Would I fit in with the Frederick community? (Bethesda, Rockville: to rent, townhouse)

[Julie1234]

Hi all,

I recently fell in love with some really attractive townhomes in the monocacy park area of Frederick. I currently work in Rockville, so the commute shouldn't be too bad.

I'm just wondering if I will fit in, since I'm a single 33 year old black professional woman.

What are your thoughts?

[westsideboy]

I don't see why not. Frederick City is a pretty diverse place, so you wouldn't be out of place, if that is the concern. You are close to urban, rural, and suburban places, so you have choices in entertainment and lifestyle, go into the city to restaurants, go to burbs for big box shopping, head out to farm country and check out wineries, drive to the mountains and take a hike.

I wouldn't be thrilled about the commute, other posters with more experience can give you a better time estimate to Rockville from Frederick.

[SwampFox35]

i wouldn't want to drive 270 west every afternoon from rockville to frederick. it's a parking lot.

[StayLucky]

Frederick isn't a super busy town for single young professionals, so it really depends on your interests, choices of nightlife, etc. That part of town is probably more family-oriented, but you won't have any problems, it just may or may not be what you're seeking. Downtown Frederick is rather vibrant for its size, but it's not huge, and may get boring after awhile, depending on what you're used to in terms of nightlife. You'd be a short drive from downtown in that area.

Personally, I would hate that commute. I've driven back from that area a few times in rush hour. It's not much fun. I would guess you're looking at close to an hour during rush hour, give or take a little bit depending on variables.

[David_J]

Commute time? Anywhere from 35 minutes to 1 hour 15 minutes, depending on traffic.

You'd fit in absolutely perfectly when it comes to Frederick city. Not so much east, west, or north of there.

[MidValleyDad]

You'll probably fit in fine. I will warn you that as far as a commute to Rockville you are looking on the wrong side of town. Something on the Ballanger Creek side of the city wil shorten your commute by a fair chunk. Depending on where in Rockville you work and how flexible your hours are you may be able to use the commuter bus or MARC train but in Monocacy Park you'll be adding the bottleneck of US 15 to the mess of 270.

Yes Frederick is a more settled lifestyle than down near DC but there are groups and activities for many interests

[stpickrell]

If your job is near Rockville Metro you can take MARC

[StayLucky]

Originally Posted by MidValleyDad

I will warn you that as far as a commute to Rockville you are looking on the wrong side of town. Something on the Ballanger Creek side of the city wil shorten your commute by a fair chunk.

This is a very good point. Not only will you have the parking lot that is 270 during rush hour, you will have to sit on 15 for a solid ~20 minutes (maybe more, it gets jammed), whereas if you lived in the Ballenger Creek area, you won't have to worry about that. There are about equal amounts of single professionals both areas (honestly not many, mostly families, but there are some). Not sure if you are looking to rent or buy, but if you end up looking in the Ballenger Creek area, send me a DM and I can give you more specific advice on this area.

[reiflame]

Originally Posted by Julie1234

I currently work in Rockville, so the commute shouldn't be too bad.

What exactly do you consider to be "too bad"? Many days 270S is a parking lot from Frederick to Bethesda. I think David_J is being overly optomistic on 35 minutes.

[StayLucky]

Originally Posted by reiflame

What exactly do you consider to be "too bad"? Many days 270S is a parking lot from Frederick to Bethesda. I think David_J is being overly optomistic on 35 minutes.

Yeah, 35 minutes from the Monocacy Park area of Frederick to Rockville (and the reverse commute) just isn't going to happen. Not even in light traffic. Rush hour will be at least 50 minutes, probably worse than that most days. Like someone earlier recommended, if you really want to live in a suburban townhouse development in Frederick County, go for the Ballenger Creek area to shorten your commute as much as possible. If your heart is set on Monocacy Park then go for it, but do realize your commute will be pretty awful, in my opinion at least, most days.

Any reason you have your eye on that part of town, in particular?