The truth about Waldorf, MD? (St. Charles, Clinton: apartment, high crime, townhomes)

[sodaking663rd]

Well there are five pages of discussion on this town...clearly it's not Potomac or Severna Park, nor is it Pioneer City or Edgewood. If you're going to rent there for you a year you'll be fine and then figure things out for yourself. I would not recommend buying a house right away however. Heed the warnings...you may feel that some people are exagerrating the danger and some others are offended about their town getting slammed.

[Mom21]

I certainly hope you are not talking about Northern Va. They have had some heinous crimes taking place in No Va lately, as well as petty crimes. A friend of mine's daughter moved to Alexandria at the end of August and was robbed the 2nd day. She was able to get out of her lease and then rented a house in Chantilly. Her car was stolen from out of her drive way while she was out shopping with her mother.

[jayman1981]

Well this tells you that crime can happen anywhere. Alexandria and Chantilly aren't usually problem spots.

[akmckay]

Waldorf is a horrible place to live, let alone raise children. I've lived here my whole life and although not everyone is bad, the majoriity I have come across are not so good people. Because there is nothing to do in waldorf except go to the one movie theater that costs way too much for how crappy it is, and shop until you drop, kids have nothing to do here. There is little promotion on healthy living, everyone here is materialistic, look at the section 8 neighborhoods and tell me how many nice cars you see sitting on shiny rims. Because the adults are like this, the kids are like this too. Many, if they arent running the streets of the neighborhoods doing drugs and crimes, can be found at the mall, shopping. Spending money. What is that teaching your child? For the benefit of future generations, I'd say stay away from waldorf.

[TeamBenya]

Originally Posted by akmckay

Waldorf is a horrible place to live, let alone raise children. I've lived here my whole life and although not everyone is bad, the majoriity I have come across are not so good people. Because there is nothing to do in waldorf except go to the one movie theater that costs way too much for how crappy it is, and shop until you drop, kids have nothing to do here. There is little promotion on healthy living, everyone here is materialistic, look at the section 8 neighborhoods and tell me how many nice cars you see sitting on shiny rims. Because the adults are like this, the kids are like this too. Many, if they arent running the streets of the neighborhoods doing drugs and crimes, can be found at the mall, shopping. Spending money. What is that teaching your child? For the benefit of future generations, I'd say stay away from waldorf.

I have to completely disagree here. Anybody who thinks there is nothing to do in Waldorf isn't looking terribly hard. Don't get me wrong, Waldorf is not exactly the epicenter of entertainment, but think about all of the amenities that Charles County DOES offer and has not been mentioned here.

1. The Capitol Clubhouse- They've got Ice rinks, gym classes, rock climbing walls and a variety of organized youth and family activities in Waldorf
2. The Regency Furniture Stadium- Not only does Charles County have it's own hometown baseball team now, but they have concerts, events, bumper boats and a playground for the kiddies
3. Numerous Stables- There are several horse farms in the area that offer lessons, riding time, and boarding for people interested in equestrian activities
4. Port Tobacco Playhouse- an active community theatre that is constantly offering locally produced theatre that ANYONE can audition for, located in downtown La Plata, MD
5. The Indian Head Black-Box Theatre- Another excellent local theatre that is sponsoring plays, festivals, etc.
6. Hawthorne Green Country Club- A very nice 18 hole- Golf Course in La Plata
7. Swan Point Golf Club- It's a par 72 course, and the most challenging rated course in the ENTIRE STATE
8. White Plans Regional Golf Course- 18 holes, and for $15 I can play the entire course on their twilight rate (they also have a junior program that offers kids lessons!)
9. White Plains Park Skate Park- Right next to the golf course is a completely paved, 17,000 s.f. skate park, and it's open every day till dusk. It's $5 for kids or $110 for a 1 year pass. It's cheaper than going to the movies!
10. Charles County Youth League- CCYL offers every sport you can imagine, and is designed to encourage kids to get away from the TV and outside!
11. 2 public dog parks- They're FREE, and open every day but holidays
12. Tennis Courts- The courts at Southern Park and White Plains Park are FREE, first come, first serve. The public is also welcome to use the courts at the local schools during non-school hours.
13. Fishing- You can go fishing at Gilbert Run Park- It's a catch and release site, and the park there has a very nice walking trail in addition to playground and sports fields
14. Public Libraries- There are several libraries, and a new one being built very close to the mall. Try taking your kids there instead.
15. Indian Head Rail Trail- The county is spending money converting a 13 mile railroad trail to a hiking/biking path through the county. 13 miles long, and the ribbon cutting was early December. I've been out there jogging it twice, and thoroughly enjoyed it!
16. Miniature Golf- Right on 301, between white plains and La Plata, at Fun Haven Golf. They also have a nice driving range, and batting cages!!!
17. Bowling Alley- Right there on 301 in Waldorf, next to Lowes Hardware. I've heard they even have bowling leagues you can join.
18. Roller Rink- There is one, right off post office road, not far from where the old rink was on Rt. 5
19. Hard Times Cafe- For adults, they've got a ton of pool tables, karaoke nights, poker nights, and it's a well lit bar/cafe/pool hall. It's a huge improvement over the former local standards for such fare.

