Working in St Pete but living in Bradenton (Tampa, Lutz: new construction, high schools)

[sunshinejoe]

Job is relocating to St Pete (downtown area).
Looking for SFH new construction ($400k-$500k) but I am not familiar with the traffic.
Originally, I considered The Tampa area (Wesley Chapel, Riverview, Odessa and Lutz: it looks like there are lots of communities for my price range). However, they appear to be a bit far away - or maybe not. High school rating is very important!

I never thought about Bradenton. It looks like a lot shorter of a commute. But since I do not know much about the area, I figured the experts here could help.

1. Where are the areas with new construction closer to work? what would you suggest?
2. What area should I stay away from and why?
3. I am allocating 45 minutes to/from future home/work. Am I underestimating it?
4. I do not care to be by the water. Inland is preferred (away from flood zone) but the town's/city's amenities are more important (parks, shops, stores, amusement)
5. Are the high schools good in the Bradenton area?

Thanks!

[sunshinejoe]

Are there lots of new construction in those areas?

Would you recommend looking into Lakewood Ranch?

[SellingNWCape]

I saw your post and the replies it got in the Tampa forum. Please note that of the overall population, very few actually use or post to this site on a regular basis. People mean well (save the ”Sheckies” kind), but most people are only truly aware of their own specific area and can only paint a broad picture of an area they don't spend a lot of time directly in (or have kids in the schools). By all means, take what people tell you into general consideration but don't treat it like the gospel.

For example, to say there is no new construction in St. Pete isn't entirely true because you can find new builds there. Maybe not full communities of 100% new, but you can find them as they've been tearing things down and building new over time.

The others were correct, though, in that if you don't want a miserable commute that you should find something close to work. The distances may look good on paper but in reality traffic could end up being a nightmare, especially when having to rely on a bridge to get you from point A to point B. Based on your want for good schools and new construction, I would have suggested Lakewood Ranch but it is a bit far, though it might be your best bet if you can't find something you like in the St. Pete area. Please note that the commute could be awful and you're probably going to want to stick to the northern part of LWR to make it slightly easier on yourself. Another thing you want to take into consideration is that they close the Sunshine Skyway when there are high winds. When that happens you will have to go up and around on I-75 which will add significantly to your commute time. On the plus side, it might happen only several times a year during commuting hours.

[beach43ofus]

Originally Posted by sunshinejoe

Are there lots of new construction in those areas?

Would you recommend looking into Lakewood Ranch?

25 years ago, I drove 50 miles from State Road 70 in Lakewood Ranch to East Tampa 5 days/week for 2 years. I could do it in 50 minutes. I put a lot of miles on my car, and spend a lot in gas, but it was almost all interstate so very easy to do.

If you are driving to Downtown St. Pete over the Skyway bridge, keep in mind the bridge can close due to high winds, heavy fog, and during Tropical Storms. If there's a bad wreck on the approach to the bridge or on the bridge itslef, you'll be backed up for a long time, and be late to work.

[WW Whetstone]

bad commute from LWR, too far east to go north

[Ladywithafan]

Work in St. Pete - live in St. Pete area not LWR. The increase of traffic has in turn caused I-75 to come to standstill after 4 p.m. out of LWR & northbound up to Parrish. The rate of building, coupled with seasonal traffic makes FL DOT happy as they're expanding I-75 from 2/3 to 5/6 each way where they can. It didn't help on the East side of Florida, IMO, just gave more lanes to crash. Make your work commute easier on yourself & stay within 10 miles of downtown St. Pete.