Dublin or Olentangy? (Columbus, Westerville, Gahanna: new home, established neighborhood, buy)

[fultoncs]

We are moving to Columbus this summer and have narrowed down our search to Dublin Jerome, Dublin Coffman, Olentangy or Orange.

What is your experience in these areas? Traffic, welcoming new people and students, safe sidewalks for runners, etc.

What is the overall reputation of these areas throughout Columbus? We want a place where people are educated, down to earth and kind.....looking for a house about 400k so we don't want people looking down on us for not having a huge, more expensive house.

What do you know about the redistricting of Olentangy Schools with the addition of Berlin next year?

What builders do you suggest to consider or avoid?

[Rosebush1]

I cannot comment on specific high schools but would choose Dublin in a heartbeat over Olentangy. While there are some lovely Delaware county neighborhoods I'm not impressed with rural sprawl and traffic issues up there. Olentangy schools are constantly redistricting. Dublin has put additions on several schools to accommodate growth and boundaries are more stable.
Dublin road improvements to 161/route 33/Avery Muirfield road have improved traffic flow.

If you want new build Olentangy will have more options. 400k will not buy much in a new home but you could get a great Dublin resale in an established neighborhood for that price.

[osubrett2]

Dublin is a true community, while Olentangy is Powell + 4 surrounding townships.

And if it's between Dublin and Powell, I'd chose Dublin as well. As mentioned above, Dublin traffic is improving with the 33/270 interchange redesign. 270 south heading towards Hilliard will begin expansion soon to alleviate rush hour traffic. Dublin is packed with walking/running trails throughout the whole city.

Powell is nice and smaller. Traffic is a little more due to 315 narrowing north of 270 and the boom on US23 north of 270 as well. I haven't been through the trench and all of the construction since last January though.

I can't speak upon the schools specifically or home prices/builders/etc, but you can't go wrong with either.

[bgfalcons86]

Both have excellent/top tier schools, but I would take Dublin over Olentangy. Any of those high schools on your list is excellent. One small note... Jerome and Coffman do consistently produce more National Merit Semifinalists than Orange, Olentangy or Liberty.

If you're working in the downtown area, the traffic to/from Powell/Lewis Center is annoying, to say the least. Powell is an actual community, whereas Lewis Center is a conglomeration of subdivisions (albeit very nice ones). As the previous poster indicated, Dublin traffic is improving. Dublin's location is an edge (IMHO) and it really does have a community feel.

[Clever nickname here]

Olentengy traffic also received many upgrades with the 23, Sawmill, Hard, and Powell Rd work. Living north off either Avery-Muirfield or way up Sawmill is going to add 10-15 minutes to a commute over the areas closer to 270.

If you are coming up 315; I've never understood the drive 5-10 more minutes on 270 to get to Dublin it is an easier commute that people espouse.

Jerome is over capacity much like Liberty was when the new HS was approved. Both systems are stressed under the extreme growth but Dublin likely has more experience managing that.

Powell and Dublin are 10 minutes apart for doing activities in either one.

Check the tax rates to see if that makes a difference for you.

[captainclipper]

Although neither one are my cup of tea, I would definitely choose Dublin over Olentangy for all of the reasons previous posters have listed. Dublin has much better planning and just a more convenient location generally. There are also a lot of major, exciting projects and improvements underway in Dublin at the moment. Olentangy is further out, very hodgepodge generally, (an agglomeration of cities, towns, townships, etc) and has much more difficult (I would even say unsolvable traffic/logistical problems - i.e. Powell Rd at 315 and at Liberty). Dublin is also more diverse, has a true 'community feel,' and is much more convenient to regional destinations/attractions.

[Clever nickname here]

These school districts have a lot of variation within them.

The Lewis Center experience is very different from Powell.

The Tuttle Mall area of Dublin is very different from Muirfield part of Dublin.

You will need to explore the options.

[fultoncs]

What about Hilliard? Any one know anything about the Ballantrae community there?

[bgfalcons86]

Originally Posted by fultoncs

What about Hilliard? Any one know anything about the Ballantrae community there?

I live in Hilliard. I like it a lot. The trend is positive and the community has seen improvements over the past decade. The schools are very good, but not as elite as Dublin or Olentangy. Ballantrae actually is in the City of Dublin, but assigned to Hilliard schools. I've had three go through Hilliard (currently in college) and they've been well-prepared by Hilliard. It is a bit more socio-economically diverse than Dublin or Olentangy, and is more comparable to Westerville, Gahanna and Pickerington. Personally, I'd give it the slight edge over those three (W/G/P), but most would consider it just a step below Dublin and Olentangy, which are typically considered among the very best communities and public schools that Ohio has to offer.