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What areas of town would be nice for an active ,outdoorsy young family of four (plus one red cattle dog!)? It seems in other forums that people recommend El Dorado, but it would be nice to be in a highly "walkable" city(to coffee shops, grocery or hiking) community too. Being near hiking trails would be a major plus!
Currently in the process of checking out our options...one downfall is there seems to be a lack of "asp.net" jobs in the area (although some postings)...while several regularly posted in Albuquerque.
We have read all the stats and are not scared off...I'm originally from Baltimore, MD and my husband from Kolkata, India. We are looking forward to living in a city that we can enjoy outdoors year round, with more sun (yay!!!), an array cultural activities, great flamenco studios(been taking lessons for 3 years), small town feel, bilingual schools, art, love good food and farmers markets...We are also weekend warrior road-trippers and my husband is a hobby landscape photographer!
Looking to rent to start and then possibly buy!
would love to hear any feedback..
What do y'all think about Eldorado? Is it overly planned, or does it have character?
How many miles of bike path are there and where does it go?? Do many folks commute by bike in Santa Fe?
What fun stuff is there to do with kids? Ours are 10 years and 4 months
Eldorado is nice. It has character, but not in the typical way. Houses are on an acre or more, there are sweeping vistas, and miles and miles of walking/running/biking trails. It is NOT, however, a neighborhood. It's a huge area with 1,000+ houses and it's own small shopping area. The downside to Eldorado is that it's 20 minutes from the rest of Santa Fe, down the highway.
For a walkable neighborhood, try South Capitol or anything close to downtown. If you do a search on the Santa Fe MLS, select houses that are in the Wood Gormley, Acequia, EJ Martinez, Gonzalez or Atalaya elementary school areas. (it's a selection in the advanced search) You'll find walkable neighborhoods throughout those school areas. You'll be closer to walking trails if you choose the Acequia or Atalaya school areas. They back up to the mountain and public open spaces. If you're looking to rent, Craigslist is actually a decent resource here in Santa Fe. You could include the names of any of the elementary schools in your search. Not all of the listings will say which school, but it will help you find some. Sadly, a lot of the neighborhoods don't have names or the names aren't widely used.
One caveat: Santa Fe does not have bilingual education. There are three or four schools that offer "bilingual" but it's moreso a program to help children from Spanish speaking homes come up to speed with English. They're not the highest ranked schools either.
If you have more questions about living here with kids, don't hesitate to ask!
The Eldorado schools (elementary and middle) are highly rated, so there's a goodly amount of young families in that area. It also has a community center with outdoor pool (looks to be Olympic-sized, but I'm not sure about that). There are paved walking/biking trails all over, so you can bike to school, the library, the clubhouse and pool, shopping center, etc. and the Rail Trail which one can use to hike or mountain bike into Santa Fe also runs through the community. Yes, there are intrepid souls who commute by bike into Santa Fe. There's also a public bus that goes into the city as well. And there is a 5,000 acre Eldorado Wilderness preserve that is open to residents. Add the shops, post office branch, bank, restaurant, brewery, etc. and it just about has it all - but it isn't in the city.
I'd agree with Cyanthus that a terrific in-town neighborhood is South Capital. It's in the Wood-Gormley school district which is highly regarded and the neighborhood is a popular place for families as a result. You'd have to get in the car to access trails. However, anywhere you live in Santa Fe is "near hiking trails" if you don't mind a 5-10 minute car ride. In the city, the southeast, east and northeast areas are close enough to walk to trails. But remember, we're a small city - you can get from one end to the other in 10-15 minutes (unless it's via Cerrillos Road!!!) and then your surrounded by a rural countryside with outdoor opportunities in every direction.
Before making any decision you should come out and take a look for yourselves. That just might seal the deal for you.
I would love to know where you decided to live because your family and criteria for a good neighborhood sounds exactly like mine! We are relocating from Hawaii.
Mahalo!
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