I stayed at Alex’s place while in town working at that PPAC for a week. The walk downtown was only twenty minutes or so, and felt mostly safe. There are some people loitering on the street but everyone was friendly or minding their own business. The house is in an up and coming area, close to a great food coop and a lot of trendy restaurants. (I had incredible breakfasts at Julian’s and The Grange!)
The room was smaller but plenty for a stay. And the bed was really comfortable. The unit had an efficiency kitchen right outside the door that wasn’t originally in the listing so it was great being able to cook on the third floor!
I would highly recommend Alex’s place for anyone looking. If traveling with more than one suitcase, I would suggest taking them one at a time upstairs. The second stairway is very narrow and curves!