My memories of Bridgeport were locals shooting at hippies with BB Guns that were stuck in traffic going to gathering of the vibes.

Some areas are great. Nice parks,beaches,restaurants,bars.

Some areas I wouldn't drive through if I had an uzi.

That's the price difference in the rents.

Ew go somewhere else. Stratford has its shitty spots. Milford is better.

Some nice areas in BPT (e.g. Black Rock)

If I were young and starting out, I’d rather live by myself in Bridgeport than with a roommate in Stamford.

Every city has bad areas.

If not dead-set on city life, Milford, Stratford, Shelton are all nice places to live. Commute to Stamford sucks, though, if that’s where you work. Ditto from Bridgeport. 30 mins is your absolute best case scenario.

The crime stats from January to September this year: https://www.bridgeportct.gov/filestorage/341307/341425/341439/371966/Bridgeport_Crime_Report_Jan_Sept_2022.pdf

https://ucr.fbi.gov/crime-in-the-u.s/2019/crime-in-the-u.s.-2019/tables/table-8/table-8-state-cuts/connecticut.xls

Crime stats for CT municipalities the last few years. Bridgeport: 843 in 2019 for violent crime, making it #3 in the state for violent crime. Hartford has 1,049 that year, an New Haven had 1,168. Stamford had 264. Bridgeport, generally speaking, is 3rd in Connecticut when it comes to crime behind Hartford and New Haven. Bridgeport had the highest property theft rate at 264, but has half the agrivated assault rate of Hartford and New Haven, Bridgeport at 300-something, the other two art over 700. Nationwide I'm not sure how that would rank, Idk how to get accurate stats. I'm a high school student who runs a newspaper (in Bridgeport, just started a few months ago) and I can tell you that every story I've read from the Connecticut Post and DoingitLocal.com every shooting in the city (shootings, not homicides), more than 8... perhaps... all occurred on the East Side of the city, particularly south of Boston Avenue, and north of the railroad tracks with the exception of an incident south of the railroad tracks on East Main Street on a morning and an assault on Wade Street (the Brooklawn section of Bridgeport, a few blocks from there Fairfield line) for a Chinese restaurant where a worker was shot but the man (18 years old) was caught in neighboring Stratford 20 minutes later thanks to collaboration between the two stations. All have happened, including that one, after dark, now a days in winter it is 5:30 or so. As far as I know, those are the only incidents, besides a stabbing on the west side, that is all I'm aware of. I'll not provide my personal experience living in Bridgeport as I am biased (very). A shooting in downtown Bridgeport at 2:00 AM also occurred, the first shooing since 2018 when a man shot a rival gang in front of the courthouse and before that another shooing in 2013. No other incident is what I can think of, Bridgeport has a population of around 148,000 in 2022, Stamford has a population of 136,000. New Haven as well at 135,000, Hartford at 122,000.

Edit: I've been collecting these crime stories on a daily basis for 3 or 4 weeks and compiling a map of them. No other crime incident involving murder or potential murder comes to mind. The man who assaulted the restaurant was a drug trafficker who was wanted for that after an incident with teenagers at Trumbull Mall (Westfield Trumbull). The stories I have read mostly involve minors or people under the age of 20, but what percentage I have not (hence an observation but no concrete data to support my claims). I can also say that Bridgeport's crime rate fell below 1,000 for the first time in a long time around or right before 2013, to 900, and has not gone above that number until this chart ends in 2018. https://www.macrotrends.net/cities/us/ct/bridgeport/crime-rate-statistics . In terms of crime that is the data I have.

