sgb

Berryessa is a neighborhood with very little identity. The major distinction is it's cultural and socio-economic diversity. There are literally all types of people and lifestyles within blocks of each other. There are nice homes up on the hill, tons of sububan track homes, and ghetto apartments. The diversity of the neighborhood is interesting, but it is also the downfall of the neighborhood. There is no central identity or sense of community, overall. the ethnic groups are quite segregated, and neighbors keep to themselves. There are nice parks, but other than that, there is nothing to do in this neighborhood. There are shabby, dirty, run down strip malls with primarily hole in the wall ethnic restaurants. Yes, there are some nicer neighborhoods, but you still have to shop in run down strip malls and drive in horrific traffic every day. Most families are the working/commuter type and keep to themselves, and shop at the ethnic stores in the area. There are no activities for kids at all, other than limited programs at the community center. There is no central area that is pleasant to hang out in. The Safeway is really crowded and run-down. At the local park, my kids are the only ones there during the day. The worst part is that the surrounding areas of Milpitas and East San Jose are even worse. So if you want to go anywhere remotely interesting, you have to drive in traffic to the main part of San Jose, which gets really old. As an American-born middle class family who was looking for a community oriented neighborhood to raise our kids in, this wasn't a good choice.