canderso7 wrote:I was recently accepted to ODU's physical therapy school and will be moving to Norfolk soon. Is there any places to shoot that anyone would recommend? Also, any information on where to live would be greatly appreciated. My wife and I have been looking and are trying to take in any recommendations to stay out of bad areas.
ODU alum and former Norfolk resident here... first off, congrats on becoming a Monarch! The PT program at ODU is an excellent one.
Traffic in Norfolk sucks, and you don't really want to commute very far, especially during rush hour, or during anything more than drizzling rain. As Norfolk is at sea level, many roads in the area flood out, particularly of significance to you, Hampton Blvd, the main road to and from ODU's campus.
I lived in some great spots and some terrible spots while I was in Norfolk. I moved up to Northern VA about 3 1/2 years ago, but I visit there regularly still.
Pull up the Norfolk campus of ODU on Google maps, and here's what I can tell you:
If you want to stay near campus, there are a lot of great options where you'd feel comfortable with your kids playing in the yard, and some areas where you will want nothing less than Level IV plate armor and a locked 'n' loaded AR15 and air support on standby.
First: Draw a big box from the corner of Hampton & 38th street, 38th & Granby, Monticello & 21st, and Hampton blvd & 21st. DO NOT LIVE THERE, DO NOT GO THERE. This is where you will get mugged, car jacked, or beat up by crack heads. Nothing good happens in this box. If I weren't carrying, I would have been carjacked here in my old POS Toyota. Many people I know learned lessons in street smarts the hard way near, or in, this area.
Next: If you're OK living near undergrad students, draw a box from Powhattan ave & w 38th street to 49th street & Colley ave. The farther north you go, the nicer the apartments and house rentals are. There will be loud parties, drunken students walking around and littering beer cans in your yard, but ODU police and Norfolk PD has a presence here, so it'll be safe. Proximity to campus will be walking distance, and it's perfectly safe to walk until late at night. I lived in this area for about 4 years along 49th street. Petty theft is the worst you have to worry about here, so don't leave your bike outside unlocked overnight.
Better options are North of campus in the Larchmont/Edgewater neighborhood. Lots of nice houses near the water here, but potential for flooding of side streets during storms. Colonial Place/Riverview to the East is really nice. I lived at the corner of New York Ave @ Newport Ave for 2 years. Again, potential for street flooding, but you can detour around unless it's a hurricane/tropical storm. Very low crime here.
A bit farther off campus, Ghent is nice, but West Ghent is just as nice, and a bit cheaper. There are some great buildings for rent off of Westover Ave. Anywhere south of 21st street and West of Monticello Ave is OK. Don't go East of Monticello below 21st.
As far as shooting goes, Bob's Gun shop has an indoor range - I went there often, and bought 3 of my guns from them. There are a few trap & skeet ranges near the naval bases... not sure about outdoor rifle or pistol shooting, as I didn't own a rifle when I lived there.
I hope this helps! Feel free to drop me a line directly with any q's about the area.
