Columbus...not so much . Is Carmel a feasible option? (Indianapolis: best city, how much)

[Relowegogo]

Newbie here. I have lurked but never posted.

My big question is....
Is it possible to commute from Carmel to Columbus?

I had high hopes for Columbus. All the great architecture and art appealed to me. Now that we've lived here a while I really dislike Columbus. No amount of architecture can make up for the general feel of the community. In general, there are low expectations for children and a belief that the schools are "great" when the best schools in the district are barely above state averages. My question is "great compared to what"? Compared to other regions of the country education is low on the radar screen. Only 27% of the population has a college degree. The people I've met have a "that's the way it is" attitude and seem to think that wanting more or anything else is unnecessary. The view of the world is very limited. I feel like I am on an island of mediocrity.

I have not spent much time in Carmel but the stats on education and the community in general seem like a good fit for us. The ISTEP scores are much better in Carmel. The community recreation programs appear more robust in Carmel. The problem is the commute---is it possible to have a daily commute from Carmel to Columbus? Other than the drive why would we not want to live in Carmel? What neighborhoods are nice in Carmel?

Any input would be helpful.

[Toxic Toast]

Have you looked at Greenwood or some of the southern parts of Indianapolis?

Greenwood is a nice suburb, or over to the CG area of JoCo. Commuting from Carmel to DT Indy is bad enough, but to then keep driving to C-bus, seems like alot. Meridian gets clogged down to downtown; add to that the stoplights and it can take a while. If you are living in McMansion-land West Carmel, it will be easier to get downtown either via Michigan Road or 465 to 65. You could also just take I-465 around to I-65 from the rest of Carmel; but that will add a lot of extra miles to an allready long commute. The 465/69 interchange is inevitably backed up everyday.

Carmel is a nice enough place at its core and near Keystone Ave. I particularly like the Arts and Design District and some of the events they have along there.

Plainfield and Avon are in Hendricks County and would be doable for a commute; I only say that because someone, I won't name names, is going to come in here and plug Avon, so be ready to think about it at least.

[grmasterb]

I agree that Greenwood is worth consideration. For a smaller-town feel, Franklin might be an option, too, although I don't know much about the schools there or how much Franklin College adds to the feel there. And what about Bloomington? That might be about the same commute, distance-wise.

A Carmel-to-Columbus commute would be quite a haul, I'm afraid.

[domergurl]

Sorry that Columbus hasn't met your expections ... yes, I mean that in a snarky way, but what were you expecting? Columbus, at it's heart, is a blue collar town and after living in Fishers/Carmel for 4 years, I, personally, and my kids love it in Columbus much more. You're being quite elitist in your attitude regarding education level expectations, again, it's a blue collar town and again, what were you expecting?

I'd suggest you go ahead and move to Carmel .. go ahead. Hubby commuted from Fishers for a year down here and it sucked. He never saw his kids and the weather patterns are different. If you want better schools (which when I compare my kid's elementary school to theirs in Fishers, they compare almost evenly), go to the white river twp section of Greenwood. I don't know, my kids are performing much much better down here than they did up there and the only reason I can explain it is because the schools here, while numbers matter, they are more child focused. My kids are much more confident in their abilities down here than they were in the Fishers schools. The kids are more friendly and willing to make friends because the population is much more stable, while up in Fishers/Carmel, kids move in and out on a sometimes monthly basis, which doesn't benefit kids, in my opinion.

Sorry, had too much coffee, but I'm a bit miffed by your unrealistic expectations about Columbus. If you want homogenized suburban living with less of a commute, go to White River Twp in Greenwood (Center Grove schools). But if you're already expecting Carmel, you won't get it in WRT either ... there are blue collar people with high school degrees there too .. yikes!!!! Not sure where you moved to Columbus from, I'm guesing a supercool white collar suburb of a major metropolitan area since you are already banking on Carmel, which is kinda like Naperville, IL ... if you want that atmosphere, by all means, Carmel is for you and have fun with the drive. Pray that gas prices don't spike again.

Also, all cities in Indiana are hurting, even Carmel, their so called great recreation center is bleeding red ink and they can't fund all the roundabouts they want to build ... their mayor is in deep doo because of his overspending. Just use the google. But again, it seems like your main criterion are how educated the parents are and the test scores of their children ... sigh ..

[plaidmom]

Sorry to hear you are not happy with your situation.
Relocating can be so stressful and disorienting.

When we moved to Columbus ~ 8 years ago I had a difficult time adjusting. I'm not sure where you moved ~from~? I came from larger cities in the West/Southwest (California and Texas). It was a {{{huge}}} culture shock . I felt it took me ~2 years to find my niche here in Columbus.

Interesting points about the education levels/socioeconomic classes. Yes it is a heavily blue-collar town; we are in the midwest. In an area that once thrived on the manufacture of goods. No big surprise there.

