wauwatosa area and teaching (Milwaukee, Waukesha: for sale, to rent, chapel)

[aem]

Hello everyone, I am new to this site and am just beginning my investigation into this area. Some background: My husband and I moved last year from Michigan to North Carolina in search of a teaching job for myself. Now that I've found a job, my husband was accepted to the Medical College of Wisconsin in Wauwatosa. So it looks like we'll be moving there in the summer.

I'm looking for information on good schools (I currently teach first grade, so I'll be looking for elementary schools), the prospects on finding a teaching job in the area, and nice, safe areas to live. We would prefer to live within about 15-20 miles of the med school, and then I could teach within another 15-20 miles beyond that (to give you an area range). But the less driving the better

Some places I've commonly seen mentioned in other posts are: mequon, greendale, oak creek, franklin, wauwatosa, greenfield, muskego.

Any information would be greatly appreciated! And if there are any teachers that could comment on teaching in the milwaukee area...that would be very helpful!

THANKS!

[UW Badgers]

I grew up in Wauwatosa and loved it. I married 10 years ago and we lived in Muskego. 3 years ago we moved to Cedar Rapids, Iowa and how we miss home.

Muskego was nice. It was a little too snooty for us and besides grocery stores, not much in the restaurant area. They even closed the Burger King. So restaurant wise, you'll have to venture out. The other cities you mentioned are fine, but will involve some driving to the Medical Complex.

My parents still are in the the house I grew up in in Tosa(as we call it). They have been there 37 years. I went to Mckinly Elementry, Longfellow Middle School, and Wauwatosa East. Never had any problems at any of the schools.

I would do anything to get back to that area. We hate it here.

Good Luck!

[EnjoyEP]

AEM -

It is ironic that your post comes today, as I was just at the Medical College of Wisconsin earlier this morning for an appointment.

I am probably semi-near your age...in my early 30s; my wife and I live in Greendale which is south of the MCW by about 10 or 15 minutes.

At any event, the neighborhoods that surround the MCW (I was just observing them today as I drove to and fro) are very, very nice. That area of Wauwatosa is very charming, although definitely upper middle class...most of the houses there aren't necessarily cheap (older, very well kept homes). You could find great homes / neighborhoods in this area of Wauwatosa (kind of anywhere west of 65th Street and Wisconsin Ave. or Bluemound).

I don't know what your budget is, but if you could afford a nice house in this area, it prossibly would be best for you, because
a) your husband would be right nearby,
b) Wauwatosa is great for restaurants, retail, stores, etc., and this particular area of 'Tosa is very safe, and
c) you'd have great access to wherever you'd end up working, as this is very close to I-45 (a major thoroughfare for heading north and south on the west side of the metro area) and I-94 (the major thoroughfare for heading east and west through the metro area); plus you are near major streets like Bluemound, Wisconsin Ave., North Ave., Mayfair Rd., etc.

You may wish to consider Greendale; it is a 15 minute drive at the Medical College, it is extremely safe, and it has one of the best public school systems in the state - it is actually known nationwide for its performance. If you could get a job in the Greendale system, I think you'd love it. It is a thick, secluded, wooded, green beautiful suburb of 14,500 people but it is really very close to I-894 and S. 76th Street for access purposes, as well as very close to major retail, restaurants, etc. (Southridge Mall, a major mall in the area is located on the fringes of Greendale).

So I would suggest at least checking out the areas of Wauwatosa right around the Medical College as well as Greendale.

As for the other areas you mentioned, some quick thoughts:

Mequon: Nice community, fairly affluent, more rural feeling in many parts, would be farther from the MCW and/or many Milwaukee-area communities (for your teaching) than many more central communities that we are discussing, great schools, safe

Franklin: Another nice community, middle class in some areas but fairly affluent in other newer areas, a quickly growing community, like Mequon would be farther from the MCW and/or many Milwaukee-area communities (for your teaching) than many more central communities that we are discussing but not as far as Mequon, great schools and safe, like Mequon nice housing is on the pricey side

Muskego: I really like Muskego - see the post around yours discussing Muskego and my comments (http://www.city-data.com/forum/milwa...t-muskego.html), I like the Muskego-Hales Corners-Greendale corridor neighboring suburbs on the southwest side of the MKE metro area quite a bit; the only thing is that it would probably be 20 to 25 minutes (like Mequon) to the Medical College and isn't as centrally located in the metro area

