Can our family fit in Cleveland? (suburbs, Hispanic, black)

[lisa12230]

Originally Posted by gemanda

Hubby has a potential job offer that we're evaluating. I know next to nothing about Cleveland, so I'm fairly clueless as to whether we can make this work.

--Job would be near the airport. We'd like to keep his commute in the 30-45 min or less range

--We'll be renting to start, after getting burned in the housing market. We'd prefer to keep rent under $2000 for a 4-5 BR SFH.

--We like both suburban and urban living, no big preference. Prefer trees, age of houses aren't a big deciding factor.

--We have 4 young kids, oldest 2 will be in elementary school in the fall. Schools are important.

--Two of our 4 kids are special needs, so the quality of non-autistic special education is of utmost importance. They will be coming in with good IEP's, and we know how to work with the system and be involved, but availability of services is a concern.

--Along this same realm, we need quality medical care, particularly in the areas of pediatric neurology and physical medicine.

--And the possible kicker...we need diversity. We're Caucasian, our children are an eclectic mix of Caucasian, Latino and African-American. We don't want them to stand out like sore thumbs.

Is there anywhere in the Cleveland area we can make all of this work? If so, suggestions are welcome!

My children are half black/white...You won't have any problem especially in Shaker Heights, and the eastern surburbs....I'am also moving back to cleveland...

[Boffo]

I vote Lakewood. I read somewhere that there are over 25 different languages spoken in the halls of the high school. It also has a sizable arabic population. In addition, your husband's commute would only be about 15 minutes to the airport. The city also has a lot of rentals so you could probably find a house that suits your needs.

[RioDominicana]

Originally Posted by gemanda

Hubby has a potential job offer that we're evaluating. I know next to nothing about Cleveland, so I'm fairly clueless as to whether we can make this work.

--Job would be near the airport. We'd like to keep his commute in the 30-45 min or less range

--We'll be renting to start, after getting burned in the housing market. We'd prefer to keep rent under $2000 for a 4-5 BR SFH.

--We like both suburban and urban living, no big preference. Prefer trees, age of houses aren't a big deciding factor.

--We have 4 young kids, oldest 2 will be in elementary school in the fall. Schools are important.

--Two of our 4 kids are special needs, so the quality of non-autistic special education is of utmost importance. They will be coming in with good IEP's, and we know how to work with the system and be involved, but availability of services is a concern.

--Along this same realm, we need quality medical care, particularly in the areas of pediatric neurology and physical medicine.

--And the possible kicker...we need diversity. We're Caucasian, our children are an eclectic mix of Caucasian, Latino and African-American. We don't want them to stand out like sore thumbs.

Is there anywhere in the Cleveland area we can make all of this work? If so, suggestions are welcome!

Since you say you would prefer the commute to be 30-45 minutes, I think you should check into the east side suburbs. Shaker Heights sounds like you would like it. Really nice family area, with really good elementary schools, lots of trees, a few lakes and nature. Almost half of Shaker Heights is minority, your kids would fit in fine here. Shaker Heights was actually one of the most prominent cities to actively establish racial integration during the riot-heavy 60's so it's actually kind of a promoted value among the community.

Healthcare is no problem. Shaker is 5 min (10 at most) away from Cleveland Clinic (one of the best hospitals in the nation) and University Hospitals and University Circle (neighborhood with all of the museums and Case Western Reserve University). Naturally Shaker draws a lot of the doctors, professors, medical people that work nearby so it's very open minded. Shaker also has light rail that goes into downtown Cleveland so (though you might not use it) if you wanted to you could actually catch the train to downtown and from there it runs to the airport (maybe your husband's job would be near a train stop?). Just a thought but I hope you consider it.

[Peregrine]

Originally Posted by Clevelander17

Though I'm not certain on how much luck you'd have finding rentals there, especially in your price range (but check it out). Both are also less than 30 minute drives from Hopkins. South Euclid may also be an option with more rentals in your price range.

Huh?? Her price range is $2,000/month. You can rent in any suburb in this county for that kind of money.

[Treeman1]

Cleveland Heights or Lakewood are probably as diverse communities as we have in Northeast Ohio. From what I understand, Lakewood schools are mostly all right, whereas you might want to go private if you live in CH. What is the high school at, 10 percent white now? Maybe a little less? And there are some issues with disruptive students, at least at the high school level.

