Taneytown - Questions (Baltimore, Columbia, Frederick: low income, real estate, crime) - Maryland (MD) - City-Data Forum

Kussanna · 06-17-2009, 02:30 PM

I am a recently engaged 29 year old woman who is looking to find some affordable real estate. My horse-loving fiance wants the land he's always dreamed of and I want my job at hopkins, which I am not willing to give up, to be accessible.

We found the perfect place in Taneytown but I am hesitant based on the following questions. I am hoping for some honest feedback.

1. What is the commute like from Taneytown to Baltimore (near Hampden). It is 45 miles away; however, I used to commute from Baltimore to Tysons, VA every day so I am hoping it is slightly better traffic!

2. Does Taneytown have a GOOD/OK reputation? How does it hold up to other towns in Carroll or Harford Counties?

3. If I choose to raise my kids in Taneytown (who aren't born yet) will they receive a good education?

We want to move to a small town, raise some horses and kids, grow some vegetables and have a nice, simple life. I just want to make sure we are thinking clearly as well.

Thanks!

cutgarden · 06-17-2009, 06:33 PM

I live just a few miles outside Taneytown, so here is my biased opinon.

Commute: it is what it is. In my experience, it doesn't usually get too snarled till you get on 695. Then, all bets are off. I don't travel to Balmer every day though, so others will be more accurate I'm sure.

Taneytown should have a good reputation. Yes, there is low income housing in town, but overall I think the town is pretty safe. You'll have the usual vandalism or petty crime just like anywhere, but they do have a full time police force, and things seem pretty quiet.

Schools, as far as I know are pretty good.

Overall, I think Taneytown is just your basic small town in Carroll. No better or worse than most other small towns, imo.

If I may ask, which side of town are you looking to live, towards Westminster or towards Emmittsburg? Just curious.

effulgent7 · 06-18-2009, 06:09 AM

I am from Taneytown and my parents currently live there. The commute will not be pretty but if you are willing to do it, go for it. I would allow at least an hour for your commute, and maybe try it out if you can, in rush hour, before you decide to move, if it is a sticking point for you. I used to commute from Taneytown to Columbia and it took 1 hour and 15 minutes. My Dad commutes from Taneytown to Rockville and it takes an hour and a half.

It is a decent small town, you need to expect small town quirks like everyone knows each other, etc. If you don't mind that, and most people don't, then it's a nice place to live. Keep in mind that if you want "civilization" (shopping, etc.) you need to travel 15-20 minutes to Westminster, 30 minutes to Gettysburg, or 40 minutes to Frederick if you want even more options.

I do not mean to make it sound like a bad place- I grew up on a farm there and it was the best childhood a girl could have.

It sounds like that might be what you are looking for too, just make sure you are OK with the commute is my advice.

Kussanna · 06-18-2009, 08:10 AM

Thank you both so much for your comments! It does sound like the commute is reasonable. I just wonder if there is a constant traffic jam from point A to point B like it used to be for me commuting from Baltimore to DC...that was awful! I think I am still traumatized from the experience.

If our dream is to have a little piece of land to call our own then maybe a commute just comes with the territory.

NYMD67 · 06-18-2009, 08:53 AM

I lived in Taneytown for about 2 years... lived in a nice neighborhood,probably some of the nicest neighbors we have ever have...
The area is beautiful ,but it is indeed small and there are many locals who really just don't open up to "transient" people... overall though,the town is very friendly.
I liked that you could almost walk anywhere,if you really wanted to, what I didn't like (because I have small children) is that yes,you have to drive to any nice conveniences. There is only a Food Lion in Taneytown and it is horrible,wouldn't buy anything but milk there... I would go to Giant in Westminster...
Frederick is wonderful but it takes about 45 minutes to get there and just not convenient for day to day things.

Schools are not great. One of the elementary schools has a better rep than the other,but overall in Carroll County,Taneytown is probably on the lower end of the ranks.

If you are looking for land and don't mind that small town life,then it will be fine

Again, there are some people that just don't want to know anyone that isn't from the area,but overall,really nice people.

My husband commuted from Taneytown to Baltimore and honestly,compared to what others had as a commute,he didn't mind it. The winters could sometimes be bad but for the most part,it didn't usually take him more than an hour to get there or back... There are many people who live there that commute to DC because the real estate is so much less expensive there.

Good Luck to you and your fiance'.

Kussanna · 06-18-2009, 02:49 PM

You all have no idea how much this is helping me! Thanks again.

cutgarden · 06-18-2009, 06:45 PM

There is a Food Lion and also a Kenny's in Taneytown. We prefer the FL actually. They're carrying Angus beef now, and it's always been good and fresh, along with the Perdue chicken. But the jewel of a little grocery is in Emmittsburg, maybe 15 minutes west. They make their own sausage, bratwurst, etc. You have to order some of it ahead, but getting fresh made keilbasa and brats is worth the trouble, IMO. But I never get too excited or disgruntled about any grocery; all the chains are basically the same imo. But the Trout's Jubilee is E-burg is pretty cool.

NYMD67 · 06-19-2009, 11:31 AM

You will when Wegman's comes there! They are slotted to be built on rt 15-in Walkersville I believe..
That is a grocery store to get excited about!

cutgarden · 06-20-2009, 04:59 PM

lol... I've been to Wegman's with my wife, and it is very nice. But not nice enough for me to drive to. (laziness is a virtue)

I had heard it was to be built around Frederick somewhere? Although Walkersville would be fine too, maybe easier access!

Stripes17 · 06-21-2009, 08:45 PM

I'll back up the things already said here about T-Town. We only lived there for a few years before a job relocation forced us to move to NC. We had built a new home right next to the park behind the Food Lion. It was hard for us to pack up and leave.

The town is quaint and the locals always treated us well. We immersed ourselves into the local recreational sports activities and met many people.

We also loved the scenery and history the area has to offer. I used to enjoy spending casual time at nearby Gettysburg Battlefield and Catoctin Park (home of Camp David).

Our DD went to Runnymeade Elementary school and received what we considered to be a quality education. Our DS went to Northwest Middle and then on to Francis Scott Key HS. Northwest had a poor reputation at the time, but was supposed to be embarking on a renaissance. FSK was a decent school and we were happy with the curriculum and performance there.

We would have absolutely no qualms moving back to Taneytown. The only thing we'd differently would be to move outside of the city limits and into the county proper. The reason being is that we found the town government to be very backward thinking and they were good at enacting "nanny" laws whenever a "concerned" citizen made a complaint about one thing or another. Laws should not take the place of parents.

BTW, if you happen to play paintball, T-Town is the home of a very top-rated paintball field that draws players from a wide area on weekends. My DS still makes trips up there from our new home to play paintball with his old friends.

If you do go to Taneytown, I hope you'll be pleased. I know that we'd like to move back there again if we could.