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Old 03-14-2014, 07:15 AM
 
40 posts, read 79,257 times
Reputation: 23

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Greetings, everyone and thanks for all the info. I think it looks like we may be coming to your city around Easter during kids' break so I look forward exploring. I am sure I will be back with more Qs!

Okaydorothy - so glad for your Eu perspective :-) I found your other post about how very happy you were in the Burgh and how your kids are striving, that is absolutely awesome and I am so glad you all settled in, found friends and kids love it. So so happy for you.

Lot of you recommend Sewickley. I also read elsewhere that it is more "old money" and "Stepford town?" Can you comment on how welcoming and "keep up with the Joneses" it is there? Looks like our budget would not give us much there anyway but out of interest.

I heard about Upper St Clair too. That is more a car oriented suburb? It was not mentioned here much.

One slightly unrelated Q - I love downhill skiing. I know 7springs well, we go there often - where do Pittsburghers go for "bigger mountain" skiing without flying there? I am thinking within 8 hr drive - can you get to some bigger resorts in (I guess) Vt, NH, NY? I am not very familiar with resorts there so when looking at google maps, could not quite figure that out.

Thanks!
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Old 03-14-2014, 07:24 AM
 
Location: Pittsburgh, PA (Morningside)
14,365 posts, read 16,975,099 times
Reputation: 12401
Sewickley is an old money type town. That said, I think the old money these days lives more in Sewickley Hills/Heights than Sewickley proper, which is more just an upper-middle class town.

Upper Saint Clair has the top schools in the county (hell, in the state usually). It is very autocentric and I don't think you'd be happy there. Not sure about your politics, but it's also the most Republican area of the southern suburbs by far.
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Old 03-14-2014, 07:37 AM
 
1,782 posts, read 2,081,536 times
Reputation: 1366
Quote:
Originally Posted by The King of Um View Post
Thread author, the Quaker Valley School District, which covers Sewickley and 8 other boroughs in the area, is very highly regarded. In fact, it's one of the best in the state. If I ever have children, I'd want them to attend QV schools. This is admittedly anecdotal, but I've met more than a few people who insist that a Quaker Valley education is just as good as one your children would receive at Sewickley Academy, a very old, expensive, and well respected private school. That should tell you something about the quality of the district.
The Lemieuxs even sent their kids to QV instead of SA.
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Old 03-14-2014, 07:42 AM
 
1,782 posts, read 2,081,536 times
Reputation: 1366
Quote:
Originally Posted by eschaton View Post
Upper Saint Clair has the top schools in the county (hell, in the state usually). It is very autocentric and I don't think you'd be happy there. Not sure about your politics, but it's also the most Republican area of the southern suburbs by far.
That's just because there are no middle-to-lower class areas in the school district. Those places tend to bring down average standardized test scores. The whole district is pretty much a bunch of preppy kids with full-time soccer moms that have the free time to micromanage their kid's education.
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Old 03-14-2014, 07:43 AM
 
Location: Washington County, PA
4,240 posts, read 4,907,705 times
Reputation: 2859
Quote:
Originally Posted by Sluni View Post
Greetings, everyone and thanks for all the info. I think it looks like we may be coming to your city around Easter during kids' break so I look forward exploring. I am sure I will be back with more Qs!

Okaydorothy - so glad for your Eu perspective :-) I found your other post about how very happy you were in the Burgh and how your kids are striving, that is absolutely awesome and I am so glad you all settled in, found friends and kids love it. So so happy for you.

Lot of you recommend Sewickley. I also read elsewhere that it is more "old money" and "Stepford town?" Can you comment on how welcoming and "keep up with the Joneses" it is there? Looks like our budget would not give us much there anyway but out of interest.

I heard about Upper St Clair too. That is more a car oriented suburb? It was not mentioned here much.

One slightly unrelated Q - I love downhill skiing. I know 7springs well, we go there often - where do Pittsburghers go for "bigger mountain" skiing without flying there? I am thinking within 8 hr drive - can you get to some bigger resorts in (I guess) Vt, NH, NY? I am not very familiar with resorts there so when looking at google maps, could not quite figure that out.

Thanks!
7 springs is the biggest in PA. You probably could get to mt. Placid or Killington in 10 hours.
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Old 03-14-2014, 07:47 AM
 
Location: Pittsburgh, PA (Morningside)
14,365 posts, read 16,975,099 times
Reputation: 12401
Quote:
Originally Posted by airwave09 View Post
That's just because there are no middle-to-lower class areas in the school district. Those places tend to bring down average standardized test scores. The whole district is pretty much a bunch of preppy kids with full-time soccer moms that have the free time to micromanage their kid's education.
No I agree. I'm one of those parents who don't think that it makes a whole lot of difference in terms of your child's outcomes if you go to a "good" versus "average" school, given the difference is almost entirely attributable to the income/education level/background of the parents who comprise a school. If you're smart, your kid will do okay in just about any school which meets acceptable levels.
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Old 03-14-2014, 07:59 AM
 
2,290 posts, read 3,820,463 times
Reputation: 1746
Holiday Valley in Western NY is an easy drive from Pittsburgh... and IMO is much better than 7 Springs. Similar vertical and acreage, but they do a lot more with their terrain. Never cared for the "wide open slope" style of 7 Springs... Holiday Valley has lots of interesting, twisty trails.
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Old 03-14-2014, 08:17 AM
 
40 posts, read 79,257 times
Reputation: 23
quick Q: based on recommendations here, I have been google mapping the neighborhoods. But when I google map Oakmont, it takes me downtown?? almost at the tip of the triangle...can you tell me an intersection or zip for that neighborhood? Thanks!
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Old 03-14-2014, 08:24 AM
 
Location: North Oakland
9,150 posts, read 10,871,098 times
Reputation: 14503
Oakmont PA 15139:

https://maps.google.com/maps?oe=utf-...&ved=0CJEBELYD
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Old 03-14-2014, 08:59 AM
 
1,782 posts, read 2,081,536 times
Reputation: 1366
Quote:
Originally Posted by Sluni View Post
Greetings, everyone and thanks for all the info. I think it looks like we may be coming to your city around Easter during kids' break so I look forward exploring. I am sure I will be back with more Qs!

Okaydorothy - so glad for your Eu perspective :-) I found your other post about how very happy you were in the Burgh and how your kids are striving, that is absolutely awesome and I am so glad you all settled in, found friends and kids love it. So so happy for you.

Lot of you recommend Sewickley. I also read elsewhere that it is more "old money" and "Stepford town?" Can you comment on how welcoming and "keep up with the Joneses" it is there? Looks like our budget would not give us much there anyway but out of interest.

I heard about Upper St Clair too. That is more a car oriented suburb? It was not mentioned here much.

One slightly unrelated Q - I love downhill skiing. I know 7springs well, we go there often - where do Pittsburghers go for "bigger mountain" skiing without flying there? I am thinking within 8 hr drive - can you get to some bigger resorts in (I guess) Vt, NH, NY? I am not very familiar with resorts there so when looking at google maps, could not quite figure that out.

Thanks!
Snowshoe 3.5 hours south in West Virginia is a bigger mountain, and Holiday Valley 3.5 hours north in Western New York is a bigger resort. But if you want to really experience something closer to the likes of western U.S. skiing, you are going to have to drive all the way to New England. Or you could drive to upsate NY and try Whiteface.
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