Solon also has a fantastic special needs program and is close to some hospitals, but that area is heavily white with a growing Asian population. I don't know what the percentage of black students and families is - certainly lower than Lakewood and Cleveland Hts.

[Peregrine]

Solon isn't the most diverse but is very accpeting of others.
Bit far from the Airport though. Well... would be for me anyway.

[ECBeastor]

I'll tell you Lakewood is very diverse. Take you children to Lakewood park on a Saturday or Sunday and you will see just how much. The younger population in Lakewood is much more diverse than it was 10 or even 20 years ago.

When it comes time to buy though you may want to look at areas with even better schools and greater appreciation on home values. I will say though that in my experience, even in the predominantly white suburbs of Rocky River, Bay Village and Westlake you don't have out and out racism coming from the vast majority of the citizenry. These communities are made up primarily of well educated, open-minded individuals (at least the adults with children in elementary schools). The more noticable issues will come when you get into far out areas like North Ridgevile.

Having said all that, Shaker Heights is probably the most diverse. But it's more predominantely african american the further along your children go in the Public Schools. The city itself is 60% white 35% black but the high school is 60% black and 35% white. Lakewood (at least the schools) are more equivalent to the actual racial distribution of the country as a whole (i.e the U.S. is 75% white, 12% black, 8% latina 5% asian/other). Lakewood high school is 84% white, 10% black, 3% Hispanic. And that 84% white is made up of many first generation immigrants (arabs, albanians, romanians etc) that many others wouldn't quite say were your typical irish or german 4th generation whites.

There will be plenty of large old homes available to rent in both Shaker and Lakewood that would fit your family for under $2000, both cities have many things to do and both have lovely mature tree lined streets. The only downside for Shaker in your case would be commuting along with the rush hour traffic for part of your trip to the airport area. Lakewood would be a 10-15 min straight shot south on Riverside/Rocky River drive or taking the scenic Metroparks to Grayton.

[jgproe]

Shaker Heights. The schools are well-known for serving students with special needs, and it is a very diverse community with many blended families of all kinds. Your family would not "stick out" or feel unwelcome in Shaker, and there are many nice rental options.

[tribecavsbrowns]

Originally Posted by Clevelander17

I understand and respect where you're coming from. I may get some protestation on the claim I'm about to make, but here it is: I believe that, generally speaking, other than Lakewood, you're going to find that most of the western suburbs are overwhelmingly whitebread and a few of them (won't mention any specific ones on this thread) could be particular unwelcoming to your family, even today.

Going to the eastern suburbs would probably add a little bit of time to your commute, but it may be worth checking it out. Google Maps says that Shaker Heights is 26 minutes to Hopkins Airport. Cleveland Heights is listed at 33 minutes. Some other options of diverse eastside communities with decent or good school districts may be Beachwood and Solon. Though I'm not certain on how much luck you'd have finding rentals there, especially in your price range (but check it out). Both are also less than 30 minute drives from Hopkins. South Euclid may also be an option with more rentals in your price range.

Why would you not mention them? If you're going to insinuate that there are all these suburbs on the west side that are hostile to black and Hispanic people, I think you need to mention them. If you really believe in your convictions, what's the problem?

[Clevelandgal]

The Cleveland area can be hard to navigate because there are so many school districts (I am guessing 15 plus). Since I worked with people with disabilities in Cleveland I can understand how important it is to live in school district that does well with special needs. Here is a possible resource: The Educational Service Center of Cuyahoga County (ESCCC) they probably can't steer you or talk bad about a district but you can ask a question like " which district works best with a parent who is a strong advocate?", "do any districts have innovative autism programs?"
Please do not take my opinions too seriously (network, and do your homework), I am only speaking from feedback from parents of young adults I worked with. In the end, a strong parent advocate is the most crucial in getting a great IEP
Orange and Beachwood spend a lot, and parents I worked with seemed very satisfied with special ed services. The area is diverse so no worries for your family. Pain in the rear to get to the airport though-at least IMO.

Shaker Heights (diverse, and some urban areas) and on the other side of town, Westlake (less diverse) a mixed bag, some really great work, some fall through the cracks.

Strongsville has good spec ed services, but the community is less progressive. reasonably close to the airport. I am a big urban advocate but when it comes to spec ed services, all bets are off and I would do what is needed to get my child the best services.

Lakewood is a wonderful community but I do think the school system is struggling to adjust to the high volume of spec needs students. Maybe they are getting better.

Overall I think the region values supporting people with special needs-just my opinion from working in the field in a few different states.