Neighborhood and playground questions -Durham (Raleigh, Butner: rental homes, crime, townhomes)

[heart123]

Hey guys!!

I"m new here, though I have been looking around the Raleigh-Durham-CH-C. forum for a little while to find answers to my ques. This can be a very helpful forum!

My husband's job is transferring us to the triangle area. Did I say that right?! He'll be working in Butner (no not the jail ).

I was reading through some of the threads about Butner etc. and I wanted to get some additional insight. We've been looking at rental homes online in SW Durham and Morrisville. I know Morrisville is a bit farther, but the commute is doable. He prefers no more than a 30-35 min. commute approx.( give or take a few minutes).


Does anyone know much about or better yet live in the Penrith Village or Orchard Lake neighborhoods? I went to the Durham crime mapper (and still researching) thanks to the post I"ve seen here, but of course that won't tell me the vibe in those neighborhoods, what the neighbors are like etc. You guys can be my "eyes." Tell me as much as poss. Should we stay away from those neighborhoods etc.? I read the few post that I found regarding Penrith but they are slighly old (atleast 2 yrs.) and I want to find out if there are additional thoughts etc. I couldn't find much on OL, unless I missed something in my search.

We also looked at Woodcroft, Hope Valley etc. but the only places for rent in those neighborhoods from what we could see, w/in our budget were Townhomes. Our budget is limited for about the next yr. until he completes graduate school. We anticipate not renting anymore than 1 yr., then we'll think about buying if we like it there. Thankfully he is going into a profession that will allow him to get a job anywhere if we decide not to stay.


We are very social and will more than likely be hanging out w/a homeschool group, but at the same time, it would be nice to be in a neighborhood with kids, where neighbors hang out/socialize. We don't have a problem with racially diverse neighborhoods, but of course, our safety is a priority. We understand that no neighborhood is perfect, but some are better than others. We currently live in an area w/pockets of good and not so good, so we understand that oh too well.


On a different note, what is your favorite park (with a playground) in or w/in 20 min. (give or take a few min.) of SW Durham? I"m looking for a park with a pretty large playground in a safe area, with lots of choices for the kids to play on. I looked at the Durham parks site, but the pics. were limiting.

I have read through these threads so much, I personally feel like I know Mrs. Steel, Vicki, and Mike among others!

Please feel free to DM me if you prefer!

Thanks!

"Blessings are contagious, don't be afraid to pass one on,"

[Bull City Rising]

Originally Posted by heart123

We don't have a problem with racially diverse neighborhoods, but of course, our safety is a priority.

Is there a reason these two notions are linked in a single sentence linked by a conjunction?

[busydesk]

I have to ask...if the job is going to be in Butner, why are you looking at SW Durham?

[heart123]

Originally Posted by Bull mouth 26259182

Is there a reason these two notions are linked in a single sentence linked by a conjunction?

You didn't help! That didn't answer any of my questions. Please don't answer unless you are going to help.

[heart123]

Originally Posted by busydesk

I have to ask...if the job is going to be in Butner, why are you looking at SW Durham?

-

Read my post, I said he doesn't mind a commute time of 30- 35 min. or more. That ques. is irrelevant. I know of others that live in SW Durham and work in Butner.

I hope I get some responses from people who truly want to help.

[Special_Guest]

Originally Posted by Bull City Rising

Is there a reason these two notions are linked in a single sentence linked by a conjunction?

Thank you.

[heart123]

Originally Posted by Special_Guest

Thank you.

No thank you, to your unnecessary criticisms. You didn't come here to help.

[heart123]

Originally Posted by Bull Mouth

Is there a reason these two notions are linked in a single sentence linked by a conjunction?

Is there a reason you were too lazy to use a thesaurus instead of using the word linked twice?

I posted here because I truly needed help in finding a place and the only thing you could do was criticize. If you aren't going to help, then don't comment. Don't bother to respond. I won't see it.

[lb27608]

Originally Posted by heart123

Is there a reason you were too lazy to use a thesaurus instead of using the word linked twice?

I posted here because I truly needed help in finding a place and the only thing you could do was criticize. If you aren't going to help, then don't comment. Don't bother to respond. I won't see it.

Look, you're really not helping yourself by responding like this. The obvious implication in your sentence that BCR (who is a very respected poster on this forum, BTW) quoted is that racially diverse implies unsafe, or at least less safe, and that notion is a bit offensive to many people. Also, posters here commonly ask follow-up questions to get more information about the factors that are motivating people to consider particular areas, so being entirely dismissive of their responses (as you did with busydesk) greatly decreases the chances that others are going to try to help you.

Busydesk asked a legitimate question: is there a particular reason that you're looking in SW Durham and or Morrisville? The reason s/he asked that is because a location in north or central Durham would be much more commute-friendly to Butner, and there are most likely places in both of those areas that would meet your other criteria for being safe and social. Sometimes people focus on specific areas because of school concerns, but it seems that you will be homeschooling so that isn't an issue for you. If there are other factors that are driving your decision to look at those two areas, explaining what those are would probably help people in this forum give you the best advice they can.

For instance, many families with young children live in my central Durham neighborhood and the ones around it. Duke Park, which has a large play area, is close by and popular, and I-85 is easily accessible for a quick ride to Butner. North Durham has neighborhoods that are newer and/or more suburban, much like SW Durham, and is much closer to Butner.

[Ellen Pitts]

I don't know about the commute, but I know Penrith is a very good neighborhood. I have several friends that live there (all homeschoolers) and the subdivision is definitely a community with neighborhood activities including an annual salsa walk. There is a community watch program in the neighborhood as well.