Only 27% of the population has a college degree

Hmmm I would be curious to know what percentage of that population has an advanced degree? I know my SO's group only hires people with a MS or higher. I run into PhDs all the time. They don't tend to flaunt it though; people here are pretty discrete.

As for the schools, you did not mention the ages of your children. My take on public education is that parental involvement is the most telling factor in a child's success.

I ,personally, would not be comfortable with an hour+ commute away from my child's school. It would be too far away to make those parent/teacher meetings or volunteer in the classroom.

I would look into private schools before making a move such as the one you are suggesting. OR I would begin looking for work closer to the community in which I hoped to live.

My personal experience with the local school district: my daughter graduated from Columbus North and had no trouble getting accepted into the schools of her choice. I asked her once if there was anything she felt she was lacking, education-wise, in her first year of college and she replied, "Calculus-based physics". Really. That was it. (She muddled through and managed to graduate with honors this past May )

Good luck with your decision.

[Vision-Quest]

I can understand a little bit why the OP is upset about Columbus. Columbus has an attitude that "it is the best city in southern Indiana" which isn't true in my oppinion. Columbus is better than North Vernon, Seymour, and Scottsburg by far, but I recently moved to Madison and I love it here so much better. Yeah we don't have a shopping mall or 3 McDonalds, but it is a beautiful area and the schools do have higher grades than Columbus schools. Madison has the pottential to grow, and it will very soon I'm sure.

[domergurl]

Originally Posted by Vision-Quest

I can understand a little bit why the OP is upset about Columbus. Columbus has an attitude that "it is the best city in southern Indiana" which isn't true in my oppinion. Columbus is better than North Vernon, Seymour, and Scottsburg by far, but I recently moved to Madison and I love it here so much better. Yeah we don't have a shopping mall or 3 McDonalds, but it is a beautiful area and the schools do have higher grades than Columbus schools. Madison has the pottential to grow, and it will very soon I'm sure.

You're absolutely right about Madison ... I'd rank it in the top 5 of Indiana towns, but the key is how educated are the adults and how do their children do on the ISTEP. I will say though, Shaw Memorial IS one of the top schools in the state and it's in Madison.

[Vision-Quest]

Originally Posted by domergurl

You're absolutely right about Madison ... I'd rank it in the top 5 of Indiana towns, but the key is how educated are the adults and how do their children do on the ISTEP. I will say though, Shaw Memorial IS one of the top schools in the state and it's in Madison.

Yeah exactly, I'm not saying I didn't like Columbus at all, It has some great things about it, and your right about the adults in Madison aswell. Most of the college grads move out of the area to find work, which leaves a small majority of them in small downtown business's.

[domergurl]

I just think that the OP was expecting something similar to what they were used to from where they relocated from, which again, I think is from a very upper middle class burb of a major city (thinking Chicago). Columbus is an architectural capital of this country, but for heaven's sake, if THAT is what people think makes Columbus similar to a very upper middle class suburb of a major city, A: they didn't do their research here on the forums (there's a lot of information here and the OP stated that they were a lurker, so they've been around) or B: fooey, there is no B.

It just reminds me of people I've met here from other parts of the country who get here thinking Columbus is going to be something it's not. It really is a John Mellencamp song. And for me, I like it here a lot. We've lived in many places through the years, and other than the time I spent in Chicago, Columbus ranks a close second, but I think my kids would rank it as their favorite place to live.

[Relowegogo]

Thanks for the input. It is interesting to hear the opinions about the commuting distance.

Domergurl, I am happy for you that you like it in Columbus. People experience things in different ways and what makes you happy does not necessarily make everyone happy. I like being in an environment where more people have values similar to mine. A town where I will witness less fighting, yelling and ignorance. A town where people (in general) have bigger hopes for their children. A town where enjoying things of refinement and culture is not viewed as wasteful. I never expected Columbus to replicate the town from which I relocated. I did do my research but frankly felt there were few commutable options other than Columbus. I had just hoped that the things Columbus had to offer (one being architecture) would make it different in some way than most small isolated towns. In some ways it is great and Columbus does have some very nice qualities but I think we would be happier elsewhere. Having nice things around you and exposing your children to those things does not equate to being unhappy or snobby.

Affluence and happiness are not mutually exclusive for me.

I too have lived around the world and personally have been struck by how pleasant it can be to be surrounded by people who have a strong drive to achieve and find those that have more education are likely to provide the companionship and friendship that my soul desires. I relocated from one of the coasts (you can guess which one) and I wonder if perhaps I would enjoy a town that Domergurl sees as snobby. So, Domergurl, at the risk of sounding contentious can you tell me which enclave/town/city in IN is THE most "elitist" in your opinion. I suspect you may see the place as elitist and I may see it as a haven for my heart and soul which seek a different environment.

Thank you to all who responded. You gave me tips on areas to consider as well as thoughts about how to see Columbus in a different light. If any of you have any thoughts on towns in IN that you think I might like I would appreciated the insight.