info needed for scouting trip (Anchorage, Wasilla: rentals, houses, neighborhoods)

[familyofboys]

Hello and Good Morning.

My husband has an incredible job offer to relocate to Anchorage. He travels up there frequently and I have never been. In a few weeks I am going to accompany him to check out the area.I will also travel up in January to check out a winter. We have 2 small children and one who will be school aged when we move. I have read several threads and gathering the info from them. It seems several areas suggested are Hillside, Rabbit Creek, and Eagle River. Any other areas suggested for young families?

My husband's office will be located downtown. I am looking for an area that is close to shopping, schools, etc. What are the good public schools in thea area, and private? Preschools?

We are looking for a neighborhood with houses close by so my kids meet other kids in the area.

We are not looking to buy, just rent to see where we like it. Budget is up to 3500 a month in rent.

Where should I go and check out for my visit? I was going to drive around the city, shopping areas, and check out schools.

What advice can you give someone who has never been there and trying to gather as much info so we can make a decision as where to be.

Thank you.

[dmills]

If you're only coming up for a couple days, I'd suggest you maximize your time. I know that Remax has a relocation specialist who specializes in executive rentals (i.e. houses in the $2,000+ range). I'd suggest you start there. The areas you mentioned are all good. Hillside and Rabbit Creek are all a little further away from shopping (but typically within a 15 minute drive). I'd extend your "suggested areas" to all of South Anchorage. Your budget is going to pretty much eliminate less desirable neighborhoods from your consideration.

Check out the Anchorage School District Website at About the Anchorage School District. They profile all of the schools in the District and give other helpful relocation information. Hope this helps.

[familyofboys]

Thank you. Looking up ReMax site now. Like any school dist website it's hard to know which ones are good (I do appreicte the link :-) and I was curious if anyone had personal yays or nays.

[dmills]

FOB,
Check your Direct Messages. I just sent you some information.

[Moose Whisperer]

I would suggest making a mock commute in the morning from each of your prospective areas to experience what the rush hour conditions are really like. Coming up in January will also really help out with that as well. If you are like me, I think you'll find you will quickly drop any desire to live north of Anchorage (Eagle River) and commute on the Glenn Highway. My boss, and several others in my office commute from ER and they routinely call in during the winter saying they are stuck, sometimes for hours, on that stupid road.

[bongo]

Since your husband's office will be downtown, I would look at Denali Montessori School, one of Anchorage School District's best schools:

About Denali Montessori « Denali Montessori School

It is near downtown Anchorage. The school is both lottery students (with waiting lists) from outside the zone, but neighborhood kids get in. I am an ASD teacher who has heard great things about Denali."Denali Montessori is a combination neighborhood and lottery school. If you live in the Denali neighborhood between Gambell and A Streets and Cordova and 9th Avenue Denali is your home school. Students living in other areas of the Anchorage School District must complete a lottery application." (from ASD)

Inlet View Elementary is another good school close to downtown and within walking distance to beautiful Westchester Lagoon & its trails for bikes & walking and for the best iceskating in town. I have 2 sets of friends who live in the neighborhood and love it:
Welcome To our school website!

Another great school near downtown but in midtown is Rogers Park. It has a highly gifted program within it and has a beautiful neighborhood & great school:
Rogers Park Elementary

Here is a link to a map of ASD schools:
Anchorage School District | Schools New & Renewed

If I can be of any help or answer any questions, holler!

[dmills]

Originally Posted by Moose Whisperer

I would suggest making a mock commute in the morning from each of your prospective areas to experience what the rush hour conditions are really like. Coming up in January will also really help out with that as well. If you are like me, I think you'll find you will quickly drop any desire to live north of Anchorage (Eagle River) and commute on the Glenn Highway. My boss, and several others in my office commute from ER and they routinely call in during the winter saying they are stuck, sometimes for hours, on that stupid road.

I agree! Doing a mock drive would be very instructive. There are a lot of people who love living in Eagle River and the Valley (Palmer and Wasilla), but it can be a difficult commute. All you have to do is listen to the morning traffic reports. The problem is that there is only one road in, so it only takes an accident or some bad weather to reduce traffic to a crawl. On the other hand, South Anchorage has similar neighborhoods, but there are at least 6 different main roads coming into midtown/downtown, which relieves the traffic congestion considerably. My typical morning commute is about 15-20 minutes. Only once do I remember it taking me more than half an hour to get in.

[familyofboys]

Thank you all! Dmills, I got the DM, and thank you!

Moose Whispere: We will do a mock commute. Great idea. Thank you for the school info.

Bongo: My oldest has been in Montessori since he was 2 years old. I think any commute under 30 mins is fine by us. We are used to an hour plus. I think South Anchorage is where we will end up. I really liked The Bear Valley Elem School. I called a few to visit during my trip and look at the schools. I booked my ticket and I will be visiting in a few weeks. I was corrected that it's midtown where the office will be.

[bongo]

Bear Valley Elementary is a wonderful school with a great reputation! My friends live in Bear Valley and we love visiting there. In fact, we looked for land there to build years ago; however, there were issues with the lands perking. It takes us 20-25 min to get from our house in midtown to our friends' house in Bear Valley. The hill into Bear Valley can get icy in the winter as can the hill up to the far end of the valley. Bear Valley gets the winds out of Windy Gap, but it is a beautiful area, almost like living on a country lane. My friend commutes every day from there & just gets on the Seward Hwy. to get downtown. She says the longer commute downtown is worth the isolation & country-feel of Bear Valley.

[familyofboys]

Good to know! I am excited to look at the area. Ideally, we want a subdivsion so our kids have friends.. and well, us too!

It seems a few people my husband would work with live up in Eagle River. So we are going to check that as well. The snarled winter commute that everyone talks about sounds undesirable, but I think we should see it.

Where do young families live with kids? I know that the homes are spread out, but I do want neighbors. I know a weird thing to say moving to Alaska.

I have no intetnion of bring the lower 48 attitude with us, I just want a few comforts of what we're used to. Mostly for our kids.