Lorton area (Arlington, Alexandria, Burke: apartments, crime, neighborhood)

[e2ksj3]

Greetings All,

I'll be driving up to NoVa tomorrow to scout out the area and start looking for an apartment. How's the Lorton area in terms of safety and quality of life for a single gay 25/M? I started looking there because it's close to Springfield, where I most likely will be working and I-95. It seems to be one of the more affordable areas in NoVa, yet still not too far away from everything.

Thanks

[ChristineVA]

I think Lorton is nice and only getting better. I don't know specific areas but I would say that it is a safe as any other place.

[e2ksj3]

Thanks Christine. I checked out the Woodside apartments and Metropolitan at Lorton Station. I loved the Met at Lorton Station, but think it is slightly out of my price range, so I'm thinking about Woodside apartments possibly. Is the area around that complex pretty safe?

[ChristineVA]

I'm not familiar with Woodside at all but am familiar with the Met. I really like the Metropolitan.

[statecollege]

Lorton is suburban by every definition. It is an unincorporated section of Fairfax County with no distinct boundaries, except, perhaps, the 22079 ZIP code area. It is dissected in a north-south direction by I-95 and Rt 1, with generally older developments along Rt 1, and newer development straddling I-95 and areas to its west. Area east of Rt1 is mostly the large Mason Neck State Park. Other prominent areas are the old Lorton Prison, a former DC minimum and maximum penitentiary; one of two county landfills, including a large trash incinerator; Laurel Hill public golf course, a new county water treatment complex; Laurel Hill residential area with a new high school and middle school; the new Lorton Station residential complex at the commuter rail station, and a new arts center. Several of these are on the vast acreage of the former prison site, which historical was farmed by inmates, and and in converted prison buildings. Lorton is certainly convenient to Springfield and downtown DC. I am not aware of any more crime than the rest of the county, which is generally a safe and well-to-do area. Most crime in the greater Lorton area seems to be concentrated along older and poorer sections along Rt 1 to the north, closer to the Alexandria section of the county. I live in Springfield and have a sister-in-law at Lorton Station, and my impression is that Lorton is family oriented, with less singles life as, say, Arlington has. If you believe you will be working in Springfield, you should check apartments there, too, where I would think you could find competitive rents in mostly garden apartment styles. There is, for example, a complex near me that looks very nice, is in a good neighborhood, and is near shopping and a police station. It advertises vacancies. I don't recall the name but is located at the corner of Old Keene Mill Rd and Bauer St, which is near the major intersection of Old Keene Mill Rd and Rolling Rd. Other nice areas with garden apartments can be found in Burke bordering Springfield. I'm not aware of what quality of life issues are different for you as a gay man, but the area is generally progressive, diverse racially and ethnically, and I don't believe homophobic. A frequent poster in this forum and recent resident to northern Fairfax County has noted his delight at the gay scene in his posts. Other than that, I can't help with your quality of life concerns.