The county has 140,000 residents. 26,000 of them live in waldorf. PG County has over 800,000 residents, and Bowie has a population of 53,000. Why do i mention this? Because Bowie is the nearest location that also has amenities like a (outdoor)mall, baseball stadium, ample shopping, etc.

Personally, I love the fact that Waldorf and Charles County can offer SO MUCH given the comparatively small population size of the county.

If you would take the time to look and see what the county DOES offer, you'd find that they county promotes better health through their youth sports programs, extensive trails, paths, 20 public parks, etc. In my opinion that's quite a range of services for a population of 140k.

I've encountered unpleasant people in Charles County myself, just as I have anywhere else that I've been. At the same time, I try to spend my recreational hours out riding bikes, playing golf, jogging, doing community service work, etc. not at the mall and movie theatre.

I gotta say, I've met a lot of amazing, caring, hard-working, exceptional human beings in Waldorf and Charles County. If you want to spend your time at the mall, that's your choice, but how can you be surprised that people you see at a monument to consumerism seem self-centered?

It's very simple to me. If you have a kid, rather than dropping him off at the mall (Hey, they're not your babysitter, folks), why not go fishing with them? Take them to the park? Have them join a sports club? Drop them off at the Clubhouse, and let them go ice skating, or roller skating, or bowling even? If you don't want your kids hanging out at the mall, then don't let them, period. That's your job as a parent, to help mold your childs mind and future. It doesn't happen at the mall.

[kjayi]

I have just moved to waldorf not to long ago and also have young children.I wouldn't say waldorf was ghetto.I know the area I live in is pretty nice.But the only thing that drives me crazy about this area or the state of maryland period,is that in my opinion is not very kid friendly(i'm talking in terms of young kids).There's not much for them to do here.But as far as living, I feel it's pretty safe.

[speshelly]

I wish I could disagree with you (about the lack of things for young kids to do). I think our biggest issue is adjusting to the climate change (we are from FL), so the cold weather is a huge downer for our kids who are 4 yrs, and 1.5 yrs old and enjoy playing outdoors. We moved here on Halloween, just in time for the cold weather!

A new friend was telling me about this indoor rec center in Waldorf, which offers ice skating and rock climbing. I think they even have rinks for in-line skating. Check it out: Home We haven't gone there yet but I think we're going to make our way over there very soon!

Also, if you can stand the chaos, I did notice that there is a ChuckE Cheese in Waldorf too. If you want to venture closer to DC, I heard there is a really great zoo there, in addition to all kinds of museums. I guess many of them are free, but offer a one time "membership" that includes parking and convenient add-ons like that. Again, haven't checked it out, but I'm sure a nice google search would yield some results.

Good luck!

[jcn1130]

Originally Posted by a3593

I truly believe that anyone who considers Waldorf "ghetto", needs to visit any inner city and see if they say the same. It's not crime free-or perfect-but by and large I just dont think that it can be labeled as a ghetto.

I agree. Unfortunately, some people see a lot of 'people of color' and start thinking ghetto. That's how people see the neighborhood where I live, but my neighborhood is about 50/50 black and white, my neighbors are great...we socialize, our kids are friends, no big deal.

[TBW4U]

I lived in Waldorf and now I live in La Plata and it sucks! The people are not friendly here at all! I can always tell when people are new to this town because they are friendly and they respond when you speak to them. The people born and raised here are just plain rude. I have greeted my neighbors on several occassions "black and white" and they will not greet you in return. Just the casual "good morning or hello" and they will ignore you. I work in Real Estate and I hear this about this area all the time.

They have very little activities for the youth. About two or three years ago they built a place called "Capitol Club House". Inside the club house is a gym, a rock climbing wall and a ice skating rink. You have to pay for each of these activities once inside. My children went there once and was not interested in going back. They have a roller skating rink but the hours are ridiculous. They open from 1pm-4pm then from 7pm-10pm on Saturdays. If you want to go to the bowling alley you have to get there before 3pm on saturdays because they rent it out to bowling leagues. This happens every saturday! I almost forgot there is a Chucky Cheese.

