what can you tell me about Camden? (Columbia, Florence: neighborhoods, public schools)

[pinkpocketbooks]

What is the town of Camden like? Is it considered Metro Columbia at all? What is the commute into Columbia like? Are there nice neighborhoods in Camden and do things look nice? What are the public schools like?

Camden is on our list of possible towns to consider. My husband will work in Florence and I will have more opportunities in Columbia. We're moving from Charlotte and we like the variety of things to do in Charlotte, although we hang out mostly in our suburb area.

Thanks!

[Chi2Midlands]

Originally Posted by pinkpocketbooks

What is the town of Camden like? Is it considered Metro Columbia at all? What is the commute into Columbia like? Are there nice neighborhoods in Camden and do things look nice? What are the public schools like?

Camden is on our list of possible towns to consider. My husband will work in Florence and I will have more opportunities in Columbia. We're moving from Charlotte and we like the variety of things to do in Charlotte, although we hang out mostly in our suburb area.

Thanks!

The Town of Camden is a nice, historical town with a quite pleasant small-town downtown. Technically Kershaw County (of which Camden is the county seat) is in the Columbia metropolitan area as per the Census Department's 2003 metropolitan area definitions revision. However, the vast majority of Kershaw County (e.g., the areas surrounding Camden) are very rural (although there are quite a few upscale horse farms in the area). There are a handful of newer suburban subdivisions in the southwestern corner of the county in the Elgin/Lugoff area, which abuts northeastern Richland county and its more developed suburban/commerical areas. Quite a few young families who want a somewhat more rural feel than NE Richland have moved into these subdivisions around Elgin.

Overally Kershaw County schools are average, but I personally would avoid Camden-area public schools if you can. The schools in the southwestern corner of the county, closer to those aforementioned newer subdivisions, are better. Schools like Doby's Mill Elementary, Lugoff-Elgin Middle, and Lugoff-Elgin High School are probably the county's better schools, but the housing associated with those schools are decidedly exurban/rural in character and not anything city-like or even town-like. If you must stay in Kershaw County and want the best public schools possible, you will have to trade off anything like a major city/suburban commercial area in your immediate neighborhood. On the other hand, the Elgin/Lugoff area is closer to Columbia and the developed NE Richland area than Camden is (you can drive from Elgin to the Village of Sandhill outdoor mall in about 15-20 minutes, probably).

Otherwise, I would suggest moving west across the county line into NE Richland county, and you will have a very good approximation of your typical Charlotte-area suburban node, with enough "high suburban" things to do to keep you busy, and more importantly, some of the best public schools around Columbia and in the state. I would recommend staying as close to I-20 (either off the Clemson Road or Spears Creek Church Road interchanges) as possible to minimize your husband's commute. Of course, your husband's drive time would increase by about 20 minutes over Camden, but he will still be able to reach Florence within an hour and some or so (between NE Richland and Florence, I-20 is mostly an undeveloped, rural, open-traffic interstate).

Here are some rough drive times for your reference:

Camden to Columbia (downtown): 45-60 minutes
Elgin/Lugoff to Columbia: 40-50 minutes
NE Richland to Columbia: 30-40 minutes

Camden to Florence (downtown): 45-60 minutes
Elgin/Lugoff to Florence: 55-70 minutes
NE Richland to Florence: 60-75 minutes