Apartment and elementary schools feeding in to Plano ISD. (Dallas: apartment complexes, to rent)

[GetOutOfMinnesota]

Hello,

We are currently in Minnesota(this winter has been pretty bad..had snow yesterday!!), planning to move to Dallas due to weather and better education for kids.

I will be posting different threads that address different inputs from all you experts! (dont want to cram too many questions in the same posting)

Some info about us, wife and I have jobs in technology sector, 2 kids have a 4 year old and an 18 month old.

Here are the things we are looking for..

-- Great schools
-- low crime
-- Good day care centers
-- Easy commute. Dont want to spend more than 30 mins each way in the car. Still need to find jobs..only in planning stage
-- Having close by parks
-- All shopping within 1 to 5 miles
-- diversity in the population
-- public transportation nice to have

With this above criteria and lurking on these forums(could not thank you all for the information I learned!!!!) we are leaning towards West Plano.

Here are the things I need help from you experts..

Planning to rent a 2 Bedroom apartment ($1000 to $1500) that would feed in to the Plano ISD. With the eventual goal of buying home within 6 months to an year..

Here are the elementary schools and apartments that we picked
Elementary schools
--Centennial Elementary
--Hightower Elementary School
--Bethany Elementary School
Apartments
--Madison Willow bend
--Northside at legacy
--INDEPENDENCE CROSSING

Are these schools and apartments good options? Do you guys have any more suggestions?

Other suburbs we considered Allen/Frisco(commute + schools), Richardson (schools), Highland Park( cannot afford!).

Super appreciate any help!
-- K

[BigDGeek]

Originally Posted by GetOutOfMinnesota

-- Great schools
-- low crime
-- Good day care centers
-- Easy commute. Dont want to spend more than 30 mins each way in the car. Still need to find jobs..only in planning stage
-- Having close by parks
-- All shopping within 1 to 5 miles
-- diversity in the population
-- public transportation nice to have

Depends on what you mean by "all shopping." If you like to do all of your shopping at Wal-Mart, you can live almost anywhere except the Park Cities.

Diversity...you are most likely to find that in Plano, Richardson, or Dallas itself. Other areas you mentioned, not so much.

Public transportation...not available north of Plano. Frisco, Allen, and McKinney all lack public transportation.

Knowing where your jobs will be and what your budget is would help a LOT. The further north you go, the worse off you are, generally speaking, commute-wise. Ditto for going too far east or west. Most IT jobs in DFW are concentrated in Dallas itself, Richardson in the Telecom Corridor, in northwest Plano on the DNT, some in Irving, and some in Addison.

Bearing that in mind you are best off in Plano or Richardson for a good commute with good schools, low crime, diversity, public transportation, and a good park system.

[GripeWater]

All schools and apartments that you listed above, do meet your criterion. By the way Northside at Legacy is in a very walkable and lively area so that's a big plus. This community feeds to Brinker, which is another good school.

Madison at Willow bend is a great location as well. I never noticed that third community so nothing to say. Windhaven Park (?) is another community in your targeted area and I've heard good things about it.

[ChrisPlano]

Well, we currently live just next to Northside at a sister property (and I've lived there for a few years), and we just bought a house about 1/4 mile from Independence Crossing. I feel uniquely qualified to answer this question.

The Northside area (Shops at Legacy) is very lively, with lots of restaurants, bars, etc. There are a few families with children there, but the vast majority of people are singles or couples without kids. It can get a bit loud and rowdy there, especially at night on weekends. People come from all over to party in the neighborhood. I enjoyed it for awhile, but I feel I've outgrown it a bit now. I'm not sure I'd chose that neighborhood with young kids. Even my dogs are bothered by the level of activity :-). It doesn't have great park access. There's just a tiny park within walking distance, and that's not really geared towards kids.

Independence Crossing is very near an excellent park and trail system that runs for miles. It's a big family neighborhood. My new house is within a couple of small blocks from Independence Crossing (according to google), but I've never noticed the particular apartment complex. It's a nice, but "boring" part of town. A few random comparisons:

Northside (Shops at Legacy) = walkable bars, restaurants, nightlife, "trendy". Lively noise. Occasional drunken shouting at night, loud motor revving, etc. Not great park access. Easy access to the highway. "Mixed use" development with office buildings, retail, not a lot of big trees but very fashionable.

Independence = fantastic park/trail system, good biking, quiet family neighborhood, driving distance from a variety of restaurants and shops but the immediate neighborhood has a so-so selection. Long-ish drive to the highway during peak travel time (lots of traffic lights that can get backed up during the evening commute)

Really, they are vastly different neighborhoods. Whether Independence Crossing would be a good choice for your commute will depend on where you get jobs. It could take you an extra 15 mins or so to get to the highway during peak travel time.

