Need help with moving specifics (school districts etc) (pool, lifeguard)

[Aquitaine]

At the risk of offending anyone (I apologize in advance) I actually wouldn't consider living in Circle C if you gave me a house there.

It's certainly not for everyone, but out of curiosity...why?

Belterra is no different than Circle C except that for higher utilities and being farther away from anything to do. I know folks who love it there though.

[scm53]

Don't let people that live miles away scare you about the drive from Dripping Springs. First of all, they are weeks away from opening improvements to the Y (which isn't all that bad anyway). Second, there is a way to avoid it -- Nutty Brown Road to 1826 to 45 to Mopac which avoids the Y completely. The state is getting ready to improve part of 1826. Once you are on Mopac, it is clear sailing to COTA with almost no traffic at any time.

The Belterra propane deal is bad, no doubt about it. But other developments in the area, such as Highpointe and Reunion Ranch, are on gas . Electricity is from Pedernales Electric - one of the nation's largest electric cooperatives (and who we have). There is nothing "spotty and precarious" about the utilities.

As far as water, none of the developments -- Belterra, Highpointe, or Reunion Ranch -- are on wells, so the current furor over new wells to the south is immaterial. They are all supplied by a 16" water main owned by the West Travis County Public Utility Authority, which supplies water to over 25,000 residents, including the city of Bee Caves, and draws its water from the same source as the City of Austin. You have nothing to worry about.

[centralaustinite]

The OP lives in Ballwin Missouri and clearly stated she doesn't like a rural feel = Dripping is out!

We don't have a Ballwin equivalent but it is much more like Austin proper but with even a more urban feel. 180 degrees from DS.

Circle C is definitely the place to start, it might not be perfect but it is in the ballpark!

[stl2austin]

Why would you not consider Circle C? (I am open to all opinions because I don't know anything about the areas.)

[Aquitaine]

Circle C is your archetypal master planned upscale suburb. We live there now and we like it (even though we don't have kids, which sometimes seems to be a prerequisite...) and the only reason we're leaving is to be closer to Mrs. Aquitaine's work as her commute has gotten worse.

Dripping Springs is more like a 'nicer, booming small town' than Austin - it's got a lot of growth and opportunity but isn't yet overrun in the way that Austin can be. Dripping Springs ISD is small enough that it's still well run, similar to Lake Travis ISD.

It's also more affordable than Austin, including Circle C, though the gap has narrowed in the last couple of years. Here in the SW end of Circle C they'll say 'the edge of hill country' because 1826 takes you into the hill country, but Dripping Springs has much more actual nature going on than Austin does (even if Circle C likes to brag about how the Circle C Metropolitan Park is larger than Zilker...not a lot goes on there other than soccer games)

If you work in Austin, the commute from DS is pretty bad - yes you can skip the Y via SH 45 but you could also live in Circle C right off of SH 45 and not have the additional 20 minutes to Dripping Springs from there.

[hts]

I'm certainly not going to get into a public p*ssing contest over DSISD vs SW Austin schools (in my mind, there's no question regarding which is better) or Circle C as a neighborhood.

I'm merely encouraging the OP to take a good look at Dripping as a potential landing spot. To be perfectly honest, I was primarily focused on Eanes, LTISD and RR/Westwood when researching location prior to my relo--I wasn't aware of Dripping's high quality schools and essentially stumbled across it by accident.

Just search on "DSISD" or maybe "Dripping Springs schools" here on the forum search tool and you'll get a pretty good idea as to how the district stacks up against the other Austin metro schools.

http://childrenatrisk.org/wp-content...l-Rankings.pdf

DSISD was recognized as the top-ranked district in Central Texas and ninth statewide by the organization Children at Risk. DSHS was ranked eighth in the spring of 2014. Children at Risk also gave letter grades to schools at all levels; DSISD and four campuses earned an “A or A-.”

[stl2austin]

I really appreciate everyone's thoughts and comments. You have given me a lot to think about! I think Mr. stl2austin and I will make a trip down at the end of the month/beginning of May to check everything out. I am pretty sure we have now ruled out Lake Travis area and will focus on Circle C and the area just bordering it DSISD.

[AMJ27]

Originally Posted by scm53

Austin Monthly magazine's cover story this month is on Austin area schools, and they ranked the HS. James Bowie HS, the one that covers Circle C and the other SW neighborhoods, was ranked 7th. Dripping Springs (which is actually W, as Hays ISD is S) was ranked 8th, and Lake Travis was ranked 10th. There are links on that page to a short write up on each school.

You can also look at the Niche reports for the area, which has LT 4th, DS 5th, and Bowie 11th. That too leads to more detail on each. The elementaries and MSs that feed each of the three are excellent, so no worries there.

That Austin Monthly magazine article also lists Clayton Elementary in Circle C as the best elementary school in AISD and the 7th best overall in the Austin Metro area. It's where my kids have gone and we've been very happy. The middle school that Circle C feeds into, Gorzycki, is excellent as well. It was 5th best in Austin metro in the Austin Monthly article. Granted, it is just one list, but what I have found is that the same group of schools are always at or near the top. My point is that Circle C schools, even though they are AISD, are consistently in that top group. You also have access to some pretty fabulous magnet programs in AISD, like Kealing Middle School Magnet Program and LASA.

I'm a Chicago suburb transplant. We've been here almost 5 years and live in Circle C. I absolutely love it. It has a great community feel and I love that I'm 15 minutes from downtown outside of rush hour. The neighborhood has great amenities and a reasonable enough amount of shopping/dining/entertainment to keep us happy.

We know a lot of people who have moved out to Dripping, and while it is great for some people, it does have a more rural/country feel about. Personally, I'm not a fan of that at all, but I realize that some people like that lifestyle. I'm way too freaked out about things like rattlesnakes to every be happy and I'm just not a huge fan of the look of the Texas countryside (sorry!) which is what a lot of people get excited about out there. Also, even though your kids are little, keep in mind that from Reunion Ranch, the high school is about 15 miles away. That's a pretty far drive if you ask me and a little scary if you have a new driver.

[AMJ27]

Originally Posted by stl2austin

I really appreciate everyone's thoughts and comments. You have given me a lot to think about! I think Mr. stl2austin and I will make a trip down at the end of the month/beginning of May to check everything out. I am pretty sure we have now ruled out Lake Travis area and will focus on Circle C and the area just bordering it DSISD.

Meridian is just across 45 from Circle C and a lot of people who consider one consider the other. We looked at both, but ultimately preferred Circle C for a couple of reasons. I guess I'm a little strange and I like the idea that I can walk to Starbucks, the grocery store, etc. That's not possible in Meridian. I also preferred the pools in Circle C and the fact that they have lifeguards (which will give me some reassurance when my kids start wanting to go to the pool with their friends, alone, in a couple of years).

[Aquitaine]

I'd pick DSISD over even Circle C schools in AISD any day of the week. But I wouldn't live out in Dripping Springs unless I didn't care to come into Austin much. If I worked in Austin, no way I'd live out that far. Even Circle C is too far for us!