Considering move from SF Bay Area to Atlanta suburbs

[Born 2 Roll]

Originally Posted by PTC Dad

As for schools, Milton, Alpharetta, and John's Creek are home to some of the best public schools in Atlanta. There are also great schools in neighboring East Cobb and Forsyth County. Traffic can be bad here so I'd stay as close to Alpharetta as possible.

To add to what PTC Dad and others have said about the schools in Alpharetta and surrounding areas across the North Atlanta suburbs...

The public schools in the aforementioned areas of North Fulton, South Forsyth and East Cobb counties are widely recognized by many not just as some of the best schools in the Atlanta metro and Georgia but are also widely recognized as some of the best in the entire Southeastern U.S. region.

The schools across this particular swath of the North Atlanta suburbs are often heavily recruited (both athletically and academically) by postsecondary institutions of every stripe, including many of the top colleges and universities from the top conferences in the country.

Postsecondary institutions from nearby major conferences like the SEC (the Southeastern Conference) and the ACC (the Atlantic Coast Conference) as well as other prestigious major national conferences like the Big 10, the Big 12, the Big East, the AAC (the American Athletic Conference), the Big South and even the Ivy League.

The swath of the North Atlanta suburbs from Cobb (particularly East Cobb) to North Fulton to South Forsyth and into Gwinnett counties is a major recruiting area for colleges and universities of every caliber. If one performs well academically and/or athletically at the high schools in this area, postsecondary academic opportunities will abound in many cases.

Originally Posted by PTC Dad

The other good thing about being on the Northside of Atlanta is that you'll only be 45 minutes to an hour from the foothills of the Appalachian mountains and Lake Lanier. So they'll be plenty of outdoor activities.

https://www.atlantatrails.com/amicalola-falls/

PTC Dad's post of a link to a site describing Amicalola Falls (the site of the highest waterfall in the U.S. east of the Mississippi River) raises the point that the southernmost point of the Appalachian Trail (the famous 2,200-mile long recreational mountain hiking trail that runs along the backbone of the Eastern Seaboard through the Appalachian Mountains chain from Georgia to Maine) is located only about 95 miles or so north of Atlanta.

Amicalola Falls is only about 10 miles or so from the official site of the Southern Terminus of the Appalachian Trail. Amicalola Falls and the site of the Southern Terminus of the Appalachian Trail are connected by a series of approach trails through Amicalola Falls State Park.

Just another reminder that recreational opportunities will abound, not only in the highly-affluent, hilly and mountainous areas north of Atlanta but also throughout the Atlanta metro region, the state of Georgia and the entire Southeastern U.S. as a whole.

[aslowdodge]

Originally Posted by roadwarrior101

Thanks for the good comparison. We actually live in Danville, where it topped 110 degrees for a couple days last weekend. We like the upscale feel, but also having the walkable downtown that we have here and in Walnut Creek.


Looks like Alpharetta has that somewhat (in a manufactured sort of way). Is this something found in the other towns you mentioned?


From what another poster mentioned, it'll all depend upon where my wife finds work as well.

One thing is if you like downtown Danville or Walnut Creek you won't find anything like it here. There are tiny downtowns, but nothing the size of those 2 downtowns. I do miss those 2 downtowns as well as downtown Los Gatos and Campbell.

[roadwarrior101]

Originally Posted by aslowdodge

One thing is if you like downtown Danville or Walnut Creek you won't find anything like it here. There are tiny downtowns, but nothing the size of those 2 downtowns. I do miss those 2 downtowns as well as downtown Los Gatos and Campbell.

I lived in the Phoenix area for a couple years, so I am used to not having large suburban downtown areas.

[Iconographer]

Originally Posted by roadwarrior101

Thanks for the good comparison. We actually live in Danville, where it topped 110 degrees for a couple days last weekend. We like the upscale feel, but also having the walkable downtown that we have here and in Walnut Creek.


Looks like Alpharetta has that somewhat (in a manufactured sort of way). Is this something found in the other towns you mentioned?


From what another poster mentioned, it'll all depend upon where my wife finds work as well.

I'm married to an old East Bay boy (he has relatives in Danville, in fact). If you like the vibe there and in Walnut Creek, I think you'll like the suggestions that have been put out here so far.
I'm really impressed by what I've seen at Alpharetta's upscale new 'town center', Avalon. The homes I toured there were gorgeous.

Experience Avalon -

[roadwarrior101]

Originally Posted by LovinDecatur

I'm married to an old East Bay boy (he has relatives in Danville, in fact). If you like the vibe there and in Walnut Creek, I think you'll like the suggestions that have been put out here so far.
I'm really impressed by what I've seen at Alpharetta's upscale new 'town center', Avalon. The homes I toured there were gorgeous.

Experience Avalon -

Looks like a pretty nice place to hang out. I think though if we make the move, we'd probably go for a larger house with land (something we can't really afford out here with the COL).

[Iconographer]

Originally Posted by roadwarrior101

Looks like a pretty nice place to hang out. I think though if we make the move, we'd probably go for a larger house with land (something we can't really afford out here with the COL).

The suburbs that have walkable urban villages are mostly close in (and not near Alpharetta). Alpharetta's downtown is pretty small, as is Roswell's. There are some suburbs on the north side that have rehabbed their downtowns ie Smyrna, Canton, Woodstock, Norcross, Suwanee and Lawrenceville.
I might suggest the Spalding/Dalrymple Rd. area of Sandy Springs (30350), as you would have access to Alpharetta and to the last MARTA rail station on the North Line (North Springs).

https://www.zillow.com/homes/for_sal...omePageTab=buy

[roadwarrior101]

Originally Posted by LovinDecatur

The suburbs that have walkable urban villages are mostly close in (and not near Alpharetta). Alpharetta's downtown is pretty small, as is Roswell's. There are some suburbs on the north side that have rehabbed their downtowns ie Smyrna, Canton, Woodstock, Norcross, Suwanee and Lawrenceville.
I might suggest the Spalding/Dalrymple Rd. area of Sandy Springs (30350), as you would have access to Alpharetta and to the last MARTA rail station on the North Line (North Springs).

https://www.zillow.com/homes/for_sal...omePageTab=buy

Schools don't look great in Sandy Springs. Do most people send their kids to private school there?

[ca2dfw]

I just moved from the bay area to South Forsyth a few months ago. The public school system is operated by the Forsyth County School (FCS) District. So far, I am impressed with their quality and academic standards. According to the academic school rankings, the elementary, middle and high schools from FCS are well represented in the top 10 from Georgia:

https://www.schooldigger.com/go/GA/s...k.aspx?level=2

Elementary School: 5 of the top 10 are from FCS, MS: 4 out of 10, HS: 2 out of 10.

With $500k, you can easily afford a house in a nice neighborhood. When selecting the location, take into consideration that the property tax in Forsyth county is about 1/4 less than that in Fulton county.

[PTC Dad]

Originally Posted by roadwarrior101

Schools don't look great in Sandy Springs. Do most people send their kids to private school there?

Yes, a lot of families in Sandy Springs send their kids to private school, but Dunwoody and Sandy Springs are great places to live.

As for great downtowns, I'm not as familiar with Danville, but if it's like Burlingame or San Mateo's downtown areas, there really isn't anything like that in Atlanta. Downtown Roswell is probably the closest.