Moving to NoVA, need help (mclean or vienna) (Arlington, Fairfax: rentals, day care) - Northern Virginia - Virginia - City-Data Forum

gbandi · 07-11-2009, 11:39 AM

Hi guys,
we are a physician couple with a 2.5 year old moving from philly to NoVA. i will be working at Georgetown and Sibley Hospitals and my wife at Inova Fairoaks Hospital. we are looking for places to rent under $3000 (SFH) in vienna and mclean and were looking for some help.

most reasonable housing in vienna is either west or just around tysons? how bad is it a commute for either of us? i will be taking 123 to chain bridge and my wife will go the other direction (likely though the town of vienna). i will mostly be travelling peak time (0800 and 1700) and she will be commuting at 0630 and 1530. how is the commute from mclean (just inside beltway in the kent gardens neighborhood?)

can anyone suggest good full day preschools in the area (vienna/mclean). i saw two in the tysons corner and they were in corporate buildings in tysons and a bit overcrowded. does mclean have an edge over tysons area for preschools?

are there other towns we should consider?

JD984 · 07-11-2009, 12:02 PM

Can't help on the preschools, but if you are commuting to DC in rush hour and your wife will be commuting early in the morning against traffic, it probably makes more sense to look in McLean than Vienna.

And, depending on where you end up, your wife wouldn't necessarily have to travel through the town of Vienna (she could head west on either the Dulles Toll Road or Route 66, and then get to Inova on the Fairfax County Parkway - Route 7100).

sbullet · 07-11-2009, 01:00 PM

Have you looked into Arlington? The commute can be deadly from/to vienna/mclean. All schools tend to be good in vienna and mclean though.

live_strong28 · 07-11-2009, 04:42 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by gbandi

Hi guys,
we are a physician couple with a 2.5 year old moving from philly to NoVA. i will be working at Georgetown and Sibley Hospitals and my wife at Inova Fairoaks Hospital. we are looking for places to rent under $3000 (SFH) in vienna and mclean and were looking for some help.

most reasonable housing in vienna is either west or just around tysons? how bad is it a commute for either of us? i will be taking 123 to chain bridge and my wife will go the other direction (likely though the town of vienna). i will mostly be travelling peak time (0800 and 1700) and she will be commuting at 0630 and 1530. how is the commute from mclean (just inside beltway in the kent gardens neighborhood?)

can anyone suggest good full day preschools in the area (vienna/mclean). i saw two in the tysons corner and they were in corporate buildings in tysons and a bit overcrowded. does mclean have an edge over tysons area for preschools?

are there other towns we should consider?

I would recommend McLean because McLean to DC is a much easier commute than Vienna to DC. To get to Georgetown/Sibley from McLean, it's really straight forward. I can get to Georgetown/Sibley in about 15 minutes during off peak hours. Chain bridge though, is currently under construction, so it's one lane both ways.

Vienna to Fair Oaks is easier, but McLean to Fair Oaks is not bad either. Your wife would be going against rush traffic for both AM and PM. I wouldn't recommend driving through the town of Vienna though. I'd take either I66 West or as a backup, DTR and then 7100 south.

Tysons Corner is really a name for a work center located between West Falls Church, McLean, and Vienna.

It's a tough call between McLean vs. Vienna. Both are nice areas to raise kids with the best schools. I would give McLean the edge though due to its reputation as an upscale neighborhood with the best schools and easier access to the major highways. Vienna is much closer to big box retail though.

One private school in McLean to consider would be the Langley School. I think tuition is about $26k/year not including donations.

Langley School

I've also heard good things about Flint Hill in Vienna.

Flint Hill School ~ Welcome

OrangeFish · 07-11-2009, 05:35 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by gbandi

Hi guys,
can anyone suggest good full day preschools in the area (vienna/mclean).

Check out McLean Children's Academy on Elm Street, Country Day School on Georgetown Pike, and Tysons Corner Children's Center on Spring Hill Road in Vienna.

I suggest you do a search on reports of any of these preschools on the Virginia web site:
Licensed Child Day Care - Virginia Department of Social Services

Also, check out reviews of various preschools on the DC Urban Mom web site or on their email list.

DC Oldtimer · 07-12-2009, 08:05 PM

I'd stick with a close in suburb like McLean if I were you. NOVA rush hour traffic is the single biggest complaint around here and you will be traveling at particularly bad hours. You dont want to arrive at the hospital annoyed from a frustrating commute. Make it easier on yourself and get a nice place as close to the DC line as you can.

Your wife shouldn't have a problem because she'll be going the "other way." In fact she will probably marvel at how fast she's moving while the folks on the other side of the highway are stuck in bumper to bumper traffic.

Congrats on landing jobs at such great hospitals. Gtown can be quite the bureaucracy but it is the land of opportunity with lots of great research going on. Sibley is a wonderful hospital. I have never been in Inova FairOaks but my experience at Inova Fairfax left me very impressed.

I think you will like NOVA better than Philly. I grew up in the Philly suburbs and think you will find the DC area a much more interesting place.

athousandlogins · 07-12-2009, 08:14 PM

I like Vienna a lot, but agree with others that McLean is probably the better fit for your situation.

I've heard tremendous things about Dolley Madison Preschool in McLean: Dolley Madison Preschool

You can find more good preschool info here:

Preschool Discussion

Ack, never mind about Dolley Madison. I thought it was full-day, but I was wrong! I have heard good things about it, though, for anyone else who stumbles across this.

gbandi · 07-18-2009, 08:36 PM

Thanks everyone,
This was very helpful. we are trying to stay in Mclean but the rentals appear to be quite old and pricey. Although there appears to be more preschool/daycares
Any idea about great falls? we saw a nice place on river bend rd. little secluded (we have never lived in such big lots before). how about commutes to GTU/Fair Oaks. daycare and shopping options appear limited as well. anyone know anything abt village green day school?
gb

charlesj · 07-20-2009, 03:06 PM

I don't know what you taste in houses is, but you could probably find an updated house in the Mclean Hamlet for that range. Large community where the houses are a bit smaller and not quite as expensive as the surrounding giants. Vienna in general is older and less expensive, but of course, there are exceptions.

nova_res62 · 07-26-2009, 09:10 AM

You should also consider the lack of available spots at good daycares in the Vienna and McLean area. Many people have nannies for that reason. In addition, there are often long waiting lists for after school daycare spots at the local elementary schools. I live in Vienna, and waited nearly 3 years for such a spot. If you could go out a little further to an area like Oak Hill (close to Toll Road), that will not be such a concern, because there are many more daycare options, and you will get a larger and new home. It's hard to get everything you want in this area, unless you are willing to pay for it.