Raising kids in Vallejo

Hi – it’s been a couple of years since a question like this was posted, so I’m hoping to get some fresh responses. My partner, our six-year old, and I are being displaced from our long-term home in Berkeley through an owner move-in eviction. We have been looking to buy for a while now, but the housing market in Berkeley is out of the question, and even in east Oakland and Richmond houses are selling for so much over the listing price that we can’t afford them. So, we’ve been widening our search, and may end up in…Vallejo. We found a beautiful house there in the heritage district with gardens, close to a park, and walking distance to downtown and the ferry. And we can afford it! We’ve met several people who have moved from the East Bay there, and they all talk about how much they actually love living in Vallejo. Some of them have started businesses. Some are artists. But none of them have kids.

I know that there will be people who will say to stay away from Vallejo with kids. But who I really want to hear from are families who live there. The schools sound awful (but improving...?), and we just want some on-the-ground advice from families in Vallejo. What’s it like? Where do your kids go to school? Does it feel safe? Is it generally kid friendly? We’re a queer family – are there others? We *may* be able to keep our child in BUSD for some time as we commute back to this part of the Bay for work, but I think the commute will kill us over time, so we will want to re-center our lives around this area if we move there, including with schools. Any advice? Anyone willing to talk about their experience? Thank you in advance!