Mount Lebanon commute too long to CMU?

[Drover]

Originally Posted by CaptainObvious

Seriously, it would tick me off more to know the 1 mile from Squirrel Hill to Oakland was taking me 20 minutes to drive in rush hour than it would to make the 45 minutes trek in from Mt. Lebo.

HUH?? You can crawl from Squirrel Hill to Oakland in less than 20 minutes.

[CaptainObvious]

Originally Posted by Drover

HUH?? You can crawl from Squirrel Hill to Oakland in less than 20 minutes.

Touche! so it might have been a bit of an exaggeration. Especially taking into consideration he'd be going to CMU, which, is as much Shadyside as it is Oakland. Having said that, Mt. Lebanon is still my pick for the schools!

Captain O

[Hopes]

Originally Posted by Drover

HUH?? You can crawl from Squirrel Hill to Oakland in less than 20 minutes.

Originally Posted by CaptainObvious

Touche! so it might have been a bit of an exaggeration. Especially taking into consideration he'd be going to CMU, which, is as much Shadyside as it is Oakland.

Agreed! Even if he was taking 5th Avenue to CMU, it wouldn't take 20 minutes.

I can get from Fox Chapel into the heart of Oakland in 20 minutes during rush hour via 5th Avenue.

CMU would be quicker because I would cut through the side streets of Squirrel Hill once I was near Penn Avenue.

[CaptainObvious]

Points all well taken...still...if I lived in Squirrel Hill and needed to be at CMU at 8:00, I'd leave at 7:40.

[Hopes]

Originally Posted by CaptainObvious

Points all well taken...still...if I lived in Squirrel Hill and needed to be at CMU at 8:00, I'd leave at 7:40.

Taking into account the time it takes to park and walk across the campus, I think that would be a wise idea!

['Burgher]

I can appreciate your dilemma in choosing where to live. There are a number of variables to consider. I would also add that when looking between City and 'burbs, look at the financial aspect as well.
The city's income tax rate is 3%, Mt. Lebanon is 1.4%.
The city's real estate transfer tax is 2-3%, Mt. Lebanon's is 1%
The city's occupational taxes may be higher as well, but I do not know specifics.

Finally, the cost to insure your home and auto may be higher in the city as well.

The housing costs and the taxes in both the city and Mt. Lebanon are comparable.

I hope this helps.

[right-here-i-say]

During peak rush hour, I get inside the Fort Pitt tunnel from my home in 15 minutes flat from one of the further most south locations in Mt. Lebanon (in other words, not Old Virginia manor which would be the closest to Banksville). I use preliminary side streets, and have found I will save roughly 20 minutes by using them.

Of course, once you hit Oakland, that's another story. I love how ever Friday there is a truck unloading bread to the Subway on Forbes Avenue. It basically adds 10 minutes to 1000's of commuters on Fridays.

[jhprentiss]

We just moved to Mt Lebanon. My husband goes through the Pitt tunnel over to downtown and then back over the Birmingham bridge to southside (much better than driving on Carson). He says to get to downtown would take about 40 minutes during rush hour.

We looked all over the city for the place for us to be, and much of our decision rested on private schools. We looked at some houses near Minadeo, which people said was so good. According to Greatschools.net, Minadeo's a 6 out of 10, and that wasn't good enough for us, especially because our son needs special services. We looked at all of those east side suburbs because we thought we'd be sending him to a private school in Shadyside. We found the that it would be impossible (for us, financially) to own a house over there (squirrel hill, shadyside, edgewood, regent square, point breeze) and pay the taxes, plus pay for private school.

So we opted for Mt Lebanon, where we were able to find a nice home within our range comfortably, plus we don't have to pay for private schools.

So far so good. My kids love the schools, my husband doesn't grumble about the commute, we have a wonderful neighborhood full of kids (6 first graders on our block alone) and it's a quick drive downtown for all the great family activities if it's not during rush hour.

If you have any specific questions, I'd be happy to help you.

[compleXeyedea]

I live in mount oliver and depending on how far into mt lebanon you live, and the routes you travel, i couldnt imagine no more than a 25 minute drive. if you learn quick routes you can easily bypass much of the city traffic. pittsburgh is like a giant loop in all directions.. you can pretty much access any place from any direction.

[bmatthews]

I grew up in the Sq Hill area, and now currently attend CMU. I can say for sure that your husband can walk from Sq Hill to CMU in about 20 minutes, and because he will be an employee he will have access to a free bus pass with his CMU id. I would highly suggest that he take the bus, parking in Oakland is a nightmare.
As for the schools, I went to pittsburgh public schools my entire life, and I have done just fine. I went to Minadeo and it is just as good now as it was then. I was at Allderdice for high school and it was also just fine.