Moving to DC Area from Westchester, NY, Want a Different Vibe...Where Should We Definitely Avoid?
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Anonymous
The elementary school for the SE quadrant is actually excellent |
Anonymous
Ossining to Grand Central is 36 minutes on the express train. Peekskill is the next stop. How much faster were you expecting? My point is you can't talk about wanting diversity, complaining about how Westchester has no diversity, when you chose not to move to a diverse location. They exist here. |
Anonymous
OP. Yeah I didn't mention "top-rated" schools in my post, because I know that higher ratings don't mean better schools. This competition to "win" at school and get "the best" for your kid, whatever that means, is part of what I'm hoping to avoid. My oldest actually did better in a lower-ranked school before we moved to Westchester, and we liked it much better there too. |
Anonymous
| You sound like a small town hick who's being remarkably picky for someone from a pretty run down area. Why not move back there then instead of dumping on high income areas that you CHOSE to move to? IDGI! |
Anonymous
Yeah, boy, why wouldn't she want to move to your town?? |
Anonymous
My town isn't mentioned her, thank God for that. |
Anonymous
NP here. You sound really fun and interesting. I'm sure you have so many friends. |
Anonymous
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The DC area anymore is really diverse across the board.
From my experience the difference is some places have community and convenience and others don't. Once you get outside of The Beltway (I-495) commutes creep up because of the traffic that you have to move through on a daily basis just to get to the beltway. Walkability to me is a big factor which is what Chevy Chase lacks, as does a a lot of areas of far northwest DC. Bethesda is much better and has two downtown entertainment areas, if you can find a house for sale downtown. Takoma varies in quality from Victorians to the edge of the ghetto but its all quite close together driving around, same goes for downtown silver spring. Old Town Alexandria is pretty but feels like a truck stop with Route 1 running through it. Reston is quite nice with parks and pools however its a lot of driving. The Virginia close in suburbs in general tend to be a lot more driving with shops you regularly go to 2 or 3 miles apart. MD suburbs lack many chains and big box hardware stores that you find in a more suburban Virginia. Rockville Pike excepted but in general the area didn't get as much corporate investment. I like to be within the beltway but I don't like to be too far from the beltway either which can be a problem in some locations in DC. |
Anonymous
Silver Spring is pretty safe- l live in 20910. if you leave your car unlocked, people will rifle through. There's the rare burglary, but it's been at least 5 years since I can recall that happening. |
Anonymous
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Silver Spring is ranked high among cities in the US for diversity:
https://wallethub.com/edu/most-diverse-cities/12690 |
Anonymous
As another 20910 resident, this. No one is going to attack you and your kids while you walk down the street. A house break-in is extremely unlikely. There aren't many parts of the DC area that are *that* unsafe, regardless of what people tell you on this board. We love it here. FWIW, I grew up in Bethesda, which used to have more socioeconomic diversity than it does now. Even then, there wasn't much. But it's filled with international families, many of which have highly educated parents (who work at places like the NIH, World Bank, IMF, etc.). Plenty of them send their kids to public school, and plenty of white families in Bethesda like to brag about the "diversity" there, even while they're horrified at the thought of interacting with someone who is not white and who lacks a doctoral degree. So, yeah, avoid Bethesda, Chevy Chase, and Potomac. |
Anonymous
Peekskill is not the next stop beyond Ossining. And even back in the pre-covid days, there was only 1 train that went express after Ossining, and it's not 36 minutes. Pretty sure it was at least 40. Realistically you're looking at most of the trains being 45-50+ mins from Ossining. Spent countless minutes of my life on that train, thanks. |
Anonymous
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OP, honestly, you need to figure out your work commutes first, then look. That said, downtown Silver Spring sounds like it could be a good fit. I’m the pp who mentioned crime. In DC proper, there is an increase in car jackings, even during the day. In the close-in burbs, there are nightly gangs who rifle through cars that are unlocked. Recently a neighbor was held up at gun point by one. Didn’t even make the news. Occasional random house break-ins. Businesses and banks get burglarized, and there are bad gangs a la El Salvador that operate throughout the area, though predominantly in Wheaton, Aspen Hill, Gaithersburg and Germantown.
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Anonymous
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I’m from Westchester and lived and had friends in New Rochelle,
Eastchester Mamaroneck and Scarsdale. I also lived in Connecticut all towns were along Metro North.on the Metro North. When I moved to Morris Counry in NJ everything seemed like it was off a highway or a jug handle. There were some cute towns but we were closer to strip malls. Driving through Bethesda once my husband said Bethesda is more like Weatchester. NoVa is more like NJ. I find it hard to compare the areas in MD vs. VA to Westchester some of that vibe I wanted, some I was happy to leave. I only know the schools in one town we have lived in NOVA and they were fine. They were safe, diverse and our town had a mix of housing from apartment rentals, to townhomes, small lower income income housing, boxy cookie cutter homes to McMansions on 4 acres. As has been said the county teaches the same curriculum everywhere, so education depends on AP, IB, and tutoring. We drive to a park’n’ride to get to the train and then walk to work. All told 3 hours round trip. You’ll find more diversity way outside the beltway. You won’t find charm. Well, you can if you want small rooms and and closets on small lots. Westchester has a lot of diplomats we have a lot of people who work in the government but can’t share what they do. For years. I struggled to find a Westchester-like town here. There isn’t. Realtors told me to go visit the schools, which might be a little easier now than last year at this time. I think it’s the best way to see if what you are looking for and what is here will meet your needs and wants. We had to figure it all out in a weekend. If you can take way more time and ask lots of questions! |
Anonymous
Again, I think this is very dependent upon where you’re placed in MD. My point was, and is, that while everything is accessible here, that is very city by city dependent, and it’s worth noting that it’s something to take into consideration. Also, the feedback regarding commute is something to take into consideration, especially if you or your spouse are driving. DC has different rush hour times and traffic patterns than NY. |