Santa Rosa/Rohnert Park Neighborhoods

Hi C.,

I don't know anything about Rohnert Park except the area that is very built up with shopping. I suspect there are some nice areas but I don't know about them. As for Santa Rosa, Larkfield/Wikiup seems to be a well approved area but it is the farthest north in Santa Rosa right near Windsor. Windsor is a lovely town. They have designed the "town green" with all sorts of wonderful activities including farmers market, summer movies under the stars, live music and festivals. I live in Windsor and can't say enough good about it. In Santa Rosa, I also hear Bennett Valley, Rincon Valley and Hidden Valley areas are nice. The McDonald area is near downtown and has some lovely old mansions and some cute little houses too and you can walk to downtown activities if you are into that sort of thing.

I know you asked what to avoid but I have given you some good neighborhoods to look into instead. I don't know the names of the bad areas except the obvious Apple Valley, parts of downtown, near Coddingtown Mall, parts of southern Santa Rosa I believe would be wise to avoid.

Good luck. It really is a pleasant area to live.

C., There's such a dichotomy in Sonoma county. I'd say that if you want a liberal, free-thinking atmosphere, move to Sebastopol (although it can look somewhat dated, 60's like). I live there and I love the rural environment, slowed down life-style (even Bank of America closes at 5PM). In direct contrast, Windsor is a lovely community if you are politically conservative and like sub-urban neighborhoods. There is a lot for families to do there, and it's a little more upscale than Rohnert Park. It is basically a community of new-comers to CA (i worked in Windsor, and loved the community there).
Santa Rosa has less opportunities for community because it is so large. It does have a nice downtown area. Rohnert Park has no downtown; it is a "planned community" where each neighborhood was built around a park, school, and public pool. That plan sounded good initially, but today the parks and pools are under used.
Petaluma has character, at least the west side. I like it a lot.
As an answer to your question about Bellevue, see if you can find an article about that neighborhood in the Press Democrat sometime in the past 6 months. There was an indication of violence there: neighbors arming themselves, etc. Of course, there are two sides to every story, but I would not choose to live there.
As a whole, Sonoma County is the best place in the world to live. We have the best of everything! A beautiful coastline, with miles of beach for walking; hundreds of miles of hiking trails within an hour's drive (or even less), the Russian River recreation area, the Petaluma River district. Local theatre is of the highest standard. We're an hour from San Francisco. Local child development programs here pride themselves on having high standards. We have shopping centers, minimum of fast food places, lots of movie theatres. But even with all the modern amenities, we're about ten years behind the LA development of Maxi cinemas, super shopping centers , etc. We thrive in this environment of nature and a slower pace of living. I hope it stays this way.
I hope that this information helps you in making your move. Welcome to Sonoma County! G.

Hi C. - Welcome to the area!! Another great place to get to know the community and look for rentals is www.waccobb.net. It's called wacco around here and it's a bulletin board for the West Area County COmmunity. (Really, we are not all THAT wacko, no matter what you may have heard!)

We live in Sebastopol - just up the road (hwy116) from Rohnert Park/ Cotati - and the schools are great here. Even if you don't end up living here, lots of folks do inter-district transfers. Get in touch if you'd like more info. along that line - there are many different choices.

Debbie

I agree with what has already been written- and would like to add a plug for Sebastopol. Its about 5 miles west of Santa Rosa and has great schools, parks and 20 minutes away from the beautiful coast. We live on the far west side of SR (in a nice enclave in the midst a not so desirable area), and use Sebastopol for everything. Our children go to school in Occidental (5 mores miles west of Seb), and we prefer the small town atmosphere of Sebastopol to the hustle of SR. I would definitely check it out. It has everything- stores, nice library, pool center, gorgeous parks, quaint downtown, good restaurants, GREAT schools,hospital (small but never crowded like the ones in Santa Rosa), doctors, dentists, orthodontists and beautiful countryside. It is totally worth the few extra minutes of driving to do shopping and activities for the kids- and we are looking to move there in the future.

