Young female executive relocating to Atlanta working in Sandy Springs (Decatur: best neighborhood, sales)

[LovelySummer]

Are you really suggesting she live in the perimeter area, which has the worst traffic in the metro? Where it takes an hour to go one mile if you are on the streets between 230 and 530?

Also, the Lenox area is much too expensive for a bunch of frat ppl. It is an area of professionals that work in the area and those that need to be close to 400 while wanting the upscale living of Buckhead. I don't know if you are thinking of the Buckhead of 20 years ago with the frat kids and partiers but that is not the demographic of the Lenox area.

I wouldn't waste my time with Lindbergh. There isn't much over there and it is just far enough away that she would have to deal with Sidney Marcus Blvd traffic to get to 85, which can easily add 20 mins before she even gets on 85 then she has to deal with 85 to 400 traffic. If she goes up Piedmont trying to get to 400, that traffic is really bad, so bad that I don't go to the Piedmont area between 3 and 6 and I live a couple of miles away. No on Lindbergh.

Originally Posted by cwkimbro

You largely received good advice here, but I want to give an option I think has been discarded a bit too quickly. I also want this considered carefully for its pros and cons.

First let me recap a quick list of stated needs:

- 1 bedroom apartments
- Yuppies
- 27 year olds
- Fitness places
- Whole Foods
- Farmers Markets
- restaurants
- Not a party goer
- Sorority/frat types

I can't help but to think all of the places mentioned are good, but that also includes Perimeter Center itself. I think you will see a higher percentage of sorority/frat types towards Buckhead out of all the places mentioned, but it is a southern sorority/frat type.

The option I think that has been dismissed too quickly is Perimeter Center. It is the actual business district she likely works in that straddles the city line between Sandy Springs and Dunwoody.

Large parts of Sandy Springs is a typical suburb, but the Perimeter business district is not. It is neither a traditional suburb or a traditional urban area and it has just about all of her needs. It has pretty good after work type amenities, but less on the day-long weekend style amenities you might find closer to Piedmont Park. It is also lacking parks. She would need a car and would be driving to most places, but everything is within a mile of each other.

It has more amenities than Lindbergh and Lindbergh requires a short drive to access most amenities too.

There are tons of apartments in that area and tons of yuppies. The key is to stay in the newer buildings in the Perimeter Center area itself and not the outlying apartments. Many of them are built the same as many intown apartments here, have similar amenities, and a similar clientele. Many of the popular restaurants in the area also have a location in the Perimeter area. There are plenty of fitness places, shopping, and dining. It is also a fairly affluent area. There is a Whole Foods. It also has the MARTA stations and it is easy to get into Midtown on the weekends. Admittedly, most hipster purists will complain about it.

Day to day I think I would enjoy my life more living there, since the commute is short. By Atlanta standards Atlanta has grown mostly north and Perimeter Center is one of our largest job centers. We don't view it as way off in the suburbs (that would be Alpharetta/Forsyth)

Now admittedly if she requires any of the following her options need to change:

A large urban park: Pretty much need to go to Midtown
requires that older traditional city feel: Midtown
Wants an area that is a suburban/urban hybrid, Like Perimeter center, but crammed into a smaller area and has more of a party district: That is Buckhead
must walk everywhere: Midtown

Lindbergh actually has less amenities, but it is attractive simply because its half way between Buckhead and Midtown and has a MARTA station. There are also lots of good little places to eat a drive away. It also has its own mini connecting freeway to Midtown (the Buford Hwy/Spring St connector) making it a popular commuter option to Midtown.


I also agree with what the other poster said about the Lenox area of Buckhead. She ideally wants to be able to get to Lenox Rd and GA 400 going against traffic and reverse commuting. Lots of traffic will be inbound to the Lenox Rd Exit causing small backups north and south at that point on GA400. That will be less organic than Buckhead Village area to the west. Lindbergh isn't bad for this either, but she will have to battle traffic going into Buckhead for just 1 exit/2miles.

But all locations can meet the originally stated basic needs. It is just the trade off between commute time/distance and local walkability.

One last thing make sure to google map the location of her office building. Perimeter Center is really large and rivals downtown in jobs, but it is more spread out. Some employers there have GREAT Marta access, some don't.

My two cents: schedule a quick test commute to her office while your visiting, while you do that drive by some of the nearby apartments/shopping areas and see what she thinks.

[afdinatl]

Why in the hell would someone drive to Dunwoody during rush hour if they have the option to take Marta...especially someone single that wants live in a somewhat urban environment.....this makes absolutely no sense....

[cqholt]

Just wait until holiday shopping season, then Lenox and Perimeter areas will become a parking lot. I walked faster than some people drove around Perimeter Center during that season.
Commuting by MARTA allows a strees-free commute and with future WiFi, allows people to begin working while commuting.

