Amberly (Cary, Chapel Hill, Lexington: for sale, 2011, chapel)

[stevenh]

Hello. Was looking for some information on Amberly in Cary. Looks like a beautiful community.
- Mapquest indicates it is 8 miles to RTP, 18 miles to UNC, Chapel Hill and 18
miles to Duke. Not sure if Mapquest uses the best directions. About how
many minutes would it take to get to each during rush hour?
- If and when the section of 540 continues past 55, will there be an exit on
Carpenter Firehouse? How far would 540 be down Carpenter Firehouse from
Amberly (either from an exit or running overheard)?
- We are interested in the Peninsula Subdivision of Amberly but that area
unlike the rest of Amberly seems to go to Chatham County schools (N.
Chatham ES, Northwood HS) rather than Wake. Are those good schools?
Thanks.

[OmegaBaby]

It looks like there will be exits on NC-55 and Green Level, but nothing in between...
http://www.ncdot.org/download/?pdf=www.ncdot.org~projects~i540~download~westernw ake_map.pdf (broken link)

I found that URL here...
http://www.ncdot.org/projects/i540/maps/

[carri lynn]

Originally Posted by stevenh

Hello. Was looking for some information on Amberly in Cary. Looks like a beautiful community.
- Mapquest indicates it is 8 miles to RTP, 18 miles to UNC, Chapel Hill and 18
miles to Duke. Not sure if Mapquest uses the best directions. About how
many minutes would it take to get to each during rush hour?
- If and when the section of 540 continues past 55, will there be an exit on
Carpenter Firehouse? How far would 540 be down Carpenter Firehouse from
Amberly (either from an exit or running overheard)?
- We are interested in the Peninsula Subdivision of Amberly but that area
unlike the rest of Amberly seems to go to Chatham County schools (N.
Chatham ES, Northwood HS) rather than Wake. Are those good schools?
Thanks.

I am going to build in Amberly and it will be ready in the summer. I love the village community. You had a couple of questions about directions and travel time. There is no traffic on 540 to the airport. To get to Amberly go onto 540 to the end onto 55 to apex go to light and make a right onto McCrisson Parkway pass the High School to stop sign and right infront of you is Amberly. In the future 540 is going right by the High School so it will be about 1 mile from Amberly. We have been told the schools in Chatham Country are not as good as Wake Country Schools. So if you can stay in Cary for the education surpasses Chatham

[CaryMom2F]

We live in Cary Park which is just south of Amberley and we really like the region. The exit for 540 at 55 is open, and Route 40 is only five minutes up 55 from there. Traffic in the AM on all of these roads is moderate compares to the Northeast or Southern California. Travel to Chapel Hill is about 30 mins, Duke is about 20 minutes, and the airport is 11 minutes (my husband travels there all the time)

540 has ended at 55 for the time being, so travel to points south is on 55, and will likely be that way for the years to come.

As for schools, the other posters are right. Chatham schools are not good, especially compared to Wake Co. However, there is a high probability that Cary will continue its annexation of nearby communities. Chance of success is fair at best, but you could take the gamble.

[Funky Chicken]

Originally Posted by CaryMom2F

However, there is a high probability that Cary will continue its annexation of nearby communities. Chance of success is fair at best, but you could take the gamble.

Considering the mess that the last Chatham annexation "talks" (read-an arrogant Cary administration seriously damaged relations between the two counties) caused-

I would NEVER buy in Chatham on the hope of being annexed into Wake.

I am a former resident of Cary Park and I would recommend a resale in CP before I'd buy in Chatham County.

YMMV...

FC

[WorkingMomof2]

I agree with the previous posters and will add on that the travel time on the bus to the Chatham schools will be a nightmare. You have to get across Jordan Lake, so your kids will be on a bus for at least 45 minutes each way, which is a shame when there will be an elementary school 2 miles away and a high school 1 mile away.

There's a reason the Peninsula homes are a "good deal". I wouldn't buy there unless I planned to send my kids to private school.

[NC gal (aka Oregon gal)]

I live in Amberly - in the Lexington part and we LOVE our little neighborhood.
There are a few houses for sale if you would consider living in Lexington instead of Peninsula. The previous posters are right about the school buses. My daughter goes to Greenhope Elem. and her bus commute is about 20 min. versus or Chatham school neighbors that don't get home until 4:45pm or later. Makes a LONG day for the kids and rumor is that the schools aren't nearly as good as Wake.
Let me know if I can help any more.

[BFLOGRLATHRT]

I just wanted to say that a friend of mine lives in The Penninsula at Amberly and she loves it...her daughter is in North Chatham Elementary school and she said the bus ride is about 25 minutes each way and that she has been very happy with the school so far. She said the classes are a nice size and the teachers are great.

[MarianneH]

The elementary and middle schools in North Chatham are very good. Chatham is still a rural county and the test scores in some schools may not be what you are looking for but the North Chatham middle and elementary school test scores are quite similar to Chapel Hill/Carrboro scores. A new high school for North Chatham has been funded and is scheduled to open in 2011. Compare the test scores for N. Chatham to Reedy Creek in Cary which is also a middle and elementary school.

[SIZE=1]Reedy Creek Middle

[SIZE=1]Reedy Creek Elementary

[SIZE=1]North Chatham Elementary and Middle


[/SIZE][/SIZE][/SIZE]

[WorkingMomof2]

Originally Posted by MarianneH

The elementary and middle schools in North Chatham are very good. Chatham is still a rural county and the test scores in some schools may not be what you are looking for but the North Chatham middle and elementary school test scores are quite similar to Chapel Hill/Carrboro scores. A new high school for North Chatham has been funded and is scheduled to open in 2011. Compare the test scores for N. Chatham to Reedy Creek in Cary which is also a middle and elementary school.

[SIZE=1]Reedy Creek Middle

[SIZE=1]Reedy Creek Elementary

[SIZE=1]North Chatham Elementary and Middle


[/SIZE][/SIZE][/SIZE]

Well yeah, but you're not comparing apples to apples. I wouldn't send my children to Reedy Creek either. If the choice is North Chatham, Green Hope or Mills Park (the three schools that houses in that area are assigned to), I'm not picking North Chatham.