There are really a ton of good apartment complexes in Plano. You might look into something closer to the Tollway, but not at the Shops at Legacy. I once looked at an apartment at Madison Willow Bend and was not impressed. I'd keep looking at other options, but realize that you may be looking at very specific areas due to precise schools.

[soricon]

I am in MN as well in St. Paul and i visited Dallas last September. Let me know how things go. I really don't see myself there until around September-Octoberish (maybe sooner-depending on if a job calls me! lol).

[Big G]

Bethany doesn't feed to Plano West, but to Plano Senior. If you're set on "west Plano", you'll need to look elsewhere. Having pointed that out, I think that's the best of the 3 elementaries you listed, partly due to its much smaller size. Bethany is below 400 kids, the other 2 are around 500.

I think the benefits of "west Plano" vs. the rest of Plano are oversold on here. Referencing some TC districts, the difference among the 3 PISD schools is roughly PWSH = Eden Prairie, PSHS = Wayzata, PESH = Hopkins. We aren't talking Edina vs. Brooklyn Center here.

If your budget is a better fit for the Plano Senior area, there's no pressing need to bust the budget for a Plano West feeder house.

[GripeWater]

Towns of Chapel Hills are very nice.

[GetOutOfMinnesota]

Originally Posted by ChrisPlano

Northside (Shops at Legacy) = walkable bars, restaurants, nightlife, "trendy". Lively noise. Occasional drunken shouting at night, loud motor revving, etc. Not great park access. Easy access to the highway. "Mixed use" development with office buildings, retail, not a lot of big trees but very fashionable.

Independence = fantastic park/trail system, good biking, quiet family neighborhood, driving distance from a variety of restaurants and shops but the immediate neighborhood has a so-so selection. Long-ish drive to the highway during peak travel time (lots of traffic lights that can get backed up during the evening commute)

Really, they are vastly different neighborhoods. Whether Independence Crossing would be a good choice for your commute will depend on where you get jobs. It could take you an extra 15 mins or so to get to the highway during peak travel time.

This is precisely what I was looking for thanks a bunch! We were more leaning towards Independence as they are more of a attached town homes than apartments. Have a home in MN so more space would be better...

Did not even consider being closer to the tollway..I will refine and find more apartments. May bug you guys for feedback . Thanks!

Originally Posted by Big G

Bethany doesn't feed to Plano West, but to Plano Senior. If you're set on "west Plano", you'll need to look elsewhere. Having pointed that out, I think that's the best of the 3 elementaries you listed, partly due to its much smaller size. Bethany is below 400 kids, the other 2 are around 500.

I think the benefits of "west Plano" vs. the rest of Plano are oversold on here. Referencing some TC districts, the difference among the 3 PISD schools is roughly PWSH = Eden Prairie, PSHS = Wayzata, PESH = Hopkins. We aren't talking Edina vs. Brooklyn Center here.

If your budget is a better fit for the Plano Senior area, there's no pressing need to bust the budget for a Plano West feeder house.

Did not know that Bethany did not feed in to Plano West. May be you guys already know this...just found this link Feeder Schools Chart : Plano ISD

How does Skaggs elementary compare? How is Rice Middle school?

Thanks for that comparison with schools in TC.

[deep452]

Hello Getoutofminnesota

We are almost in same situation as you were 6 months ago.we are planning to move to Dallas by end of December.We have a 5 year old son and we are also interested in Plano ISD. I would really appreciate your feedback as its 6 months since your last post so i am guessing you might have relocated already. Our requirements are same as you had posted so would like to know where did you end up.What apts,School and ISD.

Thanks in advance

[llanoestacado]

Deep452, please see Big G's note about Bethany elementary as possibly the best alternative of the 3 elementaries as it has lower enrollment (less than 400 kids). Bethany is in a solid middle class neighborhood and feeds to Schimelpfenig Middle School (6-8) which maintains its "exemplary" status, Clark High School (9-10) and Plano Senior High (11-12). Net net, don't write off the schools feeding Plano Senior High as they are excellent alternatives to Plano West. I lived for 17 years just west of Independence Parkway and north of Legacy (serviced by Mathews elementary, another Plano Senior High feeder). Less than one mile from my house was a large Plano city library, police sub-station, post office, and four supermarkets. Within two miles were a large and recently renovated city recreation center plus a huge public swimming pool. There's lots more to Plano (and Plano ISD) than the West Plano feeder schools.