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Just moved from Chicago to Georgia a year ago, but my company wants me to move again. This time to Greenville. I would be working south of the City near the Donaldson Center Airport. From what I have learned, that area is a little rough, so I am not looking around there.
A few questions.
Living now, north of Atlanta, and coming from Chicago, I am used to traffic, and I have read there are some bad drivers on the roads in SC but is the traffic really all that bad anywhere in Greenville (and surrounding areas?).
Any REALLY exceptional areas to raise a family? Specifically Schools, Parks, etc. We get out and will explore the city, but my wife will be home with the kids, so I want her to have some local options as well.
Anywhere I need to STAY AWAY from. Coming from big cities, there were always neighborhoods that we knew to stay out of. But a smaller city like Greenville, is there anything I need to know?
We are looking at building a home, and there are a TON of builders in the area that are building TONS of new houses. So any insight into those would be nice too.
Any input on any of these questions is appreciated.
Greenville traffic is pretty fantastic when compared to Chicago or Atlanta. There are only a couple of roads where you can expect any significant delay during rush hour and even then probably less than 10-15 minutes.
I work near Donaldson and we live in the Powdersville area. It's convenient to work and the schools there are really good (Anderson County District 1).
A lot of people working at Donaldson either live in Powdersville, Mauldin, or the Simpsonville area. All are convenient to Donaldson. Mauldin High School is very good (not all of Mauldin is zoned for that school). Simpsonville is zoned for several schools; some are good (Riverside), some are okay (Hillcrest), and some are marginal (Woodmont).
Most of the areas to avoid aren't going to be areas where there is any significant new construction. In general, the area just west of downtown is rough (although some of that area is seeing revitalization).
I was looking at that Anderson School district - some of those schools seem really good.
Thanks for confirming that.
I have looked at a few other sites regarding report cards - but this one is new - thanks for that
We live in the outskirts of Mauldin (though our address is considered Greenville). We are five minutes from Donaldson Center. We live on Ashmore Bridge Road, with the Bonnie Brae golf course right next door. Ashmore Bridge Road, all the way into Mauldin, is pretty nice. Family-friendly communities with most houses in the 180,000-300,000 price range. There are several stand alone homes that seem to be in a much higher price range. I supposed there are some areas around Donaldson that are rough....welcome to South Carolina...that is pretty much everywhere.....the junk right next to the brand new.
I second that Mauldin and Powdersville would be good options. Fairly close to Donaldson with nice suburban schools and shopping options. Traffic seems to be worst these days around Woodruff Road and Pelham Road on I-85 and a new construction project there may add to delays. I'd stay on the southern side of that if I could for your new home.
High schools that are good in those areas include Mauldin, J.L. Mann, Wren and Powdersville.
I might avoid houses zoned for Southside High, Berea High, and Carolina High.
True, probably laughable compared to parts of Atlanta or Chicago, but even a 20 minute traffic jam isn't fun. I see those a lot these days between Woodruff and Pelham Roads.
We live in the outskirts of Mauldin (though our address is considered Greenville). We are five minutes from Donaldson Center. We live on Ashmore Bridge Road, with the Bonnie Brae golf course right next door. Ashmore Bridge Road, all the way into Mauldin, is pretty nice. Family-friendly communities with most houses in the 180,000-300,000 price range. There are several stand alone homes that seem to be in a much higher price range. I supposed there are some areas around Donaldson that are rough....welcome to South Carolina...that is pretty much everywhere.....the junk right next to the brand new.
Are you zoned for Mauldin or Southside? Some of the houses in that area have moved into the Southside attendance zone. Southside is one of those schools in Greenville County that I would personally avoid.
Are you zoned for Mauldin or Southside? Some of the houses in that area have moved into the Southside attendance zone. Southside is one of those schools in Greenville County that I would personally avoid.
I believe we are zoned for Southside in my particular neighborhood...not sure about others along Ashmore Bridge Road. I agree with you...Southside is not a school I would consider....we actually do not use public schools at this time. But I know J.L. Mann, which my oldest just graduated from, is actually just minutes away (and no having to get on busy roads to get there!). Lead Academy, a charter school, for K-8, is even closer. Mauldin High school is just a hop and skip down the road. Green Charter School, while their elementary school is on Pelham, they will be building their high school on 385/Pleasantburg, and that is just downs Laurens road (albeit probably busy with traffic) if one wanted to avoid interstates in the morning. Brashiers Middle College on the Greenville Tech campus is just 10 minutes away, all on backroads with no traffic. So I think that there are several options for one to consider for high school so Southside shouldn't be a concern if one is living here to be close to work at the Donaldson Center area, in time to apply for the school choice lottery. I honestly don't even know where Southside High School is, lol....I know where J.L. Mann is...and I know where Mauldin is....I can't say I've ever seen Southside High school even though that is what we are zoned for.
I guess an important factor is one can never be sure where their child will be attending especially if it is years down the road. You mentioned "moved to the Southside zoning"...as if this area wasn't zoned for Southside before? I don't know myself as we moved here when my son was already in J.L. Mann, so he just stayed there for the rest of high school. But I assume that zoning could change any year, so one can only be guaranteed of their zoning THIS particular school year, right? Point is, I wouldn't necessarily place all my bets on a neighborhood based on the school zoning...it has be to be big picture of all the factors..and with school choice being an option....I don't know that school zoning would get that big of a piece of the pie. Now I say that as one who doesn't use the public schools, at least until high school, so what do I know, lol.
I guess an important factor is one can never be sure where their child will be attending especially if it is years down the road. You mentioned "moved to the Southside zoning"...as if this area wasn't zoned for Southside before? I don't know myself as we moved here when my son was already in J.L. Mann, so he just stayed there for the rest of high school. But I assume that zoning could change any year, so one can only be guaranteed of their zoning THIS particular school year, right? Point is, I wouldn't necessarily place all my bets on a neighborhood based on the school zoning...it has be to be big picture of all the factors..and with school choice being an option....I don't know that school zoning would get that big of a piece of the pie. Now I say that as one who doesn't use the public schools, at least until high school, so what do I know, lol.
That's one of the reasons we moved into Anderson District 1. All of the schools in our district are good so even if we were to be re-zoned, it would be from Powdersville to Wren, and both are excellent.
I know several people in Greenville County where their school zoning changed from an good school to a poor one, and they saw their property values take a hit. The area around Mauldin has seen so much growth that they have been forced to redraw school attendance lines to prevent overcrowding.
It is a sad reality that school performance in our country is closely tied to the economic situation of the students. In almost all cases, schools with a lot of poor students don't perform well while schools with wealthier students perform well. That makes it a lot tougher for a poor child to succeed academically. No doubt that it is a difficult problem to solve but one we as a country need to address.
My clients just closed on a home with SK Builders, in Easley. They really like their neighborhood; they have acre-sized lots, and a great location. Definitely some bumps during the building process, but all worked out and they are very happy.
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