suggestions for where to live? (bike commuting to the hill and family friendly area)

[rose_surfer]

Hello!

I’m likely moving to the area in a couple of months and trying to decide where to live. I’ll be working near union station, and I’d like biking to be my primary commuting method, with metro and/or driving as a backup. I expect to be working pretty long hours so commute time is important so that i can actually see my kids every day.

We have two smaller children, so a good public elementary school district is a must (can’t afford private). We can spend up to around $3k/mo. for rent, perhaps a bit more, although less would be better. Prefer single family or town homes, but an apartment isn’t out of the question. And family oriented community amenities like public pools, etc., are certainly a bonus.

Any suggestions of where we should be looking to live? So far, I’ve been checking out N. Arlington/East Falls Church (a little expensive), Alexandria (looks like some of the public elementary schools) are hit and miss, Bethesda, and silver spring.

I grew up in virginia and have family there so we’re leaning towards arlington. But I also know very little about maryland so I don’t want to rule it out, especially with the red line being more convenient to union station.

Topic

[jrenaut]

“Short commute time” and “Red Line from Maryland” don’t go together.

Have you considered living in the District? Brookland, for example, is an easy bike ride to Union Station and very family friendly and even affordable by DC standards. The public school situation in DC is a bit crazy, but you can find a good public or public charter school if you do some research.

[rose_surfer]

@jrenaut 97891 wrote:

“Short commute time” and “Red Line from Maryland” don’t go together.

Have you considered living in the District? Brookland, for example, is an easy bike ride to Union Station and very family friendly and even affordable by DC standards. The public school situation in DC is a bit crazy, but you can find a good public or public charter school if you do some research.

We lived in Capitol Hill a few years ago, but it was when our kids were in preschool. It looks like there’s at least one good public elementary school in the SE, but it will be tricky to find an affordable house there. I had forgotten about brookland. Is that out there by the arboretum? I remember that neighborhood being a gem.

Schools are the big concern. I’m worried about counting on getting into a charter school. I imagine you can’t apply until you have a dc address, but then if you don’t get in you are stuck with whatever district you are in, right?

Why the reaction on the redline? Is it more crowded or prone to breakdown than the orange or yellow out if va? Or is it just the metro in general?

[Colin B]

I’d second the Brookland suggestion. I lived there and worked on the Hill for about 3 years. Commute was 15 minutes, mostly on the Met Branch Trail. Easy ride, there’s a grocery store right on the route, easy to bail to the metro if the weather doesn’t suit you.

[mstone]

The red line is the oldest and generally least reliable. It is due for a major overhaul in the near future which may improve things.

[jrenaut]

Brookland is due north of Union Station. And the Red Line is just always a mess. Probably easier coming from Silver Spring than from the other side, but still, I cringe every time I think about the Red Line.

Getting into DC schools is a mess, but they are working on it. You probably do need a DC address first, but I don’t know for sure. They’ve improved the lottery process so it’s not nearly as complicated. And my understanding is it’s easier to get in at some ages than at others, though I don’t know if that helps or hurts you.

[rose_surfer]

@jrenaut 97896 wrote:

Brookland is due north of Union Station. And the Red Line is just always a mess. Probably easier coming from Silver Spring than from the other side, but still, I cringe every time I think about the Red Line.

Getting into DC schools is a mess, but they are working on it. You probably do need a DC address first, but I don’t know for sure. They’ve improved the lottery process so it’s not nearly as complicated. And my understanding is it’s easier to get in at some ages than at others, though I don’t know if that helps or hurts you.

Our kids will be 2nd grade and kindergarten.

[jrenaut]

@rose_surfer 97897 wrote:

Our kids will be 2nd grade and kindergarten.

Not sure if that helps or hurts – I kind of stopped paying attention when our kids got in to a charter we love. The lunatics at the DC Urban Moms forum could probably tell you though.

[TwoWheelsDC]

@rose_surfer 97890 wrote:

So far, I’ve been checking out N. Arlington/East Falls Church (a little expensive),

Welcome!

Lots of good advice here. Since you mention N. Arlington/EFC specifically, I’ll chime in…I spent a year commuting down to Foggy Bottom from Westover (between EFC and Ballston) and enjoyed that commute quite a bit. I’d wager that EFC to Union Station would be about 45 minutes, but it’s a nice ride with multiple trail or on-street options and plenty of places to bail out to the bus or Metro. Currently, I’m commuting to Virginia Sq/Clarendon for my masters program, which takes about 12 minutes by bike, so the Arlington nightlife is close by as well.

From the limited research I’ve done, house rentals in this area are about $3k/month for a standard 3br house, but there isn’t the volume of rentals that you’d see in a place like Brookland or Capitol Hill. From the info you’ve given, the main draw of this area is the schools, which are among the best in the country…the Westover neighborhood has both Walter Reed Elementary and Swanson Middle School just blocks apart from each other, which I’m sure would be hugely convenient if I had kids…but for now, I just enjoy thinking about how it’s likely to positively affect my resale value if we ever decide to move.

[hozn]

Concur with Westover being an awesome place to live — esp with kids. Will note that Westover itself is zoned for McKinley elementary school, but that is still just a mile or so away. (Walter Reed serves areas to the north and west.)

Have never commuted into DC from here, though, so can’t comment on that. Excellent trail and bike-lane infrastructure, though.

There are probably more apartment rentals here than houses, though I think the house around the corner is about to go up for rent, so there are definitely some options. Your price range seems to be more than enough for most of the tiny colonials here, but I am using Zinio estimates, not listings.

[Vicegrip]

Falls church and the area around east and west falls metro are nice. Great schools. Houses are not cheap but none are inside the beltway. Did i mention the Great schools from K to 12?

[DismalScientist]

Walter Reed is not an elementary school. The Westover area mostly goes to McKinley but some to the north and west go to Tuckahoe and some to the south and east go to Ashlawn. School boundaries can be found at the APS website (http://www.apsva.us). All APS parents go to the Westover Beer Garden.:rolleyes:

[hozn]

@DismalScientist 97912 wrote:

Walter Reed is not an elementary school. The Westover area mostly goes to McKinley but some to the north and west go to Tuckahoe and some to the south and east go to Ashlawn. School boundaries can be found at the APS website (http://www.apsva.us). All APS parents go to the Westover Beer Garden.:rolleyes:

That is funny. I didn’t think there was an elementary school there either, but since it shows up on the boundary map, figured I was wrong.

[TwoWheelsDC]

@DismalScientist 97912 wrote:

Walter Reed is not an elementary school.

Further highlighting my lack of parental knowledge…

@DismalScientist 97912 wrote:

All APS parents go to the Westover Beer Garden.:rolleyes:

and they don’t hesitate to bring their kids with them…

[jrenaut]

@TwoWheelsDC 97923 wrote:

and they don’t hesitate to bring their kids with them…

Having kids doesn’t have to mean you don’t do anything you enjoy. Our kids go to happy hour all the time. We were devastated when The Reef in Adams Morgan closed and there was no more Kids Happy Hour. Well, not devastated, I guess, but unhappy.

[DismalScientist]

@jrenaut 97928 wrote:

Having kids doesn’t have to mean you don’t do anything you enjoy.

Just wait ’til they reach their soccer age.

[Author]

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