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My opinion of Bridgeport is heavily skewed by the fact that I live here, was born here, (Bridgeport Hospital in the mid 2000s) and that it's the city I've always thought of as my home before I was even aware of its reputation. It is a place that, has really been an average place for what I can recall for most of my childhood. Edit: Grew up in both the Hollow (until I was 2) West Side and Brooklawn parts of Bridgeport (Park and North Avenue intersection), moved to the north end last year (junior in HS). My parents are immigrants, as is 29,9% of Bridgeport's population in 2022, so my thoughts are uh... more biased towards the situation in Latin American or 3rd world countries rather than a city where most people make over $38,000 which is a very almost wealthy wage in large parts of the world, for pluses tho, Bridgeport is a diverse city, that I really strongly believe gets a bad reputation and I can empathize yet try my best to comprehend why, meanwhile just kinda wishing people would kinda see it in a nicer light, it's really not that different from other large cities or medium sized ones, other than what I think (but no data) is crime limited to certain regions for reasons that span decades of various a) federal and state policies, and B) the deindustrialization for a city with over 500 factories, the home of various major corporations, and the state's main manufacturing city, c) redlining, d) the tax base leaving, leaving the city in '80s to have a far smaller police force than either NH or Hartford, aka smaller cities, e) all of these areas are or were once home to public housing, which was a) made for middle class white residents but b) became home to black and latino ones who could not afford to pay because the jobs were gone, and in the 30s-60s could not create wealth in the form of owning real estate. To be fair the city was the most violent per capia in the northeast in 1989, and went bankrupt in 1992, and in a wealthy region, it really gained a reputation as well as apparently highway view. I'm someone who wants to be an urban planner, and the city, well in terms of education, or other things idk, idk what to think really, never have given it much thought. Nice architecture, an incredibly diverse population (largest foreign born population in the state according to the census, and more than 48% of the residents speak a non English language at home (a quarter of kids in my high school are English learners, and you can hear the conversations in Portuguese and to a lesser extent Spanish in the hallways) with large Puerto Rican (22% of Bridgeport's population), African American (37%), Italian and Portuguese (some immigrants from Tras os Montes around Madison Ave with many Portuegse restaurants too around there) and Brazilians, Mexicans (5.8%), other Central and South Americans like Colombians, Peruvians, Nigerian, Vietnamese, Bengali, oh right a Ghanan restaurant on Main Street then other southeast Asians as well in small numbers. Outside of that I can tell you... people love Black Rock, as in what I'm getting mostly artists and urban professionals! Like seriously, no crime that Ik of at all, very good shopping and scenery, wealthy mansions overlooking the sound, Mexican, Indian, Guatemalan places line up with mom and pop shops, the "New American" restaurants, steakhouses, upscale and whatnot. Oh right your next to a train station, uh yeah.

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It's what you do with it. The supposed bad areas are also in my opinion the ones with the best food, like Puerto Rican food at El Coquito, its off the highway, and my entire fam, teachers etc are fine, so idk. Being cautious is true for anything no?

Black rock section of Bridgeport is the only place to live coming from Stamford. It is dangerous in Bridgeport and certain sections are no go.

Stamford has a better and walkable downtown, you don’t get the same in Bridgeport.

Norwalk is a good place to live if you can find your price in apartments.

You did not mentioned what town you work in because that factors into decision.

The North End area of Bridgeport near SHU is pretty safe. As close as you can get to Fairfield, Easton and Trumbull.. there's stuff going on in Black Rock if you want to live near bars, restaurants.

not sure there’s a city in CT with a worse rep (Waterbury maybe?)

edit: lmao what’s with all the downvotes? do people really disagree that bridgeport has a bed rep?

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why not, I'm genuinely curious? Just be wise, and really you will have no issues. Plus its cheap, and well, 148,000 people live there... that is... technically still more people than any other city in the state. One could say that people who live in said city perhaps had no other choice or rather they were born here, edit: for some) which is to an extent probably true (I've got no data or numbers to back this up on the top of my head as of now) to be fair, a lot of the city residents were born abroad, or in a different state within the United States (example... Ik many people who were born in NY) and around 10,000+ in population growth over the past few years. It's a cheap city in Fairfield County on Long Island Sound, think about this.

If you're a recently arrived immigrant, 29% of Bridgeport residents were born abroad. and 48% over the age of 5 speak a foreign language at home, Bridgeport is cheap in an area with a wealthy population thus, I'd assume landscaping and construction jobs would be what people are after in the city's nearby suburbs or up to Greenwich or Westcheser. You might have had an uncle (maybe... these are all hypothetical) who came here first for a job). Asked my Portuguese teacher why there were so many Brazilians in Bridgeport and she said "because Connecticut is a good state, they come here for jobs, and its next to New York and Boston) or something along those lines.

If you're a resident of New York City, or even say the Bronx or Brooklyn, a city that offers cheaper homes in an expensive areas with vast lawns and a lower crime rate statistically speaking than many of those areas

If you're African American from the south, or Puerto Rican from the islands, perhaps because of family that lives there and has been established for years

If you're an urban professional who works in Stamford, maybe you were priced out or something.

