Schools, commute and community (Atlanta, Sandy Springs: best neighborhoods, lease, house)

[Queen Mommy]

Hello all,

I'm new to this forum although I've posted in the Raleigh, NC forum before (where I currently live).

We are relocating to the Atlanta area, hopefully, in time for the beginning of the 09-10 school year. Like every other person moving to the area we want the shortest possible commute, the best possible schools, and a great sense of community. I've been searching through some of the old threads and I feel as though I've gone from making great progress to utterly overwhelmed. Let me throw you some specifics and see what you think:

-We have four girls (11,9,7,7). The schools (public) have to be good. We will concede on all other points to provide a solid (prefer great) education. The oldest 2 have been identified as gifted via the CoGAT and ITBS. They're smarter than the average bear, but not brilliant. The younger two seem to have a similar intellect.
-My husband will work downtown for Coke. He will work out of the house some days and travel (i.e. need to get to the airport) and also work out of the downtown office. The girls and I are rather fond of him and would prefer not to become commute widows. The things I've heard about the commute out to the Alpharette area scare me to death (I don't know if it's true, though).
-We crave a small town community vibe. We've been in Wake Forest for the last 18 months and in that short time it feels as though we know everybody and everybody knows us! I'd like to find a similar culture (safe, friendly, small enough that it's possible to know a lot of people, family oriented but not necessarily the pre-k demogrpahic). Prior to that we were outside San Fran for 15 years and we found that culture as well in a small bedroom community. I think it's probably everywhere and a large part is what you make of it yourself, but if anyone has any helpful tidbits -all the better!

Those are the things we need! Here is what we want:
-At least an acre
-5 bedrooms
-bonus room
-Private backyard
-Community pool? Is that common in Atlanta area?? It was everywhere in CA but much less so in NC. We've found it to be a great gathering spot for kids and a no-brainer for meeting people!! If it's not the norm, though, I'd skip it.
- Close to a barn. My eldest daughter rides horses. We don't have our own horse, but we'd like to lease one. I'd prefer not to have a half hour drive to get her to and from but... I am down to nitpicky stuff at this point. An equestrian community would be nice but I've only found two: one in Alpharetta (Blue something? that's likely too far out) and one in Kennesaw (Saddlebrook also probably too far??)

As for price we are fortunate to have a lot of flexibility. We'd like to stay at 1.1 million or below, but could go as high as 1.4 million.

Thoughts anyone?

[lastminutemom]

I think that for what you want... the small community feel will have to be sacrificed. But it doesn't mean you can't find a great neighborhood to make up for it.

Community pools are very common in the suburban areas not quite as common in town, but that doesn't sound like what you are looking for anyway.

I recommend that you consider East Cobb.

Home page

We are not horsey people... so I have no idea how good these stables are, just knew that I have seen them when I am out and about.

[CMMom]

I would say that at that price point, you're going to have a lot of options. My suggestion to you would be Dunwoody (DeKalb) or north Sandy Springs (Fulton). The Dunwoody schools are a bit better than the Fulton County Schools (especially at the elementary school level), but you should also look at the Riverwood High School district in Fulton. Most of the barns that I rode at as a child are gone now and you'll find most have moved out to Alpharetta or other further-out suburbs (as you've noticed), but there is still one in the Huntcliff subdivision in Sandy Springs.

Dunwoody and Sandy Springs are closer in to town than Alpharetta and that would help with your husband's commute, but still have a nice community feeling (especially Dunwoody). Plenty of swim/tennis subdivisions in both.

[Queen Mommy]

Any thoughts on Kennesaw? I think a portion of Kennesaw goes to Harrison High. Too far out? Is the traffic light (er)?

[IntownHomes247]

Well, I'll chime in on where I'd live if I were you.

Druid Hills is one of the best neighborhoods in the city. Amazing homes on very large lots (many between 1 and 2 acres, which for intown is basically a park). It's adjacent to Emory University and has a very intellectual vibe. Just a couple of minutes away is the extraordinarily charming City of Decatur (which would also be a good fit except that you won't find many 5 bedroom homes there and the lots are much smaller). Decatur is basically a college town (in addition to being just a mile or 2 from Emory, Agnes Scott College is actually inside the City of Decatur).

There is actually a horse farm nearby. I know every little about it (not a horse person myself), but it has a web site:

http://www.littlecreekfarmconservancy.org/

Aside from that, there's a horse park at Chastain Park (which is a bit of a drive but better one sizeable drive a week for you and your daughter than 5 days a week of hour to hour and a half -- each way -- commutes for your husband if you live out in the way far boonies like Alpharetta or Kennesaw).

There are pools nearby, including private pools (like the excellent new Lake Claire pool)

Welcome to Lake Claire Pool

as well as pools in several nearby public parks (Glen Lake Park -- currently under renovation -- in the City of Decatur; Medlock Park; Candler Park)

Druid Hills is located at the confluence of multiple jurisdictions so parts of the neighborhood are in City of Atlanta schools (Morningside or Mary Lin Elementary, Inman Middle, Grady High), parts are in unincorporated DeKalb county (Fernbank or Briar Vista Elementary), and parts are actually in City of Decatur (Clairemont Elementary).

There are also some excellent private schools nearby, including Paideia, which many kids in Druid Hills go to and tons of them actually walk to school (Paideia is a pk - 12 school).

Paideia School

Your only potential problem could be that $1.4 million is actually on the low side for the "best" homes in Druid Hills (where prices go up to about $3 million), but there will be plenty of options available that should allow you to find something you love. Also, you didn't mention a preference to age or architectural style, but Druid Hills has primarily historic, fine homes -- many designed by noted Atlanta architects in the 1920s and 1930s. Because it has always been one of the best neighborhoods in the city, the vast majority of homes have been updated (very well updated usually) throughout the years.

