that. Probably have to pay $5 for a red cup as well

Oh there was something interesting that happened a cold Sunday morning in January morning when I was in the Commons. All of a sudden ambulances and police cars pull up into the
parking lot adjacent to my apartment. About 20 minutes later there is this kid on a stretcher, and he looks blue. Apparently he was sleeping next to his girlfriend, they all went to sleep. But they took some illegal substances. Crack or something, mixed with alcohol obviously. She got up and didn't think anything of it. Well I dont know if it was from an OD or whatever, but I believe he ended up dying. They were on the second floor of my building. It was just really eery to see them bringing him out of the apartment on a stretcher. There was a battalion of cops there as well. The people that lived there definitely had some explaining to do.

[rezarxt]

I mean be it that the Commons was a crap hole, I knew I would be out of there after 2 years, and living wise it wasn't bad at all. I would love to see what my old apartment looks like now, but I would probably have "bouncers" at the door blocking me. I cdna't get over that. Probably have to pay $5 for a red cup as well

Oh there was something interesting that happened a cold Sunday morning in January morning when I was in the Commons. All of a sudden ambulances and police cars pull up into the
parking lot adjacent to my apartment. About 20 minutes later there is this kid on a stretcher, and he looks blue. Apparently he was sleeping next to his girlfriend, they all went to sleep. But they took some illegal substances. Crack or something, mixed with alcohol obviously. She got up and didn't think anything of it. Well I dont know if it was from an OD or whatever, but I believe he ended up dying. They were on the second floor of my building. It was just really eery to see them bringing him out of the apartment on a stretcher. There was a battalion of cops there as well. The people that lived there definitely had some explaining to do.

Great Im living in the commons next year. :?

[damnit458]

The company I work for is based out of Blacksburg - so the past 2 years I've spent a lot more time down there than in Harrisonburg.

Its a pretty big difference between the two places - in Blacksburg, VT seems like its part of the town, rather than some contentious relationship that always seemed to be the case between JMU and Hbg. Everyone in Blacksburg seems a bit more friendly and certainly more welcoming. I cant speak for the 'shit getting torn up on weekends' factor but as a whole the town seems pretty clean. There also isnt the 'crawling with cops' vibe on the weekends.

Just an observation.

Along the same lines, I've been down here at Clemson for about 5 or so months and I've noticed the same exact thing. Down here the school is literally "part" of the town (albeit the city of Clemson is smaller than Harrisonburg). Shops, restaurants, etc down here embrace the college, and its almost a night and day difference from how Hburg is with JMU. The schools are almost the exact same size, and it's pretty much the same as what RJ describes above.

It always baffled me why JMU has never integrated itself into the city of harrisonburg as a lot of other universities have into their respective college towns.

[missmotocross3]

For you guys that are looking for a place to live still, I can highly recommend The Greens, over on 33, just past the Nissan dealership. The rent might be a little high, but the facilities were fantastic, great maintenance and condition of properties and overall a fantastic place to live. It is a little far from campus though, and I'm not sure that the transit system reaches that far.

The Greens is pretty chill. However, it is for graduate students and families only. No undergrads are allowed. Last year, there was a string of break-in's in The Greens as well. They were smashing car windows and taking shit out of cars. Mark's passenger side window got smashed and his IPod adapter was stolen and his glove box was riffled through but there wasn't anything else valuable they could take. I do feel like Devon Lane, Ashby, HR, and Squire get shadier by the minute. It frankly scares the shit out of me anymore to walk by myself anywhere, or even drive in some parts of Harrisonburg by myself. The shooting in HR and the break-in on Port Republic Road is so scary! I do not understand why anyone would want to shoot someone just because they asked them to leave. If you read the Breeze, there is an article in there about the shooting.
JMU is accepting so many new students. People commented about why they are accepting such "delinquents". However, JMU does not know that. You hand in a paper application, they read the info. and determine based on that. Do you really think that most people will write down, in my spare time I like to party and drink and do drugs and rob people? Hell no. JMU only looks at what they are given and assess you on that. And trust me it is not the kids that come from straight poverty that commit the crime. The biggest drug dealer in my area from home got busted, and he was the kid with a 3.8, graduated in the top 30 of my class, and whose parents both worked for the government. Not your typical hoodlum. But anyway, crime definitely has increased at JMU. But you have to remember, how often do shootings really take place? Think of it this way, there are thousands upon thousands of flights that land perfectly safe everyday, but you only hear about the ones that crash. And those freak people out and make them terrified to fly. I guess what I am trying to say is, think about all the parties people have that things are fine. To help reduce the crime, people need to have invitation only parties. Close the door, or have a bouncer(like Paul did at his party), and do not put it on freakin facebook. More cops need to be out and about on the weekends too! I feel like they never stop they just drive around. People think that if a fight breaks out at a party or something or they feel in danger they need to call the cops, it doesn't matter if there are underage drinkers. I'd rather call the cops and potentially save people's lives then not call. And the biggest thing is lock your doors and windows. My roommates are horrible at locking the door, I always check it before going to bed and I have a deadbolt on my bedroom door that I lock. I am even considering getting those alarm things for the window in my room, so if the window is opened, the alarm will sound.
I grew up around guns because my family are avid hunters and I was always taught how to shoot and handle a gun safely. I do not think people need to carry guns around with them. That only creates problems. I cannot believe what happened to Adam. For a freakin half price pizza! I would have kicked his ass if I would have saw him again. I wonder if things were like they were in the old days, when everyone could carry a gun, if the crime would drop. Crime was so low back then because everyone had a gun, so if you shot someone you know your ass was getting shot too. IÔÇÖm not saying this is the solution however.
To conclude my long rant (when I am supposed to be writing an actual paper for my ghum 200 class), security needs to be better in Harrisonburg. More cops on patrol, people need to be more aware of their surroundings, lock your doors, and housing complexes need to care about who is moving in. The new place I am moving in actually does a background check on each resident and will deny you if you have certain offenses. This should be done everywhere there is student housing to prevent gang activity and people who could be potentially harmful to the community.

