moving back to Atlanta (Sandy Springs, North Atlanta: fit in, rental, home)

[camille563]

I have a few questions.

I moved to Iowa 8 years ago and my wife and I are in the process of moving back.

She's hoping to get an interview for a job in Midtown. I wanted to move back to Forsyth County but I know that commute would be deadly.

Would Alpharetta be ok? I want top schools because my son has ADHD and has an IEP. I also need tolerant neighborhood because we are a same sex couple. I also don't want to pay more than 1600-1700 a month for rent.


Thanks in advance

[DreamerD]

That sounds like a nightmare. Why don't you try the Vinings area instead?

[ecost]

A few questions:

Does your wife already have a job lined up? Have you looked at the special education or tolerance for children with special needs in the area you are thinking of moving to? Are there any organizations, clubs, or other venues that cater to the LGBT community in that area?

I only ask these questions because I have been looking for a job with a decent wage in Atlanta for nearly 2 years. Right now there is a lot of temp/part-time work available and the city's residents are paying the price. And then there's the commute. Unlike nearly every other big city, Atlanta's public transportation system sucks and a 45 min. drive can easily turn into 2 hours. The other thing is, I'm in an interracial marriage. I'm black and my husband is Italian. We thought that if we lived closer to Atlanta people would be more tolerant. Boy were we wrong! Also, even though certain school systems seem great, some of them have the tendency to push out children that don't fit into their mold of what their test grades should be. I would just reconsider it or get a job lined up before making that move.

[Tarzanman]

Originally Posted by camille563

I have a few questions.

I moved to Iowa 8 years ago and my wife and I are in the process of moving back.

She's hoping to get an interview for a job in Midtown. I wanted to move back to Forsyth County but I know that commute would be deadly.

Would Alpharetta be ok? I want top schools because my son has ADHD and has an IEP. I also need tolerant neighborhood because we are a same sex couple. I also don't want to pay more than 1600-1700 a month for rent.


Thanks in advance

Alpharetta to midtown is at least an hour commute during normal working hours. I would look hard at Brookhaven... unfortunately I have no idea how the schools there are.

You might be able to swing Dunwoody or Sandy Springs. A lot of areas around midtown are accessible via MARTA rail. Exit 6 is probably the farthest north you would want to live up GA400.

[Born 2 Roll]

Originally Posted by camille563

I have a few questions.

I moved to Iowa 8 years ago and my wife and I are in the process of moving back.

She's hoping to get an interview for a job in Midtown. I wanted to move back to Forsyth County but I know that commute would be deadly.

Would Alpharetta be ok? I want top schools because my son has ADHD and has an IEP. I also need tolerant neighborhood because we are a same sex couple. I also don't want to pay more than 1600-1700 a month for rent.


Thanks in advance

Alpharetta will be a slightly less-challenging commute to and from Midtown during peak hours than Forsyth County.

The biggest concern with commutes from Northside suburban locations like Forsyth County and Alpharetta is the massive reconstruction of the Georgia 400 and I-285 interchange that will be ramping up in the not-too-distant future.

The reconstruction of the Georgia 400/I-285 interchange will last for the next several years (at least through 2020, maybe longer) and will generate lots of additional traffic delays on already severely-congested major commuter routes like Georgia 400 (the route your wife will be using to commute back-and-forth between Alpharetta or Forsyth County and Midtown Atlanta each day) and the Top End of the I-285 Perimeter.

Outlying Northside suburban areas like Alpharetta and Forsyth County should be strongly considered because of the quality of the schools....But the daily commutes will be long, stressful and prone to delays that will make those twice-daily commutes even longer and more stressful until the GA 400/I-285 major reconstruction project is completed sometime early in the next decade of the 2020's.

If you elect to move into North Fulton County or South Forsyth County, your wife will likely want (and need) to consider such alternative commuting options as:

> Leaving home extremely early for work (like well before 6:30am) and/or leaving work extremely early or late to avoid the worst of the morning and afternoon/evening rush hours (rush periods which will be much LONGER than usual because of the massive traffic-delay generating construction project at the GA 400 and I-285 interchange)...and...

> Using public transportation (MARTA express commuter buses and MARTA Red Line trains between Alpharetta and Midtown Atlanta or using GRTA Xpress park-and-ride express commuter buses and/or MARTA Red Line trains between Forsyth County and Midtown Atlanta...commuter buses which will also be slowed by the traffic delays that will be generated by the aforementioned massive reconstruction project at GA 400/I-285).

In addition to looking in areas like North Fulton County, South Forsyth County and Vinings (like Dreamer D suggested), I would also look in areas with extremely diverse populations where the schools are likely to be well-equipped to handle your son's challenges like Dunwoody, Sandy Springs, Brookhaven, Chamblee and Doraville....These areas will also provide you with good access to the MARTA Red and Gold Lines so that your wife might not have to battle traffic congestion as much while commuting to and from her job in Midtown.

You should also look to see if you can find any quality rental dwellings in your budget in the greater Buckhead area (which feeds into the underrated but vastly-improving North Atlanta High School cluster, an area of schools which is rising in quality).

If you look in the greater Buckhead area, you should especially look to see what you might be able to find around the Lindbergh MARTA Station so that your wife can have easy access to and from Midtown on the trains of the MARTA Red and Gold lines.

You should also look within the City of Decatur in the excellent Decatur City Schools system to see if you might be able to find anything in your price range in an extremely diverse and progressive area that provides excellent access to MARTA Blue Line trains for commutes into and out of Downtown and Midtown Atlanta.