I've lived in the Emory area since I was 6 years old, so I am a bit biased in favor of it, but honestly, if you want to live intown, this would be a great neighborhood for you to explore. If you'd like more details, or would like me to send you examples of listings in Druid Hills, please send me a direct message (click on my user name to send a DM).

Best of luck with your move.

[aries4118]

Here's what I recommend for you (based on your criteria):

1. The southern part of East Cobb (Walton High+Wheeler High districts)

2. Sandy Springs

3. Dunwoody

4. The Lakeside High School District Area

5. Druid Hills

6. Buckhead

7. Peachtree Corners

8. Roswell


Good Luck!

[cmtiger]

OK, well, I think you can get all that you want and get a top notch house for upper $800s in City of Decatur. Here is the deal with Decatur.

All of the K-3 schools are Expeditionary Learning Schools (google ELOB). In an ELOB school, the kids learn the curriculum by doing in depth, authentic projects and studies rather than going through text books and worksheets. This approach is very interdisciplinary. The kids learn writing skills while conducting scientific studies.... they learn social studies while doing art.. etc. Our K-3 schools were actually showcase schools for other districts looking to implement ELOB - we had several dozen teachers and administrators from all over the nation come to observe us last week.

I have three gifted ID'd kids - and they have all loved this program. It works really well for kids at all levels because each child can go as deeply into an expedition as they need to in order to be challenged. Also, I've found that gifted kids don't take too well to worksheets... and there are very few in Decatur (we are seeing some now b/c CRCT testing is coming up but they are only around for about a month).

Schools for grades 4-12 in Decatur either are already International Baccalaureate schools or are in the process of becoming one. IB is similar to ELOB in many ways, but there is more focus on individual projects than on class-wide projects. The thought is that once the kids are 9 or 10, they are ready to "fly solo" so IB is a better fit than ELOB. From my observation, IB is quite a rigorous curriculum... but the rigor is more in the complexity and interdisciplinary nature of the work as opposed to volume of work. Kids really have to think to get through an IB curriculum.. they can't get away with just regurgitating.

If you want to research the schools.. here are the names.. Clairemont Elementary, Oakhurst Elementary, Winnona Park Elementary, Glennwood Academy, Renfroe Middle School, Decatur High School. The schools are diverse, but everyone seems to get along very well.

Decatur is very family oriented and is a small, close-nit community - but it also has a hip, urban flair to it. In Decatur everyone knows everyone... in fact, as kids get older, all of the parents joke that their teenagers can't get away with anything since everyone knows them. Most kids walk to school each day with their buddies, and you can walk to downtown from most parts of Decatur. A lot of the older kids (middle school and up) also will sometimes walk downtown together after school to Greene's for sweet treats or to Starbucks or MoJo Pizza. They really like the feeling of independence and the time to socialize after school.

When the weather is decent, there is often something going on either in downtown Decatur or in Oakhurst. There are art festivals, beer tasting festivals, outdoor concerts, wine tasting festivals, bonfires, a huge book festival and ... the world famous Beach Party (they close down the main drag downtown and dump tons of sand on it).

There are some community pools around, but they are not subdivision pools. Venetian Pools and Lake Claire Pool are both popular in Decatur. A number of folks also belong to Druid Hills Country Club. There is a pretty good tennis facility at Glenlake Park also.

Little Creek Horse Farm is nearby. It is probably about 2-3 miles from downtown Decatur. They lease horses and have a hunter/jumper program. I rode there for a while and was happy with it. It is not the flashiest barn around, but they do have a decent outdoor ring and also have an indoor ring.

And,...... your husband's commute to downtown Atlanta would be 30 minutes at the worst.

[aries4118]

Originally Posted by Queen Mommy

Any thoughts on Kennesaw? I think a portion of Kennesaw goes to Harrison High. Too far out? Is the traffic light (er)?

The Harrison High Area is not too far out or close-in...it is "medium in/out."


See Cobb County High School Map Below (The Harrison High Area is bright yellow in the west {left}):

http://www.cobb.k12.ga.us/Planning/2...Zones_High.pdf

[Queen Mommy]

You all are really very generous. I didn't expect such thorough and well constructed answers. I'm eliminating the bulk of options within the perimeter because of schools. There are some wonderful private options but with price tags in the $14-18,000 range I'd have to sell a kidney to get all four kids in there. It seems like there are pockets with good schools, but I'm having too much trouble doing random searches that pull only from these pockets.

I'm going to do some deeper digging on Decatur, Dunwoody, Sandy Springs, and maybe Kennesaw (although I think it, like Roswell and points farther north, will be more commute than I want to stomach).

Thank you very much, and feel free to add more or specific neighborhoods : )

[Sweet Atlanta Peach]

Originally Posted by Queen Mommy

You all are really very generous. I didn't expect such thorough and well constructed answers. I'm eliminating the bulk of options within the perimeter because of schools. There are some wonderful private options but with price tags in the $14-18,000 range I'd have to sell a kidney to get all four kids in there. It seems like there are pockets with good schools, but I'm having too much trouble doing random searches that pull only from these pockets.

I'm going to do some deeper digging on Decatur, Dunwoody, Sandy Springs, and maybe Kennesaw (although I think it, like Roswell and points farther north, will be more commute than I want to stomach).

Thank you very much, and feel free to add more or specific neighborhoods : )

I'd stick with Decatur (Decatur City, that is) and Dunwoody as far as commute. Kennesaw is just as far out I-75 as Alpharetta is up 400. If the commute to and from Alpharetta scare you, then Kennesaw is pretty scary as well.