ATL suburb residents only! What keeps you form moving Downtown? (Atlanta: rent, home)

[ATLTJL]

After years of apartment living, I decided I wanted a single family home. It was annoying always hearing footsteps from above and dealing with shared walls, especially because I used to work odd hours and most people think it's perfectly acceptable to start stomping around at 7:30am.

I also wanted to get a dog and not worry about annoying neighbors with barking, stomping around when playing, etc.

I was sick of living in a box (apartment owners actually refer to occupancy rates as "filling boxes.")

I just didn't want to live in a multifamily environment anymore and wanted to prepare for the future in case I ever decided to start a family, which would be pretty tough if you had the stress of unloading a one-bedroom condo before you could begin.

If I could have found a nice, modern, and safe single family home in the city for $200k, I probably would have jumped all over it. But that didn't exist. I never wanted to leave Buckhead, quite frankly, but even 1950s ranches in nearby Dekalb county that needed a lot of updating were in the $300k range.

So for me, price was the main driver. But I also liked the idea of having some space and a neighborhood to walk around. Having said that, I didn't just say, "I guess I'll go to the suburbs!" and pick one at random. I was very careful to select a suburb that I thought reflected some of the urban amenities I wanted. That's why I laugh so much when I hear people say things like the suburbs are nothing but chain restaurants. I actually have many more great restaurant choices in Duluth/North Fulton than I ever did in Buckhead, plus I can get out for under $25 and don't have to valet. I actually ate at chains like Outback and Chili's intown more than I do now!

Specifically, price was the biggest thing that kept me out of town. But the places that I could afford, I wasn't interested in because the houses either needed too much work, or they were built with old floorplans that don't work well for modern life. I also didn't want to take a gamble on an "up and coming area" that might falter and never up and come.

I also felt a responsibility to provide an environment for my girlfriend where she could feel comfortable being home alone at night (remember, I worked odd hours at the time) and I wouldn't have to worry about whether or not she was safe when I was working or traveling.

[arjay57]

Price and elbow room. Major drivers.

[cwkimbro]

Originally Posted by ATLTJL

That's why I laugh so much when I hear people say things like the suburbs are nothing but chain restaurants. I actually have many more great restaurant choices in Duluth/North Fulton than I ever did in Buckhead, plus I can get out for under $25 and don't have to valet. I actually ate at chains like Outback and Chili's intown more than I do now!

I find it interesting... I live in the most traditional of suburban areas, but when I use apps to look at the closest restaurants nearby the top results are chains. It is a local pizza place, typical Greek joint, a diner, trendy neighborhood restaurant, local Chinese restaurant, another local Chinese restaurant, that country-esque themed restaurant (not sure how else to describe it), etc...

Out of the top 10 the only chain place is a small domino's that does delivery only.

Now I fully admit... if you drive into the main traffic arteries, you'll see clusters of chain restaurants before you drive back into the neighborhood areas. Particularly right as a freeway ends or you immediately get off a freeway.

[arjay57]

Originally Posted by cwkimbro

I find it interesting... I live in the most traditional of suburban areas, but when I use apps to look at the closest restaurants nearby the top results are chains. It is a local pizza place, typical Greek joint, a diner, trendy neighborhood restaurant, local Chinese restaurant, another local Chinese restaurant, that country-esque themed restaurant (not sure how else to describe it), etc...

Out of the top 10 the only chain place is a small domino's that does delivery only.

Now I fully admit... if you drive into the main traffic arteries, you'll see clusters of chain restaurants before you drive back into the neighborhood areas. Particularly right as a freeway ends or you immediately get off a freeway.

It's pretty much like that everywhere. This whole ITP/OTP, city vs. suburbs business is complete baloney.

[cqholt]

1. Less congested - in the Smyrna/Vinings area everything is close by and the traffic isn't that bad. (You can do most errands without getting onto Cobb Pkwy.)

But you have to do all those errands in a car. There are neighborhoods intown that one can run errands without getting in a car.

[sedimenjerry]

Originally Posted by cwkimbro

I find it interesting... I live in the most traditional of suburban areas, but when I use apps to look at the closest restaurants nearby the top results are chains. It is a local pizza place, typical Greek joint, a diner, trendy neighborhood restaurant, local Chinese restaurant, another local Chinese restaurant, that country-esque themed restaurant (not sure how else to describe it), etc...

