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Rosslyn Metro Area vs. King Street Metro area for young family
We are moving out to NoVa for a semester (husband is a law student). We have narrowed our apartment search to two, one near the Rosslyn metro station and one near Old Town Alexandria and the King Street Metro (right by the masonic memorial). We are westerners who have never been to the area, have two small kids (both under two) and my husband will be commuting to DC daily. We are most of all looking for the safest area for me and the kids to get around in. Thanks so much for the input!
Location: Expatriate Philadelphian in Northern Virginia
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Not that I believe that Rosslyn would be unsafe in any way but, knowing the King Street/Old Town Alexandria area better, I can say that you will be fine there. Both Rosslyn and Old Town are higher-density areas.
Old Town is essentially the downtown of Alexandria. I'm not sure what might attract your toddlers, besides maybe the ice cream shop towards the waterfront , although I do recall at least one upscale kids' clothing store on King Street. In any case, you'll run into a lot of young mothers (and occasional fathers) strolling their kids on King Street during the day. The closest grocery store, Whole Foods, may not be quite walking distance with kids in tow. Giant, Shoppers and Safeway (Vons to you?) aren't more than a few miles away.
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I've lived in Rossyln (on Key Blvd kind of behind the Safeway) and now live in Alexandria, and I have kids (didn't have them when in Rossyln). Rossyln is mostly a work location that shuts down after 5 and on weekends. I never thought of it as a place with lots of families. It's on a steep hill with the Metro near the bottom, so you might be pushing a stroller up and downhill a lot. There isn't a lot to see or do. Gateway Park isn't much for kids. You could take them to the grounds of the Iwo Jima memorial and let them run around. And if you go up Wilson, there is more in the way of shopping and restaurants, but it's more a young single adult crowd.
Now, Alexandria: Around King St Metro, you could quickly walk to nearby more suburban evirons. Blue Playground, just on the other side of the train tracks off Commonwealth Ave, is a very popular spot for kids and parents.
In Old Town, there is the Alexandria public swimming pool near the Metro on Cameron (with a kiddie pool). Walking up and down King St, browsing the shops, or the side streets taking in the atmosphere, is a lot better IMO than the environment of office buildings and apartments of Rossyln. There is much more to do, and there is also a free "trolley" (really a bus) that can take you back and forth between the metro station area and the Potomac River. On lower King St (the Metro is upper King St), there are more shops, ice cream parlors, the Torpedo Factory art gallery/studios, the Potomac River, and Founders Park, a large grassy area on the waterfront where lots of parents take their kids. There is a little playground secluded in the midst of colonial-era homes on S. Royal, between Prince and Duke. There is a larger playground at S. Lee and Wilkes, near the river.
My kids are older now, but as toddlers they loved going to the fountains at Market Square and running around on the little stage that is there in front of City Hall (look for the giant American flag). They often found playmates doing the same thing.
Old Town hosts many public events and festivals, especially around the holidays. Hope you like parades There are fireworks on the river for Alexandria's birthday in the summer. There is the Christmas parade of decorated boats.
Old town has a couple of shops fun for kids, like Why Not, and even a place for kids to make their own pottery (yours may be too young at this time, though). Candy stores, too, though I never took my kids to them.
Alexandria is very dog-friendly, which is a plus for my kids since they love dogs and we don't own one.
I'd say both locations are similar in terms of safety. They are both urban, with a mix of well-to-do and not well-off people. I can't say one area is necessarily better than the other in terms of safety.
Send me a message if you do wind up choosing Alexandria and you want to know more about where things are.
Edit: Just noticed you said you'd only be here only for a semester, but I still recommend Alexandria even though you won't get the chance to take advantage of all it offers. The only advantage I can think of for Rossyln is your husband's commuting costs for Metro into DC would probably be less, and the time shorter.
Last edited by robbobobbo; 11-19-2010 at 08:57 AM..
I've lived in Rossyln (on Key Blvd kind of behind the Safeway) and now live in Alexandria, and I have kids (didn't have them when in Rossyln). Rossyln is mostly a work location that shuts down after 5 and on weekends. I never thought of it as a place with lots of families. It's on a steep hill with the Metro near the bottom, so you might be pushing a stroller up and downhill a lot. There isn't a lot to see or do. Gateway Park isn't much for kids. You could take them to the grounds of the Iwo Jima memorial and let them run around. And if you go up Wilson, there is more in the way of shopping and restaurants, but it's more a young single adult crowd.
After also living in Rosslyn, this is something that I can attest. I often envied the neighboring Clarendon neighborhood while paying the same price in rent and more in parking
I second everything already said - Old Town is a great place for a family. I would definitely recommend it over Rosslyn. However, the area right near the Masonic memorial can be a little iffy in some directions, depending on exactly which direction from the metro and how far. The area beginning two blocks north of King Street (near Oronoco), and west of Henry street, is not very nice. I would suggest staying within a block of King street if you are looking at apartments in the northwest corner of Old Town.
I second everything already said - Old Town is a great place for a family. I would definitely recommend it over Rosslyn. However, the area right near the Masonic memorial can be a little iffy in some directions, depending on exactly which direction from the metro and how far. The area beginning two blocks north of King Street (near Oronoco), and west of Henry street, is not very nice. I would suggest staying within a block of King street if you are looking at apartments in the northwest corner of Old Town.
I think it's only to the extreme northeast of the memorial that's iffy. Just north of the memorial is (very safe) Rosemont. Just south is (very safe) Carlyle. Just west of the memorial is another very safe neighborhood I can't remember the name of. Just east of the memorial is (very safe) Old Town/Upper King St. As you go north a number of blocks from that eastern area, it gets a little dicey (by NoVA standards; by any other city's standards that area is still OK, LOL).
Thank you so much for all the help, I am pretty sure we are going with the Alexandria location, and you all have helped me cement the decision! We will have a car, so I am not so worried about things being in walking distance. The apartment looks to be right on the west border of the memorial if that throws up any red flags. We looked at it on google maps, looks like a slightly older complex with a mix of nice townhomes around it.
Location: Expatriate Philadelphian in Northern Virginia
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Quote:
Originally Posted by eray916
Thank you so much for all the help, I am pretty sure we are going with the Alexandria location, and you all have helped me cement the decision! We will have a car, so I am not so worried about things being in walking distance. The apartment looks to be right on the west border of the memorial if that throws up any red flags. We looked at it on google maps, looks like a slightly older complex with a mix of nice townhomes around it.
No red flags that I can think of. You should be perfectly fine there.
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So we're back to square one, the place we were looking at in Alexandria got rented out from under us without us ever being notified. We are now looking at a place called Carlyle Mill, near the eisenhower metro. I am concerned because it appears to back up to the Alexandria detention center though. Anyone have any comments for me? Any problems/things to consider? Above all, we want a place that is safe for me and the kids.
That's a very safe location. Wouldn't worry about the detention center at all.
The things you might be concerned with are:
a) highway noise (but there are sound barriers)
b) sewage smell (but the sewage plant is a number of blocks away)
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, although I do recall at least one upscale kids' clothing store on King Street. In any case, you'll run into a lot of young mothers (and occasional fathers) strolling their kids on King Street during the day. The closest grocery store, Whole Foods, may not be quite walking distance with kids in tow. Giant, Shoppers and Safeway (Vons to you?) aren't more than a few miles away.
