Moving to Baltimore area – need advice! (Columbia, Ellicott City: environment, for sale, apartment complex)

[mamaroo]

My family is moving to the Baltimore area, and I need some advice on where to live. I have a 13-year-old son, so school is important. It doesn't have to be the BEST school but a good one.

We're looking to buy a house or townhome, and I was wondering if there are any renovated areas in Baltimore that are safe, and have decent schools. Otherwise, does anyone have any suggestions for spots to live outside the city?

[Kaey]

I am a Baltimorian and I just move from the city area. I just relocated to the Howard County area. Schools are much better here, crime is minimum to none, and It is just off of I95 so your are jsut about 15-20 minutes away from the city. My kids are 10 and 11 and i have seen a drastic change for the better since i moved here. Baltimore in itself has closed 7n schools every other year and have the lowest succes ratee of graduates. I strongly suggest thet even if you dont choose Howard County that you dont move to Baltimore City. You have alot of Suburb areas Randallstown, Towson, Columbia, Elkridge, Ellicott City, Glenn Burnie just to name a few for you. Hope I was of some assistance to you . Anything else just ask and i will be glad to help.

[mamaroo]

Thanks Kaey. That helps!

[kongkatk]

My husband got a job with Johns Hopkins at Bayview campus, and we are also moving to Baltimore soon. However, we will first move to an apartment. Your opinions and recommendation on good areas and apartments are highly appreciated.

I am considering Ellicott City. About how long will be my husband's drive during rush hours (We did think about Columbia too but seems too far for him as he works very long hours)? If I consider finding a job in DC (just some curious thought), is the commute from Ellicott City feasible? And do you know any good apartment complexes in that area?

There is an apartment complex in White Marsh (Cambridge Court) that looks ok, and is located right near the town center. Is White Marsh safe and nice?

Another area we are thinking is Timonium, but there are not many apartments there (we are thinking about Mays Chapel North). Is Timonium a good area to live?

We were told Towson is a big party town as there are many college students. Is there some nice quiet area in the town?

Thanks for your help in advance.

Originally Posted by Kaey

I am a Baltimorian and I just move from the city area. I just relocated to the Howard County area. Schools are much better here, crime is minimum to none, and It is just off of I95 so your are jsut about 15-20 minutes away from the city. My kids are 10 and 11 and i have seen a drastic change for the better since i moved here. Baltimore in itself has closed 7n schools every other year and have the lowest succes ratee of graduates. I strongly suggest thet even if you dont choose Howard County that you dont move to Baltimore City. You have alot of Suburb areas Randallstown, Towson, Columbia, Elkridge, Ellicott City, Glenn Burnie just to name a few for you. Hope I was of some assistance to you . Anything else just ask and i will be glad to help.

[JINGZ317]

Dear Richard McCollim,

I am going to work in Baltimore downtown with my son. can you give me some advices about good school districts that have convenient urban life style?

[mccollim]

In response to the need to know about schools, I sincerely feel that every school is unique. In Baltimore City, for instance, there are schools with tremendous drop out and failure rates and their are schools with high creativity, success, and student involvement. If you will be in a certain area and need to know about schools, you should either private message me for details or make a public request. Be specific. There is a huge difference between "schools in the area" and "A highly rated high school in the ___ neighborhood of northeast Baltimore for my 16 year old daughter who loves technology." Let me know if I can help you, but be specific because there are hundreds of schools, both private and public.
Sincerely,
Richard McCollim

[ricco45]

