Daily commute to Dayton? Neighborhoods where kids walk to school? (Columbus: transplants, crime)

[Snowey]

Hi everyone,

I just found this message board and I've been reading through it and I must say...I'm very surprised at the amount of people moving into the area. This is a good thing, and I wish everyone moving in the best of luck. :-)

Now, I have a few rather odd questions. There is a chance that my family might be moving to Dayton. Yes, I know, this message board isn't about Dayton, but the problem is we're not sure if we'd actually want to live in Dayton. I checked the mileage and it looks like Columbus is only about an hour away from Dayton...is that right? How feasible is it to commute from Columbus to Dayton every day? Is that common or would we be crazy to try it? Also, we have a child and, of course, want the best schools for him. He's in elementary school now. Are there any neighborhoods where it's normal for kids to walk or bike to school? Also, about the neighborhoods...we currently live in a mid-sized southern city (we're from NY, though), and while it's a nice city, it's impossible to drive anywhere. There is a bit of a sprawl problem here. I would love a neighborhood where one could walk to the store, school, restaurant, bar, etc, listen to band concerts in the park, have the ice cream man sell ice cream...stuff like that. Does anything like that exist there? That's the type of town I grew up in and I would love to once again live in a place like that.

Thank you very much!

[Snowey]

I guess that, from the deafening silence, I should assume that commuting from Columbus to Dayton every day would be a bit insane, eh? Although, I really do like the looks of Columbus. Looks like a really nice city with a lot going on and stuff for the kids to do.

[the_pines]

Dayton is roughly an hour and fifteen minutes to Columbus. Light to moderate traffic. The traffic isn't as steady as it is from Dayton to Cincinnati. South Dayton has the best schools. When I lived in Dayton lots of kids at any school ride their bikes or walk to school. We used to stop for breakfast every morning before school at a Denny's restaurant. So we got up early and made the five mile trek to and from school. We didn't have to. But we were really active and traveled in groups. Centerville and Beavercreek are probably prime locations for what you're looking for. Though their schools maybe be getting overcrowded? I like Kettering a lot myself. Generally speaking though I think south Dayton is more car friendly? Please keep in mind Dayton does not grow like Columbus. Growth is very isolated now days and we don't have as much diversity.

[NewToCA]

I commuted from Hillard (west side of Columbus) to Dayton once a week for a few years, and wouldn't recommend it. About a dozen times in the winter you'll get snow or ice storms, and I-70 will get really slick.

Dayton isn't such a bad place to live, I kind of like the Beavercreek area.

[Snowey]

Thank you very much, I'll keep those comments in mind. 1 hour and 15 minutes does seem a bit much when you figure that would equal a 2.5 hour commute every day. I wonder if there is a small town somewhere between Dayton and Columbus that would give us the best of both worlds. I would rather have some diversity. Diversity is good. Where I am now is very diverse...my son's class looks like the UN. Every nationality and ethnic group is represented...I love it.

[NewToCA]

The only town with any size between Columbus and Dayton is Springfield, which though nice in some ways has a struggling economic situation:

http://www.city-data.com/city/Springfield-Ohio.html


On that link are some threads discussing Springfield. They provide additional insights. Though the crime statistics are high, my understanding is that they have a significant split between a good and bad area within their city.

[maestro]

I've known some people that do the Dayton-Columbus (or Columbus-Dayton) commute, and for the most part none of them seem very happy. It's close enough that you think that it's do-able, but then once you do it for a while it gets draining.

I've lived in Dayton for a while, and honestly I was pretty bored. Depending on what floats your boat, I would suggest Columbus or Cincinnati over Dayton. Columbus/Cincy have a lot more action, and the cost of living it's that more expensive for the most part.

[streetcreed]

Okay what to do what to DO?

I did live in Dayton for a year, and I am from Columbus.

Dayton is good if you want to stay at home and do nothing most of the time. Raise a family but have little culture or activities. Also, Dayton suburbs are less open to diversity or "new" people. Columbus is an entire metro of 2million made up of nearly all recent transplants or some immigrants.

I would strongly say, it would be best to, in this situation, live in Columbus AND work in Columbus.

However, if you cannot, then yes I would live in Columbus and drive to Dayton. It is not a major traffic nighmare, and most people do not commute between the two, but other than maybe 3-5 times per winter, the drive will have little weather problems.

[Snowey]

Thank again. Work would be in Dayton, so in that we'd have little choice. I'd love to be able to walk places, and I'd love to be in an area that was doing well economically and actually growing. Columbus seems to be what I want. That commute, though....eh. I guess, if it happens that we do end up moving to the area, we'll just have to make a list of pros and cons for each area, and decide which would be a better one for us to live in, factoring in everything. From everything I've been hearing and reading, Columbus would probably suit us better in every way EXCEPT for the pesky problem of that commute. Grrrr.

[WeeMadArthur]

Columbus is better.

I commuted from Dublin to Beavercreek a couple times and that was enough for me. It sort of depends on how much you like your job. Right now I commute from Loveland (northeastish Cincinnati) to Beavercreek... 57 miles. It BLOWS! If I don't have an interesting project at work it is really hard to make that drive. The commute makes me incredibly irritable by the end of the week. Friday afternoon you better get out of the fast lane because I will run you over.