[elevenbridle]

I’m confused. Are you saying that the Perimeter Center area could have more traffic with a 2-3 mile commute than driving in from the Midtown or Buckhead area and take just as long?

To set the record straight and forgive me if my post was incorrectly stated, this is someone who does NOT want a sorority/frat boy area. She does not engage in that way. She likes to have a good time like any 27 yo, wants to live an urban lifestyle and embrace her new city but clearly is more interested in committing herself to her #1 priority and the reason she is moving - her career.

[cqholt]

Originally Posted by elevenbridle

I’m confused. Are you saying that the Perimeter Center area could have more traffic with a 2-3 mile commute than driving in from the Midtown or Buckhead area and take just as long?

To set the record straight and forgive me if my post was incorrectly stated, this is someone who does NOT want a sorority/frat boy area. She does not engage in that way. She likes to have a good time like any 27 yo, wants to live an urban lifestyle and embrace her new city but clearly is more interested in committing herself to her #1 priority and the reason she is moving - her career.

Perimeter Center does not offer a 'truly' urban lifestyle. It offers an edge city, because that is what it is, lifestyle where there are suburban office parks and towers, separated from retail and restaurants by large parking lots, all on superblocks. Walking is possible, but not the most pleasurable as cars are speeding by and everything is separated from the sidewalk by massive parking lots.
The worry about a frat/sorority area is overblown. There will be these type of people all over Atlanta, but they tend to congregate Buckhead and north. I am not a fan of this scene either, but I was overwhelmed living in Perimeter Center.
Midtown offers a true urban lifestyle and is transit accessible. If your daughter has lived in large cities, then I hope she is OK with commuting by transit because it will save her so much time and stress.

[midtown mile girl]

Since she is renting, she can always move from wherever she starts living if she finds something that suits her better. For the first 6 months go light on the belongings and furnishings and when she finds her sweet spot, she can move without having to move around too much stuff.
I started out in Sandy Springs years ago and now I am in Midtown. Sandy Springs has a lot of office parks, and a more suburban feel.
The most important thing is her ability to get to work. She needs to see where her office is, and find out if Marta is close enough to make that work for her if she still wants to live in Midtown and avoid the worst traffic, which is in that area.
I can understand why she would want to live in Midtown, it's where many people her age are.
Good luck to your daughter!

[TripTychTwo]

Midtown. The central location, close to Downtown (Phillips, Falcons), Fox Theatre, surrounded by O4W/Inman/Edgewood/Ponce City/Krog/VaHi, Piedmont Park. There's a reason there are seven residential towers under construction here, and 20 more proposed. There is a vibrancy to the community that cannot be duplicated in Buckhead. It's a true, urban, walkable community. Buckhead is car-centric, and always will be.

If she does want to drive the morning commute up is not bad, my wife makes it most mornings. It's the afternoon commute to get from 85/400 merge into Midtown that will add an extra 20 minutes.

She's got one of the best offices in Sandy Springs to ride Marta, she should take advantage of it.

[Tryska]

Originally Posted by LovelySummer

Are you really suggesting she live in the perimeter area, which has the worst traffic in the metro? Where it takes an hour to go one mile if you are on the streets between 230 and 530?

Also, the Lenox area is much too expensive for a bunch of frat ppl. It is an area of professionals that work in the area and those that need to be close to 400 while wanting the upscale living of Buckhead. I don't know if you are thinking of the Buckhead of 20 years ago with the frat kids and partiers but that is not the demographic of the Lenox area.

I wouldn't waste my time with Lindbergh. There isn't much over there and it is just far enough away that she would have to deal with Sidney Marcus Blvd traffic to get to 85, which can easily add 20 mins before she even gets on 85 then she has to deal with 85 to 400 traffic. If she goes up Piedmont trying to get to 400, that traffic is really bad, so bad that I don't go to the Piedmont area between 3 and 6 and I live a couple of miles away. No on Lindbergh.

She works in perimeter Center.

That is why I had said, why not just stay in Sandy Springs, originally. I really meant around perimeter Center - but that's all I know of Sandy Springs. lol.

In any case - that would still be my preference. Nothing like an under 1 mile commute (that you can walk), to free up extra time in your day for everything else.

[cqholt]

Originally Posted by Tryska

She works in perimeter Center.

That is why I had said, why not just stay in Sandy Springs, originally. I really meant around perimeter Center - but that's all I know of Sandy Springs. lol.

In any case - that would still be my preference. Nothing like an under 1 mile commute (that you can walk), to free up extra time in your day for everything else.

Unless her company will pay for her transit pass, instead of paying for parking.

[Tryska]

Originally Posted by cqholt

Unless her company will pay for her transit pass, instead of paying for parking.

Shoot - if she lived within walking distance form work, and had a company paid transit pass, she's set. lol