Putting people into boxes like this is a... not a good way to look at anything, after all people cannot be clean cut into categories, these might apply to many people. Ofc, we must in my opinion strive to understand.

edit: idk what else to think of

Once had a conversation about Bridgeport with a Peruvian and Mexican couple on the lines of Bridgeport and its reputation (was around like middle school then, casually chatting)... and the wife was actually surprised... and her husband said "no it's true... people have told me things like "you must be very brave to live in Bridgeport?" or something like that... and he said he'd respond "no not really (laughed)". Edit: he lived in the North End of the city. The convo was in Spanish if context is important idk. These social differences on how places are perceived fascinate me. The city is alright in my opinion, it depends on the perspective. Understand crime is an issue... but... yes, in select areas, b) seems to me (no experience with gangs or crimes other than what I've heard at school) that uh it seems to be a youth issue, and no major gangs operate in bridgeport, mostly groups of juveniles, from various sections of town or projects. Always, if your house looks dilapidated, one could paint, ask the landlord or idk

Yo! Bport is so hood. I know the vibes people hahahhaha take some mushrooms and hang out in section 8

Every city has its 'shitty' parts. Milford has become really expensive. I grew up there and to be honest, when purchasing a house I could get more for my money elsewhere in other sections of other towns.

I don't know how much OP makes, and i dont know if its a concern, but I settled into North Haven w cheaper taxes, cheaper auto insurance. ( u didn't mention where u worked).

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Uzi? Kids don’t use uzis still do they?!

Town they work in is key. If it's stamford, their commute won't be 30 minutes, but more like an hour.

Crime and drug use in Bridgeport is out of control. Don't live there.

Lived in Black Rock for several years, right on Grovers Avenue. Pros: nice neighborhood feeling, walkable to several bars, restaurants, Harborview Market, the seawall is great for a stroll, living near the water is awesome. Cons: Grovers Avenue was LOUD with unmuffled motorcycle brigades, lots of traffic to/from St. Mary's, and I came out one morning to find my car up on milk crates as my wheels had been stolen. Cops laughed at me when I filed a police report. But rent was much cheaper than even Norwalk, and Black Rock has a good vibe imho.

True. I suppose that makes sense. I went to high school in milford it was always really nice. From west haven originally, man that used to be such a nice town.

Settled in branford.

Bridgeport definitely gets a bad rap, but it’s not perfect either. There’s bad neighborhoods and good ones. I live on the Stratford line in a nice quiet little neighborhood and have never had an issue. If you’re used to being further into Fairfield county you’ll probably enjoy Black Rock, which is on the Fairfield side of town, and would still be much more affordable than Norwalk or Stamford living by yourself. Just be wary of rush hour, it gets pretty awful going south bound.

100% a no if it was me

I've enjoyed the parts I've been through. A more low key commuter city in general these days I guess.

Fewer drivers trying to kill folks between the office & distant exurbs. Can actually afford to eat out on middle class salary (not just italian / seafood). Decent rents for CT.

Lived her 15 years. I never had an issue. Just know the bad spots and stay away. People that treat it like Chicago are stuck in the 90s or never actually been there before...

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First, never ask stamford people about municipalities other than stamford. They have a tendency to look down their nose at anywhere that isn’t a stamford. Lol

Second, I would look at municipalities near BPT if that’s what you’re thinking. Like Trumbull, Stratford, or Fairfield.

I’m sure others in here will offer great advice as well.

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Not great Bob

This

Is your name Alex and are you from Peru?

I was exploring the Remington arms factory in Bridgeport, we saw a prostitute get dropped on the side of the road, I was like 16-17 at the time so I was mind blown 💀😂

Idk if 2019 fbi data is very useful. Crime went up nationwide during the pandemic. Even here we went from murders 3 per 100000 people to 4.

Only one is correct

Which would that be? Haha I'm asking because my name is Alex, and I'm from peru

Jajaja soy de 🇵🇪también, pero mi nombre no es Alex.

Hahah that's interesting, just thought that was funny. Sorry to write in English I cannot write in spanish

No problem, are you made in Peru or Peruvian gringo?

They don’t. It’s fine, even the worst parts of the city (I’m referring to the East Side and East End) are fine if you’re driving there during the day time… honestly… isn’t it kinda an over exaggeration?

