Recc's on a good neighborhood for my tastes? (Richmond, Arlington: condos, houses)

[Fed up in Fairfax]

Hello, I am considering moving to Richmond when I am eligible for retirement from the US Gov't. I have 5 years to plan and need advice from local residents on what neighborhoods I should be paying attention to.

I'm a female professional mid-50s. No young children, so the schools don't matter.

I want a cute 2 BR bungalow - single story living- with a big front porch, lots of windows, and nice neighbors. Gourmet kitchen and jacuzzi tub are NOT required or even desired. Instead, I want something that won't cost me an arm and a leg to heat and cool. I also want a no-mow yard with lots of trees, shrubs, and flowers instead of a lawn. I'm hoping to find something in the $250 -$300 K range in today's money.

I want to be within walking distance or an easy bike ride of a good grocery store or farmer's market and near public transit to take me downtown to the Library of Virginia (the better to feed my genealogy addiction). Ideally, I'd like to stash my car in the garage and take it out on Sundays - maybe. I'm VERY interested in easy access to things that don't require the car. After 24 years in Fairfax County, I am totally sick of the car.

I hope to supplement my pension with a part-time teaching job, either at the local jr. college, or as an adjunct somewhere. I might need the car for that.

I have lurked on neighborhood websites and while Bellvue looks cute and has a lot of bungalows and gardens, the sites tell me that they also have infrastructure (road paving and sewer back up) problems. Highland Park looks nice, but I also hear about the crack houses on Chamberlayne. Church Hill and Fulton seem to be up and coming, and awfully reasonable in terms of price, but I'm afraid there might be reasons for that which I won't want to deal with. The Fan is gorgeous, but those houses are just too much for me in terms of price, space, and upkeep. At the same time, condos are not my thing so Shockoe Bottom isn't quite right either.

What to do? Is Bellvue really that bad? How about Ginter Park?

So how about it? Won't you be my neighbor?

[whynot?]

Sounds like you're on the right track. The North Side (Bellvue, Ginter Park) has most of what you want. I lived in DC for 20 years, but also kept a house on Hermitage Road for a long time. The neighbors are pretty wonderful, interesting. There are lots of DC retirees in/around Richmond.

That said, the "good grocery store" or farmer's market nearby may not be realistic. The North Side is not home to great retail of any kind. There is an okay farmer's market downtown; maybe you can patronize it if your part-time job is a VCU. There is no Whole Foods (although one is promised WAY out west in a couple of years), nothing even similar except one Fresh Market (a pale substitute) on Parham near Regency Square.

Richmond is -- at heart -- a "suburban city." People drive everywhere. Public transportation is a last resort. (That's embarrassing, I think.) You will need a car; things you will want or want to do are spread out all over the area. There is no area like Clarendon, in Arlington, where you can walk to almost anything you want, or take Metro to anything else.

You might also want to look at the Bon Air area neighborhoods. It's not as bungalow-y as Bellevue, but it has some nice older homes (and some hideous 70s ranchers) that create a similar neighborhood-y feeling. I've never lived there, but people love it.

[whynot?]

There is also an area near The Fan, but west of Boulevard and I-195 between Cary and Broad that has an assortment of smaller homes on smaller lots. Not bungalows, per se, but nice capes and similar town-type houses, and a good neighborhood feel.

Same deal with the car and public transportation, though. And outside of Carytown, walking to any grocery store (other than the Kroger at Willow Lawn) is probably not practical.

[Fed up in Fairfax]

Hello Why Not? Thank you very much for the input. It's good to have a "frame of reference" (Clarendon, etc.) that I can relate to. BTW, I love that neighborhood but, because of the proximity to DC, it's WAY out of my price range. I'm 4 miles outside the Beltway in 60s split level that I can afford but don't consider all that attractive.

Ok, public transit is not so great in Richmond. There goes my dream of visiting the gas station once every 2 months... That being said, and this is addressed to anyone, how is the congestion compared to NoVa? Can it possibly be as bad as mid and western Fairfax County? Here, it's "rush hour" all day long, and between 4-7 you don't drive so much as take your turn getting in line at stop lights. It has, on occasion, taken me longer to drive somewhere than I could have walked - if I could have walked. (Bad weather, lack of sidewalks, totally inappropriate footwear being considerations.)