I have to agree with all the above comments. I am a lifelong resident of this area and have lived in Santa Rosa, Windsor, Rohnert Park and, for the last 9 years, Sebastopol.

In Santa Rosa, as a general rule, the farther east you go, it seems, the ritzier the areas are. Northeast and Bennett Valley areas (except by the Fairgrounds) are good. Southwest is an area "in development". Northwest is OK. Larkfield/Wikiup is also a nice area.

Windsor is a town (please don't call them a city!!) that has added a lot over the past few years. The old-fashioned "town green" has shops, restaurants and a big park that features fun activities for the whole family, particularly on Thursday nights. There are also three regional parks (disclaimer: I work for the parks department) with picnic areas, hiking trails and, in one case, three lakes available. My parents live in Windsor and have been there for 20 years, since before all the development.

In Rohnert Park, yes, pay attention to what letter the street names start with. When I lived there, I lived in "M" section. There is a large regional park with miles of hiking trails and, of course, Sonoma State University.

Cotati, just adjacent to Rohnert Park, has a nice small-town feel and is similar to...

Sebastopol, which is just to the west of Cotati. I love living there. Almost all the neighborhoods are "good" and the town is eminently walkable. It's full of very liberal-minded people as well (kind of what it's known for, actually). It is probably one of the priciest areas in the county to live, however. There is a long trail that runs from Forestville (just west of Sebastopol), through town and into downtown Santa Rosa and also a large regional park with soccer fields, a fitness trail and an off-leash dog area. We're also fans of Ives Park and the trail behind the Community Center and can't wait to see what becomes of the "Super Playground".

Best of luck to you in finding your place and welcome!

I find people's responses to your question more interesting than the question itself. I find it so disappointing in Sonoma County at how judgemental people have become. While the public perceive certain areas to be horrible and to avoid with your life, if you talk to people that live within them --- that is not the case at all. I live in L section in Rohnert Park, and have since childhood -- and there is nothing to complain about. The houses are moderate, neighboors friendly, streets are clean and tended to, and I have never seen a police officer drive past our street (except for my neighboor who is a police officer). My advice is to spend time in various areas, talk to people, and make your own opinions.

I was born and raised in Santa Rosa. There are always areas in all towns to avoid and the best way to find the best location for you and your family is to work with an realestate agent. If you don't already have one, I refer people to Brook Terhune. She's great. She was also raised here in Santa Rosa so she's VERY familiar with everything Sonoma County has to offer and can really help you figure out what will work best for you & your family. You can email her at ____@____.com

There are definately areas to avoid. In Santa Rosa there is Indian Village and Apple Valley, stay out of those areas I don't even like driving through there. And I'm not a big fan of the South West area. Bennett Valley and Rincon Valley areas are your best bets for Santa Rosa. In Rohnert Park, I tend to shy away from A, B, & C sections they aren't nearly as bad as those areas in Santa Rosa though and I have friends that live there without any problems but I personally wouldn't live there. Are you looking to buy or rent? I'm a realtor in the area and have lived here since 1987, I'd love to help your family out.

It all depends on what your budget is. For Santa Rosa, the best areas are the east side and far north side. The south and west sides are less desirable and take a little more negotiating to find the right areas. However, the east and north sides are also a LOT more expensive. Are you looking to buy or rent?

I'm not familiar with Rhonert Park so can't help with what area's are best over there.

Feel free to contact me though, I grew up in Ohio and the culture shock can be pretty severe coming from there to here :)

welcome! sebastopol in my opinion is the best. as for "snobs", they are anywhere you live and those goes for "shady" people too. sebastopol has a lot to offer. santa rosa is just so overcrowded.

