Northern Virginia has gone downhill in the last 20 years (Arlington: townhouses, to buy)

[5stones]

yes, things have gone "downhill" but also some things have gotten better too. Progress is hard. more people own thier own homes now. And LOOK we live in a county where a Black man is running for president as well as a woman. That's something that 40 years ago would not have seemed possible.
We live in a country where if you disagree wiht the ruling body of govt, you can change it. You can VOICE the fact that you don't like how the govt is run and know you won't go to jail for your opinions.

So yes, somethings are worse but some are better and I would still rather live here than any other place in the world.

[AirForce Family]

Wow! This is sad but I tend to agree with all of you on this subject. I graduated from Manassas H.S. over 20 years ago, and back then the place still had dirt roads. Now, I don't recognize it, and when we tried to visit we usually turned around before we got there because we were tired of sitting in I-66 traffic for hours.

Now we're heading to Andrews Air Force Base this summer and I'm looking for a safe, clean, family-friendly, quality-school district community. We're coming from overseas. My research shows I don't want to live in PG County, but I had my heart set on No. Virginia (Fairfax County Schools are supposed to be the best) or Howard County (Columbia, Ellicott City for schools). I'd like a stand-alone house with a decent yard. I cannot stand townhouse living.

Am I asking too much? Anyone have any input on a community with the criteria I listed above? Help!!!!

[baygirl]

I agree with you there! America has changed and people don't like change. This same thing is being spouted on just about every city forum. We are moving to the NOVA area this summer and while we have experienced much of what is being said here about suburban sprawl and resistance to immigrants, we are hoping that the education system in Northern VA is better than our alternatives. NOVA is in close proximity to many ammenities (mountains, ocean, city) which is what causes people like us to want to move there. The obsession with "new" is not singular to this area. America as a whole doesn't seem to have the respect for older things or people that Europe has. When it gets old, we tend to toss it to the side or "upgrade", I think there will be a high price to pay for this and you can see that cost manifesting itself in our youth who could care less about ...well about anything that isn't superficial. But who is to blame for this? Someone is buying these houses (lots of someones), someone is creating these companies that build the houses. Our economy is such that if you are not exceptionally well off, both parents are working and sometimes two and three jobs. There is no time to be friendly, to attend neighborhood meetings...people are just too tired from working to keep up with the evergrowing price of gas, food, heat, housing,college, retirement...you name it. The sad thing is, you can look back through the history of the US and most other industrialized countries and see this cycle repeating itself. It only make sense that in the richest land in the world, ours is much worse. This is the price we must pay for capitalism. Our government and our country is doing exactly what it was set up to do...progress! We are reeping what we have sewn.

[claremarie]

I've lived here for 20 years, too, and very much enjoy it. In fact, as we are facing a possible job-related move to the midwest, I've come to appreciate its benefits all the more. Yes, there is more traffic, but that is because this is a thriving, growing area and more people want to join us here. Those who complain about houses replacing trees and woods should remember that, at some point in the past, trees were cut down to make room for their own houses.

[Dingler]

When my house was built in the 1970s they kept half of the large trees on the lot. Now days they clear cut the entire site and build houses that look all the same and are punched so close together.

The main thing that has gone bad in Northern VA is the people. I do not think deep down most of them are bad but the culture has changed. The traffic and commutes have got so bad that people are so worked up and stressed that people do not talk to neighbors. I find a general harshness in so many of the people here unlike 20 years ago. We have a social culture more like New Jersey than the rest of Virginia. All the rthnic diversity causes more alienation also as people go off into their own groups.

[vasinger]

Do they still have classes in NOVA schools to teach students to get rid of their southern "accents"?

A few years, ago, I knew this guy from Fairfax who still kept his southern accent. He told me that at his high school, they had a class to make students learn to not sound southern.

I thought how ridiculous that is, but I wouldn't be surprised. Many people who move to Virginia, still say they live in D.C., not Virginia.

I just don't get it. But anyways, he said his friends were able to, but it didn't work on him.

[amyjo]

I have to say I agree with the earlier posts regarding this subject. I lived for 6 years in Centreville and then moved to Leesburg where I have been the last 5 years. When we first left Cville it was a breath of fresh air to see beautiful countryside and not deal with constant road rage and aggression and people you met were friendly....but as "Fairfax County" has relocated to Loudoun they have started to bring their attitude and aggression with them. The level of stress in daily living is high in this area and I believe it is the cause of much of the unpleasantness. I think many if not most people are living beyond their means while desperately tyring to keep up the appearance of affluence. Many who live here spend all that they make and more......Having said that, there are many amenities and we are centrally located to the mountains, ocean, and many cultural and artistic events. But the difficult people are around you 24/7. I'm looking forward to finding a slower, kinder more thoughful way of living and it isn't here, I can tell you that!

[claremarie]

AirForce Family,
I missed your post last time.
Now we're heading to Andrews Air Force Base this summer and I'm looking for a safe, clean, family-friendly, quality-school district community. We're coming from overseas. My research shows I don't want to live in PG County, but I had my heart set on No. Virginia (Fairfax County Schools are supposed to be the best) or Howard County (Columbia, Ellicott City for schools). I'd like a stand-alone house with a decent yard. I cannot stand townhouse living.

Am I asking too much? Anyone have any input on a community with the criteria I listed above? Help!!!!

Andrews is rather a long haul from Fairfax County. You would probably be better off in Maryland, and you are right to avoid PG County because the schools are dicey there. That said, the DC area is expensive, and because everyone else wants a safe, clean, family-friendly good school community, you can expect to pay top dollar to live there, especially if you want a single-family house. I live in Fairfax County, where a nice SFH in a good school pyramid will cost at least $400,000, and that is the low end. There are many communities in which quite ordinary 30 year old suburban houses run over $600,000. I don't know much about Howard County except that it is probably a bit cheaper because it's not as close to major employment centers.

[saganista]

Originally Posted by vasinger

Northern Virginia used to be very conservative. Now its turning into a blue area.
That's another reason it sucks.

Yeah, Blue Laws, Jim Crow, antimiscegenation...sure do miss those Good Ole Days. Remember when the rednecks in Manassas were just like the ones in Deliverance? What a great time that was...really sad to see it go...

[r_hopson]

Originally Posted by saganista

Yeah, Blue Laws, Jim Crow, antimiscegenation...sure do miss those Good Ole Days. Remember when the rednecks in Manassas were just like the ones in Deliverance? What a great time that was...really sad to see it go...

From one extremist to the other......