and heres why :
1) Baltimore is the Most Crime Violent of the 25 largest US cities (Federal Bureau of Investigation - Home Page, 12/2002)
1) Mayor O'Malley proclaimed Baltimore the Juvenile Murder Capital of America (WBAL, 9/2002)
1) Baltimore ranked #1 in Out-of Wedlock Teen births nationwide (Annie E. Casey Foundation, 2/2002) 1) Baltimore rated DEAD LAST in Money Magazine's Popularity Contest (12/2002)
1) Baltimore is the Heroin Capital of the country (Baltimore SUN, 2002)
2) Baltimore is the Second-Most Deadly Per Capita of the 25 largest US cities (Federal Bureau of Investigation - Home Page Uniform Crime Reports, 12/2002)
2) Baltimore is the 2nd Most Dangerous City (out of 342) in the US (Morgan Quitno Press, 11/2002)
2) Baltimore City is the 4th Most Violent Crime City in the US (Morgan Quitno Press, 11/2002)
[SIZE=2]2) Baltimore City ranks #2 in the nation for reported cases of AIDS[/SIZE] ([SIZE=2]CDC 2001 HIV/AIDS Surveillance Report, 10/2002) [/SIZE]
2) Baltimore is the Second WORST City in America for Black Families (BET.com, 10/2002)
3) Baltimore is the 3rd Most Kid Unfriendly City in the country (Population Connection : Kid Friendly Cities)
3) Baltimore ranked #3 in the US for reported cases of Gonorrhea (CDC 2001 STD Surveillance Report, 12/2002)
3) Baltimore City is rated #3 in the US for reported cases of Primary and secondary Syphilis (CDC 2001 STD Surveillance Report, 12/2002)
4) The Baltimore Metro Area has the 4th Most Violent Crime rate in the US (Morgan Quitno Press, 11/2002)
4) Maryland is the 4th Most Dangerous State in the country (Morgan Quitno Press, 5/2002
4) Four human corpses were found floating dead in Baltimore's Inner Harbor (Baltimore SUN, 2002
5) Baltimore is the 5th Most Dangerous Metro Area in the US (Morgan Quitno Press, 11/2002)
5) Baltimore ranked #5 in Personal Crime Risk (CNN's Money magazine, 11/2002)
5) Maryland is rated #5 in the US for reported cases of Primary and secondary Syphilis (CDC 2001 STD Surveillance Report, 12/2002)
5) Baltimore was rated 5th in Drug-tied ER visits nationwide (Drug Abuse Warning Network, 8/2002)
5) Baltimore ranked in the Top 5% with toxic air pollution levels (U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, 6/2002)
6) Baltimore City is rated #6 in the country for reported cases of Chlamydia (CDC 2001 STD Surveillance Report, 12/2002)
6) Baltimore was rated 6th WORST nationwide in % of kids in single-parent households (BET.com, 10/2002)[
6) Baltimore was rated #6 in the US for reported cases of Early Latent Syphilis (CDC 2001 STD Surveillance Report, 12/2002)
7) Baltimore City was rated #7 in the US for reported cases of Primary and secondary Syphilis (CDC 2001 STD Surveillance Report, 12/2002)
7) Maryland is the 7th WORST State in % of households headed by married couples (Morgan Quitno Press, 11/2002
8) Baltimore is the 8th Most Murderous City in the US (Morgan Quitno Press, 11/2002)
8) Baltimore was rated 8th WORST in the death of black infants nationwide (BET.com, 10/2002)
8) One of every eight Baltimore residents is a drug addict (Baltimore SUN, 2002)
9) Baltimore is the 9th Most Dangerous Metropolitan Area (out of 271) in the US (Morgan Quitno Press, 11/2002)
9) Nine of every ten drug addicts in Baltimore is infected with Hepatitis C (Baltimore SUN, 2002)
10) Baltimore is the 10th Most Murderous Metro Area in the US (Morgan Quitno Press, 11/2002)
10) The Baltimore-Washington Metropolitan Area ranked #10 in Most Ozone Air Polluted Cities in the US (Lungsusa.org - lungs usa Resources and Information. This website is for sale!, 2002)
10) Baltimore recorded 10 consecutive years of 300+ murders (thru the 1990s)

[barante]

ricco45 -- I knew you were lurking there all these years compiling factoids so that you could post your first post. You can run but you can't hide.
kongkatk-- If you are considering working in Washington, and your husband has a job at Bayview, living in White Marsh or Timonium makes no sense, unless you want to go to divorce court. I would seriously look for something accessible to MARC line and interstates. Like Linthicum. Linthicum, in Anne Arundel County, is a short commute (through the tunnel) to Bayview. It is on light rail for easy access to Baltimore. It is on Interstates and MARC, making commute to Washington about as good as it gets. Linthicum also is safe. I don't know anything about schools, but I believe they are good. Another possibility is Halethorpe/Arbutus (don't laugh).
In summary: You can commute to Bayview from anywhere; the problematic part is Washington. That commute gets more and more insane every day. Linthicum would enable you to meet both of those goals in an environment that is pleasant.
Please invest an hour or two in reading past threads. The Baltimore/DC question and how to handle a household where one partner works there and the other in Baltimore has been covered exhaustively repeatedly and recently. Nothing has changed since those discussions, except that the traffic has gotten worse every day -- thanks largely to all people on the cell phone who don't give a rat's behind about traffic flow or other drivers.

[blupl8spcl]

ricco45:

6 year old data won't scare me. I'm moving next week!