NE Madison County/Huntsville (Decatur, Athens: houses, transfer to, established neighborhood)

[MelanieP]

Hi all,

My family and I will be visiting the area next week, trying to narrow down which neighborhood/s we're interested in so the actual house-hunting process won't be quite so daunting. We plan to check out as far south as Arab, as far north as New Market, and as far west as Athens/Decatur.

One area that I haven't heard too much about, however, that looks very nice, is NE Madison county, a little north of Gurley but in that general area, falling into the Central Elementary school district. There are a couple of subdivisions that way with very large lots (1-plus acres). The only thing I've really heard about the area is that the commute from that way is rather horrendous via Hwy 72, but they're expanding to make it a bit more bearable.

Any other input re: school, nearby stores, crime, traffic, etc? I think the area is also referred to as Ryland or Maysville if that helps. Thank you!!

Melanie

[sedriskell]

NE Madison County is pretty remote as far as I know. That area is very mountainous and is quite inaccessible. If you're looking for a less stressful commute and things like that, I'd suggest looking elsewhere.

[Huntsville_secede]

Originally Posted by sedriskell

NE Madison County is pretty remote as far as I know. That area is very mountainous and is quite inaccessible. If you're looking for a less stressful commute and things like that, I'd suggest looking elsewhere.

The commute isn't as bad as everyone claims only when their is an accident. As far as being remote not really and inaccessible I wouldn't really say that. There are tons of homes being constructed in the area and the area should see a massive expansion of commercial and retail growth over the upcoming years especially when the economy recovers. I commute from this area but I don't always leave at the peak times like 7:30 - 8:00 and 5:00-5:30 when its the worse. The traffic seems to have improved recently with the opening up of Harris Hills Blvd (which provides an alternative route) than 72 and the upcoming widening of Winchester should also help.

[MelanieP]

Sounds good... as long as the nearest grocery store isn't a 20 minute drive one-way, that's accessible enough for me. I have noticed a lot of new construction homes popping up that way and where you see that, retail development is never far behind. Glad to hear they now have an alternate road to 72 as well. My mother claims there's an accident on that road every day, but I think she just wants us closer to her.

Does anyone know about Central Elementary School? My daughter will be starting kindergarten next year (2010) and my son the following year.

[Huntsville_secede]

Originally Posted by MelanieP

Sounds good... as long as the nearest grocery store isn't a 20 minute drive one-way, that's accessible enough for me. I have noticed a lot of new construction homes popping up that way and where you see that, retail development is never far behind. Glad to hear they now have an alternate road to 72 as well. My mother claims there's an accident on that road every day, but I think she just wants us closer to her.

Does anyone know about Central Elementary School? My daughter will be starting kindergarten next year (2010) and my son the following year.

She's not lying there is an accident on the road everyday. There are plans to remove the lights at Shields and Moores Mill and build overpasses it was actually scheduled to start this year sometime but we will see if it is delayed again. I don't know about Central elementary i think its an older school that has like K-8? The Riverton Elementary and Riverton Middle school are newer schools on Homer Nance and the corresponding High school Buckhorn is a blue ribbon school (or was). A new Publix was built on Winchester and Homer Nance two years ago, that seems to be the closet grocery store to most people even the Walmart on Sparkman is no more than 15 minutes away depending on how far out you live. I'm not going to lie the traffic can be really bad at times especially when there is an accident but I've found ways to avoid it. I moved out the area cause I saw it as an area of town thats just ready to explode as far as retail and growth.

[MelanieP]

OK, thanks for that info. Coming from FL, the last thing I really want is to live somewhere that's on the brink of explosion. Been there, been doing that for too long already! Not that I won't check out the area, but maybe the more established neighborhoods if such exist.

My parents keep me informed of how road expansion progresses around there, or should I say 'doesn't' progress.

They are in SE Huntsville and I think that's a beautiful area, so we may end up closer to them yet.

[sedriskell]

Are we talking about the same NE Madison County? I think a lot of people are looking at NE Huntsville and calling it NE Madison County, the two are quite different... I study this rather often in my geography classes, and the area is VERY mountainous and has few thoroughfares.