Oak Creek and Greenfield: I put these two together because they, to me, have many similarities. They have more of a "blue collar" slightly gritty feel than the other communities here we are discussing. OC might be a bit too far southeast for you (would probably be 20 to 25 minutes to MCW) although Greenfield is very centrally located. There is nothing wrong with either of these communities...both are growing, especially Oak Creek. For me, they are a little too blue collar, gritty feeling for my tastes (they are similar here in vibe to that of a West Allis), but many people like them. They are - in general - more affordable for housing than many of the areas you are listing.

I would vote for the portions of Wauwatosa that are near MCW for you to consider first, and then secondly Greendale, with maybe a third consideration for either Hales Corners or Menomonee Falls, but most of these communities I think you'd be very happy with.

Most are great school systems for teaching jobs, too.

[heyheyheyhey]

Originally Posted by EnjoyEP

Oak Creek and Greenfield: I put these two together because they, to me, have many similarities. They have more of a "blue collar" slightly gritty feel than the other communities here we are discussing. OC might be a bit too far southeast for you (would probably be 20 to 25 minutes to MCW) although Greenfield is very centrally located. There is nothing wrong with either of these communities...both are growing, especially Oak Creek. For me, they are a little too blue collar, gritty feeling for my tastes (they are similar here in vibe to that of a West Allis), but many people like them. They are - in general - more affordable for housing than many of the areas you are listing.

Umm, have you been to oak creek in the last 5 years. it is far from gritty. very nice new homes, lots of money, far from gritty.
however it would be a far commute and I wouldn't recommend it or franklin because of the commute.

[EnjoyEP]

Originally Posted by heyheyheyhey

Umm, have you been to oak creek in the last 5 years. it is far from gritty. very nice new homes, lots of money, far from gritty.
however it would be a far commute and I wouldn't recommend it or franklin because of the commute.

Umm, I have...I live in Greendale and pass through Oak Creek often. Sure, not all of the OC is gritty...just like not all of West Allis and Greenfield is gritty...all three communities have areas with money, bigger homes, etc. As I said in my description of them, they aren't bad communities by any means and lots of people like them. They just aren't as high on my personal list as many of the other communities we discussed. It is my opinion / observations, if others have others, they are more than able to share.

[aem]

Thanks for the responses...for teaching, I will need to apply to the counties of these areas. So can anyone tell me what counties the areas discussed here are in?

wauwatosa, mequon, whitefish bay, shorewood, oak creek, franklin, greenfield, greendale, muskego, brookfield, bayside, glendale, nicolet, foxpoint

Thanks!!!

[urbanideas]

Hello there.

We too moved about a month ago from North Carolina. We were living in the Waxhaw/Wesley Chapel area which is pretty rural yet fantastic school system.

The Milwaukee area is much more patchy than the Charlotte area, so we actually decided to rent short term to really figure out where we wanted to live. My husband works in the Brown Deer area, so we first were looking at areas such as Mequon, Thiensville, Cedarburg, Fox Point.

Then we started to think from the moment I would find a job and it would be in the Milwaukee area how far would it be from those areas. etc...

We are renting in the Brookfield area and have spent our week-ends looking at houses and investigating areas. We actually just found two houses we really like, one being in the Wauwatosa area, the other in Waukesha. I am leaning towards the Tosa one, because of its proximity to downtown Milwaukee, the amount of shopping areas so close by and the charm Tosa has.

It is a huge difference from the life style we had in NC as we lived in the typical brand new sub-division where you would need a car just to get out of the sub-division.

Hope this helps.

[lamfam]

I would apply for a teaching position with the Elmbrook or Wauwatosa School Districts. Both have their own websites for you to see openings.

[litasadie]

Hi,

I'm curious how your relocation situation went over the past year. We are in your shoes now. My husband has been relocated to Milwaukee and I'm a kindergarten teacher. We have 2 children, so I'm trying to find the "perfect" school district for both them and future teaching positions for me.

Did you find a job? What cities do you like after living there for awhile?

Thanks!

[aem]

Also, what about the west allis area? There seems to be more houses for sale in that area. Would it be a good option or no?

Thanks!