Considering moving to Falls Church or Vienna! (Annandale, Fairfax: apartments, condos)

[shareen]

Hi,

My husband is considering a job at INOVA, Fairfax (I believe a couple of miles from Dunn Lorning metro) and I am considering a job at Georgetown University. Do you have any suggestions of where to live that is: (a) close to INOVA fairfax, (b) has a metro station (for the Georgetown commute); (c) is a real community, where people talk to each other? Ideally, I am envisioning getting a house/townhouse in an area that is close to the metro, and also close to a bunch of coffee-shops, restaurants, etc. Dunn Lorning doesn't have that, but previous postings suggest that maybe Falls Church or Vienna fit that description. Is there anywhere else we should be considering? Clarendon? Ballston?

Thanks in advance for your help,
shareen

[saganista]

Both Falls Church and Vienna do have a 'town' feel to them, and both take some considerable pride in the fact. But while each of them does have a reasonably healthy share of coffee shops and interesting restaurants, they can't actually compare to the everything-within-walking-range nature of the Ballston Corridor. That's all high-density, smart-growth style development there, and while high-rises may dominate the main drag (many of them very nice), there are also townhouses within ambulatory range. The entire Corridor sits on top of the Metro Orange Line stops at Ballston, Virginia Square, Clarendon, and Court House, so commuting into town is easy. To reach the Inova Fairfax area, you could ride the Metro out to Dunn Loring then hop the southbound bus down Gallows Road. It's a quick ride. But you could also drive rather easily, assuming that parking on the work end were taken care of. The downtown commutes from Vienna and FC are also easy (I do it almost every day -- sans errands, it's about 55 minutes, desk-to-desk) and obviously Inova Fairfax is right down the street. In V/FC, you'd be gaining a little on greenery and townish-ness, and in Ballston, you'd be gaining in urban energy and excitement and in terms of having some disconnect exist between the words 'amenities' and 'car'...

[LLD]

My son works near the Ballston metro -- that is a cool area. There are condos galore but lots of townhouses around too. And all the amenities at your fingertips.

[claremarie]

Just remember that Georgetown doesn't have a Metro station, so you would need to take a shuttle bus from Roslyn....
In addition to the condos, apartments and townhouses, there are also some very nice (and rather pricey) single-family homes within walking distance of the Clarendon Metro.

[saganista]

Originally Posted by claremarie

Just remember that Georgetown doesn't have a Metro station, so you would need to take a shuttle bus from Roslyn....

Quite true, but the GUTS Shuttle runs from the Rosslyn Metro station to the GTWN campus very frequently all day long (5 AM to midnight), and it's free to students and university employees.

GUTS Rosslyn Shuttle Schedule

[memiller]

Go for Falls Church. It's some of everything. Ballston's great, just pricey. Consult a realtor to help flush out your preferences.

[knopfler]

Originally Posted by shareen

Hi,

My husband is considering a job at INOVA, Fairfax (I believe a couple of miles from Dunn Lorning metro) and I am considering a job at Georgetown University. Do you have any suggestions of where to live that is: (a) close to INOVA fairfax, (b) has a metro station (for the Georgetown commute); (c) is a real community, where people talk to each other? Ideally, I am envisioning getting a house/townhouse in an area that is close to the metro, and also close to a bunch of coffee-shops, restaurants, etc. Dunn Lorning doesn't have that, but previous postings suggest that maybe Falls Church or Vienna fit that description. Is there anywhere else we should be considering? Clarendon? Ballston?

Thanks in advance for your help,
shareen

Shareen,

There have already been some good tips on this thread, but here's another one, one of a dark horse - Annandale. INOVA "Fairfax" is actually in Annandale, though on the very tip of it. The property values in Annandale are lower than Vienna/Ballston/Falls Church, and it's a very diverse area with reasonably low crime as long as you stay away from the Landmark area of the town. Closest Metro is probably Dunn Loring, which is a quick drive or a quick Metrobus trip to.

The one caveat to Annandale is that the town feeds two high schools, Annandale HS and W.T. Woodson HS. If you have kids, make abundantly sure you're in the Woodson school district.

Brian

[claremarie]

The property values in Annandale are lower than Vienna/Ballston/Falls Church, and it's a very diverse area with reasonably low crime as long as you stay away from the Landmark area of the town.

The property values are lower for a reason -- Annandale is an aging suburb with lots of aging strip malls (many of them almost completely operated by Korean immigrants for the large Korean community), but little of the "walkable "town" atmosphere of Ballston, Falls Church, or Vienna that the original poster seems to be seeking.

[knopfler]

Originally Posted by claremarie

The property values in Annandale are lower than Vienna/Ballston/Falls Church, and it's a very diverse area with reasonably low crime as long as you stay away from the Landmark area of the town.

The property values are lower for a reason -- Annandale is an aging suburb with lots of aging strip malls (many of them almost completely operated by Korean immigrants for the large Korean community), but little of the "walkable "town" atmosphere of Ballston, Falls Church, or Vienna that the original poster seems to be seeking.

True enough of some areas of Annandale - particularly in the "town center" part of Annandale. Remember though that the 22003 zip code is a comparatively very wide one, and it extends all the way to Fair City Mall to the west and almost to the Dunn Loring Metro on the east/north. There are plenty of little communities that might fit the bill - especially if our friend gets a little bit of price shock after looking in Vienna, Ballston or Clarendon.

Personally, if money's no issue, I think based on shareen's original post, her ideal local would be Falls Church City, right down Broad Street/Route 7 and near West Falls Church Metro. I just think there are some areas of Annandale - particularly right next to INOVA! - that are worth a look.