Greene Mill Preserve in Leesburg? (2015, house, neighborhood)

[movingtova]

Anyone have any info about Green Mill Preserve? (community, traffic, schools, shopping, amenities, etc?)

[Ashburnite]

I haven't been to that community but am familiar with the general area. I believe the closest shopping, amenities, and schools will be in the nearby community of Brambleton, which is near the intersection of Belmont Ridge and Ryan Rd./North Star. There is a grocery store, movie theater, and some stores. If you head the other direction on Evergreen Mills toward Leesburg there are things in Leesburg as well but I believe it's a little further away. The Greene Mill Preserve communities are very new so there isn't a lot of retail growth there yet. The homes are being built in a kind of country area so it's hard to say what will be surrounding it later on. Of course, someone who is more familiar with it can correct me if I'm wrong. :-)

[movingtova]

Good point, I wonder what will be surrounding that area later on... It's zoned for Creighton's Corner which I hear has some issues being a new school, what's your take on that?

[Ashburnite]

With all the growth out that way the school boundaries change every year. If you buy in that area it's possible your children will change schools several times over the years. Even if you buy in say, Brambleton or Leesburg the boundaries may change.

As far as the house itself, it's my preference to NOT buy a house that backs to a road - what's a minor, 2 lane road now could expand later to four or more lanes and have a lot of traffic. Also look out for lots that back to open space since you don't know what will be built there, either. Could be protected greenspace, which is good, or someone could build retail/office there. That's my opinion, anyway. :-)

[ShannonMilligan]

I agree with what Ashburnite says about school boundaries...I live less than a football field away from one local high school in Ashburn and we were in battle this past year with the Lansdowne homeowners and we almost had to send our kids to a new high school even though we are a stones throw away-literally. (I say our kids to high school...mine are 3 , but you get my point) So you never do know. The area just keeps growing so who knows what will happen. That being said, most of the schools in the area have a good reputation.

Good luck with your move!

[movingtova]

Wow, so does Lansdowne go to the new High School - Tuscarora(?) now or Stone Bridge? Looks like the Creighton's Corner would be one of the least stable areas of Ashburn as far as school predictability to go, I wonder how big of a drawback that really is...

[Ashburnite]

Currently Lansdowne kids go to Stone Bridge. Like what Twinmma said, you can live right across the street from a school and not be in their attendance boundaries. So even if you live in an "established" neighborhood schools can change. Overall the Loudoun County schools receive good scores statistically but your experience with individual schools can vary. None are considered bad by national standards but some have different reputations within Loudoun. The issue isn't just in the quality of the schools but in the fact that your child may be in one elementary school for two years, then be rezoned to another one for a couple of years, only to switch again for middle school and again during high school. It isn't as though when a new school is built it draws only from the immediate surrounding area; boundaries can be adjusted to reflect overcrowding in different schools and therefore a student might not go to the closest school to their home because the district wants to fill in at a specific school and the student's neighborhood makeup of students fits the amount needed to balance enrollment.

[cdmurphy]

Originally Posted by movingtova

Wow, so does Lansdowne go to the new High School - Tuscarora(?) now or Stone Bridge? Looks like the Creighton's Corner would be one of the least stable areas of Ashburn as far as school predictability to go, I wonder how big of a drawback that really is...

Creighton's Corner ES is undercapacity now but they've just started construction on Phase III of Brambleton south of Creighton Road, and those kids *will* go to Creighton's Corner ES - which means that the kids who are bused there from all over outside of Brambleton are probably the most likely to get redistricted elsewhere if the school gets overcrowded. Developments like Greene Mill Preserve are probably more at risk for redistricting since Sycolin Creek ES is just a few miles north on Evergreen Mills. A third elementary school is slated for Brambleton - also on Creighton Road, but way west of the Town Center, closer to Evergreen Mills - currently projected to open in 2015.

[ShannonMilligan]

I just heard that the Lansdowne kids will be going to a new school and no longer Stone Bridge...Well, I guess they gave the current kids a choice to stay at Stone Bridge or go to the new one and all but a few decided to go to the new school. This is what I have been told. It changes all the time. We chose our home in part b/c we want our kids to go to Stone Bridge. And it would be insane to bus my kids when they are 1/2 block away. But that's another post, lol!

[movingtova]

So, who knows, Greene Mill could end up at Sycolin Creek and Loudoun County or Heritage or somewhere else and someone living a block from Stone Bridge could be bussed out. Best not to even count on schools staying the same when moving to Ashburn or Leesburg I guess, at the same time, that's one of the reasons why we're interested in Loudoun - because there are so many families with young kids!