What can you tell me about Morrow? (Cincinnati, Warren: houses, transfer)

[JClishe]

I have been transferred to the Mason area and my wife and I are going to build a house in a new subdivision in Morrow. We are coming from a small town in Michigan, and Morrow "feels" very much like that town that we are coming from. The differences are that Morrow is much more scenic than the town we are coming from, considering the rolling hills and the Little Miami River. Also, the rail trail that runs through Morrow is a big draw for me, as I am an avid jogger and mountain biker. From what we've seen so far, we are very excited about the town.

That said, does anyone have any additional insights? We have 6 and 4 year old boys so we're curious about the schools, the community, etc.

Thanks

[zorst]

I have not been up there in awhile but the Wine Festival at the local winery brings back memories. I remember a lot of outlandish behavior. It's probably calmed down now and with everything else gone to a family atmosphere. <sigh> You might want to ask the locals I seem to remember they avoided the area of the winery during the wine festival.

[cincygirl]

I live just south of Morrow. You will be in the Little Miami School district. While I believe Mason and Kings school districts to the south are better schools you will have more reasonable property taxes. Little Miami is growing at a very fast rate and I have not heard anything bad about the schools.

Morrow itself is a growing community. The town is sort of run down but almost anything you need is on Route 48. I have actually looked out there to buy a home myself but I am looking for rural and it sort of scares me because everyone is selling off there land for the building of subdivisions.

The quality of life is really good in North Cincinnati.

[woxyroxme]

Originally Posted by cincygirl

I have actually looked out there to buy a home myself but I am looking for rural and it sort of scares me because everyone is selling off there land for the building of subdivisions.

The cornfields are morphing into subdivisions as we speak.

Every little town in Warren County has it's old section that has been there for over 100 years surrounded by McMansion developments that have come along in the last 15 years. Life has changed drasically since I was a kid growing up here.

[ImissCA]

I live in Maineville which is about 3 miles south of Morrow. Maineville/Morrow area is growing with new shopping centers/retail going up all the time, and unfortunately, they aren't modifiying any of the roads or highways to accomodate any of this new growth. The Little Miami School District is fine if you like crowded schools with no air conditioning. My children do go to these schools and they have made improvement over the past 5-6 years. The area is conservative with 90% of the town's residents attending some kind of church on a regular basis. The sports programs for the kids and the facilities are not as modern or up to date as the Mason or West Chester area. We have lived here for almost 9 years and it has taken us this long to get acclamated to the area and to be accepted by the folks who have lived here all of their lives. All in all, not a horrible place to live, but I do wish that we would have shopped around a bit more before buying our home.

[RockyMtnr]

Originally Posted by JClishe

I have been transferred to the Mason area and my wife and I are going to build a house in a new subdivision in Morrow. We are coming from a small town in Michigan, and Morrow "feels" very much like that town that we are coming from. The differences are that Morrow is much more scenic than the town we are coming from, considering the rolling hills and the Little Miami River. Also, the rail trail that runs through Morrow is a big draw for me, as I am an avid jogger and mountain biker. From what we've seen so far, we are very excited about the town.

That said, does anyone have any additional insights? We have 6 and 4 year old boys so we're curious about the schools, the community, etc.

Thanks

Well, sounds like you've been there so you already know that Morrow itself is like a WWII bombed-out little town in Germany or somewhere. Even their grocery store that'd been there forever went out of business last year! Decrepit, empty ghetto-style buildings lining that trail in town itself. There are some houses around there though. It's nicer as you get out of town a tad - heading either north or northeast - with teeny-tiny crossroad towns ... but they're pretty ... unless you're from Michigan and already speak purty.
The Maineville area, as mentioned, is growing but still has a farmtown feel to it. So much new construction has all the little areas really spread out now.
There's really no work in Morrow. Two pizza-joints and a bar and a lumberyard/hardware store. It's about 10 miles to the grocery store from Morrow proper. Police there are a little too active ... but Rochester is just 2 mi. up the road and with a couple of old trailer-parks, it keeps the police on edge. Nine miles to Lebanon. Nine miles to South Lebanon. Lebanon has the shopping although there is more shopping right near Maineville.
Some of the newer developments are really nice - homes starting from 190K - 290K. One is for the retiree set while the other is primarily family. There's another right by the High School that they've probably finally opened since we left in October of last year.
I can't really say a lot about Morrow that's good. It's pretty trashy. However, if the old RR trail and the Little Miami River can satisfy you - give it a run! I personally would hop over towards Mason but Maineville is growing rapidly. As I said, Maineville still has that "farmtown" feel but Mason has a "smalltown" feel.
But Morrow needs your help!
Best of luck.

[spedteach1972]

I work at Little Miami Local but do not live in Morrow. I am not sure I agree the town is "War torn" - I think it is more small town than anything. I feel I have found a home in this school district. I teach a subject that would allow me to go to just about any school I wanted, however I really like it here. The parents are amazing, the staff are so caring, and the administrators are really trying to work with the over crowding. Does the area have issues? Yes. But show me an area or school district that doesn't.
I am actually worried about all of the growth. I am not so sure it is a good thing. I do not think the people in the area are ready for the busy streets, the over stressed water and sewage, and the power surges that will follow a quickly populated area that cannot keep up with the demands. I know people think the schools are mad just because we are busting at the seams, but there is more to it than that!! True, the houses are nice, but have the builders thought everything through?
Just as a side note - as soon as my divorce is final, I will be moving to the area.

[Pathwalker]

Not sure about the schools, but if you haven't committed to that home in the subdivision yet, you should check out Waynesville, Lebanon, or Oregonia (not really a town, but very pretty area).

[runningmomof3]

My family just moved out of the area to relocate to the Indianapolis area. We did not live in Morrow--we actually lived in Loveland but our children attended Little Miami School District. Little Miami is a good school district and has improved over the last several years and will continue to do so. With a passage of school levy there are some new buildings being built and some older ones are being updated. People residing in the school system are nice and pretty down to earth. I will say that we have moved into one of the top school systems in the state of Indiana and my kids were very well prepared. My 5th grader's teacher here told me that most kids moving into our current school system are behind and their grades go down. That has not been the case with my children at all. They are thriving. That tells me that Little Miami was doing it's job and the children in LM are getting the kind of education they need despite currently crowded classrooms. I found that most of the teachers that my children have had over the past seven years have been fantastic. They truly care about the kids.

However, a big draw back I did find was that the LM school district covers the large area of any district in the state of Ohio. It is somewhere around 90 square miles. We lived on the very edge of the district and my children had friends that lived a good 25 minutes away but they went to the same school. If you are wanting a place to get around quickly then that may not be the place for you.

I would also recommend Loveland as well. Mason has a great school system but it is large in number of students and homes are more expensive there.

The bike trail and wonderful too. My family used it quite a bit and if you are a runner and a biker then that is perfect.

Good luck and if you have any questions on the area feel free to ask.

[atomic80]

I have lived around Morrow my entire life (except when I traveled for a few years across the nation). As mentioned in previous posts above Morrow is an up and coming village. Down town morrow is deteriorating and looks ugly! A can of paint would do it wonders.

Nothing comes to morrow cause of the local government, I think that is changing. But it is slowly turning around. Law enforcement is great however one of them thinks he is Gods gift to the badge.

With 48 being the next Fields Ertle in the next 7 years morrow will slowly pick up and hopefully be back to where it used to be back in the 30's, 40's & 50's. believe it or not Morrow was once a booming industrial town. Hopefully it will return that way in the future.