What type of city is Grayson (GA)? (Atlanta, Marietta: apartments, rent)

[taphest]

Hubby and I will be relocating to GA soon. I have learned quite a bit from the Atlanta threads about Marietta, Suwanee and other nearby cities. But what about Grayson? I know it has a few good schools, but isn't there more to this small city/town? With having pretty good schools, I was actually expecting to read more about Grayson on this forum. Please address crime, traffic, attractiveness, reputation, etc. Thanks!

[taphest]

Am I getting blank stares because people are not familiar with Grayson or for a different reason?

[OhioNative]

It's a sort of quiet corner of Gwinnett county that blends into lawrenceville and snellville. The actual Grayson city limits are very small. Nice part of Gwinnett but it's not really an easily definable or distinct area.

[cwkimbro]

haha alright.. me again..

Grayson is small and there really isn't much of a town center/culture to the city.

It is an upcoming new suburban area. There are many plots of undeveloped land, which gives new suburban communities a hint of a rural/exurban landscape when they leave the neighborhood (going into the future this will change).
Aerial map for reference (look around use the google street view of different neighborhoods/corners):
Grayson, ga - Google Maps

Also, FYI... in Atlanta (and most of the south) most areas are in unincorporated areas and receive all services from the county. Most areas in the Grayson zipcode/area are actually unincorporated suburban in Gwinnett County. The local schools are county run and there are no city schools.

I grew up in Mountain Park/Lilburn further intown. Most people in that area and in Grayson actually use the retail/restaurant areas near Snelleville and along GA124 between Snelleville and Lawrenceville. Alot of people from my area also move to Grayson to get a newer house, but keep a similar single family home only character.

[peachstatehomegal]

The Grayson/Loganville areas are nice. They've got a little bit of that 'country in the city' atmosphere - plenty of farmlands around, but also major shopping/dining areas, etc. There's been several new subdivisions going up in the past few years and as anywhere else, there's pockets of great home values.

Where will ya'll's employment be? (And yes, we do say 'ya'll' quite a bit down around here!) That might be a factor in determining a place for you, in terms of travel times, if that's an issue.

[taphest]

Finally...thank you all for taking the time to respond. To answer peachstatehomegal's question...we do not have jobs yet, therefore we are blindly choosing a location to live. I'm not sure if moving to Grayson provides us with a doable commute- I'm choosing this location solely based on it's good school reputation. I've gotten some feedback regarding this on a different thread, but what do you all think about the commute to where most of the jobs are centrally located in Gwinnett County and Atlanta. Which city (Grayson or Suwanee) offers the best commute in terms of roads/highways that lead to different parts of Atlanta? Of the two cities, which is a better commute to the job centers in Gwinett County and Atlanta?

[ericsonga]

Originally Posted by taphest

Finally...thank you all for taking the time to respond. To answer peachstatehomegal's question...we do not have jobs yet, therefore we are blindly choosing a location to live. I'm not sure if moving to Grayson provides us with a doable commute- I'm choosing this location solely based on it's good school reputation. I've gotten some feedback regarding this on a different thread, but what do you all think about the commute to where most of the jobs are centrally located in Gwinnett County and Atlanta. Which city (Grayson or Suwanee) offers the best commute in terms of roads/highways that lead to different parts of Atlanta? Of the two cities, which is a better commute to the job centers in Gwinett County and Atlanta?

Just in terms of commute options; Suwanee hands down. Grayson is a great community. Most of the neighborhoods going up in the area tend to be very affluent, and with no apartments, and offer a great school cluster. However, it's kinda off the beaten path. If that's what you're looking for, it's great. Find out where you are going to live first, then find housing. If you don't, you could very well be miserable.

[rcsteiner]

Originally Posted by taphest

Am I getting blank stares because people are not familiar with Grayson or for a different reason?

I'd never heard of it until this thread. But I'm on the other side of the metro.

[taphest]

Originally Posted by ericsonga

Just in terms of commute options; Suwanee hands down. Grayson is a great community. Most of the neighborhoods going up in the area tend to be very affluent, and with no apartments, and offer a great school cluster. However, it's kinda off the beaten path. If that's what you're looking for, it's great. Find out where you are going to live first, then find housing. If you don't, you could very well be miserable.

