Living in Centreville, Chantilly, Burke... need real insight

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:We live in Centreville and I was depressed for several years after moving from Arlington. The restaurants are terrible, the parks are AWFUL, frankly a lot of the people are just not as interesting.

This is too bad to hear. I also don’t want to move somewhere with only chain restaurants. Would you describe it like that? Not sure how people are less interesting though.

Thats all you get around here (So Riding.) It sux.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Burke: where your minivan is one of thousands in a sea of cars at the shoppers food warehouse parking lot. Everything: library, orthodontist, dry cleaner, is just a 5-15 min drive away. Blink and you’ll miss the strip malls because they are all in these sort of pits so they are not visible from the parkways.#suburbanplanning

Curiously the only thing you can walk to is the pool (center of social universe) or or a slug line (“slug lines: we made driving with strangers cool before Uber”). Enjoy a night out with the DH at your choice of strip mall Italian/Thai restaurants. Bask in the warm security of a community where everyone is basically the same.

Burke: 12 miles/15 minutes* from DC and yet, a world away.

*disclaimer: an hour and fifteen minutes in during rush hour, 6 am-9 pm.

+1 about it!
Would add:
- The starbucks, grocery store & seasonal farmers market are walkable from some of the Burke Centre neighborhoods (ours is one) which can be nice but traffic/parking are so little hassle that it's just not a chore to drive either. The Burke Centre area has tons of walking trails winding throughout the various neighborhoods.

- It's very family-focused so if you're in that kid-stage of life it's good; I wouldn't want to live her as a young person though (20s)

- It's very heavy military presence; that has plus's (like tons of great people we've met and many military families tend to be friendlier we've found since they have a limited time to jump into a community; rented houses tend to be to military families so pretty good neighbors) and minus's (more flux in kids' friends as families get restationed). I've never lived somewhere with so many people either actively in the military or retired from it / working as a contractor for it. It's not bad - but it's definitely part of the "vibe" to know of.

- Being a transplant from a non-urban area, it just feels very comfortable and "normal" feeling. People tend not to be pretentious or outwardly uber competitive - just feels sort of "sane".

[Anonymous]

I would +1 all the Burke comments. It’s overall a nice, middle class seeming area. I live nearby in Springfield but a lot of stuff for restaurants and shopping is in Burke. I’m less familiar with Centreville and Chantilly but my impression is that they seem a little busier with worse traffic? I don’t know. I don’t feel that traffic is too bad in Burke although the county parkway can get backed up at rush hour especially around the intersections.

[Anonymous]

I'm from Arlington, live in Centreville. I would say FCPS does MS/HS better than Arlington overall and am pleased with the schools. Elementary can be hit or miss but honestly a solid student who is not at risk will be fine at any school in FCPS (or Arlington). There are a bunch of private schools nearby if that's your preference. We went back and forth about where to live after college and jobs/commute were the decision makers. Arlington has its plusses but it's not worth it if you have to deal with the toll road or 66 every day to get to/from work. I would say the reverse is true, too. We would live in a much smaller place in Arlington if we worked there, rather than fight traffic to commute from further out. There are some very family friendly neighborhoods with a lot of kids and young families and some very good small restaurants and bakeries, but you have to look for them. Almost all of the HOA neighborhoods have very nice pools and that's a plus for most families.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:You have to keep your expectations low. These are the consolation places people live when they can't afford Arlington, Falls Church etc.

Its really important to be in a neighborhood with a pool.

Listen, sincerely. F you and the horse you road in on.

These are all great places to live with lots of room, in terms of house size and yards (for now - development is happening quickly in these areas). The schools are great. Lots of families. Increasing number of things to do. Mass transit moving closer and we have more options now. Our house value has nearly doubled.

Is it DC or Arlington (we moved out from Clarendon)? No. And if you can only like that then you won't like these areas.