I have been living in Rohnert Park for 16 years and really like it because it has a lot of parks, the schools are good and it's not too far from San Francisco. If you decide to look in Rohnert Park, avoid the L section (per RPPD officers). L section is streets that all begin with the letter L. The sections that are nice are D, E, F, G, H, M and R....keeping in mind the sections are all streets that begin with that particular letter (M - Mitchell; Maria; Maureen, etc). The older areas - A, B and C are okay to live in.
Best of luck to you in your search and your move to California! May everything go smoothly.

hi C.,
I have lived in Sonoma County for over 17 years, first in Rohnert Park, then in Santa Rosa. I currently live in Bennett Valley (in Santa Rosa). I would suggest this neigborhood or Rincon Valley. Yes, the houses are obviously more costly, but well worth it. I would avoid the west side of Santa Rosa at all costs, especially if you have children. I work in a local hospital and the violence we see usually comes from the west side of town. Also, Fountain Grove and some other areas in the hills have nice houses as well. Not a fan of the south part of Santa Rosa. Rohnert Park is a smaller town, I happen to like SR better, but its a matter of opinion. Remember, Rohnert Park is also somewhat of a college town because of SSU (SSU is fairly small).
Good luck in house hunting, I think a real estate agent could give you some advice as well.

C.,

My best advice the you is to contact the community departments of the police departments of both communities and look at the statistics. The police departments are not allowed to tell you good and bad areas. However, you can look at the type of crimes that occur in those areas and get a pretty good picture of what goes on there.

You can log on to the website of the cities and look at the newspapers - Santa Rosa's is the Press Democrat. Look at the local pages. I will tell you that you should focus in that city on areas in the Hidden Valley, Bennett Valley, and Rincon Valley areas. Also, areas around Larkfield-Wikiup are nice.

I don't know Rohnert Park as well, but I'd stay to the east of the highway there.

Good luck!

Windsor Mom.

I'm not sure what your looking for, but I have a rental house that will be available sometime in Septmeber. The current occupants will be moving out of State this weekend and we plan to put paint, etc. to make sure it is perfect for someone new. It's a 3 bedroom, 2 1/2 bath home with hardwood floors downstairs, central air conditioning, washer/dryer hook ups, 2 car garage, close to downtown, within walking distance to private school, 5 mins. from Sonoma State University, nice neighborhood and a good central location. Rent is $1850/mo. and includes garbage, and landscaper. Email me at ____@____.com if you would like more information or pictures.
PS - Neighborhoods to stay away from (Indian Village, West 9th Street, Roseland Area). Good Luck on your move!!
J.

Hi C.,

Welcome! The main places to avoid are Southpark or anywhere near the Sonoma County Fairgrounds, west 9th street and railroad square/ripley, d street etc. There are great houses in the area of Montgomery Village- great schools etc. as well as rincon valley/bennett valley are very safe areas.

Molly

You can email me and I can give you some information. I am a Licensed Real Estate Broker. I am also doing my intern hours to become a MFT, Marriage Family Therapist.
Thanks
C.
____@____.com

Avoid Roseland. Indian creek, Southpark, Apple Valley, the ABC of Rohnert park, some parts of Bennett valley are shady too.

Otherwise Montgomery is OK, Depending on where you go in Bennett valley. I will agree that Sebastopol has it's charm, but it also has it's snobs. (just being honest)

Hi!

I live in Petaluma, a city just 10 minutes south of Rohnert Park. If you are able, move here. Our community is wonderful and we have a mother's club (petalumamothersclub.org). Otherwise, nearer to the golf course in Rohnert Park is better. Though most areas of Rohnert Park are friendly, as it is a college community (Sonoma State). I think that Rohnert Park has a mother's club, too (ph.# ###-###-#### or http://www.rpcmc.com/links.htm). They may be able to help you. There is a website that has organizations in RP http://www.goldridge08.com/rohnert_park_organizations.htm
It may be able to help you, too. I love RP for their family fun things to do.

Santa Rosa is more complicated as it is much larger and neighborhoods are constantly changing. It has a mother's club too (www.santarosamothersclub.org). You may want to write to them and ask the same question.

Good luck with your move. I think you will love Sonoma County and all it has to offer!!
D. - mother of two