State dept schooling in Springfield, where to live? Ft. Belvoir? (Arlington: townhouse, neighborhoods)

[Jumbuliijane]

Hi. Husband will be schooling in Springfield for half a year and we are trying to figure out where to live. We have young children and living on base(ft belvoir) or in Woodlawn village is looking appealing for sense of community and ease of life for everyone but my husband. Google maps says it's a 15 min drive to Springfield city center....... But I've been reading things (all older, 2011/2012) that the commute can end end up being up to an hour. Is that true? It's 8 miles.
Should we live closer to avoid traffic mess? Has anyone gone through state dept schooling in Springfield snd have any suggestions? I really want something like Woodlawn village ( various playgrounds within walking distance/ big open field/community lawn / dog park would be nice/ sidewalks/ trails) Just closer to Springfield do places like that exist for under 2400 a month? Thanks!!

[airjay75]

It is not going to take an hour to drive to the central Springfiled area from Ft. Belvoir. I think you'd be looking at more like 15 to 20 minutes depending on exactly where you're going. Some streets can see a lot of traffic during rush hour, but you are going to have a pretty easy commute by area standards.

If you wanted to go off base, you'd definitely have options, although you'd probably be looking mostly at townhomes in the $2400 price range. The first place that comes to mind is Kingstowne, but many neighborhoods in the area will have the amenities that you're looking for as well.

[Vectorhead]

Originally Posted by airjay75

It is not going to take an hour to drive to the central Springfiled area from Ft. Belvoir. I think you'd be looking at more like 15 to 20 minutes depending on exactly where you're going. Some streets can see a lot of traffic during rush hour, but you are going to have a pretty easy commute by area standards.

If you wanted to go off base, you'd definitely have options, although you'd probably be looking mostly at townhomes in the $2400 price range. The first place that comes to mind is Kingstowne, but many neighborhoods in the area will have the amenities that you're looking for as well.

I agree. The drive from Fort Belvoir to Springfield won't be bad, even at rush hour. There's no need to get on the interstate. If you like the housing there I would suggest you look no further. Your housing budget is reasonable for Kingstowne and West Springfield, which are both very nice, but I'd just take base housing if I were you.

[Jumbuliijane]

Thanks for the info!

[slduvall]

Where exactly is the training? There is really no Springfield "City Center" or downtown area. Fort Belvoir sits on the South East border of Springfield. So depending on what gate he would leave out of he could be in Springfield in matter of minutes, not counting lights and traffic. Then again that depends on where the training is. The FSI is in Arlington, but there are quite a few new facilities going up in the area. Most of those seem to be on the southern side of Springfield. Your budget will get you a smaller townhouse in Kingstowne or maybe slightly bigger one in Island Creek. They go quickly. Have they told you that have access to housing on base? Some of the newer neighborhoods have waiting lists.