Moving to Davis Square (Boston, Cambridge: new construction, college, quality of life)

[queenstoboston14]

Hi all,

Would like to know eveyone's opinion around Davis Square. I'm a 23 year old professional recently out of college and would be brand new to the Boston area. Any references to NYC/LIC/or Hoboken would be understood and very much appreciated.

Of equal importance, I will be commuting near east walpole everyday... and I am not sure whether that would be a true reverse commute or not. Is this commute doable? What's it like?

Thanks!

[kingeorge]

Welcome. Davis Square is epitome of cool. Borderline semi-urban/urban cool as you can get in this area. It is full of mostly very interesting/artsy/corporate/would-be counterculture young folks (college students/ recent graduates/ sprinkled with older married with kids holdouts).
I think you would find it very desirable place to live. Walkable, many fun independent stores and restaurants and stone-throw to Porter, Harvard and Central Sq. that are very desirable places to live and have fun in your twenties. "Red Line" subway is by far the best line to live around for going into Cambridge and Boston, easily and cheaply.
If you said that you are working in Boston, I would have nothing to add commute wise, but East Walpole makes me concerned about length of your commute each day. I am not sure you will be crazy about that aspect of your living in Somerville--unless you have off hours or you can be very "early bird". I would estimate at least an hour each way, but it might get nasty during winter time, rush hour, any accident or new construction. I do dislike spending much of my time in traffic, but for you, this might not be an issue. In general traffic in, out and around Boston is nasty and is getting worse by each passing year.
I am not commuting your way much, so maybe someone else can get you better understanding of what to expect commute wise. Sorry I can not offer more.
Good luck!

[queenstoboston14]

Thanks for the quick reply. I was thinking of just taking the concord turnpike to I-95s... would this work?

If anyone else can shed any light on this topic I would appreciate it.

[semiurbanite]

I live in Porter Square, very close to Davis, and we love it. I lived in this area in my 20s, and now in my 40s and raising a family here. It's a great area, vibrant, walkable, diverse, interesting and safe. If you tend to prefer a car dependent lifestyle, however, this may not be the best place.

The only concern may be the commute. You would be driving from Davis Square to Walpole at peak traffic hours? I haven't done it, but I am guessing it could exceed an hour each way..

[charolastra00]

What are you looking at for a commute? If you're working 9-5, pick something closer to Walpole. I commute from close to Davis Square to Waltham and it takes about an hour each way. Walpole is probably an additional half hour away depending on traffic (a lot longer in the afternoon, possibly shorter in the morning).

Just getting to Rt 2 from Davis Square takes a lot of time. There's no quick way to do it - you just have to put up with traffic. Rt 2 (Concord Turnpike - no one really calls it that) backs up at 95 - it can take 20+ minutes sitting in traffic to get off of 2 onto 95 (though some days you can just jump right on - most of the time it's a 5-10 minute wait). It's trafficky south through Waltham, clears out a bit right before you hit the Pike (90), and then gets heavier again when you get to the area where 95S meets 93 by Norwood. You could also get off of 95S at Rt 1 or Rt 1a, but that's going to be tough too.

Another possibility would be to jump onto 93S by going across Somerville, but that seems like it would be lengthy too - especially getting through Boston. Either way, you're looking at a 30+ miles commute through dense suburbs. There is no real reverse commute on that part of 95 or 93. Waltham, Burlington, Needham, etc are both bedroom communities and host many large employers.

For reference - my boss commutes from Norwood (north of Walpole) to Waltham and it takes her 45 minutes to an hour each way - again, shorter in the morning and a lot longer in the afternoon.

I'd recommend looking in Waltham downtown or Newton instead for areas where young professionals live. Davis Square is great, but not so great to be willing to sit in a car for 3 hours a day. It might even make sense to think about living in Providence, which is much cheaper than Boston. I can't speak to the commute from there.

[CaseyB]

My daughter and her husband live in Davis Square and we live fairly close to Walpole. That is a very bad commute, I don't envy you. We take 95 to Rte.2 to Mass. Ave, then down side streets. 93 is worse.

It WILL be shorter in the morning. Rte. 2 backs up in the late afternoon. Any kind of snow will be horrible.

[wheelz]

No way would I consider a commute like that. Even best case scenario would not be fun. You would need a serious dose of zoloft and/or celexa to maintain any quality of life whatsoever.

[timberline742]

Davis Sq is fine, was better 10 years or so ago. Now much more yuppie-fied and more expensive, of course. Little remains that was old Davis Sq (Sligo, McKinnons), and now more chains have come in. Some decent to good ethnic restaurants and decent coffee shops, but not worth going out of your way for. The one BBQ place Redbones was never great (it was one of the best the area had though) has gone downhill in recent years, only worth going to for the beer. The independent American-y fare taverns and restaurants are Sysco-sourced not worth the prices places, but that is true of lots of places.

[queenstoboston14]

Thanks everyone, I appreciate all the help.

It seems Davis Square is out of the picture. Maybe it would be easier to explain what I want out of my experience near Boston? Ideally, I'd like to have a commute of ~30 minutes or less to Walpole while still living in a young professional area. Proximity to the T would be great as I would enjoy to venture into Boston on the occasional week night and weekend. Does any area provide this for me?

Also, if the same type of place exists near Providence that would make more sense for me... please let me know!

[CaseyB]

This is going to sound strange, but you might want to consider giving Providence, RI a look. At least you'd have direct highway access to 95.