What's the "Allure" of Gainesville? (Alexandria, Reston: house, neighborhood)

[OrangeFish]

Originally Posted by RestonRunner86

I just thought it was bizarre, then, that there would be an active rail line crossing a road as busy as Route 29 with no gate arms or red lights at the intersection.

Google shows a rail line crossing with gate arms and lights.

[HEATHER72]

Thanks OrangeFish. The picture says it all.

[HereinVA]

Originally Posted by RestonRunner86

I guess "rundown" is in the eye of the beholder, as I viewed much of the Route 29 Corridor to look distressed.

They are in the process of widening the 29, so a lot of buisness have had to close/relocate and are now just empty buildings, waiting to be demolished--maybe that is why many parts looked "rundown".

We live in Bristow, right next to Gainesville. What drew us to the area was the abundance of family-friendly neighborhoods (specifically we were looking for neighborhoods with things like pools, playgrounds, clubhouses, etc) at a price we could afford. No one in our family commutes to DC for work, so that wasn't an issue for us.

Dh works on Quantico, so other areas we considered were Woodbridge and Stafford...it just happens that the particular house we liked best was in Bristow.

We like living off I-66, as it puts us very convenient to go to Shenandoah National Park, and also apple picking/wineries out that way. We also like that we live close to the Manassas Battlefield.

[bmwguydc]

I was going to say the same thing about the crossing gates, as I have been stuck there at odd hours when returning from Charlottesville.

If you're a golfer, there are only three initials to explain the allure of Gainesville, and they are, "RTJ." RTJ, or Robert Trent Jones Club, is an award-winning course, and is very popular. I looked at houses in Lake Manassas a while ago, and there are some nice houses, but it's the setting that makes the neighborhood special. As for the gates, well, that's a matter of preference, since Montclair used to be gated too back in the day. The person with whom I was looking was sad that they could not make their commutes work from Gainesville, and this was a few years ago, before the new shopping centers and Wegmans opened.

Then again, I know friends parents who are semi-retired who left a regular colonial in Vienna for Gainesville, but they are golf fiends. For them, the setting works especially well.

As for Warrenton, it all depends upon where you are in town. 20 minutes is overly optimistic these days in terms of an additional commute, but is feasible from the DC-side of Warrenton. Most people who look to Warrenton do so for equestrian pursuits, or for the semi-rural environment; whereas Gainesville is more of the planned community purchaser. Some people are extraordinarily happy in a planned community, and others need wide open spaces, so respective opinions differ as to what's best for one's own family.

[SteelCityRising]

Yes. I'll admit that I did miss the gate arms and lights because they are different than the crossings I was used to back North, and I was busier keeping a keen eye on the traffic jam in front of me. I'll give you that one. However, the snarky tone towards me in this thread is not appreciated, though. I said I personally didn't see the "allure" to Gainesville. I was just wondering what I had missed since I presumed the Route 29 Corridor was indeed the "meat and potatoes" of the community, and strip malls and housing developments didn't really seem to sway me all that much. I just thought I had missed out on more. Apparently I did.

[KathyR]

Restonrunner, I've lived in Bristow for 11 years and I think you are pretty accurate in your description of Rt 29 in Gainesville. We bought our new construction house in Bristow because it was affordable at the time and we were commuting only as far as Chantilly. If I were to buy out that way today I would go for Warrenton. I miss having a central downtown location, which Warrenton has. However, as far as northern Virginia goes, Gainesville/Bristow is not a bad place to live and raise a family (good schools, reasonable home prices, convenient shopping, VRE train).

[SteelCityRising]

Are there any plans in the works for some sort of "Gainesville Town Center" development to fill the need in the community for a central focal point, similar to Reston Town Center (albeit perhaps on a smaller scale?) I saw the large shopping center with Target and Lowe's, but that's not really what I had in mind. I also saw the two newer shopping centers with Wegman's and Harris-Teeter, respectively, further down Route 29, but once again both seemed to be the "drive-in/drive-out" types. Something the size of Fairfax Corner might be perfect here.

More and more people want to be able to drive to a place, park their vehicles, and then walk around to a movie theater, stores, restaurants, some green space with a skating rink, water fountain, etc. It seems like a lot of people want to replicate the "Main Street" atmosphere in suburbia, and I was just surprised an area as large as Gainesville doesn't seem to have one. For as good as the housing prices and public schools might be, I would personally need such a "town center" area for me to ever consider an area attractive for me to purchase a home there and raise my family. Hopping onto I-66 and driving to Fairfax or Reston all the time to get that sort of environment wouldn't really be attractive for me.

[Denton56]

Originally Posted by RestonRunner86

I just thought it was bizarre, then, that there would be an active rail line crossing a road as busy as Route 29 with no gate arms or red lights at the intersection. The car in front of me stopped right on the tracks because traffic was backed up to that point.

I guess "rundown" is in the eye of the beholder, as I viewed much of the Route 29 Corridor to look distressed.

Of course there are lights and gate arms at the railroad crossing! Anything else would be illegal!

[Denton56]

Originally Posted by OrangeFish

Google shows a rail line crossing with gate arms and lights.

Of course! RR crossings must have lights and gate arms!

[Denton56]

Originally Posted by RestonRunner86

Are there any plans in the works for some sort of "Gainesville Town Center" development to fill the need in the community for a central focal point, similar to Reston Town Center (albeit perhaps on a smaller scale?) I saw the large shopping center with Target and Lowe's, but that's not really what I had in mind. I also saw the two newer shopping centers with Wegman's and Harris-Teeter, respectively, further down Route 29, but once again both seemed to be the "drive-in/drive-out" types. Something the size of Fairfax Corner might be perfect here.

If there's a market, developers will come! Or did you have someone/something else in mind to build a ''town center''? Who should be made to do that?

When you have a family you will find your world shrinking. Your world will center around where your kids go, their school, the playground, piano lessons, sports team practices, play dates with other families. Between those things, and working on your house and lawn, you won't have time to stroll around a town center or the money to go to new restaurants or to the movies. Families have different priorities.