South Royalton (Vermont Law School) (Burlington, White River Junction: apartments, lease, lawyers)

StromsDaughter · 06-09-2009, 07:28 AM

I am moving to South Royalton (to attend law school) from Los Angeles. My family resides in the Washington, D.C. suburbs (Maryland), so I am familiar with the east coast, but I image that Vermont is very different.

Any and all information, opinions or advice is appreciated.

Thanks

vter · 06-09-2009, 07:54 AM

Holy moly thats quite a move. Be prepared for major culture shock. Vermont is VERY different from suburban DC. Heck, we don't really have suburbs here at all (except for a couple near Burlington).
SoRo is a nice, VERY SMALL town. Are you planning to live right in SoRo? If not, you may want to consider the White River Junction/Lebanon area. It's a little more populated and has plenty of restaurants/shopping, etc, though not on the scale of LA or DC.
Look through the "official Vermont picture thread" at the top of the VT forum page. I believe there is a pic of South Royalton in there that I took.
Good luck! VLS is a good school.

Lilybeans · 06-09-2009, 08:11 AM

South Royalton is a great town to live in. You would miss out on a lot of law school life by living in White River or Lebanon. There is a lot to do, even after you get past the school part. The student body is quite close. Living in town is an important part of the law school experience, especially your first year.

It's more country living than you are used to, but there is still plenty of electricity, internet, etc. It's not Mars. People do a lot of things outdoors. The campus is in town. It's one of the two rural law schools in the country, I think. Students come from all over. One thing to keep in mind about Vermont is that even though it is rural, do not assume the locals are fools or hicks or uneducated.

vter · 06-09-2009, 08:17 AM

Good to know that lots of the students live right in South Royalton. I know a couple folks who went there that did the commute from WRJ. Through my job I know lots of folks who went there and they all loved it.

Lilybeans · 06-09-2009, 08:18 AM

I went there and loved it. My brother went there and loved it. we have a place there. I love SoRo.

StromsDaughter · 06-09-2009, 08:32 AM

Is craigslist a good place to look for apartments in South Royalton?

Lilybeans · 06-09-2009, 08:34 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by StromsDaughter

Is craigslist a good place to look for apartments in South Royalton?

Contact the law school. They maintain a list of available places.

Rodgrod2002 · 08-29-2011, 12:32 PM

Do yourself a favor and live in South Royalton. You will probably join a study group and they will meet in town during the evenings. Also, the snow in the winter may cause you to miss many classes if you live outside the village, especially White River Junction. And what is really great is you will use little to no gas for long periods because the village is a square and you can walk easily from your apartment to school. WRJ is about 30 miles to the South.

Things to do, go to Hanover and hit The 5 Old Nugget Ally. Good brew, food, and people. Directly across from Dartmouth. Also, eat at AJ's steak house in WRJ. When you get a chance go to Portland,Main and eat at Demillo's. Fantastic lobster. I recommend the deep fried lobster claws and steak.

Last, take as many classes as possible with Professor Firestone. He is at the top of the list of the smartest people I have ever met. Plus he is energetic and funny. You'll never be bored in his classes.

Good luck.

jackmccullough · 08-29-2011, 07:57 PM

Congratulations!

Of course, you may already have heard that VLS is the only law school in the country located in a town without a traffic light. It will be a big change.

On the other hand, I know plenty of good lawyers who graduated from VLS, and the school seems to do a great job of instilling a sense of community in its students. That's part of why it will pay off to live in SoRo.

sugarmaple · 09-02-2011, 03:30 PM

I concur with Jack! My son attended VLS, loved it, lived in So Royalton as well. I also recollect that he said, especially for the first year, you need to live in SoRo or really close to it as you basically live in the Vermont law library when you are not in classes [smile]. Yup, lots of terrific lawyers, a strong sense of community as well...and Lillybeans is correct, contact VLS for housing, they pretty much maintain a housing list for their law students.

Perhaps this link can help you somewhat: Royalton Businesses « Town of Royalton Vermont

I believe, at least to the best of my recollection, that my son found an apartment at: Green Valley Apts [think there may be a reference to it in the above link]... I do not remember the particulars; however, once you find a place that you like, you may want to make sure you renew your lease as quickly as possible too...[smile]...

And, of course, Welcome to Vermont and the Vermont Law School.