Bay Area Bound! (San Francisco, San Mateo, Redwood City: middle-class, fit in, apartment)

[lindseyrepp143]

I posted a thread before called Austin vs San Fran -- my husband just accepted a job at Oracle, so we are Bay Area bound in about a year. Very excited!

By the time we get there, our children will be ages 8 and 4. We have narrowed it down to the following areas, and was wondering if anyone had any input about any of the spots:

-Belmont
-Redwood City
-Foster City
-San Mateo
...any other place that's good for kids/families near Oracle? We are a very active family - would like to be near parks, libraries, churches, schools, etc.

Any input on private/public schools in the area would be great as well.

Also -- does anyone know where I can find a link for private Christian colleges near Oracle as well?

Thank you thank you thank you! Looking forward to getting there and exploring!

--Lindsey

[humboldtrat]

Both Belmont and Redwood Shores are nice middle class areas close to Oracle. The area around Ralston and Alameda in Belmont is a nice area with shopping, a library, a high school (with an athletic field) and lots of nice apartment buildings. There's also a playing field nearby at the former Barrett school. This about a mile from Oracle. Don't know anything about Christian schools in the area except for Notre Dame (Catholic) which is in Belmont Notre Dame de Namur University - NDNU.

[Jen38]

Lindsey-
Wondering if you are there yet and where you chose to live? We have been looking at the bay area and have children about the same ages. Do you like it out there? Not sure where you came from, but was it a good move?

[icazares]

Originally Posted by lindseyrepp143

-Belmont
-Redwood City
-Foster City
-San Mateo

--Lindsey

I'm not particularly fond of Redwood City, not even Redwood Shores. Transportation from Redwood Shores to San Francisco is bad (not sure if that's important to you) and you may need to drive over 3 miles to get your milk. If you are comfortable with that style of living Redwood Shores is a good choice. It's a beautiful place, clean and more affordable than some other areas in the Bay. Foster City is a great place, but again public transportation to SF is scarce to say the least. Foster City is also expensive. The problem is that Redwood Shores and Foster City are east of 101, with no easy access to Caltrain or BART.

I live in San Mateo just a few blocks off 20th & Alameda. It's a great place and very central for the Bay Area. The commute to San Francisco is still slightly over an hour using public transportation, but at least you have options: you can drive to the BART station in Millbrae, take the Caltrain or a bus. San Mateo is a larger city and as such is not as uniform as RS or FC. Some areas are upscale and some others are typical middle-class neighborhoods. I live just across Serra High School which seems to be good.

Belmont is a smaller community that also looks nice. If I were you I would look also in Millbrae and Burlingame. Weather is still good, the commute to Oracle is still very easy but you would have the additional benefit of the proximity to SF. Not sure about the schools, but I read somewhere that Millbrae private schools are among the best in the US.

[sonarrat]

My dad works at Oracle and commutes from Morgan Hill.. he has a carpool, so you could go with him.

I live in westside Redwood City, at Jefferson and Alameda. I'm not thrilled with my apartment, but I like the area. It's very homey and friendly, and you don't feel like you have to drive something with a three-pointed star just to fit in.

[libbykt]

I remember your post because we are in San Mateo and trying to relocate to Austin, hopefully by next year. We were actually supposed to be relocated to Austin last month and it was postponed a bit. One of the reasons that we are looking to move to Texas is the public schools there are so much better than the ones here. My son is not school age yet, but if we are still in California we will definitely be sending him to private school. My husband works across the street from Oracle so if there is anything I can help you with, please feel free to ask! I'm on this board and the Austin board.

Of the areas that you listed, I would choose Belmont or Redwood Shores. Whoever said you need to drive 3 miles to get your milk is just wrong, as there is a shopping center right in RWS with a grocery store, bank, restaurants, Starbucks, day spa...pretty much everything you need. I think the problem that you might run into is if you want to go to public school. So the RWS elementary school is great, but I think it's a lottery system and you could end up in a school in another less desirable area of Redwood City. I could be wrong, but this was the experience of friends of ours who lived in RWS several years ago so the policies could have changed.

There are other areas of Redwood City that are nice, mostly west of Alameda de las Pulgas, but the city is pretty much hit or miss. They are doing a lot to "revitalize" the downtown area, but as a mom, I really think there are other places I'd rater raise my family.

Belmont has a pretty good public school system. It's very much a small town, without much of a downtown area, which I don't care for. It has some stores and parks, but nothing really centrally located.

San Mateo is funny. There are great areas, and less than great areas, just like any city. Its a little bigger. The downtown is pretty decent with a nice park, a nice library, and shopping. And a few homeless. I rent a home in one of the "best" neighborhoods, and it still has a crappy elementary school if that tells you anything. I wouldn't send my son there.

In my opinion, Foster City looks nicer at first glance than it really is. I first thought I might want to move there and looked at a bunch of homes and I tried to make myself like it, but I just couldn't.

You might want to look at San Carlos as well. It's really close to Oracle, has great public schools, and a good downtown area with some great parks. Although it also has the price tag to go along with it so I guess it depends on if you are planning on renting or buying.

[icazares]

Originally Posted by libbykt

Whoever said you need to drive 3 miles to get your milk is just wrong, as there is a shopping center right in RWS with a grocery store, bank, restaurants, Starbucks, day spa...pretty much everything you need.

Do yourself a favor and visit the area first. Yes, there are places in Redwood Shores (especially next to the Bay) that are 3 or more miles from the street mall, which is basically off 101. And even if it was 1 or 2 miles, the fact is that walking is not an option. Try 398 Genoa Street for example to 101.