Moving to Chattanooga area...PLEASE give some input!!!!! (vacation, zoned)

[sway77]

This is the Chattanooga Corn Maze open every Friday and Saturday night in the October month. It's a UFO. lol. No really it's a space ship in the corn field. lol.

[sway77]

This is Coolidge Park located in the downtown Chattanooga area.

Tennessee Aquarium in downtown Chattanooga.

The downtown Chattanooga at night.


The walking Bridge Downtown.

[Jersey5312]

Thanks so much for all of your help and pictures! I am sooooo looking forward to coming up there soon and hopefully finding a house in the process! Thanks again...keep the info and pics coming!!! Cant wait for the hubby and kids to come home so I can show them!

[Hepmac]

Hi,

We moved to Chattanooga from Chicago two years ago. We really struggled with housing, because there was so much inconsistency. We moved to a neighborhood on the far southeast side of town (near the Hamilton Place mall) because my husband commutes to GA and wanted to avoid rush hour traffic.

We looked at Signal Mountain and many neighborhoods in Chattanooga. For your money, you'll get more in Ooltewah or Collegedale, although I don't find much charm there. There's a nice park in Collegedale (Imagination Station), but you get the sense the entire town grew from a crossroads and the need for a Southern Adventist community. I can't say I have found a city center for Ooltewah ... seems like a bunch of strip malls on country highways. There are a ton of housing developments going on in both areas.

The schools in Ooltewah are well-regarded. Most kids in Chattanooga attend private schools.

Signal Mountain residents love it there, but it has a kitschy charm by my standards. Good schools, and very pretty topography, but you have to drive down the mountain for most conveniences.

I would recommend a look at Ringgold, GA. It has a cute downtown with several restaurants and a couple grocery stores—almost a throwback to the 50s. As well, you can get to most Chattanooga amenities via Ooltewah-Ringgold Road/East Brainerd Road or I75. Very affordable and very liveable.

Good luck.

[Jersey5312]

Thanks so much for your input! It makes a difference when we have everyones opinions and then make a decision based on what we like as well! How are the schools in the area where you moved? My husband is going to work out of Chatt. so anywhere close by is good for me. I am a nurse so I can work around him but my most inportant thing is finding good schools for the kids! I dont mind being in a development so the kids will have friends to play with but I do want some type of lot/yard and dont want the neighbors right on top of us! Keep the input coming....it is VERY much appreciated!

[Hepmac]

Based on research and hearsay, we have been told the public elementary schools can be good, depending on where you live.

Lookout Mountain and Signal Mountain schools are rated well. On the east side, near the mall, Westview School (Ooltewah school district) has good ratings. We have friends with children at Westview, and they are pleased with the education. As well, a new middle school/high school is being built within a walk of Westview, so you could move to a neighborhood that is convenient to all of these schools. There are school buses, of course.

Here is a website with test scores:

TN Department of Education: K-12: Report Card

I am sure GA has a similar government site. I have heard the Ringgold schools are well regarded, although I have not looked up rankings.

Let me know if you need further information...

[amichel]

Originally Posted by Hepmac

Based on research and hearsay, we have been told the public elementary schools can be good, depending on where you live.

Lookout Mountain and Signal Mountain schools are rated well. On the east side, near the mall, Westview School (Ooltewah school district) has good ratings. We have friends with children at Westview, and they are pleased with the education. As well, a new middle school/high school is being built within a walk of Westview, so you could move to a neighborhood that is convenient to all of these schools. There are school buses, of course.

Here is a website with test scores:

TN Department of Education: K-12: Report Card

I am sure GA has a similar government site. I have heard the Ringgold schools are well regarded, although I have not looked up rankings.

Let me know if you need further information...

Be careful with Ooltewah schools. Westview is well-regarded, but some of the other public schools are not, despite their TCAPS. We just moved to the Hidden Lakes sub-division in Ooltewah, and our kids were zoned to go to Apison Elementary. We felt the need to move them to private school within the first month at Apison. I wish I had done more research. Be careful, and be thorough. This area of Tennessee is wonderful and scenic and we love it. I do wish we had done a more thorough review of the schools (elementary, middle, and high) that our children were slated for before we moved.

Best of luck.

[Jersey5312]

It is hard to find out which schools are zoned for which area when I look up houses on Realtor.com and other sites. Is there some type of map that shows the zoning?? Also, what is the approx. cost for a child to attend private school???

[jkmewright]

Here's the zoning section of our schools. Unfortunately you have to chose a school then see what area it includes.

HCDE - Zoning - Hamilton County Department of Education

Here's a sample:

http://www.hcde.org/media/pdf/items/284.pdf

[Jersey5312]

Thanks for the zoning info and maps! They should help! We are pretty mush looking for a school that is good, then finding a house in the area....I would live in a tent if I had to LOL We just want to find where the kids are going to get the best education! Thanks again, Michelle