But we have a lot of fun out here in one of those "consolation prize" areas. AND the bonus is that we now TW and don't have to commute to DC (except for our Caps season tickets -when they play- which we can afford this and lots of other things by our lower cost of living). We have lots of green, space, wildlife, parklands, battlefields . . . It's quiet and dark at night (our first night in our home, coming from Arlington, was almost spooky the difference in noise levels). But lots of fun things: wineries close, close to Jiffy Lube and concert venues at brews and vineyards, close to Mosaic District and Reston, and a short ride to DC. I'm rambling but the point is: you get the best of both here. You get the green and gardens and space but if you want something more urban, you get there in a snap.

We love it. And just laugh our asses off when people slam it w/o really knowing what it's like. More for us.

I've lived in bigger cities, and in urban burbs like Arlington. I've also lived in the middle of nowhwere. This is the best of both worlds, imo.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:We live in Centreville and I was depressed for several years after moving from Arlington. The restaurants are terrible, the parks are AWFUL, frankly a lot of the people are just not as interesting.

This is too bad to hear. I also don’t want to move somewhere with only chain restaurants. Would you describe it like that? Not sure how people are less interesting though.

Thats all you get around here (So Riding.) It sux.

Then you aren't venturing out. There are PLENTY of non-chain restaurants in and around C-ville. And in Fairfax City.

[Anonymous]

I live out here, in the Chantilly HS pyramid. It’s not exciting, but it is a great place to raise a family. All the schools are excellent, and the people are very friendly. Shopping is super convenient — multiple Costco’s, Wegmans, Targets, just a stone’s throw away. Restaurants aren’t great, but we have good Thai, decent Chinese, good Indian, and chain restaurants in Fairfax Corner for American.

Okay, I’m not saying this place is amazing and better than Falls Church or Arlington. Every place has its pros and cons. Most people don’t commute to DC, or they wfh 2-3 days a week. (Precovid, obv). If you want a 3000 sq ft home with a yard, and your budget isn’t over $1M, here you go. Kids activities are close by. My kids swim year round and do gymnastics and dance. Dance, soccer, fencing, there are lots of options nearby. All my kids’ activities are within 15 mins away. Summer swim in the neighborhood is so much fun. Our neighborhood’s little kids get to hang out with and look up to our teenagers, who are genuinely sweet people. It has an awesome community feel. My 11 year old started riding his bike to go find friends by himself, and he has been loving the independence.

Anyway, feel free to ask any specific questions. I’d be happy to answer you in more details or give you info on specific neighborhoods.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I’m in Centreville/Chantily. The crime is extremely low. There are a few parks. Zero family fun things to do in this area if you like skiing, boating, festivals or anything like that. Schools are great. Shopping and eating is fantastic. You either live with planes flying nonstop over head or the constant hum of the 66 or 28. If you’re real lucky you get both.

What ??? We have a boat and put in at Occoquan just about every weekend in the summer. We also ski and there are several resorts within 2 hours from here. Bryce is 90 min. away. Good places to go local unless you insist on Olympic level hills. But PA and WV are not THAT far away. And that holds true for Arlington as well as Burke, C-ville, Chantilly. There are TONS of festivals out here: Bull Run is usually loaded with festivals of every stripe every weekend of a normal summer. Lots of the wineries and breweries have summer concern series all summer and they are anywhere from minutes to less than an hour away (Tarara, 2Silos). Jiffy Lube is 30 min. away. Fairfax City has summer concerts every 3 weekend of the month in summer (normal).

[Anonymous]

I'd spend a couple of hours one day in each locale. Drive around various neighborhoods. If you're comfortable eating in a restaurant, find a good restaurant -- there are WAY more than chains in each of those places. (Centreville has one of the best Italian restaurants i've ever been to. https://www.ciao-osteria.com/). I think you can get a sense of a community by going to "local" restaurants. If you go to church, maybe check out the local church. I've heard good things about Centreville and Burke. Chantilly seems to lack a community vibe to me, but all i know of it is Dulles and Route 28/29.

[Anonymous]

Just moved to Lorton (not a city on OPs list but close enough to Burke) after more than 15 years in Arlington and DC proper. It's definitely a big adjustment (my chest still gets tight sometimes driving out in the wide open streets) but I think has been a little easier given that we can't really leave the house much right now. If I had done it in normal times, I'd be MISERABLE.

