SOuth Pittsburgh Suburbs? (Lebanon, Upper St. Clair, Washington: middle-class, new home, employment) - Pennsylvania (PA) - City-Data Forum

SouthPittsburghSuburbsQ · 03-09-2011, 09:03 AM

My husband and 2 small girls are relocating to the suburbs of S. Pittsburgh as my husband will be doing some work in N. VA. Yes I know this will be a commute but we are not interested in living in VA. I am looking for a family friendly area with great schools. I dont want to be out in the country, I want to be close to stores. I am coming from Grosse Pointe Michigan if anyone is familiar with that area, thats what Im looking for. Walkability, parks, upper middle to upper class. I like older homes with character that have been remodeled with todays conveniences and I also like newer homes. Its more about the neighborhood, community feel. Id love to have a small shopping district to walk to (cafes and restaurants, boutiques) if possible but also close to good restaurants and grocery stores and big box places. So far Im liking My. Lebanon, Upper St. Clair and Jefferson Hills - but can you recommend me any others, or ones to stay away from? Thank you!

Copanut · 03-09-2011, 09:05 AM

Mt. Lebanon, Dormont, Bridgeville.

slamont61 · 03-09-2011, 09:50 AM

Stick with Mt Lebanon - it's the closest fit to what you are looking for.

SteelCityRising · 03-09-2011, 12:02 PM

Am I to understand that he'll only be working in Northern Virginia on occasion? Splitting your time between two areas that are roughly four hours apart would really grate on your husband's nerves in terms of commuting (albeit you don't start to hit much heavy traffic until around Frederick, MD), and with fuel prices escalating now to near $4/gallon with no end in sight I'd be very leery about hemming yourselves in on that front as well.

I moved here in late-2010 from NoVA myself and would never move back due to the congestion, cost-of-living, pretentious/materialistic people (overall---not everyone was that way), etc. Pittsburgh offers a lot of those "older homes with character" at an affordable price point for the middle-class. A "home with character" in a place like Vienna or Falls Church in NoVA would fetch $550,000+. In the South Hills 'burbs you could find places like that with minimal (if any) cosmetic updating required for $100,000-$150,000.

If you don't mind my asking why the fixation upon Pittsburgh's southern suburbs? If you wanted to be closer to your husband's employment concerns would Winchester, VA work? It's about three hours southeast of Pittsburgh and about an hour from the NoVA employment hubs, yet it has a very laid-back feel with a Downtown pedestrian mall, quaint historic mansions, shade trees, etc. It's growing very rapidly with people looking to "escape" NoVA and has just about every big-box store/chain restaurant imaginable now (or in the planning stages).

I would think Mt. Lebanon would be your best bet in the South Hills and would be closest to what you've been acclimated to in Grosse Pointe. I wouldn't bother with Upper St. Clair (mostly newer homes without much of a walkable town center) or Bridgeville (very small). Dormont may work as well---the homes are generally smaller than those in Mt. Lebanon and are closer together.

raynist · 03-09-2011, 01:19 PM

I agree with Mt Lebo.

What do you consider newer homes? There really isn't much new home construction in USC. Most of the homes are probably over 20 years old if not 30. There are many parks to walk to in most USC neighborhoods, but no shopping to walk to. You will have to be closer to the city for walkable shopping.

There is quite a bit of close shopping to USC as south hills village and the galleria are right by but getting there would require a car.

Augie6 · 03-09-2011, 02:02 PM

Pittsburgh in general is not a walkable or public transportation city ( some will argue this ) . Admittingly I do nto know these burbs too well, however most of this area (western pa) is based on car travel. Parks and playgrounds are a exception however shopping and corner cafes are few and far between. (There are excpetions but as a whole you will need a car to travel)

WestLibertyAve · 03-09-2011, 08:36 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Augie6

Pittsburgh in general is not a walkable or public transportation city ( some will argue this ) . Admittingly I do nto know these burbs too well, however most of this area (western pa) is based on car travel. Parks and playgrounds are a exception however shopping and corner cafes are few and far between. (There are excpetions but as a whole you will need a car to travel)

Mt. Lebanon has all of this, and is a short drive or T ride to the big box stores of South Hills Village. Sounds like a perfect place for the OP.

Not sure how far you are from Lebo, but their uptown section along Washington Road is full of little shops and nice corner cafes. Might be worth a Saturday afternoon T ride to stroll around if that's the kind of thing you like.

SouthPittsburghSuburbsQ · 03-10-2011, 01:44 PM

One of the most important things to me is the school system. So from what I am learning Mt. Lebanon, Upper St. Clair are great places to live, but taxes are very high. To get a great school system with lower taxes I could do Peters Twp (McMurray and Venita)? Is this correct? I guess by Walkable I meant walk to parks, or super safe areas my kids can walk to their friends houses, not necessarily walk to a corner cafe, although that would be nice. How about conveniences in Peters? A lot of shopping (grocery clothing and otherwise?) nearby? Restaurants? I think Mt. Lebo sounds like what I am used to but I am keeping my options open and do like new homes too. I keep reading war posts on who is more snotty Mt. Lebo or Peters, so please dont get into that here, I dont care. I just want to know about conveniences, quality of living, and yes Im a stay at home mom so I want to be in an area with other moms who will welcome me and my kids as well. Thanks!

Copanut · 03-10-2011, 01:45 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by SouthPittsburghSuburbsQ

One of the most important things to me is the school system. So from what I am learning Mt. Lebanon, Upper St. Clair are great places to live, but taxes are very high. To get a great school system with lower taxes I could do Peters Twp (McMurray and Venita)? Is this correct? I guess by Walkable I meant walk to parks, or super safe areas my kids can walk to their friends houses, not necessarily walk to a corner cafe, although that would be nice. How about conveniences in Peters? A lot of shopping (grocery clothing and otherwise?) nearby? Restaurants? I think Mt. Lebo sounds like what I am used to but I am keeping my options open and do like new homes too. I keep reading war posts on who is more snotty Mt. Lebo or Peters, so please dont get into that here, I dont care. I just want to know about conveniences, quality of living, and yes Im a stay at home mom so I want to be in an area with other moms who will welcome me and my kids as well. Thanks!

The taxes in Mt. Lebo are not that high, and the bang you get for your buck is worth it.

melkarth · 03-11-2011, 07:17 AM

If you're looking for great schools, I'd put Mt Lebanon and Upper St. Clair at the top of the list.
If you're looking for lower taxes, then look in Peters.
If you're looking for someplace you can literally walk from your house to the park: Mt. Lebanon.
If you're looking for someplace to drive from your house to the park: they're all good.
If you're looking to literally walk from your house to an upscale store: Mt. Lebanon.
If you're looking to drive to the store: they're all good.