Harvest area (Huntsville, Madison, Athens: appointed, insurance, house)

[kypredsfan]

Can anyone inform me on if the Harvest area is worth checking out when we come down to explore Madison? It seems that there are some gorgeous homes at reasonable prices and going by a map, harvest seems pretty close by to things in Huntsville. I know maps can be deceiving so I figured I’d ask on here. However the main concern is the schools. It seems the elementary and middle schools (Monrovia) rate pretty well. But the high school (sparkman) rates a 7 compared to the Madison city ones that both rate a 9. Now our son is only 14 months old so high school is 14 years away and schools can obviously change either way by then.

Basically can someone just give me a basic overview of the Harvest area compared to Madison?

Thanks,
Scott

[djmaxwell]

Originally Posted by kypredsfan

Can anyone inform me on if the Harvest area is worth checking out when we come down to explore Madison? It seems that there are some gorgeous homes at reasonable prices and going by a map, harvest seems pretty close by to things in Huntsville. I know maps can be deceiving so I figured I’d ask on here. However the main concern is the schools. It seems the elementary and middle schools (Monrovia) rate pretty well. But the high school (sparkman) rates a 7 compared to the Madison city ones that both rate a 9. Now our son is only 14 months old so high school is 14 years away and schools can obviously change either way by then.

Basically can someone just give me a basic overview of the Harvest area compared to Madison?

Thanks,
Scott

Be aware, just like other parts of town, the mailing address is not indicative of what municipality, if any, the house is in. Some areas of Harvest are in Huntsville. Most of it is in the county, but not all, and some of that is in Limestone County as well. I don't know if there are any parts of Madison with a Harvest address.

I can't speak about the schools in Madison CO as we live in Huntsville and attend Providence ES.

There's more to a school than just a number. A lot can happen in 5 years, let alone 14. 5 years ago, my daughter was diagnosed with Type 1 Diabetes. The school nursing staff has been excellent and the school very accomodating. It works well for us, even though its rating isn't very good.

[Teko03]

Cheaper housing, county school system, county taxes, and you're not far from Huntsville/Madison (on average I'd say a 10-15 minute drive). Biggest concern would be the traffic you'd be dealing with if you're moving here for work. But depending on where you're coming from, it may not seem like much traffic for you.

[y8tiger]

A couple things you may want to consider when researching the Harvest area.

Tornado History Project website:

Tornado History Project: Maps and Statistics

The site shows historical Tornado Paths plotted out on a map. (Pretty much everything west of Rainbow Mountain)

and

Google "Anderson Hills"

The Schools are very good, both Monrovia Middle and Sparkman High were recently awarded Blue Ribbon Schools of Excellence.

[dwhisent]

As stated above, be careful, as my daughter lives a mile south of me and her kids go to Monrovia Middle, but those in my neighborhood go to Harvest Elementary/Sparkman Middle. I don't know whether they rate worse, but my daughter thinks they are. But I live in Harvest, and I do have a basement for tornado protection, but otherwise I really like the area. Takes me about a half hour to get to work on the south side of Madison.

[jewel104]

I was happy living in Harvest in the late 90s-early 2000s. I found it to be a very safe area. My brother and family live in Magnolia Springs subdivision and have been very happy there for years!


If you are looking to have a lot to do nearby you will be disappointed. Restaurant wise, there was a meat and 3, Harvest house that is now closed.


I recall maybe a Subway and a Chinese restaurant nearby.


I do know it's grown exponentially since then, likely including more places to eat, grocery shop, etc.


Believe there is a Wal Mart neighborhood store now and probably a couple more restaurants, now.

[kypredsfan]

Originally Posted by dwhisent

As stated above, be careful, as my daughter lives a mile south of me and her kids go to Monrovia Middle, but those in my neighborhood go to Harvest Elementary/Sparkman Middle. I don't know whether they rate worse, but my daughter thinks they are. But I live in Harvest, and I do have a basement for tornado protection, but otherwise I really like the area. Takes me about a half hour to get to work on the south side of Madison.

Thanks for the response. I guess if I was to take a gander at harvest and thought it wasn’t too bad then I would have to keep the schools in mind. I currently drive 40 min to work and don’t think it’s too bad so I don’t think that would be an issue.

As far as tornados, is harvest really anymore prone than Madison? I don’t feel like they are really far enough apart to make a big difference lol.

[harry chickpea]

Originally Posted by kypredsfan

Thanks for the response. I guess if I was to take a gander at harvest and thought it wasn’t too bad then I would have to keep the schools in mind. I currently drive 40 min to work and don’t think it’s too bad so I don’t think that would be an issue.

As far as tornados, is harvest really anymore prone than Madison? I don’t feel like they are really far enough apart to make a big difference lol.

IIRC, Anderson Hills in Harvest was hit three times. There are historical tornado tracks, and the development doesn't seem to be totally random.

[Colin24816]

April 3rd, 1974 and April 27th, 2011 were the two biggest tornado issues in this area. At least two major tornados followed an almost identical path and on March 2nd, 2012, a small tornado almost followed the same path, albeit much shorter. This one started just west of I-65 south of Athens and passed about 1.5 miles of Mooresville Road north of U.S. 72 and faded away maybe 5 miles further east, heading towards Harvest. This was 2 miles north of the 2011 tornado where it crossed U.S. 72.

[David1502]

One significant difference between homes in the unincorporated areas of Madison County like Harvest as compared to homes inside the city limits of Madison and Huntsville is that the homes are most likely on septic tanks. However, since the mid 2000's, the Harvest-Monrovia Water Authority has required all new developments of 15 lots and over must have sewer connections.


Another consideration is that homes in the County have volunteer fire protection. There are several fire stations in the Harvest Monrovia area. However, this will usually cause a higher rate for homeowner's insurance.


The two public high schools in Madison have more offerings in their advance placement classes than Sparkman High School has. This has a lot to do with their high academic rankings.


As far as traffic and roads are concerned, there are plans in the works to widen Jeff Rd. from University Drive up to Douglas Rd. Construction is supposed to begin in the next year or so. Also, with the Blake Bottom Rd. interchange on Research Park Blvd. (Alabama Highway 255) being constructed, it is more likely that it too will be widened to a five lane road as well. The Chairman of the Madison County Commission lives in Monrovia and his family has extensive land holdings there, so that is certainly an advantage when it comes to road improvement programs.


For shopping options, there is Publix on the east side of Harvest at the intersection of Jeff Rd. and AL 53. A new Publix is being constructed at the intersection of Pine Grove Rd. and Wall Triana Highway. There is also a Walgreens in the heart of Monrovia at Jeff Rd. and Mount Zion Rd. Otherwise, all other shopping is found by going south to the stores on U.S. 72 on the north side of Madison where you will find Home Depot, Lowes and most national chains as well as a large Kroger at the Jeff Rd. intersection with 72.