Pluses: neighborhood does have a pool which will hopefully be open this summer, walking trails, several playgrounds nearby, and it is kinda nice to have ample parking for anything you need in the immediate vicinity. Also I love the physical house and all the space in it which is good since we're all here all the time. We're also walking distance to all of our schools which maybe aren't creme of the crop FCPS but hopefully better than anything we had in DC, plus I will say it is nice not having to worry about the lottery

Minues: there is hardly anybody out and about in our neighborhood, I don't know if this is cuz of winter or Covid or both but I very rarely see my neighbors and there are never kids at the aforementioned playgrounds so we're not really making friends yet. I hope that changes when spring comes and hopefully we get some normalcy. Not having neighborhood restaurants nearby will truly sucks but it seems like my DoorDash is well populated

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I’m in the Chantilly HS district, right on the line between Fairfax and Chantilly. Fair Lakes is right around the corner and has everything you need. Our neighborhood is lovely, has a private pool (but it’s hard to join), parks, walk to all 3 school levels, etc. Really just a nice laid-back place and so much more affordable than closer-in. I don’t feel like we settled at all, and we used to live in Arlington for years.

I can’t speak for further out in Chantilly/Centreville.

Hmm, this sounds like that ugly neighborhood behind Bob's Discount Furniture right off route 50. Glad you have a positive attitude about it. But I would not consider that area "lovely" or "walkable".

Wow, okay. That’s on you then. I live in a perfectly nice neighborhood where the people are very friendly and yes, it is walkable whether or not you enjoy what it’s walkable to. You forgot to mention the Starbucks, Giant, many restaurants, Total Wine, etc. in that same shopping center. But you sound snobby so I’m not surprised you pick the one store you find crappy to deride my neighborhood.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Most people still prefer the schools, parks, restaurants, charn of Arlington to Centreville, Burke, etc.

Lake Braddock and Chantilly are better than any high school in Arlington. Centreville is comparable to the schools in APS.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I'm from Arlington, live in Centreville. I would say FCPS does MS/HS better than Arlington overall and am pleased with the schools. Elementary can be hit or miss but honestly a solid student who is not at risk will be fine at any school in FCPS (or Arlington). There are a bunch of private schools nearby if that's your preference. We went back and forth about where to live after college and jobs/commute were the decision makers. Arlington has its plusses but it's not worth it if you have to deal with the toll road or 66 every day to get to/from work. I would say the reverse is true, too. We would live in a much smaller place in Arlington if we worked there, rather than fight traffic to commute from further out. There are some very family friendly neighborhoods with a lot of kids and young families and some very good small restaurants and bakeries, but you have to look for them. Almost all of the HOA neighborhoods have very nice pools and that's a plus for most families.

+1. I can't think of a high school that underperforms, given its demographics, more than Yorktown HS in Arlington.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Burke: where your minivan is one of thousands in a sea of cars at the shoppers food warehouse parking lot. Everything: library, orthodontist, dry cleaner, is just a 5-15 min drive away. Blink and you’ll miss the strip malls because they are all in these sort of pits so they are not visible from the parkways.#suburbanplanning

Curiously the only thing you can walk to is the pool (center of social universe) or or a slug line (“slug lines: we made driving with strangers cool before Uber”). Enjoy a night out with the DH at your choice of strip mall Italian/Thai restaurants. Bask in the warm security of a community where everyone is basically the same.

Burke: 12 miles/15 minutes* from DC and yet, a world away.

*disclaimer: an hour and fifteen minutes in during rush hour, 6 am-9 pm.

OMG - this describes Burke perfectly

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:We live in Centreville and I was depressed for several years after moving from Arlington. The restaurants are terrible, the parks are AWFUL, frankly a lot of the people are just not as interesting.

This is too bad to hear. I also don’t want to move somewhere with only chain restaurants. Would you describe it like that? Not sure how people are less interesting though.

I can’t believe some of you. Chantilly and Centreville have some of the most plentiful, non-chain ethnic restaurants in the area. If PP thinks the restaurants and parks are terrible, I’m guessing he/she hasn’t tried very hard to find good ones.