Highland Park with families? Public Schools? (Pittsburgh, Avon: houses, safe neighborhoods, buy)

[profslacker]

We're about to relocate to Pitt., and we've been looking at neighborhoods with decent public schools for our children (kindergarten & 2nd grade).

Most of our attention thus far has been focused on Squirrel Hill, but some folks have urged us to consider Highland Park.

Are there any good public elementary schools there? Any thoughts/experience with the Fulton school?

thanks!

[alleghenyangel]

I don't know anything about the schools, but I just wanted to say Highland Park is a beautiful neighborhood. The houses are grand and well-maintained. I would also recommend looking into Morningside, Regent Square, Point Breeze, and Friendship. These are all beautiful, relatively safe neighborhoods on the east end with similar housing as Highland Park and Shadyside.

[Hopes]

I'm not familiar with the public elementary school for Highland Park. But you have no guarantee of what school your child will attend even if you move to Squirrel Hill. If the elementary school is full, your children will be sent elsewhere. Also, it sounds like you'll be moving during the school year. Magnet schools are assigned on a lottery system that starts in Spring.

Options other than public are available. There's a charter elementary school in Frick Park which would be free. And there are a few Catholic elementary schools (St. Bede & St. Raphael) nearby that are affordable.

[likepgh]

Originally Posted by Hopes

But you have no guarantee of what school your child will attend even if you move to Squirrel Hill. If the elementary school is full, your children will be sent elsewhere. Also, it sounds like you'll be moving during the school year. Magnet schools are assigned on a lottery system that starts in Spring.

Yes, moving mid-year could could keep you out of a magnet school or a school outside your feeder pattern, but in Pittsburgh, if you live in the feeder pattern of a neighborhood school, they will let your kid in to that school at any time during the year; I suppose that the fire marshal could step in and say that the building is (or all the classrooms in a given grade are) 100% at capacity but I don't think this has ever happened.

And I think the due dates for the magnet lottery process actually start in the fall of the previous year; I would check on this.

[robrobrob]

Highland Park is a great neighborhood but is clearly not as nice a Squirrel Hill. That being said you will get much more house there than in Squirrel Hill. It is city neighborhood that I wouldn't mind living in if I were to move again but my wife thinks it is very unsafe and would never live there. The two major differences between Highland Park and Squirrel Hill are there is no commercial district in Highland Park (what they have doesn't count) and it is less convenient to Oakland. The other thing is that the bad blocks in Highland Park are pretty bad. If you are looking at houses you want to try to stay on the hill as close to the park as possible. I am not sure about the schools for Highland Park. Frankly, I don't think that many of the kids in the large Victorian houses go to Peabody so maybe private schools. I know my friend who lives there sends her kids to Shadyside and she lives in a very modest house.

I lived in Squirrel Hill in my twenties and hated it because there wasn't really any nightlife that could compare to Shadyside (I am not a Southside guy). Now well into my thirties, I can see the pluses of Squirrel Hill.

[Hopes]

Originally Posted by robrobrob

If you are looking at houses you want to try to stay on the hill as close to the park as possible.

I disagree. There's really nothing wrong with the blocks further away from the park. While safe enough, the park itself has its issues IMO. What you need to be careful of is making sure you're not spilling into Larimer. But you can be in almost any block between the park and east liberty and toward morningside and stantan heights. I'd just want to keep a few blocks cushion from Larimer and Garfield.

[robrobrob]

I disagree. There's really nothing wrong with the blocks further away from the park. While safe enough, the park itself has it's issues IMO. What you need to be careful of is making sure you're not spilling into Larimer. But you can be in almost any block between the park and east liberty and toward morningside and stantan heights. I'd just want to keep a few blocks cushion from Larimer and Garfield.

Try driving down Mellon towards Stanton and tell me if you think it is nice. By up on the hill I meand, Hebeton close to the park. But I will agree to disagree.

[Hopes]

Hebeton looks just like Morningside. There's nothing wrong with Morningside. I just think that someone might as well move to Morningside if that's the type of house they want. Morningside is considered a more stable neighborhood than Highland Park anyway.

When I think of Highland Park, I think of the big stately old homes. There are some gems scattered throughout. For instance, there are beautiful parts of Avondale and Wessesley and they're not anywhere near the park.

While Mellon isn't georgeous, I consider it safe enough by city living standards. The OP probably wouldn't buy on those blocks anyway based on the disrepair of some of the houses. Some blocks are better than others on most streets in Highland Park. The OP is capable of telling if a block is well maintained or not.

I just didn't want your post to cause the OP to avoid looking blocks away from the park. I presonally would be rather uncomfortable being too close to the park even though the houses are rather nice right near the park.

[Little Mizz Pittsburgh]

Originally Posted by profslacker

Are there any good public elementary schools there? Any thoughts/experience with the Fulton school?

thanks!

My daughter went there from K through 5. I LOVED that school and so did she. Its actually a school that has survived several MAJOR school closings and changes, in the Pittsburgh Public School system, so to me that says a lot. Its a good school.