How insulated are insulated are Atlanta suburbs such as John's Creek, Alpharetta, Duluth, and others? (East Point: 2014)

[uscityseeker]

Areas of Atlanta such as John's Creek, Alpharetta, Duluth, and also Buckhead just for the sake of discussion. These areas are said to be upscale, safe, and things of that nature. Furthermore, many parts of Atlanta are said to be on the other end of this spectrum. Is there a lot of interaction and exaggeration or do these areas really exist pretty separately?

[Mutiny77]

The parts of the metro on the other end of the spectrum are somewhat removed from Buckhead and the northern 'burbs, so if that's what you mean by "insulated," then yeah. There's not much interaction between them.

[isawooty]

Originally Posted by uscityseeker

Areas of Atlanta such as John's Creek, Alpharetta, Duluth, and also Buckhead just for the sake of discussion. These areas are said to be upscale, safe, and things of that nature. Furthermore, many parts of Atlanta are said to be on the other end of this spectrum. Is there a lot of interaction and exaggeration or do these areas really exist pretty separately?

Not 100% truth, but I-20 roughly defines where things start to "look up." That's kinda the buffer zone between the two areas. Being that Atlanta is so big, and with all of the development, by the time you reach Buckhead you're comfortably in a safe area. Alpharetta might as well be in another state coming from East Point or Union City. But ya know crime can happen anywhere. Heck, folks have been robbed AT Lenox during busy times.

[ATLTJL]

Not sure what you mean by "insulated."

The suburbs of Johns Creek, Alpharetta, Duluth, etc. are made up largely of people who commute daily into the city (just look at traffic on I-85 and GA 400 daily for proof of this!), so the connection between the city proper and these suburbs is extremely strong.

But if you mean are these places totally insulated from panhandlers begging for money, drive-by shootings, street drug deals, and other criminal activity associated with the city, then I'd say they are quite insulated. Of course, drug dealing happens everywhere, it just happens a different way in the suburbs!

So I'd say they are insulated in the ways they want to be, but they also make sure to share many of the riches of the city. By that, I mean they are not insulated from excellent restaurants, top notch retail and cultural events.

[bryantm3]

it's insulated but not as much as it used to be. all the money from buckhead and other rich places around the country flows into alpharetta all of the time, it's a big corporate headquarters. it's insulated from interesting things, the upcoming art and music scenes, the permitting and zoning laws are very strict and there are way too many police up here. it's a very controlled environment. for example, we put up a political sign on public property one day during the 2014 election and it was taken down by noon. you have patrols of lawn maintenance people for example, it's almost managed like private property.

[isawooty]

Originally Posted by bryantm3

it's insulated but not as much as it used to be. all the money from buckhead and other rich places around the country flows into alpharetta all of the time, it's a big corporate headquarters. it's insulated from interesting things, the upcoming art and music scenes, the permitting and zoning laws are very strict and there are way too many police up here. it's a very controlled environment. for example, we put up a political sign on public property one day during the 2014 election and it was taken down by noon. you have patrols of lawn maintenance people for example, it's almost managed like private property.

Haha. I always say the same thing. When we go to South Walton, it's the same thing there too. Like, really?

[arjay57]

Originally Posted by ATLTJL

The suburbs of Johns Creek, Alpharetta, Duluth, etc. are made up largely of people who commute daily into the city (just look at traffic on I-85 and GA 400 daily for proof of this!), so the connection between the city proper and these suburbs is extremely strong.

The northern suburbs are not "isolated" in the least, but most of their residents are not commuting into the city on a daily basis. Atlanta just doesn't work that way.

[Clayton white guy]

Buckhead, certainly is NOT all that "insulated" from some trouble westside/northwest communities. Within the City of Atlanta proper (city limits) some of the most dangerous communities are in NORTHWEST ATLANTA, north of your purported "above I-20" "safe zone. Also, on the east side of the City of Atlanta, you find some VERY DESIRABLE neighborhoods SOUTH of I-20 (Grant Park/ East Atlanta, etc.) AND, yes crime can happen ANYWHERE.

[AtlJan]

Originally Posted by Clayton white guy

Buckhead, certainly is NOT all that "insulated" from some trouble westside/northwest communities. Within the City of Atlanta proper (city limits) some of the most dangerous communities are in NORTHWEST ATLANTA, north of your purported "above I-20" "safe zone. Also, on the east side of the City of Atlanta, you find some VERY DESIRABLE neighborhoods SOUTH of I-20 (Grant Park/ East Atlanta, etc.) AND, yes crime can happen ANYWHERE.

So I live in Buckhead, the northwest corner of it. Yes, I would say it feels, well, close-knit, if you are talking about the residential/shopping/schools area of Buckhead. I am not talking about the Lenox/business corridor. It actually feels like a small town--we basically have everything we need such as restaurants, schools, barbershops, clubs, parks, etc. within a couple miles, and my kids can't go anywhere without someone knowing them. Yes, we lock our doors and don't leave laptops sitting in our cars. Yes, there is crime, but it doesn't rule one's life. Kids walk to the corner store all the time.

As far as "insulated" goes--well, having lived in the neighborhood for 40+ years, I will say that the traffic increase in Atlanta has made Buckhead more insulated--it used to be easier to hop over to another neighborhood on a Friday night. That is not as easy today, and I find myself staying closer to home.