I get people joke but I’m genuinely starting to see people are legitimately afraid of Bridgeport and that… that’s kinda… idk no offense but… kinda funny coming from my perspective. Understand it has a reputation but… it depends what your going for… are you going to get food from a restaurant you should be fine… if your going to buy drugs that’s a different story but always remember people A) live here

Crime sadly affects groups more or less based on statistics. About more than half of the 150 shootings in Bridgeport this past decade were committed by African American mostly youth actually (That is if I recall correctly, forgot the stats). Then Hispanics and then what… two dozen whites. African Americans are 37% of the population in 2020, whites are 19% and Hispanics 42% I think in Bridgeport. My question then would be why? Why the statistical disparity to the point where it’s past mere chance but… more than half is a high number (forgot the exact stats, I’d have to check the article). Pretty surprising from my perspective, that would be a concern for Bridgeport.

I’m biased for sure… but this narrative of Bridgeport doesn’t always seem to add up for me.

yes I’ve been to the east side and east end, yes run of the mill people Ik and family that I had there, and by narrative I was referring to the one of Bridgeport being this… horrid place that has no redeeming qualities, as if somehow idk living here were the most atrocious thing to occur. People who are coming from worst of places, this reminds me of a Cambodian who escaped the gruesome genocide of the 80s who said “To me Bridgeport was like heaven”, and various others in an online exhibition by the Fairfield Museum. Higher wages than other parts of the US, cheaper rent than the county… the Hollow neighborhood of Bridgeport is 40% foreign born? Yet people avoid it. To quote one person from the CTPost, from a Latin American country I forgot he “doesn’t feel unsafe” (paraphrase) and that you’ll be fine if one doesn’t get involved or put yourself out there. You’ll be fine, like people who live here idk imho

The second, I'm really into the culture and am going in a week to visit. I hope everything is going alright there considering the drama lately

Black Rock resident who commutes to Greenwich here. I love my neighborhood. It’s very walkable and I generally feel safe (single female). During the summer, it’s great to walk down by the water, or visit the farmers market. Just be aware of your surroundings, which is true to any location. You won’t have the same vibe or nightlife as Stamford, it’s a bit more relaxed and low key up here. But there are great restaurants and Fairfield is 5 min away if you want a downtown feel. Your commute will be much longer than 30 min. That 30 min is with zero traffic. Train or driving, you’re going to need to budget an hour at least.

Agree with you 1000%

I think bridgeport is gona be pretty miserable for op coming from stamford if he likes the city life. In Stamford it's 100% walkable you have a mall couple of grocery stores and target downtown. Bridgeport your living in an apartment 100% car dependent. Stamford has built up like crazy the last 10 years aswell as far as luxury apartments go and the vibe definitely relfects that now. If anything I think he would be better off deciding between sono vs Stamford.

Bridgeport gona be a huge change for the worse in every way besides the rent price of course lol...

How do you measure lol? Like… it depends on the person doesn’t it? Aren’t some accustomed to say having more? Does the fact that we are in Fairfield County change perspective on this city… idk. Plus, I’d like to see an example list, I’ve read them before and… again I’m sorry about bias but putting that aside those same lists mention new haven… usually… and people like parts of new haven. It’s all perspective lol and those rankings are maybe doing the thinking for us rather than us going out and forming our own perspective on places.

Bridgeport is a very functional city as long as you know where not to go. I lived there for almost 15 years in the 80’s , my daughter was born at Bridgeport hospital my father died there. I still live 10 miles away and go there often for various reasons. I think Black rock would be the best choice for finding a reasonable place to live.

Blackrock is a cool area... just avoid Ruby II's

That’s true bro. It’s just the only data I could find. Think Bridgeport is maybe 2nd this year, in terms of shooting incidents (not homicides), two off from new haven, and Hartford is significantly ahead both.

Rather than commit, why not look for a roommate in Bridgeport? Find a sublet situation. Test the situation and weigh if the vibe is right for you, is your commute actually 30 minutes, etc. But I understand having the perks of living alone.

I have no issue with Bridgeport. It's all about which neighborhood is right for you.

New Haven is doing pretty good from what I see https://www.newhavenct.gov/home/showpublisheddocument/16904/638060248238570000

Oh yeah read the same thing recently. Bridgeport is 2nd in crime, but idk if there was an increase. Uh yeah New Haven did really well this year compared to before in terms of crime. Waterbury had an increase or something tho.

