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So what is it that people don't like about Woodbridge/Dale City?
So what is it that people don't like about Woodbridge/Dale City?
I think I can guess a few.
1) Distance from DC. Traffic is bad. But it seems there is a solution. The VRE is frequent enough, and seems quick enough. So, that can be overcome. (Unless there is something I don't know about Woodbridge and the VRE).
2) Schools aren't as good as Fairfax. The counter to that is that Fairfax has the best in the nation. So most likely the Prince William County isn't particularly 'bad', it just isn't 'great' like Fairfax County schools.
3) I've heard the 'HoodBridge' reference...but seems like that same reference could be used for almost EVERYwhere all around DC except for the most expensive areas of Arlington/Fairfax County and Montgomery County. So, if someone wants to save a bit on housing, it seems like anywhere that isn't super expensive, is going to have a 'hood' attachment label in some way..
Are there things I'm overlooking or unaware of with Woodbridge/Dale City that might make it unappealing or undesireable? I mean, it being what it is for its pricetag. Obviously with money being no limit, there are much better places. But there also seems to be much worse places as well that would probably be similarly priced on rent/housing.
There are poor people here and low income housing. There is more racial diversity than Fairfax County (that is either good or bad depending on your perspective).
There are old, run down areas in Woodbridge. Fairfax has old areas too; however, because of its closer proximity, its good school reputation, etc, people with more money will settle for living in the older areas/smaller homes to get those things. In Woodbridge, there's really no incentive for folks with some money to live in the cheaper/older areas so they stay populated with people who are struggling financially, or they've become rental properties and that sort of thing.
There are poor people here and low income housing. There is more racial diversity than Fairfax County (that is either good or bad depending on your perspective).
There are old, run down areas in Woodbridge. Fairfax has old areas too; however, because of its closer proximity, its good school reputation, etc, people with more money will settle for living in the older areas/smaller homes to get those things. In Woodbridge, there's really no incentive for folks with some money to live in the cheaper/older areas so they stay populated with people who are struggling financially, or they've become rental properties and that sort of thing.
Is it really more racially diverse in Woodbridge than in FFX County? It seems like to me the whole DC/NOVA is pretty racially diverse with no area being more diverse than the other.
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A lot of folks in NoVA are apparently scared of Blacks and Hispanics which Woodbridge and Dale City have a lot of when compared to Fairfax County and Arlington. That's explains some of the dislike.
My main dislike would be the traffic heading North inside the beltway for work.
It seems to me like it is simply an aspect of human nature at work--feel better about your own area by putting down others. If you've read Dr. Seuss' story "The Sneetches," that pretty much sums it up. The sneetches who wish to feel superior get stars on their bellies, then they sneer and put down the plain-bellied sneetches. Some people in Fairfax County look down their noses at Woodbridge/Prince William County, but within Fairfax County there are people in Great Falls/Langley who look down at Springfield, Burke, or Lorton. The classic pecking order.
Do NoVA parents or children ever read these books and contemplate the message? Some parents may have skipped Dr. Seuss and headed straight for the <fill in with your favorite cliched activity of the overachieving NoVa kid with the competitive parent>.
Woodbridge has some very appealing areas, and plenty of students there go on to excellent colleges. A lot depends on the individual student, and their family.
Is it really more racially diverse in Woodbridge than in FFX County? It seems like to me the whole DC/NOVA is pretty racially diverse with no area being more diverse than the other.
It is hard to get a good number on that but where I found the "difference" is when I looked at the schools' ethnic makeup. Granted, I haven't really looked since 2008 but what I noted was that in PWC, the white population per school seemed to be less than in Fairfax. Of course, there are one or two schools in PWC that might equal/exceed Fairfax's white population, but overall, Fairfax has the higher concentration. When you look at Asian population, many schools in Fairfax are fairly high, while the Asian pop. in PWC is really low. Hispanic is higher in PWC.
But you are correct, they are both VERY diverse areas. I think Fairfax is less diverse in that they seem to lean predominantly to white folks and they are also less economically diverse. Their diverse population also happens to have a good income whereas I don't think that's true for PWC.
