Family needs community suggestions (Chattanooga, Red Bank: apartment complex, rentals, houses)

[Alicia64]

My husband works in healthcare and we would rent for the first couple of years.

Can afford: $2,000/month rent.
Have two 13 year old boys, but we homeschool.
Love our dog and dog park.

Need an ultra-safe area -- husband grew up in a rougher area in CA and doesn't want to do that now.

Love lakes, pools, beaches.
Love libraries -- we're big readers.
Would love to be on 1/2 an acre, but that's not a deal breaker.
We're not snobby and don't want to be in a snobby area.
Husband would like a 10 to 15 min. commute. He'll be at Erlanger.

I've read that you have bad traffic, but I can't imagine that it's anything like the craziness here in Atlanta.

One son is super into his theater program -- if you have a suggestion for a good kids' theater program, that would be great.

Thank you so much for your help.

Alley

[Mstarr]

Hi Alley,
I'm no help in suggesting areas, because we're in the same boat. Preparing to move from Washington to Chattanooga this fall. I wanted to respond, however, because we are also homeschoolers. I have found a great homeschool support group on Facebook that's been helpful with finding homeschool programs & activities, it's called Chattanooga Homeschool if you'd like to do a search for it. Good luck in your move!

[shinestx]

Alley, I would recommend you look in Hixson for its proximity to Erlanger (From Hixson/153 to Dupont to Amnicola/Riverside) because it's family-oriented and has a wide range of housing. For your targeted rent, several neighborhoods in particular come to mind. On the Ridge, look at Colonial Shores and Hidden Harbor. Both neighborhoods have community pools and swim teams. Just off Lake Resort Drive (going up the ridge from Hwy 153), there's even a very nice apartment complex, but I'd guess you're not looking for that situation with two teenagers. At the foot of the ridge, there are several neighborhoods along Cassandra Smith where you might find houses in your price range. If you want to go farther out from Cassandra Smith and Big Ridge, you might find more house for your buck, but you'll be farther away from Erlanger.

Closer to downtown off Hixson Pike, the housing stock in your target range tends to be older but you can find nice properties. There is a neighborhood tucked behind Rivermont Elementary School (Carter Drive) that may have what you're looking for. Not sure where the Middle/High school options would be for you if you decide to send your sons to public school, but it's very close to the arts magnet high school Center for the Creative Arts (CCA), if you want to keep your options open. Very close to that area is The Overlook, a new neighborhood between Hixson Pike and the TN River. Across Hixson from Carter Drive is Stuart Heights. Once again older houses, but solid. Plus, that neighborhood has a pool with a swim team.

I would steer away from the neighborhoods north of Lupton Drive and west of Hixson over to Red Bank. It is more commercial and there are some sketchy areas.

Best of luck on your search.

[luvmyboxer]

Welcome! I have 2 homeschooled middle school boys who are both big-time into theater! Chattanooga is a great town for theater! Erlanger is very close to Chattanooga Theater Center, which offers lots of mainstage and youth theater programs. There are several other local theater companies: check out Closed Door Entertainment, http://www.cdoorent.com which is currently in rehearsals for a youth production of the musical Alice in Wonderland Jr, as well as Christian Family Theater, which is about to hold auditions for Elf Jr The Musical: http://www.cftchattanooga.com
Also, the Colonnade in Ringgold, GA has several companies that frequently put on both youth and adult shows- it's about 20-25 minutes from downtown Chattanooga via I-75 (barring traffic, which really only gets bad at rush hour...if you're from Atlanta, you will be very pleasantly surprised!). Further afield, there are 2 community theaters in Dalton, GA, which is maybe 45 minutes from downtown Chattanooga, but also convenient to I-75: Artistic Civic Theatre in Dalton and Dalton Little Theatre. The Signal Mountain Playhouse puts on an outdoor production in the summer and a couple of indoor productions during the schoolyear.
You've gotten some good suggestions about some of the neighborhoods in Hixson- Colonial Shores and many of the other neighborhoods in the Big Ridge area are really nice- Colonial Shores has a community pool you can join, close to the lake and shopping, etc. (Really close to a really nice park called Chester Frost Park, that has a sandy beach! This far inland!) Though it's probably closer to a 20-30 minute commute to Erlanger, depending on where in Hixson. One additional neighborhood to consider might be Heritage Landing, which is right on the river near downtown- fairly small lots, but maybe a mile or so from Erlanger and walking distance to Chattanooga Theater Center- you can rent a 3 bedroom for $1800 or so per month. I don't know about which neighborhoods are snobby, etc. though. Signal Mountain is a really nice family oriented community and one of the safest communities in TN, if you don't mind driving up and down a mountain every day- only 2 main roads up- if one gets closed due to a wreck or landslide, can create a serious bottleneck. There is a perception that many Signal Mtn folks are snotty- I don't speak from personal experience here though.
Collegedale/Ooltewah has lots of really nice, safe neighborhoods- a nice walking trail that goes right to the public library. But it's at least 30-35 minutes or more to Erlanger and you get the Hamilton Place Mall traffic. Also, there's always N. Georgia, but then you have to pay the GA income tax :-(
Oh yes, I have a friend who lives in that new subdivision off Carter Drive- the surrounding area around Rivermont Elementary isnt' the greatest, but that neighborhood itself is self-contained and convenient to downtown and Erlanger, etc. (I'm thinking $600,000+ dollar homes, no idea if they ever have rentals there, but might be worth a look.)