Now, if you're talking about the parts of NE Madison County that are within a close distance of US 72, there's nothing wrong with those area, however, there isn't much of NE Madison County that is too close to US 72 unfortunately. Winchester Rd, Maysville Rd seem to be the only major roads through the region. If you're talking about development along US 72, it's more likely part of SE Madison County.

Keep in mind, Madison County has a large population, but it is also one of the largest counties in the state by land area.

[MelanieP]

Yes, I'm talking about an area that is still rather undeveloped, (or seems that way from what I've seen online) - a few houses I've seen fall into the Gurley address, or Huntsville, but when I map them, they actually look a bit north of Gurley, or northeast of Huntsville (including NE of the Chapman Mtn. area).

I believe Ryland Acres, Big M Acres, and another called Maysville Estates all seem to be in the area I'm talking about. I'm not sure what their proximity is to 72 just yet, but that's one thing we were going to check out.

[james_hsv]

I have lived in Northeast Huntsville/Madison County for more than a decade now, and it is in no way "isolated" or "mountainous" as the gentleman from Decatur continues to assert. Those are words you use to describe Montana, not east Madison County, where it takes 10-15 minutes (tops) to get to downtown, and the highest point is 1700 ft. asl.

Personally, I love it here. And yes, while it is a bit more hilly than the rest of the area, I would rather live here than in a flat-terrain area like the more "desired" Madison or Monrovia. Plus, the slower growth rate here compared to those "desired" areas means less sprawl. Plus, kids here don't go to 2500-student high schools. And speaking of schools, I have only heard good things about Central.

The only real problem here is, as was mentioned before, the traffic. But even that is a matter of perception. If you are coming from/have lived in a major city, the traffic over Chapman Mountain is a cakewalk, unless of course, some speeding truck driver spills canola seed all over the road (there's a thread on that). Yes, there are improvements planned, but that doesn't mean anything in this state, where priority is given to projects with political motivation/"economic development" rather than demand. But hey, if it's any consolation, the traffic's just about as bad (or is about to get bad) on every side of town.

EDIT: All of the subdivisions you mentioned above are about 5 minutes from 72.

[shaken8]

I personally find traffic to the Northeast of town to be MUCH more bearable than Madison, Harvest, Monrovia, and SE Huntsville. Even though distance-wise Madison/Monrovia are much closer to Research Park, traffic actually MOVES. Depending on what time you leave in the morning (and if there are accidents), expect to take about 10-20 minutes to Research Park from any of these locations. The closer to 72 you live, the easier traffic is. The area around Maysville/Ryland is quite close to 72, and once you pass Sheilds/Moore's Mill traffic thins out immensely. I would stay away from Winchester Rd if you don't like sitting in traffic (although, I think there are backroads you can take).

They were talking about building a Walmart and/or a Target right on 72 but I think those plans fizzled out for the time being. Star Market in Five Points would probably take 10 minutes to get to (not too bad), and I think there are some small markets around the Brownsboro area for quick essentials. And, as was mentioned, there is a Publix on Winchester.

I thought seriously about moving out there (newer homes/more land etc), but I personally love older homes and ended up in Oak Park (NE Huntsville City). Talk about no traffic! It's a BREEZE. 15 minutes to get to my job clear out by the airport (around 10 to the middle of Research Park, 3-4 to Five Points, 5 to downtown)! Some people will tell you the schools are bad, but I kind of disagree, and take the criticism with a grain of salt. Plus, due to that perception, the houses are much cheaper (so you can afford more house for your money). Chapman elementary school (where I'm zoned for) is actually pretty good--in line with Chaffee and Farley (I went to Farley--albeit quite awhile ago--and it was a great school). Also consider that with the money you save on a house, you could afford a private school if you were worried (also I think you may be able to transfer to magnet schools if your child's grades are good enough? Not sure about that though). Lee High (which that area is zoned for) is an art and engineering magnet school, but there are some kids that are a little rough around the edges that go there, and kind of drag the perception down. But I knew a lot of people that went there are turned out great, and even had a great experience in HS!

Just some thoughts. NE Hsv isn't for everyone, but I love the convenience, the stability, and the proximity to Five Points/Monte Sano.