It is hard to get a good number on that but where I found the "difference" is when I looked at the schools' ethnic makeup. Granted, I haven't really looked since 2008 but what I noted was that in PWC, the white population per school seemed to be less than in Fairfax. Of course, there are one or two schools in PWC that might equal/exceed Fairfax's white population, but overall, Fairfax has the higher concentration. When you look at Asian population, many schools in Fairfax are fairly high, while the Asian pop. in PWC is really low. Hispanic is higher in PWC.
But you are correct, they are both VERY diverse areas. I think Fairfax is less diverse in that they seem to lean predominantly to white folks and they are also less economically diverse. Their diverse population also happens to have a good income whereas I don't think that's true for PWC.
FWIW, the high school I grew up in touts a 97% hispanic population right now, so I wouldn't be as bothered as others in regards to the hispanic population in PWC, simply because that is what I am used to.
I will probably never understand the attitudes exhibited by some in regards to life in PWC, while it's schools may not be on par with FFX schools, they are still heads above the majority of the public schools in the rest of the country.
I live in Woodbridge in a quiet working class (by working class I mean the parking lots are virtually empty by 9:30 am) townhouse community. I feel %100 safe here, but then again I felt relatively safe in Bahgdad supporting the war effort .
It's obviously not as nice or brag worthy as Fairfax, but then again why would you compare a Honda Accord to a Mercedes S550? And that's exactly what I feel about Woodbridge, it's a nice and practical place to live...nothing to brag about so to speak, but not at all a bad option depending on your perspective. But in no way am I deluded to the point of thinking it can compare to some of the other areas of NoVa.
If some people really think Woodbridge is a shanty-town warzone like it's sometimes perceived, I'd argue that those people are a bit out of touch with reality. I'd also think that people who think that Woodbridge is a stellar Better Homes and Garden community would be a bit out of touch as well.
Last edited by still_waiting; 12-01-2010 at 07:56 AM..
FWIW, the high school I grew up in touts a 97% hispanic population right now, so I wouldn't be as bothered as others in regards to the hispanic population in PWC, simply because that is what I am used to.
Is that just one particular school district...or just a lot of latinos everywhere throughout?
Most of the 2000 data and updates from there, seem to place things pretty evenly between black/white/latino.
Did it recently just shift significantly more Latino? Is that mostly Salvodorian beyond other Latino groups?
Didn't notice that heavily of a Latino population in data that is probably 5-10 years old. I'm interested in the area regardless.
On a side note, looking forward to the 2010 census results coming out sometime soon!
Last edited by Tiger Beer; 12-01-2010 at 09:07 AM..
A lot of folks in NoVA are apparently scared of Blacks and Hispanics which Woodbridge and Dale City have a lot of when compared to Fairfax County and Arlington. That's explains some of the dislike.
Perhaps. My impression is that Woodbridge and the rest of PW County has long been viewed as more "country" than Ffx Co, and it's that characteristic that is viewed negatively. Call it snobbery, but isn't that what's behind any question of what has cachet, and what doesn't?
Ffx Co and other NoVA were populated more and more with out-of-state people, many who were military who'd lived not just all over the USA, but in foreign countries as well. Until rising prices pushed newcomers further south, people chose closer-in but suburban locales, and PWC remained more traditionally Virginian. The explosive growth was in Ffx Co due to it being desireably suburban, yet close to work. I think this distinction between a metropolitan area and the more far-flung, more rural areas is found around many US cities.
Anyone remember Lorton's "Hillbilly Heaven"? Lorton and the other parts of the southeastern most part of Ffx Co were more working class and rural until the prison closed and million-dollar homes sprang up. In my high school, the kids from Lorton were the least well-off and most southern, and bore the nickname "grits". I think there is still some of that stigma attached to PWC, despite it seeing an incredible amount of housing growth in the past couple of decades.
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Some parents may have skipped Dr. Seuss and headed straight for the <fill in with your favorite cliched activity of the overachieving NoVa kid with the competitive parent>.