[Jake]

Very well put, Natalie.

Do you really think that most people will write down, in my spare time I like to party and drink and do drugs and rob people? Hell no.

This made me LOL a little bit.

In all seriousness, though, I'm not a fan of open-house parties in general. Things like what Paul and Aaron put on are/were great. But when you make a Facebook event and invite all 839 of your FB friends - and leave the thing public so that the rest of JMU can come, too - you're inviting trouble. At that point, how do you know if the people pouring in your door for some free Natty are students or gang members or what?

I definitely agree that police should be more prevalent. They know that underage drinking is gonna happen. Everyone does. If you don't want to get in trouble with JMU or HPD, then don't walk home falling down drunk. Take a cab or the bus or spend the night if you can. I almost feel like HPD is there on the weekends for busting drunks and not necessarily keeping us safe.

I had to fill my gas tank on the way home about 20 minutes ago. It's dark and the Exxon is pretty well-lit. Even still, I was very aware of my surroundings and didn't hang around. With what's happened recently (and with things like Adam's pizza encounter), I don't think you can be too careful.

[.RJ]

In all seriousness, though, I'm not a fan of open-house parties in general

When I was down there, I really didnt think there was anything BUT open house parties Sure, you usually went to the party that someone knew people at, but there was always people you didnt know there. The worst that happened was someone passing out and getting drawn on with a sharpie.

Oh well adbanana:

[SethM]

It really sucks it is coming to all this stuff for such a small area like Hburg. I just moved to Sancar Flats this year and love living downtown, but I still see a lot of sketchy people around. (sketchy locals, not sketchy students) But haven't witnessed or heard anything bizarre since I moved in. It also helps that the whole building is locked and you must get buzzed in to enter, plus there are some indoor gated parking spots which I am able to use. Love having no frost on the windshield in the morning and keeping any sketchy drunk people from getting near my car.

All that said the place isn't exactly amazing for what I am paying (looking for a cheaper place for next year) so don't take this as me pimping Sancar or anything. It is a good example of big promises and Hburg developers being cheap just like all the others.

[.RJ]

All that said the place isn't exactly amazing for what I am paying (looking for a cheaper place for next year)

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Nova prices in harrisonburg? :wtf: :!:

[Jake]

In all seriousness, though, I'm not a fan of open-house parties in general

When I was down there, I really didnt think there was anything BUT open house parties Sure, you usually went to the party that someone knew people at, but there was always people you didnt know there. The worst that happened was someone passing out and getting drawn on with a sharpie.

Oh well adbanana:

I'm talking like, freshmen who have no idea of anything going on, so they get on a bus and just walk around. I'm cool with people I don't know, but if I'm in a group I'd hope someone knows the host kinda.

[SethM]

All that said the place isn't exactly amazing for what I am paying (looking for a cheaper place for next year)

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Nova prices in harrisonburg? :wtf: :!:

Getting close, I am paying $805/month plus utilities.

[.RJ]

I'm talking like, freshmen who have no idea of anything going on, so they get on a bus and just walk around

Yeah thats what we did :lol: