Moving to Lithonia (Atlanta, Alpharetta, Dunwoody: new home, neighborhoods, luxury)

[ramnae]

Hi, my husband and I are relocating to the Lithonia area at the end of June and are curious about the city. Any information anyone could provide such as schools, shopping, recreation, etc. would be helpful.

[kishawn]

I lived in Lithonia less than two months prior to moving to Alpharetta. In my opinion Cobb and Gwinnett counties have the better school systems in the Atlanta area. Lithonia area close to the Stone Crest Mall is really growing...lots of shopping and new residential construction....

[stvincent]

Lithonia is a mostly Black city with a majority middle and upper middle class populous. There is a great amount of growth going on right now out there. Many of the new homes have prices starting in the 300s and 400s and some homes rage from the 800s+. If you are African American I would definately suggest a move to the area because your children will grow up around positive role models in their comunites who have gone to college and have earned success. Plus, you wont have to feel like the token Black living in an affluent neighborhood filled with a whole two or three Black families in a place like Alpharetta. Yet, since the city is slowly gentrifying I would have to suggest private schools. The public schools are still not up to par. Most choose Woodward Academy in College Park. If you are white or another race Lithonia is still a good place to move to. Stonecrest has many shopping and dining options. Also, the city is close to many horse Farms to the south and east if horseback riding is something of interst.

The Stone Mountain-Lithonia area is home to the nations second largest concentration of African Americans making over $100,000 a year. This unique community has attracted many Black professionals to the area from all over the country. And unlike most affluent Black communities, you dont have to drive to the other side of town for all of you daily conviences. The area has just about every chain store you could imagine and some upscale stores at Stonecrest Mall. THE church to be a member at is Pastor Eddie Long's New Birth Baptist Church. You will never see a shortage of luxury cars at this proserous 25,000 member church.

But, the price to pay for this rare experiece is HORRIBLE rush hour traffic. There is only one way in and out of Lithonia trying to get into central Atlanta and thats I-20. And both South Dekalb and Rockdale Counties are exploding with growth. The average drive time to downtown is an hour...but most of the jobs are north of downtown and that commute can take an hour and a half at least.

Traffic in Lithonia is getting out of hand as well. Panola Road is seeing too many shopping centers being built at one time and the roads are not being expanded. A new Wal-Mart recently opened on Hillandale and the weekend traffic around that area is a nightmare. The only problem about moving to the "it spot" is everyone and there mama wants to be there too. Luckily, Lithonia, like every other Atlanta suburb as everything you need so the only reason to go into the city is for cultural events or work.

[backfist]

Thank you, stvincent. I've been considering moving to suburban Atlanta, but didn't want to subject my family to the isolation of an Alpharetta or Cumming. Even though we're an interracial family, we'd probably feel much more comfortable in Lithonia-Stone Mountain areas.

Peace.

[Tdiddy0027]

what do you mean by isolation?

[backfist]

Originally Posted by Tdiddy0027

what do you mean by isolation?

The feeling of, say, a family from Elk River, Minnesota who happened to be white while living in, say, College Park, GA. They might feel a little isolated and awkward from time to time. Non-hostile, non-threatening. Just a little isolated.

[ptcgirl]

stvincent, that was really informative and well written. Thank you! : )

[backfist]

What a coincidence; I was watching House Hunters on HGTV the other night, and the home searcher was relocating from NOLA to Atlanta. One of the towns she considered--and ultimately decided on--was in Lithonia. From what I saw, the neighborhoods looked very nice; the people full of Southern charm; and happened to be Black. I was pleased and encouraged.

One question, though: is it pronounced Lie-THO-nee-ya?

[whispering]

To correct an earlier post, there are ways to get out of Lithonia besides I-20.You can take 78 to 285 to go north. True the commute is about an hour in traffic in the morning, but on holidays or Mondays you can make it in 30 minutes. Just wanted to add that. You can even take back roads all the way to Dunwoody and never hit the highway.

[ladyhen]

Be warned that the traffic is truly horrendous. We used to live in Stone Mountain Village (right next door to Lithonia - pronounced ly-THONE-ya) and lived on a side street that ran parallel to Main St. But we would often have to sit for several minutes to even back out of our driveway because so many cars would cut up our road to get to Hwy 78. It was the number one reason we left. They just kept building subdivisions and there was no place for the traffic to go.