I need to know about a place called Wilkes Villas in the south side of Elyria.  Where can I get some facts on crime and other factors related to livability?  I have an extended family member who is considering living there.

 

Thanks!

Wilkes is public housing, operated by Lorain Metropolitan Housing (www.lmha.org), and located in the south side of Elyria. 

 

Elyria Police do report crimes on www.crimereports.com - if you're looking to map the Wilkes Villa area, use Pratt Blvd as an address as it's the main street through the project.

 

The most recent Elyria Police annual report on-line is from 2010, but there is a section on the two Special Policing Districts - Wilkes Villa and Westway Gardens (section 8 housing on Infirmary Road).  IN 2010 there were 575 police calls from Wilkes, according to the report.  If you go to the pages on crime by district, Wilkes is in 7C.

 

http://www.cityofelyria.org/wp-content/uploads/2010/04/EPDAnnualReport2010.pdf  - scroll to page 27

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Does your relative qualify for Section 8?  There are plenty of better options, if so.  http://lorain.gosection8.com/

Thanks for the information.  This relative has other options. I'm just trying to make it clear that we have concerns about this particular option.

None of the public housing projects in Lorain County are particularly good options.  Of all of them, the scattered site houses in Oberlin Homes are probably the best option for safety, but they are also the most isolated from shopping/transport, etc.  There are scattered site houses in Lorain, Elyria, and Sheffield, but it is very hard to get into one of these due to wait lists of current public housing residents looking to move from the projects to scattered single family houses.

 

There are apartments in good neighborhoods in Lorain and Elyriia on the section 8 list.  In Lorain, the ones on the southwest side (Tower Blvd, Oberlin Ave, Cooper Foster) are in safe areas.  Around the hospital on the west side, you can find apartments in the Amherst School district, which is rated excellent.  In Elyria, I would look around Abbe Road or the mall area on the north side.