I live in treeland for 8 years and i have loved it because you have access to variety of culture & i love being walking distance from beardsley. Just like any city there are going to be a few bad apples in the sketchy neighborhoods but i also want to point out there are many hardworking people and families in these neighborhoods as well so not everyone is “bad”. You just have to be smart & not get mixed in with the riff raff. I think Hartford, New Haven & Waterbury have more crime than Bpt.

I lived in Blackrock for a while and my wife lived downtown. It’s not a great city overall but Blackrock is kind of cool. It’s very easy to tell what’s a good area or bad and stay away from or at least be more aware of the bad.

Really depends on where in Bridgeport.

Also, word of advice. Your message and thought process is good but will benefit greatly from editing. Waaaaay too many words. Try to condense into maybe 1/4 of what you’re using and people will read it.

Ok, thank you! Appreciate it!

Great writeup. Agree completely

Bridgeport isnt a bad place to live (depending on area) but more worrying is your commute. If your job is in Stamford and you drive at rush hour it will be a lot longer than a 30 minute commute!

I’ve always referred to it as Bilgeport

You wouldnt Drive thru? Thats exaggerated

Dude youre stuck in the 80s. Not even 1st or 2nd most dangerous in CT. Might not even be 3rd

Hartford easily.

Honestly… well do people genuinely think that everyone in the “bad” or say the cheaper, relatively violent parts of Bridgeport… are criminals? Is that like a mentality people have? I’m genuinely curious. This is one great research experiment.

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Not anymore it isn’t. This isn’t the 90s

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South Norwalk at least makes up for the dystopia

walking distance to the train station would be so nice

No true that is true, you actually have a valid point. The weak job market, the high cost of living, and a 20% US poverty rate (which is when purchasing food or essentials makes up a certain percentage) etc. the thing is OP is coming from Stamford and presumably has a stable job already, and the cost of living well that makes no difference only it’s cheaper. It mentioned crime… but uh… again it’s 49 out of 50 on the list for worst cities by these metrics by that agency/site, the other cities on that list, and higher crime cities that were not included have higher crime. Get what your trying to say, but if one has a job in the state then yeah, Bridgeport is an option, people would have different motives. Edit: sorry for getting all tangled up in this.

thanks! much appreciated!

2nd this OP I would say Black Rock area I use to stay there with my Ex, never had an issue. It doesn't even feel like being in BPT honestly.

Anyways just went to Stamford or NYC etc never explore BPT just stayed in that area honestly.

I believe some people believe that inner cities in general only consists of criminals & do not realize that many people residing in inner cities are just as hard working and are only seeking to create a better life for their families.

Black Rock is nice. Great area, good access to train at Fairfield Metro.

Alternatively, go 10-15 minutes east to Milford. Super nice town and affordable. Plenty of apartments walking distance to train.

Stratford is a good option too. Sort of inbetween Bridgeport and Milford, and not just geographically.

Yeah, I’m glad the city seems to have gotten over its Covid crime bump. Unemployment plus kids from troubled households not having in person school will do that.

Damn it, I’d stay in lima. highways are being used to extort anyone trying to leave. I would wait a month if I were you.

I already bought the tickets awhile ago, I'm flying to Lima, Arequipa and cajamarca. Never been to the last two. So I'm a little excited but we will see

Google “worst cities in America” and Bport wasn’t in the lists of any of the top 5 search results. I have no doubt you can find it on some lists, but it simply is not as ubiquitous on those lists as it once was. There’s no denying the improvement in crime stats in bridgeport relative to the 90s. I’m not trying to make it out as a rosy place either, I know it has many shithole parts.

Also there’s aren’t many comments on here about hartford being up and coming. Most of those types of comments are about New Haven which I don’t really disagree with.

Most people are aware hartford is a disaster and will never improve unless the state comes up with billions to completely revise the highway system and fix other issues…even then it wouldnt have a tax base because of all the state buildings.

Dumpster of a city

I feel like people shit on Bridgeport because of the reputation of people who have never actually stepped in there. It's like any other city, there is good and bad. But to write it off entirely is incredibly ignorant.

Bridgeport has a bed rep… just it’s not an accurate depiction