best neighborhood close to downtown for family? (San Diego, Corona: rent, condo)

[familyman1]

We are looking to relocate to SD this summer and are trying to find an area where we can feel confident about the school quality and family friendliness. We can probably afford anything except La Jolla and Coronado. i.e 2000 sf+ for under $1 million. Since i would be working downtown, I don't want to spend 2 hours a day on the freeway. We also are liberal Jewish types who want a certain amount of funkiness, and not just be in a sea of tract homes and strip malls (i.e. Carmel Valley). Of course, we also don't want to be too far from the beach , etc.. Are there neighborhood public schools in Mission Hills, Kensington, or the UTC area that make sense? We have high demands for our schools, and don't want to have to go the private school route. Are we dreaming?

[Sassberto]

Originally Posted by familyman1

Are there neighborhood public schools in Mission Hills, Kensington, or the UTC area that make sense? We have high demands for our schools, and don't want to have to go the private school route. Are we dreaming?

Did you mean University Heights instead of UTC? There are really no single-family neighborhoods in UTC, it's kind of a condo-tract sprawl.

Mission Hills' local elementary is good. Kensington's... not so good. If you are going to live in the city you should consider the various charters, magnets, and other non-local options. The highly-rated schools are sort of scattered around the city.

The real problem is high schools. Hoover & Crawford are no go. SD high downtown has a highly rated program. There is talk of a High Tech High going into Mission Valley which would be excellent.
If you are willing to trade off the classic historic homes for better schools but no tract neighborhoods, take a look at Del Cerro, there is a large Jewish population there. Point Loma should also be on your list, also South Park/Burlingame has Albert Einstein which is a highly-regarded charter with a German-language immersion program.

[familyman1]

I meant University City. Which school in Mission hills? the problem with charters/magnets, etc... is that you apply in the winter, so a summer relocator can't qualify. We will have a first and fourth grader, probably qualifying for GATE as well. I have heard mixed reviews of Del Cerro. Anyone who lives there?

[Sassberto]

Originally Posted by familyman1

I meant University City. Which school in Mission hills? the problem with charters/magnets, etc... is that you apply in the winter, so a summer relocator can't qualify. We will have a first and fourth grader, probably qualifying for GATE as well. I have heard mixed reviews of Del Cerro. Anyone who lives there?

University City has a good high school, nice area overall. I live just across the freeway from Del Cerro, nice area.

The local elementary in Mission Hills is Grant
http://www.greatschools.net/modperl/...school/ca/6151

[shannon94]

Originally Posted by familyman1

I meant University City. Which school in Mission hills? the problem with charters/magnets, etc... is that you apply in the winter, so a summer relocator can't qualify. We will have a first and fourth grader, probably qualifying for GATE as well. I have heard mixed reviews of Del Cerro. Anyone who lives there?

Del Cerro is a very nice, established,safe, well kept neighborhood. One of the elementary schools there is a CHOICE school. This means people wait in line from other schools/districts to get in. My friends daughter got in because her Aunt is a teacher there. Call around:


DAILARD ELEMENTARY SCHOOL
Grade Span: K to 5th
District: SAN DIEGO CITY UNIFIED SCHOOL DISTRICT
Principal: MS DARLENE CASON
Address: 6425 CIBOLA RD
SAN DIEGO, CA 92120-2125
Phone: 619-286-1550

FOSTER ELEMENTARY SCHOOL
Grade Span: K to 5th
District: SAN DIEGO CITY UNIFIED SCHOOL DISTRICT
Principal: MS TAVGA BUSTANI
Address: 6550 51ST ST
SAN DIEGO, CA 92120-2712
Phone: 619-582-2728

HEARST ELEMENTARY SCHOOL
Grade Span: K to 5th
District: SAN DIEGO CITY UNIFIED SCHOOL DISTRICT
Principal: MS ROBIN STERN
Address: 6230 DEL CERRO BLVD
SAN DIEGO, CA 92120-4604
Phone: 619-583-5704

MARVIN ELEMENTARY SCHOOL
Grade Span: K to 5th
District: SAN DIEGO CITY UNIFIED SCHOOL DISTRICT
Principal: MR E JAY DERWAE
Address: 5720 BRUNSWICK AVE
SAN DIEGO, CA 92120-1905
Phone: 619-583-1355

[junglebike]

Don't know about the schools (no kids yet) but we loved living in South Park, which is actually east of Balboa Park and very close to downtown. If you're looking for a bit of funkiness the older neighborhoods around the park might suit you well. North Park (actually north of the park!) is okay, though not too pretty. Normal Heights is quite nice north of Adams, and there are tons of shops, restaurants & music on Adams Ave. And of course there's always Hillcrest, which is probably the most "urban" walkable area in SD. Again, no advise on schools. Good luck!

[jacindabuchanan]

I live in University City. It is not funky at all, but clean and extremely convenient. Located between three freeways so that driving is a cinch and traffic-free relative to the rest of San Diego. Schools are in the top 10%. Not urban. Ruled by HOA. Absolute higest scoring schools are in Coronado and Encinitas. Low crime rates there too. University City has the highest theft rate in all of San Diego. Check the SD police department stats if you want to see for yourself. However violent crime rates are among the lowest. University City is near UCSD so many homes are converting to mini-dorms and reducing values throughout the neighborhood. Lots of cars parked on the streets. We rent here and are thinking of buying in a different neighborhood as the negatives are beginning to outweigh the positives. Some friends just left University City last year to live in Carmel Valley, which is an extremely nice area, just really new and all tract homes. There is a process called "opting-in" (I think that's what it's called) in which you join a list to have your child accepted into a public school that is not where you live. You could live in a neighborhood with more character and use private school until your children are accepted to a private school of your liking. I recently visited a friend's new home on Mt Helix (technically part of La Mesa but really it's own unincorporated little community). I fell in love with that neighborhood. If you like trees, consider a place like Mt Helix, which gets a little more of the rain. Also, no tract housing!

[tnstaafldb]

Kensington, South Park, Normal Heights, North Park (West of I8), and Mission Hills are good neighborhoods with a bit of "funk." The houses tend to be older and smaller, but I think it's worth the trade-off. La Mesa and Mt Helix are a bit further out, but the 8 commute is nothing compared to the messes on the 5 and the 15. If you are a liberal, stay away from East County (except for Alpine--has good elementary and middle schools and is very nice, but if your kids are in High School, they will have to go to school in El Cajon-yuck). Be prepared that San Diego county is generally very conservative.

[jsant5]

Take a look at Eastlake chula Vista

[superchargers]

I went to Daillard, Pershing, and Patrick Henry. I lived in San Carlos through junior high, and Del Cerro during HIGH school. That whole swath is suburban hell. There is nothing to do for teens so the great majority do massive amounts of drugs. No culture whatsoever. Safe? Maybe. I had several friends die before high school graduation due to drug and alcohol related accidents. You won't get mugged, but you may hit a telephone poll after drinking 40s at "the rock." And while the kids here are generally from upper middle class families, they are a mischievious bunch.

On the plus side, my friends who did survive through high school without serious dependency problems went on to Yale, MIT, Cal, UCLA, Stanford, yadda yadda yadda. I did the whole Ivy league undergrad/prof school thing and now that I have small children, for the remainder of my days in San Diego, I'll stick to the nice parts of 92102, 92103, 92104, and 92116. Just say no to 92120!