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Hi all, My family is looking to relocate to SW Va. My husband has a job in Salem. I am an artist and am interested in finding a spot that has a strong art scene.We also like to hike and enjoy outdoor activities. We have a child who is 6 so I am very interested in schools and a community with activities geared toward kids. Grandin Village in Roanoke seems like a neat place but I don't know about living in the city.(schools? we would like a little piece of land for a garden ) I really like a lot about Floyd but it seems a little small and I wonder about schools and things for kids to do. Blacksburg seems like a possible compromise. I would love any info. about living in these areas..especially Floyd and Blacksburg. We really hope for a place with a great community
Hi all, My family is looking to relocate to SW Va. My husband has a job in Salem. I am an artist and am interested in finding a spot that has a strong art scene.We also like to hike and enjoy outdoor activities. We have a child who is 6 so I am very interested in schools and a community with activities geared toward kids. Grandin Village in Roanoke seems like a neat place but I don't know about living in the city.(schools? we would like a little piece of land for a garden ) I really like a lot about Floyd but it seems a little small and I wonder about schools and things for kids to do. Blacksburg seems like a possible compromise. I would love any info. about living in these areas..especially Floyd and Blacksburg. We really hope for a place with a great community
Thanks for any replies
Roanoke is a small city. Blacksburg is a college town. Salem is a medium-sized town. And Floyd is a smaller farmer-and-hippie-sttled town out in "the country". Farmers first, then the hippies, and they made it work together in a funky, organic, green-ish, music-y type of mish-mosh of those cultures.
(By the way...Roanoke city schools are mostly fine. Especially if you live in a desirable area like Grandin.) Almost any lot in Roanoke city will give you plenty of room for even a sizeable garden. Same with Salem. Blacksburg too, most likely. Floyd...it kinda goes without saying.
Any of these places will afford you good access to hiking, outdoors stuff, etc. The arts are well represented in Floyd and in Roanoke. Salem is really attached to/a part of... Roanoke (just don't tell Salem that ), so it doesn't really need to have it's own thriving art scene.
If I were you, I'd go with a nice neighborhood in Roanoke City. Salem has it's quirks with "outsiders". Blacksburg is pretty far out. (It's not, but it is...I can see the drive getting old.) Also, ask yourself if you can be the family that can stand living in a college town. There are other threads on here concerning those issues. Although there are colleges all over Roanoke and Salem, neither town gets that "college-town-vibe" like Blacksburg has.
Grandin & Raleigh Ct are nice. So are other parts of the city. Don't rule out Roanoke County either.
The Grandin Court / Grandin Village neighborhoods are really neat and I've got several friends who live in that area who really enjoy it. The K-5 public school is Virginia Heights Elementary, which seems to meet/exceed state SOL averages. Woodrow Wilson is the middle school and it lags somewhat behind state SOL averages, but then again, this might not be an issue for your 6 year old, because he/she would be in the current crop of kids who are outperforming in K-5 currently. It's a good school even now, though. Patrick Henry is also somewhat behind state SOL averages as well. But it is also a good school. If you're an involved parent, and you don't have major challenges in your household (poverty, violence, etc) then your children will do very, very well in those city schools.
It might not matter at all to you, but I think it's worth mentioning some important cultural considerations. Roanoke County leans to the Right (61% voted McCain), while Roanoke City leans to the Left (61% voted Obama). Roanoke County is much less diverse and 92% are white. Roanoke City is more diverse at 70% white. Roanoke County is very sprawl-centric. Roanoke City has many walkable neighborhoods. Roanoke County real estate is more expensive than City real estate. So, if you enjoy a strong arts scene, and lean slightly to the left, and if you value cultural diversity, and think a walkable neighborhood w/ sidewalks is desirable, then you'd really, really enjoy living in Roanoke City. Others may disagree with my perspective, but I thought it was worth mentioning.
Floyd is an artsy miniature sized town that's nice to visit on weekends, but to live there would be a chore for 99.5% of us. The entire county of Floyd has only 14,000 people spread over several hundred square miles, no? And it's 38 miles to Floyd from the Route 221/419 intersection, if memory serves? That commute winds up and down Bent Mountain, and I wouldn't recommend it as a daily commute. A friend once described following a school bus on Bent Mountain Road (Route 221) during a winter storm and watching the bus slide into the guard rail through an S-curve *shudder* It might be a 50 minute drive in one direction. If you wanted a country town, and you were retired. and wanted a country house, and you didn't need much daily shopping options, then Floyd might be perfect. But it doesn't sound like you're at that stage in life.
