Moving to southern Maryland/job in suitland, where to live?

[ebonediva]

Originally Posted by horseyjen

Another question...I've pretty much narrowed down my apartment search to two. One is in Accokeek. The other is in the St. Charles area near Waldorf. Both apartments have pros and cons. So it may come down to commute time. Which would be the easier commute to Suitland?

Accokeek is a good location also. There are townhomes in Waldorf called Holly Station townhomes. I lived there for 4 years, and they were great. Other than rent increases. They were quiet, clean, great maintenance, and rental staff. My husband and I won a 52' flat screen TV in a contest for paying rent on time and they purchased us a lawn mower when we bought our house. They really are awesome! The maintenance crew even bought the TV to our unit and set it up - upstairs.

Both are about the same commute time. Once you move I can give you pointers on how to cut out sometime to get to your job! I love short-cuts! ;-)

[fjennell]

ebonediva - how long ago was it that you lived there - i believe those are near acton lane and much of that area is not that good anymore...

[horseyjen]

Any thoughts on North beach? If I end up in Waldorf, it will most likely be at the Fox Chase apartments (assuming they still have one open). At this point, it is between Waldorf, North Beach or possibly Alexandria. My main criteria are affordability, somewhere semi-nearby to board my horse, and a reasonable commute.

[North Beach Person]

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Some insight. Calvert, and specifically the Beaches (North and Chesapeake) are good places to live. Fairly rural. Traffic on Rte. 4 can be bad but is manageable. Several commuter buses run to Downtown. People coming from more urban areas (rural pioneers) complain about the lack of museums, galleries, trendy stores, etc. It is becoming somewhat suburbanized but is still mostly rural.

[horseyjen]

North Beach sounds intriguing. I grew up in the eastern panhandle of WV and have been living in Biloxi, MS for the past two and a half years. So I've gotten used to driving a bit to get to museums, theater, etc. I tend to prefer more rural areas to live. What would you estimate is the commute time from North Beach to Suitland? Google says about 44 minutes. Does that sound right?

[PenguinSix]

North Beach to Andrews AFB (which is Route 4/Suitland Parkway) is about 30 minutes. Fastest I ever did it--25. Rush hour, maybe 30-40 depending on the backup if any. Slowest, if there is a wreck, ugly.

From Andrews AFB North Gate to where you are in Suitland depends on whether you are on the parkway (i.e. at the Census department) or somewhere a bit further in (i.e. more stop lights).

I would much rather drive from the beaches than Waldorf though. I think route 5 is worse than route 4, and if you are in the beaches you are close to Annapolis for weekend shopping / nightlife runs.

[eponena]

Northern Calvert would give you better access to top-notch horse facilities (and as another poster mentioned, a far easier commute than through Waldorf). If you are looking for a more rural area within 40 mins of Suitland, you may also want to look at Dunkirk as well. I wouldn't rule out Upper Marlboro - it definitely still has a rural side, lots of horsey folks (check out the PG Equestrian Center, dozens of boarding and training stables, and a top notch cross country course at Rosaryville). It also has enough density to have apartments as well....

[horseyjen]

Thanks for the info. I will be heading to the Census Bureau. It sounds like it may actually be a doable commute.

[ebonediva]

Originally Posted by fjennell

ebonediva - how long ago was it that you lived there - i believe those are near acton lane and much of that area is not that good anymore...

Yes, they are located off of Action Lane. I resided in Holly Station from 2002-2007. I understand what you're saying fjennell but Charles County as an entirety isn't what it used to be. Sad but true. I lived in HS and would do an advertisement for the property. I was very careful about selecting a safe place to sleep, b/c I was single then for a most of the time there. I never had any issue, attended most of the community meetings, and was active and current with CC.

[PenguinSix]

It's not awful up Route 4. There is a backup around the Suitland Parkway in the height of rush hour, though talk of a new interchange being built does bubble up from time to time.

Census is right off the Suitland Parkway. If you turned on to it and then exited on Silver Hill Road there would basically be only one stoplight on Suitland (Forrestville Road). I'm not sure if Google maps calculated Suitland or PA Avenue and over.

If possible, angle for slightly off hours, say maybe 9:30 to 6:30 instead of 9 to 6 if that is possible.

But I'd come out and take a look at North Beach and Chesapeake Beach, and even Dunkirk. Some parts of Northern Calvert/Dunkirk would shave about 10 minutes off of your commute vs. the beaches.