Out of the top 10 the only chain place is a small domino's that does delivery only.

Now I fully admit... if you drive into the main traffic arteries, you'll see clusters of chain restaurants before you drive back into the neighborhood areas. Particularly right as a freeway ends or you immediately get off a freeway.

When I was with some classmates for a conference in February we were staying downtown near Peachtree Street and Andrew Young International. There we were smack dab in the middle of Atlanta, without a doubt ITP and nowhere near the suburbs and the first night we ate at Hooters. Another night we ate Hard Rock Cafe. The last night a few of us ate at a Chinese restaurant which wasn't a chain but there are restaurants like that all over the metro area. I just found it ironic with all the talk of OTP having just chains and ITP being an oasis of local food and we ate at 2 chains and a Chinese restaurant that is comparable to anything in the suburbs. The only difference was that there weren't parking lots out front.

[ATLTJL]

There are neighborhoods intown that one can run errands without getting in a car.

It sounds nice on paper, but how do you get a week of groceries and carry them home without a car? How do you do a Costco run? How do you buy a TV? I wouldn't even be able to haul my monthly 26 lb. bag of dog food home without a car. What about when it's raining? Or 90 degrees?

I understand the concept of walkability, and I think the idea of walking to restaurants, bars, concerts and stuff is great. It's awesome, I totally wish I could do it!

But from a pragmatic standpoint, walking to do errands just isn't the best way to get many of them done. Plus, it severely limits your choices.

Of course, I'm probably lazy. Even when I lived less than half a mile from a MARTA station, I still usually drove there and parked in the lot rather than hoof it!

[Mutiny77]

Because I work out here. But I'd love to be ITP and will hopefully have that opportunity within the next year or so.

[erick295]

Originally Posted by ATLTJL

It sounds nice on paper, but how do you get a week of groceries and carry them home without a car? How do you do a Costco run? How do you buy a TV? I wouldn't even be able to haul my monthly 26 lb. bag of dog food home without a car. What about when it's raining? Or 90 degrees?

Driving to Costco and hoarding supplies is kind of a suburban phenomenon. People in urban areas don't usually do it that way. I shop 2-3 times a week and get what I need for a few days. It might seem annoying to "run an errand" so often, but I don't think of it as an errand when it consists mostly of taking a nice walk outside, people watching, saying hi to neighbors, meeting the occasional lost tourist who needs directions, etc. I'm not sitting in the car, fighting traffic, or shoving groceries into a trunk only to take them back out again 20 minutes later. It's actually quite a pleasant little trip. You don't have to carry things like dog food if you get a cart to wheel it around with. I don't buy TVs too often, but when I do, that's why God invented the Internet

As for rain, well... how often do you park underground while running errands? You're going to be hot/soaked/whatever running from the car to the strip mall store and back again anyway. In town, if you want to go to Publix or Target or whatever, most of them have multistory (covered) parking, so on really bad days you can drive to them without ever being outside.

[AnsleyPark]

Originally Posted by erick295

Driving to Costco and hoarding supplies is kind of a suburban phenomenon. People in urban areas don't usually do it that way. I shop 2-3 times a week and get what I need for a few days. It might seem annoying to "run an errand" so often, but I don't think of it as an errand when it consists mostly of taking a nice walk outside, people watching, saying hi to neighbors, meeting the occasional lost tourist who needs directions, etc. I'm not sitting in the car, fighting traffic, or shoving groceries into a trunk only to take them back out again 20 minutes later. It's actually quite a pleasant little trip. You don't have to carry things like dog food if you get a cart to wheel it around with. I don't buy TVs too often, but when I do, that's why God invented the Internet

As for rain, well... how often do you park underground while running errands? You're going to be hot/soaked/whatever running from the car to the strip mall store and back again anyway. In town, if you want to go to Publix or Target or whatever, most of them have multistory (covered) parking, so on really bad days you can drive to them without ever being outside.

Heck - when I lived in midtown, we'd drive to Costco to hoard supplies, as did most of the families who were/are friends of mine. Now that I live in the burbs, I find myself going to Costco much less often (nicer and more convenient groceries out here, oddly). But, let me tell you, when you have to buy supplies for a family of 5, using a car is required! No cart is large enough to carry all of the stuff!