The Blacksburg to Salem commute would be a little shorter, but it is still significant. Again there is a mountain climb involved (Blacksburg sets on a 2,000+ foot plateau). On top of that, Blacksburg homes can be 50% more expensive. Blacksburg is 62% white collar and most middle class homes are elevated to upper middle class prices because of this. We lived there for about 9 months before moving into the Roanoke area. My experience was that Blacksburg can offer a good environment for raising children but it is significantly lacking in the area of Arts and Events, which was pretty important for us. Blacksburg is an engineering and agriculture college town, not a liberal arts college town, if that helps paint a picture. You'd have a very small exposure for your art in Blacksburg. Blacksburg's downtown is actually dwindling while Roanoke's downtown is enjoying a resurgence. Ultimately, Blacksburg a great place to raise kids, but you have to be willing to do without the amenities that even a small city can offer. Which in your case should be a deal breaker.
Roanoke has a very, very strong Art scene. The indie music scene is nice too. There are all sorts of events each month for all sorts of persuasions. There are an abundance of kids programs offered in Roanoke.
If you're really concerned about city schools, you could still purchase a nice family home in Grandin / Raleigh Court. You might save $100K compared to a similar home in Roanoke County or Blacksburg. You could take that savings and use it for private tuition to North Cross (North Cross) which is in the neighborhood of $7,500 a year for grades K-5. Then you'd have your nice Grandin area city neighborhood home, with yard enough for a garden (Roanoke City even allows for up to 3 chickens!), walkable to the village and various parks and greenways, on a quiet sidewalked side street.
Wow-thanks for the great responses. They were insightful and obviously well thought out.
I feel like I have a lot of food for thought. The grandin village area does seem like a good fit and it would be nice to avoid the carbon footprint and time consumtion of a long commute. I hate to ask this last question but what about the city crime? I have heard mixed things.
what about the city crime? I have heard mixed things.
Not sure where you are moving from? Or what your points of reference might be, but...
We relo'd here from the suburban NYC/NJ area, and have had experience with places like Newark, Camden, etc. Compared to the crime up there, the very worst parts of Roanoke are a walk in the park. And for me to even use the phrase "worst parts of Roanoke" is actually misleading. Roanoke has no one true "ghetto" area. It can almost go street by street in areas. For instance...from Grandin, it is an easy walk up Memorial to what some might consider one of the shadiest areas of Roanoke. I consider it a more depressed and run-down area. Crime infested? Not really compared to what I know as crime infested.
Again...a lot of what you consider "undesirable" will come from your personal experiences and frame of reference. But there are very few streets in Roanoke City that I would not walk at any hour of the day or night. If you have questions about specific blocks or streets, just ask, and someone will give you some feedback. Hope that helps!
Roanoke County real estate is more expensive than City real estate.
Sean...I love your posts - you do a great job of orienting folks to the area!
I'm curious why the county real estate would be higher than the close-in real estate in Roanoke city.
I am most familiar with the Houston area (of course a much larger area) - where the close-in neighborhoods command a huge premium compared to the farther out areas.
Watchful, I think, in general, it's because there is more of a demand for county real estate. I think with the city itself having such a small land area (42 sq miles), there is small benefit for commuters who live inside the city limits. Plus traffic is more manageable than it is in a large metro like Houston. Here, you could live farther out in Southwest Roanoke County and still only be 15 minutes from Roanoke City. The gov't QuickFacts stats state the city resident commute times as being only 1 minute shorter than county folks. Also, as has been discussed in other threads, the city school system doesn't score as well on the SOL tests. So, a family moving in to the area is more apt to look at school "report cards" online and assume that the county schools are better, which I assume could influence their choices. Also, young families might tend to prefer new or newer houses and city homes are of course older (albeit they tend to have more character). Each of these factors have a small influence but I imagine the combined effect as being strong enough to affect real estate prices.
I'm a country boy but if I lived in central Roanoke it would almost certainly be in the city. Having some early morning fun with Google Maps' street view, allow me to whip up some contrasts.
Say you're looking for a home in the $100-$200K range. Here is a street view of Windsor Avenue in Roanoke City:
Windsor Avenue, Roanoke City - Note the mature shade and flowering trees, the sidewalks, the older distinctive homes that don't actually look like they were all built by the same developer. Makes you want to go on a walk to the park that's only 0.25 miles away!
Berry Hill Lane, Roanoke County - I picked one of the oldest county subdivisions, just to be more comparable with Windsor Lane. Note the larger (though nearly useless) front yard. The lack of a sidewalk. The ranchers and ramblers and split levels. What you don't see is the complete inability to walk to any sort of park, either, nor to any corner stores. You'd likely be entirely dependent on your car.