What I'm taking away about the groceries is that it's pretty Wonder Bread in Richmond. Here, I like to shop at Shopper's Food Warehouse (great selection of veggies, great prices) and a Super H-Mart (like a mini-trip to Asia without the jet lag). So you've got ... Krogers which I remember from growing up in the midwest - pretty basic, stocks all the national brands. Nothing too "jazzy" I think the term would have been back home.

What's Ukrops? I've seen that advertised.

I will focus my research on Bellvue and Ginter Park. I plan to spend a lot of time in the next few years looking at various neighborhoods and visiting Richmond so that, when I'm ready to buy, I will know what I'm getting into.

So I hear Richmond is history obsessed! And that's a bad thing because...?

[whynot?]

Originally Posted by Fed up in Fairfax

What's Ukrops? I've seen that advertised.

Oh, dear god, DO quickly immerse yourself in Ukrop's culture! It is a local grocery, quite "historic," run by a very active family in the community. Their stores are very nice, well-stocked, and -- um -- idiosyncratically "Richmond." No alcohol. Closed on Sundays. Kroger and Food Lion are the main alternatives. (Others mentioned yesterday -- but I forgot Trader Joe's, which is also planned in the next year or so out on the far West End.) The Ukrop family also owns a nice-ish "gourmet" store on Libby near Grove called Joe's Market, named for the founder.

I did not mean to imply that the groceries are "Wonder Bread." I don't have much trouble finding what I'm looking for. There are Asian and other international markets, but not as many as in Northern Virginia, so that's another thing to find and drive to. Sorry. There are lots of cooks in Richmond, though. And lots of backyard gardeners. And good seasonal farm markets spread around the exurbs and rural counties.

Compared to NoVa, there is no major traffic problem except for crashes and occasional construction. There is a slow-down in the AM and PM along major corridors (I-64, I-95, etc.) A friend and I used to call each other and cackle over what the Richmond traffic copter was showing as a backup.

[Fed up in Fairfax]

Actually those idiosyncracies will work out just fine for me. I don't drink alcohol and when I'm retired I plan to view it as my civic duty to NOT go shopping on Saturdays or Sundays. I can free up space for the people who have no choice but to run their errands on weekends - like me right now. Ukrops it is then...

Thanks for all the advice.

[richmondpics]

Perhaps you could also check out Westover Hills.

[EricD]

Well, this isn't really IN Richmond, but about 25-30 miles to the north... but maybe you should check out Ladysmith. (Ladysmith Village Welcome)

You can get this house for the mid to upper 200's:
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http://www.sneadcustomhomes.com/Emma...plan_large.gif

As you can see, there's an option for it to be 2 bedrooms instead of 3, and a basement is optional as well. In Ladysmith Village, you can walk or bike to the new library, $6 million Residents club/pool, open air amphitheater, county park, dog park, playgrounds... the list goes on. There will be a new YMCA built within walking/biking distance, as well as shopping. A nicer grocery store (such as Ukrops) is planned within walking distance. As of now, you could definately bike to the foodlion (1/2 to 2/3 of a mile away, depending on where you live), but you'd have to cross 4 lanes of traffic. (Not impossible... traffic isn't that heavy)

Of course that's right now... by 5 years from now, there will be crosswalks, that grocerystore and other shopping should be built, and there may be a bus system by then. Currently there IS a bus that will take you to surrounding towns, including into Fredericksburg. (It's the Fred bus)

For teaching, there is a community college (Germana) campus about 14 miles to the north, and there's a college in Ashland, about 20 miles to the south.

The homes here have a rear garage off of alleyways. This gives you a streetscape of lots of front porches, and no garages, which I find nice. All of the streets have sidewalks and street lights for at night. There are also nature trails, which will be expanded in the next couple years to be miles long. (They will be running through a 150 acre nature preserve that runs through the center of the development)

Anyways, if you have any questions, let me know. My wife and I have lived here for a year and a half, and we love it. The people are great and friendly, and there's always a lot of activities going on.

[Fed up in Fairfax]

Those houses DO look nice. New construction? The amenties sound nice too. I am very much looking forward to getting out of Fairfax, and out of my car.

[EricD]

Originally Posted by Fed up in Fairfax

New construction?

Yep.

There are about 150 homes built out of the eventual 3200ish, so they will still be building them when you're looking to move.
:P