Wesley Heights

[Anonymous]

Looked at a condo on Cathedral / New Mexico over the weekend and while it is not the perfect fit, we may be interested in the building. We have one kid in middle school, but school wouldn't change.

Right now we live in a more highly walkable area where people easily chat on the street (esp when walking a dog), but the crime has gotten worse so leaving is increasingly appealing.

Thoughts on living in Wesley Heights? Are people neighborly when out walking? Is it easy to meet neighbors? Fun places for kids to run around? Do you feel safe if you go out for a walk at night or early morning?

[Anonymous]

If you’re looking around The Towers that area is very walkable to the Wagshals/Chef Geoff shopping area as well as walkable to Cathedral Commons and Glover Park. I would say definitely one of the safer areas of DC - mostly car theft stuff. If you’re looking at a building with a pool,I would say that’s great for a teen, especially if they can bring friends as guests.

[Anonymous]

Isn’t it mostly students in those apartments? I can’t imagine the people who live in the multi million dollar homes on the other side of New Mexico will care to socialize besides a friendly hello.

[Anonymous]

We currently moved from there. Did not like the Towers at all. Not kid friendly, even at the pool. Very high condo fees. But great neighborhood. We moved for better middle/high schools.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Isn’t it mostly students in those apartments? I can’t imagine the people who live in the multi million dollar homes on the other side of New Mexico will care to socialize besides a friendly hello.

Definitely not mostly students. My experience living in those condos in that area 10 years ago is actually mostly older people. The Colonnade, The Towers, The Westchester.. and some families.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:We currently moved from there. Did not like the Towers at all. Not kid friendly, even at the pool. Very high condo fees. But great neighborhood. We moved for better middle/high schools.

OP here. Can you tell me what did not feel kid friendly about it? My son is super social, so I'd hate for him to feel shut down by neighbors! He often waters plants, feeds cats, etc. when various neighbors are out of town.

[Anonymous]

We live in Sutton Place and love living in WH.

The community is small and we've met great people who live in the larger SFHs of WH and really enjoy the walkability to Chef Geoffs, Wagshals, Starbucks, Liqour store and our doctors.

We do walk up to Cathedral Commons and Glover if we are feeling adventurous.

[Anonymous]

Most of the condo and co-op buildings in the area are "naturally occurring retirement communities." (NORCs)

You'll definitely be bringing down the average age if you move in! Lots of them have pretty strict by-laws about renting out the units.

The college students live in the rental buildings in Glover Park and along Mass Ave. They are generally not in the condos and co-ops.

[Anonymous]

I have a friend who lives in one of those on Cathedral Ave, just east of New Mexico Ave. Yes, every time I've visited I have been struck by the retirement community feel. They don't have a pool and there are never any kids to be seen. (friend has two; middle/ high school, so presumably they are able to meet up with friends on their own)
It does feel safe, but not friendly.

Have you considered the Cathedral Commons area? More young families there.

[Anonymous]

Mclean Gardens has a ton of kids with play areas and a pool. Parking can suck without a designated space but you can walk to most places.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:We live in Sutton Place and love living in WH.

The community is small and we've met great people who live in the larger SFHs of WH and really enjoy the walkability to Chef Geoffs, Wagshals, Starbucks, Liqour store and our doctors.

We do walk up to Cathedral Commons and Glover if we are feeling adventurous.

+1 to Sutton Place. Tons of families there and it’s a really friendly community.

[Anonymous]

Too much airplane and helicopter noise. Pass.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:We live in Sutton Place and love living in WH.

The community is small and we've met great people who live in the larger SFHs of WH and really enjoy the walkability to Chef Geoffs, Wagshals, Starbucks, Liqour store and our doctors.

We do walk up to Cathedral Commons and Glover if we are feeling adventurous.

+1 to Sutton Place. Tons of families there and it’s a really friendly community.

+1 to this and McLean Gardens (to the east across the park). Honestly there are two types of buildings, ones for older people and those for younger people with families. It is building-by-building. One thing you could keep your eye out for are the apartment -> condo pop-ups in glover park. Those are entirely aimed at families - more bedrooms/bathrooms, smaller master bedrooms, etc.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:We live in Sutton Place and love living in WH.

The community is small and we've met great people who live in the larger SFHs of WH and really enjoy the walkability to Chef Geoffs, Wagshals, Starbucks, Liqour store and our doctors.

We do walk up to Cathedral Commons and Glover if we are feeling adventurous.

+1 to Sutton Place. Tons of families there and it’s a really friendly community.

+1 to this and McLean Gardens (to the east across the park). Honestly there are two types of buildings, ones for older people and those for younger people with families. It is building-by-building. One thing you could keep your eye out for are the apartment -> condo pop-ups in glover park. Those are entirely aimed at families - more bedrooms/bathrooms, smaller master bedrooms, etc.

Sutton Place is nice because it's condo living in a townhome. Our 2 bedroom has 2.5 baths and both baths are en-suite upstairs which is really nice for guests/kids/home office.

Prices for 2 bedrooms are probably in the 715-815k range at this point. Many units are still very outdated.

SP also has a lovely pool, access to tennis courts, Mann, etc