Let's move up to the $250-$350K range:
Hampshire Drive, SW Roanoke County - Note the lack of sidewalks or majestic hardwood trees. The houses are nice, yes, but they're boxes with pseudo brick facades. And you're miles from a park.
Okay, so you've got big money to spend! Let's go buy a $600K-$1MM house!
Fairway View, SW Roanoke County - Beautiful homes to be sure, but their flat faces give away that they're - at best - pulled from the stock home catalog. Big homes that are somewhat faceless to reduce construction costs. Plus you're miles from parks and shopping.
We're shopping for early retirement - maybe 4-7 years away - and we actually prefer Roanoke city - love the Raleigh Court/Virginia Heights area - so the prices are good news for us!
The Grandin Court / Grandin Village neighborhoods are really neat and I've got several friends who live in that area who really enjoy it. The K-5 public school is Virginia Heights Elementary, which seems to meet/exceed state SOL averages. Woodrow Wilson is the middle school and it lags somewhat behind state SOL averages, but then again, this might not be an issue for your 6 year old, because he/she would be in the current crop of kids who are outperforming in K-5 currently. It's a good school even now, though. Patrick Henry is also somewhat behind state SOL averages as well. But it is also a good school. If you're an involved parent, and you don't have major challenges in your household (poverty, violence, etc) then your children will do very, very well in those city schools.
It might not matter at all to you, but I think it's worth mentioning some important cultural considerations. Roanoke County leans to the Right (61% voted McCain), while Roanoke City leans to the Left (61% voted Obama). Roanoke County is much less diverse and 92% are white. Roanoke City is more diverse at 70% white. Roanoke County is very sprawl-centric. Roanoke City has many walkable neighborhoods. Roanoke County real estate is more expensive than City real estate. So, if you enjoy a strong arts scene, and lean slightly to the left, and if you value cultural diversity, and think a walkable neighborhood w/ sidewalks is desirable, then you'd really, really enjoy living in Roanoke City. Others may disagree with my perspective, but I thought it was worth mentioning.
Floyd is an artsy miniature sized town that's nice to visit on weekends, but to live there would be a chore for 99.5% of us. The entire county of Floyd has only 14,000 people spread over several hundred square miles, no? And it's 38 miles to Floyd from the Route 221/419 intersection, if memory serves? That commute winds up and down Bent Mountain, and I wouldn't recommend it as a daily commute. A friend once described following a school bus on Bent Mountain Road (Route 221) during a winter storm and watching the bus slide into the guard rail through an S-curve *shudder* It might be a 50 minute drive in one direction. If you wanted a country town, and you were retired. and wanted a country house, and you didn't need much daily shopping options, then Floyd might be perfect. But it doesn't sound like you're at that stage in life.
The Blacksburg to Salem commute would be a little shorter, but it is still significant. Again there is a mountain climb involved (Blacksburg sets on a 2,000+ foot plateau). On top of that, Blacksburg homes can be 50% more expensive. Blacksburg is 62% white collar and most middle class homes are elevated to upper middle class prices because of this. We lived there for about 9 months before moving into the Roanoke area. My experience was that Blacksburg can offer a good environment for raising children but it is significantly lacking in the area of Arts and Events, which was pretty important for us. Blacksburg is an engineering and agriculture college town, not a liberal arts college town, if that helps paint a picture. You'd have a very small exposure for your art in Blacksburg. Blacksburg's downtown is actually dwindling while Roanoke's downtown is enjoying a resurgence. Ultimately, Blacksburg a great place to raise kids, but you have to be willing to do without the amenities that even a small city can offer. Which in your case should be a deal breaker.
Roanoke has a very, very strong Art scene. The indie music scene is nice too. There are all sorts of events each month for all sorts of persuasions. There are an abundance of kids programs offered in Roanoke.
If you're really concerned about city schools, you could still purchase a nice family home in Grandin / Raleigh Court. You might save $100K compared to a similar home in Roanoke County or Blacksburg. You could take that savings and use it for private tuition to North Cross (North Cross) which is in the neighborhood of $7,500 a year for grades K-5. Then you'd have your nice Grandin area city neighborhood home, with yard enough for a garden (Roanoke City even allows for up to 3 chickens!), walkable to the village and various parks and greenways, on a quiet sidewalked side street.
Sean
Sean.
That's a perfect description of our town.
You left out one fact. The entire county of Floyd has only one traffic light!
You left out one fact. The entire county of Floyd has only one traffic light!
LOL. Except, remember when they were repairing the bridge on Route 221? They put up that temporary light and instantly the number of traffic lights in Floyd County DOUBLED
Sean
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), so it doesn't really need to have it's own thriving art scene. 
