Relocation - Dublin, Hilliard and Powell (Columbus, Worthington: how much, house, school district)

[kilgresak]

I am moving my family to the Columbus area in the spring. I have three kids under 6 years old. We are primarily looking in the Dublin, Hilliard (Ballantrae subdivision) and Powell areas. Focus is on a house in the $500-$600 range and less than 15 years old. Main criteria is good schools and a convenient location and a community that has a strong sense of "community" and welcomes families not from Ohio.

Any comments about these three areas would be greatly appreciated. My wife will work in Columbus and I will be based in Dublin.

[jajosh07]

I live in a community right outside of Dublin and i will say that it is probably the best choice of these three. It has much better schools than Hilliard and is more central than Powell. My Church is located in the Ballantrae subdivision and i have a friend that lives there and I can tell you it is a very nice place to live, and includes a play and water park and golf course. Tuttle mall is less than 5 minutes away as well as shopping and the new Dublin Methodist Hospital at perimeter loop.

[sftong]

kilgresak,

Based on good schools criteria, I think Hilliard is out.

Based on convenient location, you should define your criteria, i.e where are you visiting more often - both Dublin and Powell and about the same distance from columbus downtown, maybe Dublin a little closer.

For shopping center wise, Powell is right between Polaris malls and Tuttle crossing, and is closer to Easton than Dublin.

For gold courses, Powell has 3 golf courses within like 2 miles radius, and is home to Columbus Zoo and the upcoming Water Park 2008 (go take a look yourself to see the grand size), which both offer annual passes which I am sure kids will enjoy often.

[jajosh07]

If golf was is what your looking for Dublin is the choice.... come on they have Muirfield (The Memorial Tournament).... But i'm sure golfing isn't one of your criteria, i simpilty mentioned that because the Golf Club of Dublin is located in the Subdivision you discussed (Ballantrae), making a very nice backdrop... plus where else but Ballantrae would you find a giant dancing bunnies sculpture made of recycled metal with a mini-water park under it??

[NewToCA]

I've lived in Hillard for 9 years and an additional 5 in Dublin. My choice would be the Wedgewood or Campden Lake areas, adjacent to each other on the east side of the Scioto River, west of Sawmill Rd and south of the zoo.

[kilgresak]

It sounds like the current feedback is giving Dublin the edge over the other two areas. We definitely like the Ballantrae subdivision, the only potential question is that this is Hilliard schools and how much difference is there between Hilliard and Dublin or Olentangy schools. It is my understanding that Hilliard is building a 3rd HS. Golf is a hobby, just a matter of finding the time to play but I like to get out when I can. The main conveniences are good access to shopping and schools and avoiding any significant traffic getting to downtown Columbus. I would like to keep my wife's commute to 30 minutes or less.

[jajosh07]

Hilliard is building a third high school (Hilliard Bradley) on Alton-Darby Road, but at the Ballantrae location you child would go to Hilliard Davidson, which is the better of the two Hilliard schools, Dublin probably has better schools, but either way they are both decent schools, but i couldn't tell you much about Olentangy

[bgfalcons86]

Originally Posted by jajosh07

Hilliard is building a third high school (Hilliard Bradley) on Alton-Darby Road, but at the Ballantrae location you child would go to Hilliard Davidson, which is the better of the two Hilliard schools, Dublin probably has better schools, but either way they are both decent schools, but i couldn't tell you much about Olentangy

Both Davidson (Performance Index = 105.4) and Darby (PI = 104.2) have consistently scored excellent on the state report card. Of course, there are many factors besides scores on the state's standardized tests to consider. Both schools do send the vast majority of their graduates off to college.

kilgresak...
There is no doubt that Dublin schools have excellent academics and the City of Dublin has amenities that are unmatched in Central Ohio. Powell (Olentangy) is also a very good choice for schools.

Since you are still interested in Ballantrae... Hilliard schools did make 28/30 of the indicators on the state report card with a PI of 100.2, but the district again did not meet a measure called Adequate Yearly Progress (AYP) and was rated 'Continuous Improvement' rather than 'Excellent'. AYP measures the test scores of a number of different socioeconomic and ethnic groups and an increasing percentage of students from each group must pass the reading and math portions of the Ohio Achievement Test in order to achieve AYP.

I mentioned on here last year that we would see an increasing number of districts that score well on tests, but fail to make AYP and are thus held to a 'Continuous Improvement' rating. Worthington and Pickerington met the same fate as Hilliard this year. A number of districts are at risk of this next year - if they miss AYP again - including Olentangy and Dublin. Olentangy is probably at a little bigger risk, since they had 2 subgroups miss AYP, whereas Dublin had just one. Both districts met 29/30 indicators and had very high Performance Index Scores (Dublin - 103.7, Olentangy - 102.8). Of course, performance on standardized tests is just one measure of a school district's success.

I might also include that there have been a number of people from other portions of the Hilliard school district move to Ballantrae to avail themselves of the amenities there and stay in Hilliard schools. I live in Hilliard and have been pleased with the education that my children are receiving.

NewToCA has lived in both communities and you should consider looking up NewToCA's previous posts. Good Luck in your search - wherever you end up.

[kilgresak]

Thanks for the feedback so if I used a rating scale of 1-5 with 5 being excellent and 3 being average, it sounds like Dublin schools would get a 5 and Hilliard around a 4.5.

Does anyone know if Ballantrae subdivision has a lot of family and kids?

[bgfalcons86]

kilgresak...

Dublin's State Report Card: http://www.ode.state.oh.us/reportcar...IST/047027.PDF

Hilliard's State Report Card:
http://www.ode.state.oh.us/reportcar...IST/047019.PDF

Olentangy's State Report Card:
http://www.ode.state.oh.us/reportcar...IST/046763.PDF

Dublin's District website:
http://www.dublinschools.net

Hilliard's District website:
Hilliard City School District

Olentangy's District website:
Olentangy Local School District

Hilliard CSD built a brand new elementary school (Washington Elementary), in part to accomodate the growth in the portion of the district that lies within the Dublin city limits and more specifically Ballantrae. FYI, Hilliard CSD is going to the ballot in March with a 9.5 mill operating levy. Not sure when Dublin CSD and Olentangy LSD will be on the ballot next.

Good Luck.