That's just it, Ericsongga. Hubby does not retire from the military until later this year. My children and I will be moving there in June to get them enrolled in school. Unfortunately, this means I have to choose a location that may/may not be close to our work location. Of course, we will rent first until we both find jobs. Hopefully, we will get to stay wherever we land first, but may have to move to a different city if we discover we don't like where we have chosen to live or our job location(s) takes us elsewhere. Thanks for chiming in!

[cwkimbro]

Originally Posted by taphest

Finally...thank you all for taking the time to respond. To answer peachstatehomegal's question...we do not have jobs yet, therefore we are blindly choosing a location to live. I'm not sure if moving to Grayson provides us with a doable commute- I'm choosing this location solely based on it's good school reputation. I've gotten some feedback regarding this on a different thread, but what do you all think about the commute to where most of the jobs are centrally located in Gwinnett County and Atlanta. Which city (Grayson or Suwanee) offers the best commute in terms of roads/highways that lead to different parts of Atlanta? Of the two cities, which is a better commute to the job centers in Gwinett County and Atlanta?

This is where the answer gets complicated.

It ultimately depends where your job is. Atlanta suburban office clusters have grown primarily due north (downtown -> Midtown -> buckhead -> perimeter ->Alpharetta) and other ones have popped up in Cumberland Galleria (in Cobb COunty @ I-75/285 and in Gwinnett near 316&85 and in Peachtree Corners @ Peachtree industrial Blvd in Norcross.

Suwannee gives you immediate access to Peachtree Industrial Blvd, I-85 and arterial roads to Alpharetta, so it is more centrally located to the northern growth than Grayson is easily. A little bit better access to Perimeter and Peachtree Corners. Alot better access to Alpharetta.

However...
If you are going intown (downtown, midtown, and Buckhead) Grayson and Suwanee are probably equally long commutes (and I do emphasize long). Grayson's commute would be along a less built up corridor using US78 -> Freedom Pkwy (downtown), Ponce De Leon Blvd (midtown), or North Druid Hills Rd (Buckhead) and you can take that into town. This also provides better access to the Emory/CDC area. Suwanee's would be along I-85. I-85 is more congested than US78, however US78 is only a freeway part of the way and there are traffic lights.

Grayson can also use Ronald Reagan Parkway to Pleasant Hill Road to get to the Gwinnett Place Mall/I-85 area fairly easily. Once there the traffic picks up along Pleasant Hill and I-85. Peachtree Corners and Perimeter is accessible, but a little less so.

Cumberland/Cobb Co are long for both.

There is a plan to extend Ronald Reagan Pkwy to I-85 in the works, but that would easily be 5-10 years away. This will do alot to help Grayson be more accessible to I-85/I-285.

If you get a job locally in Gwinnett... Both are pretty accessible to most places in the county. Grayson can easily get to Lawrenceville and the GA 316 corridor, Gwinnett Place Mall via Ronald Reagan. Peachtree Corners is a little further away, but is doable. Suwanee is really close to all these things as well.

You might want to consider what type of job you might look for later on. That might impact where you are likely to work in. A few questions to ponder for yourself: Are you more likely to work in retail or retail management? Plenty of potential jobs in Gwinnett. White collar office?... If so, which industry?... is there a part of Atlanta where that industry is more clustered? School, hospital, and medical services exist throughout Atlanta including inside Gwinnett County. Generic Office clerical jobs can be found in all of these places. Atlanta is a primary logistical shipping hub, so transportation related jobs can be found throughout.

Depending on these answers access intown or to the northern suburban office clusters might not be important or they could be very important.

A few quick Benchmarks using Google Map directions

Grayson/Suwanee (distance in miles)
Perimeter 31/24
Cumberland 31/35
Alpharetta 15/26
Peachtree Corners 13/20
Buckhead 28/29
Midtown 29/31
Downtown 29/32
Emory/CDC 24/29

Local Gwinnett areas will be 5-15 for both for the most parts.