Young family moving to Huntsville in a couple of months, I have lots of questions!. Have (Auburn: sales, apartment complexes)

[ericacamp]

My husband just got informed that his company wants us to move to Huntsville this summer. We currently live in Chattanooga, but he primarily works in Huntsville, so the move will make sense for us.

We have two young children (3 year old and 1 year old). I would love any information on:

What areas to avoid- we plan to rent for a year to get a better idea of the area and then we will be looking to buy. We would prefer a house with a yard, but will also consider an apartment if it is child friendly.

Schools with pre-k...my son has a speech delay and qualifies for help through the school system here. Which school system is the easiest to work with/has the best reputation?

Activities to do with young children- Chattanooga has spoiled me, with the children's museum, the parks, zoo etc. I am a stay at home mom who tries to get out of the home as much as possible. I saw the thread about the botanical gardens. What other activities do you recommend for young kids. We usually buy memberships to 2 or 3 local attractions.

Also- any recommendations for someone to help us find a rental?

I think that is all for now. Thanks in advance for the help!

[Reactionary]

HSV has a Children's Museum, the Space and Rocket Center, Botanical Garden (great for kids, as you've heard), Museum of Art (with kids programs), Monte Sano State Park (mountain park ~10 minutes from downtown), Green Mountain Nature Center, Flint River Nature Preserve, and several smaller parks.

I've got memberships to the Garden and the Art Museum, and should get a state park pass.

In what part of the city will your husband be working?

[LCTMadison]

I love Chattanooga Such a cool town!

Check out GreatSchools - Public and Private School Ratings, Reviews and Parent Community, and also Adventures, Tips and Observations about Parenting in Huntsville, AL. I know from conversations with a personal friend she found Madison City much easier to work with than when she was in HSV city.....but HSV city schools has had a fruit basket turnover with a new superintendent (who is awesome BTW!) so things may improve (let's hope they improve) in the HSV school system. I don't know much about Madison County in regards to a special need.

You will be able to connect with other moms on Rocket City Mom...and probably find moms just like you that you can connect with to get great references. Also, they always are posting the great things to do around town that are kid friendly....and free a lot of time!!

[JakeWilliams]

Our family has traveled to Chattanooga a LOT so I can give you some decent comparisons.

We live in Madison, but there are tons of places that are good to raise a family. Our kids are homeschooled so I can't help make suggestions there.

The children's museum here is nothing compared to Chattanooga's. We've had a membership to Chattanooga's before and never the one here, it's so much better. You'll still probably want to get a membership here to keep them busy, but don't compare it to Chattanooga.

The Botanical Garden is a great deal and the one membership we can't live without. They had (have?) a mommy club of some kind where parents come and walk around with their kids every week, may be a good way for you to meet more parents.

The Space and Rocket Center is nice when they get older, but they'll be pretty bored there for a while.

Green Mountain is great - take a picnic and some extra bread for the ducks and geese.

We don't have a zoo, but we have Harmony Park Animal Safari. That's a lot of fun (plan on getting your car washed after).

There are some great playgrounds spread around the area (Kids Space, Kids Kingdom, Creekwood Park, and I am sure there are more).

The libraries have a good number of story times, that's a great thing to do to keep them busy, especially during hot summer days. The Madison library has a nice walled-in play area outside that our kids enjoy.

[AuburnAL]

I think most kids would get a kick out of seeing the fish, ducks, and geese at Big Spring Park even if you do it every week in addition there are sometimes groundhogs and muskrats. You can also occasionally see some big turtles if you get off the path, but more often you'll see copperheads(often lots of copperheads) so I'd recommend keeping your kids on the path. The Aldridge Creek Greenway usually offers an easy view of turtles, herons, ducks, geese, rabbits, and pet dogs in addition I've seen snapping turtles, muskrats, and raccoons out there.

[Mawoods]

Just a thought - live on the east side of Huntsville and you will be near 72 heading toward Chattanooga and the TN river and the AL mountains. When we lived in McMullen Cove we could be in Chattanooga in about 45 minutes. So you will be in Huntsville but still pretty convenient to Chattanooga. You will love the Huntsville area but it isn't Chattanooga.

[David1502]

Originally Posted by Mawoods

Just a thought - live on the east side of Huntsville and you will be near 72 heading toward Chattanooga and the TN river and the AL mountains. When we lived in McMullen Cove we could be in Chattanooga in about 45 minutes. So you will be in Huntsville but still pretty convenient to Chattanooga. You will love the Huntsville area but it isn't Chattanooga.

If you made it to Chattanooga in 45 minutes, y'all must have been in a plane! Seriously, at the I-24/US 72 interchange in South Pittsburg/Kimball, TN the sign says, "Huntsville 75 miles" and Kimball is a good 20 miles from Chattanooga to boot.

In answer to the OP's questions regarding activities for young children in the Huntsville area, check out the following:
1. Early Works Museum, Constitution Hall Village and Huntsville Depot. You can get information on all three at Early Works The Early Works Museum is a history museum designed for children and provides information on the history of the Huntsville area and Alabama.
2. The Madison County Nature Trail on Green Mountain -http://www.madisoncountyal.gov/services/naturetrail.shtml
3. The Huntsville Botanical Gardens Huntsville Botanical Garden - Home
4. The Burritt Museum on Monte Sano Mountain Welcome to Burritt on the Mountain!
5. The City of Huntsville's Greenway System of Trails City of Huntsville Greenways
You will find a choice of a number of different locations. Some of the more popular locaitons are Aldridge Creek in Southeast HSV, Little Cove Rd. in the Hampton Cove/McMullen Cove area (EAST) and the Indian Creek greenway located on the westerrn border of Cummings Research Park. - This greenway is connected to Creekwood Park which has a great playground area.

As far as your question regarding apartments, there are quite a number of newer apartment complexes either recently built or in the process of being built. Many of these feature upgrades like granite counter tops not typically seen in apartments. Some to consider are:
1. Watercress - located off of Jeff Rd. just north of US 72 West/ University Dr. behind the 93,000 sq. ft. Kroger.
2. Arch Street (located off of Old Madison Pike near Research Pk)
3. Madison Park -located adjacent, south of Old Madison Pike on Slaughter Rd.
4. Bridgerstone- I'm unsure of their name, but they are located off of Old Monrovia Rd. just south of Oakwood Rd. southwest of the AL 255 (Res. Pk. Blvd.)/Oakwood Rd. interchange.
5. Walden at Providence -located off of Providence Main St. just north of University Dr. -you can walk to the Village of Providence from here.
6. Providence Place - these are just in the beginning stages of construction and promise to be the areas best. They are also located in the Village of Providence on Providence Main St.

[Reactionary]

AuburnAL - copperheads at Big Spring Park downtown? I'd heard that John Hunt used to kill rattlesnakes there - I thought he got 'em all.

[ericacamp]

Thank you all for the replies. I will have to start making a list of things to check out. We plan to take a weekend trip or two down before we make the move. Does the train depot do rides or is it just trains to look at? My 3 year old loves trains.

It looks like there are a lot of outdoor areas too, which is great. We spend a lot of times outdoors when the weather cooperates.

As we look for rentals, which are the areas you would advice staying away from?

ETA: My husband does direct sales delivery so he will be all over Huntsville. I don't think it will matter which part we end up in.

[Reactionary]

The rail depot downtown doesn't do rides; it is used mostly for events (BBQ festival, beer festival, etc). However, trains (carrying mostly TVA coal) regularly roll through downtown.

The North Alabama Railroad Museum offers holiday rides:

North Alabama Railroad Museum, Huntsville, Alabama