If I describe my perfect town, can you tell me where it is? (Cleveland: homes, schools)

[cleveburg]

Katie,

If you find that place . . . let me know!

Well, several places came to mind immediately . . . Hudson, Chagrin Falls, and Olmsted Falls. Rocky River also fall into this category, but the small townhall / square place matches the first three more. I was born and raised in Cleveland, and I have lived both east, west, and south, so I can give you my honest opinion (for what it's worth). I have two kids (High School and primary school), so a school system is important to me, as well as safety issues and convenience.

I live in Olmsted Falls (west side). The school system is superior (one of the highest ranked in the state). It has a small town with old shops that include antiques, restaurants, gift shops, candle shops, and a dessert / tea shop called "Clementines." The atmosphere is very community centered . . . parents are very involved in the schools, especially H.S.

The downfalls: Very high taxes; kind of out-of-the way from major shopping (not far, just inconvenient). Get used to planes, trains, and automobiles. It's 10 minutes from the airport so there is an airpath. Oh. Turnpike is right in the middle of the city, and so are train tracks. Never fails . . . try and go to the store, and you'll get stuck by a train. Stinks. There is A LOT of new housing, but no commercial industry to absorb the taxes. No pool / rec center either. Few older areas are hillbilly. Everyone in the city cringes at it.

Hudson: Southeast of Cleveland. Very nice area. Far away from the main city. High taxes. A lot of wealth there. Good schools. Nice town square. I don't know whether or not they have a rec center. One word: expensive

Chagrin Falls: Nice area. East side of Cleveland. We looked into Chagrin Falls, but it ended up being very expensive. They have very nice old homes. Great town square. They get a lot more snow since they are east. Not sure if they have a rec center, but the schools are great.

Medina: South of Cleveland. Growing, growing, and too grown. I never particular cared for the atmosphere of Medina, and I just can't pin-point why. We didn't care for the school system at all. The only school system in Medina that I would even consider is the Highland School District. The rest stink. My sister can't wait to leave. Too much, too soon. Traffic is a nightmare.

I know several people mentioned Lakewood. My brother-in-law has lived there for 15 years and wants to leave. The city nit-picks every little thing on a property and will fine you. MAJOR rental city. Beautiful older homes. Next to the Lake. My nephew and neice just graduated from the school system . . . they STINK and have a major drug problem. Taxes are higher than mine (if that is at all possible). West side of Lakewood is still nice, but the east side is ghetto now. It is really ashame too because I went to school out there and the city used to be the "place to be" at one time.

Rock River is very nice. $$$$$ and lots of old money too. Very safe. Love the location! Schools are awesome. You'll be luck to get a fix-it-up three bedroom bungalow for $250K. Taxes were just raised to slightly lower than mine.

Another area to consider is Independence. They have a nice mix of old and new homes. VERY low taxes (they make up for that difference in the price of the homes). Very conveniently located. Beautiful rec center. Good school system.

I hope this helps. Again, this is just my opinion. You'll always have someone that will disagree.

Seriously . . . if you find that perfect area, let me know:-)

[bleveincleve1]

Independence Ohio, Great suburban community 10 min from downtown Cleveland. Best schools, small town center and rec and events, best 4th fireworks. Large edge city business community. This sounds just like what you're looking for. CHECK IT OUT!!!!

[chartbury]

Hi there,

Running through your list, I would say that Shaker Heights checks off most of your boxes and anything missing (you used to be able to fish and canoe at Horseshoe Lake there, the new mayor might bring that idea back) can be found within a short and easy drive. I don't know what your price range is but if you can afford it, the Malvern (Malvern has the gorgeous stately homes) and Mercer neighborhoods are definitely the best. You also might want to look at the parts of Cleveland Heights and Beachwood that border Shaker Heights. Good luck!

[HawgKlr]

No...no...no....Wooster in Wayne County is your place...Medina? Whats "hometown" about Medina? Oh yeah, State route 18 (

[dude in a bag]

Originally Posted by nlschr0

I agree - Hudson is one of my favorite "small towns" in the Cleveland area, and although it is a more expensive town, it has great schools, terrific local shops and restaurants, and just a strong community vibe. But, the snow can definitely be much more significant in Hudson and Chagrin Falls than Lakewood or even Medina. If you think you can make peace with a little more snow (and their lack of diversity), I would really agree that Hudson and Chagrin Falls should be at the top of your list. Even Twinsburg has a nice rec center, housing options, town festivals, etc - it doesn't have as much charm but it does have some nice areas and a decent amount of diversity for an outer-ring suburb.

yeah but Hudson and chagrin falls are overall pretentious and nobody mentioned Willoughby, the city has a nice downtown with bars and restaurants and shopping and has a friendly,everyman charm to it

[hlaverdiere]

Our township, Bainbridge, is the semi-rural neighbor to Chagrin Falls, Auburn is more rural and east of Bainbridge (Auburn/Bainbridge=Kenston Local Schools), and Aurora is south of Bainbridge. Auburn and Bainbridge do lack a town center but are lovely.

[jlawrence01]

Originally Posted by cleveburg

I know several people mentioned Lakewood. My brother-in-law has lived there for 15 years and wants to leave. The city nit-picks every little thing on a property and will fine you. MAJOR rental city. Beautiful older homes. Next to the Lake. My nephew and neice just graduated from the school system . . . they STINK and have a major drug problem. Taxes are higher than mine (if that is at all possible). West side of Lakewood is still nice, but the east side is ghetto now. It is really ashame too because I went to school out there and the city used to be the "place to be" at one time.

If Lakewood is "ghetto", I want ghetto and I lived on the east side of town for years.

And you are right, the city does cite people who DO NOT keep up their houses. That is a GOOD thing. You do not see the level of deterioration in Lakewood that you would see in other communities with older housing stock.

The city also aggressively enforces its building codes so that when a contractor performs SUBSTANDARD work, the contractor is forced to redo the work or hire a licensed contractor to bring it up to code. That is another good thing in a community of largely frame houses that are older.

I always thought ghetts were places that let the housing stock slide.

So much white suburban mularkey.

[tribecavsbrowns]

Originally Posted by cleveburg

My nephew and neice just graduated from the school system . . . they STINK and have a major drug problem.

I don't understand the urge to completely pan Lakewood schools without giving context. Lakewood had more National Merit Finalists than any other public school on the west side last year, so obviously the system doesn't STINK for them. Lakewood has the only rock orchestra in the area, so obviously the system doesn't STINK for ambitious young string instrumentalists. I think we would all be open to hearing the specific problems your nephew and niece had at Lakewood, but the judgmental approach you take is useless at best and a misrepresentation at worst. Also, I'm a fairly recent Lakewood grad, and I see absolutely no evidence that Lakewood High has more problems with drugs than other high schools. If you have evidence, I'm open to it, but nothing in my experience, my friends' experiences, or the media puts Lakewood in any worse light than any other school in the western suburbs.

[Tangy]

Lakewood can be a bit too congested and a bit too liberal for some. My daugher lived in RR and we went into Lakewood all the time, it's fun, it's hip but it has that closed in city feel, lots of traffic, bad parking. If you are very right wing please note that it also has I believe the second largest gay communtiy in the US right behind SF. If that is ok with you and you enjoy more of a city feel then Lakewood is a fun place.

[ZnGuy]

I decided to move to Chagrin Falls in 1999 and always believed it was one the neatest towns in the midwest, although it is expensive area....location, location. I left in 04 to the sunbelt-NC, decided winters were't for me. I still visit on business every couple months...