If you want to go to a store besides Walmart and Target you have to drive up the road to Waldorf. If you want to do something remotely interesting you have to go to D.C. They have a mall in Waldorf and it is ok for the area. The movie theater needs to be torn down and rebuilt. There is no shortage of resturants and to me that's sad. This town can build resturants but can't seem to improve their road conditions or invest in their youth. There is always traffic even on saturdays! These small roads were not built to support this influx of traffic. They have a bus system for this area called the VanGo but it was poorly thought out. There is also a commuter bus (Keller) that takes you to 4 or 5 metro stations in d.c. You have to park your car at the park and ride and then catch this bus. This bus only runs during rush hour and if you need to get home during the day or have an emergency you are in stuck! The nearest metro station to us is Branch Avenue in Temple Hills. Once you get there you have to catch a cab in order to get to Waldorf or La Plata. This will run you between $75 and $100 or more. You must have a car if you move to this area! If not you are in trouble!

Alot of military people move here because of Andrews AFB and Patuxent River NAS. They are always pleasant. The schools my children attended were a joke! When I would go to visit my children schools the office staff wouldn't even say "how can I help you". I would have to address them first before they would even speak. Or they would be talking to each other and I would have to wait until their conversation was finished before they would assist me. This is very unprofessional. Four out of six high schools were built between 1969 and 1979. The other two were built in 1992 and 2005. Six out of eight middle schools were built between 1953 and 1977. The other two in 1995 and 2007. Seventeen out of 21 elementary schools were built between 1951-1989. The other four between 1994 and 2008. My children had one or two dedicated teachers.



I will end with this, the waldorf-la plata area is not the best place to raise a family or live. I was born and raised in the DC area for most of my life. I moved away because my family and I wanted a new start. Moving back here was the worse mistake we ever made. They couldn't pay me enough to move back to southern maryland once we leave again!

[jayman1981]

For the most part I have to agree with this poster. The market is great to buy a house right about now. So the mrs and I will start looking for a place elsewhere. While Waldorf is not a terrible place to live. I think it was has been a nice investment and our first home. However, I think that if Waldorf can stop putting up a shopping center on every corner, mixed with better road way planning, this place would be as nice as it was before. I would stick around to see what happens, but I just think Waldorf's future is a little shaky for me. But I would recommend this place to those who don't mind driving.

Originally Posted by TBW4U

I lived in Waldorf and now I live in La Plata and it sucks! The people are not friendly here at all! I can always tell when people are new to this town because they are friendly and they respond when you speak to them. The people born and raised here are just plain rude. I have greeted my neighbors on several occassions "black and white" and they will not greet you in return. Just the casual "good morning or hello" and they will ignore you. I work in Real Estate and I hear this about this area all the time.

They have very little activities for the youth. About two or three years ago they built a place called "Capitol Club House". Inside the club house is a gym, a rock climbing wall and a ice skating rink. You have to pay for each of these activities once inside. My children went there once and was not interested in going back. They have a roller skating rink but the hours are ridiculous. They open from 1pm-4pm then from 7pm-10pm on Saturdays. If you want to go to the bowling alley you have to get there before 3pm on saturdays because they rent it out to bowling leagues. This happens every saturday! I almost forgot there is a Chucky Cheese.

If you want to go to a store besides Walmart and Target you have to drive up the road to Waldorf. If you want to do something remotely interesting you have to go to D.C. They have a mall in Waldorf and it is ok for the area. The movie theater needs to be torn down and rebuilt. There is no shortage of resturants and to me that's sad. This town can build resturants but can't seem to improve their road conditions or invest in their youth. There is always traffic even on saturdays! These small roads were not built to support this influx of traffic. They have a bus system for this area called the VanGo but it was poorly thought out. There is also a commuter bus (Keller) that takes you to 4 or 5 metro stations in d.c. You have to park your car at the park and ride and then catch this bus. This bus only runs during rush hour and if you need to get home during the day or have an emergency you are in stuck! The nearest metro station to us is Branch Avenue in Temple Hills. Once you get there you have to catch a cab in order to get to Waldorf or La Plata. This will run you between $75 and $100 or more. You must have a car if you move to this area! If not you are in trouble!

Alot of military people move here because of Andrews AFB and Patuxent River NAS. They are always pleasant. The schools my children attended were a joke! When I would go to visit my children schools the office staff wouldn't even say "how can I help you". I would have to address them first before they would even speak. Or they would be talking to each other and I would have to wait until their conversation was finished before they would assist me. This is very unprofessional. Four out of six high schools were built between 1969 and 1979. The other two were built in 1992 and 2005. Six out of eight middle schools were built between 1953 and 1977. The other two in 1995 and 2007. Seventeen out of 21 elementary schools were built between 1951-1989. The other four between 1994 and 2008. My children had one or two dedicated teachers.



I will end with this, the waldorf-la plata area is not the best place to raise a family or live. I was born and raised in the DC area for most of my life. I moved away because my family and I wanted a new start. Moving back here was the worse mistake we ever made. They couldn't pay me enough to move back to southern maryland once we leave again!