Byeford / Chevy Chase view neighborhood

[Anonymous]

I read on this forum that the Byeford/Chevy Chase View area has a lot of right leaning families living there who send their kids to Catholic school. Can anyone clarify what the boundaries of this area are, roughly? I was raised Catholic but am not practicing now, nor am I politically conservative, and will be sending my children to public schools so I'd probably rather not live in this type of neighborhood where the kids all go to private schools, though I am interested in Kensington generally for location and small-town neighborhood feel.

[Anonymous]

The majority of families in Byeford/CCV send their kids to Holy Redeemer -- which is located right in those neighborhoods (the neighborhoods border each other). Lots of people who graduated from HR end up moving back to those neighborhoods to raise their families --- so you have grandparents living in one house and adult children with their kids living in another -- and everyone knows each other. It's a tight knit, cliquey area. The families are Catholic and conservative (during the last presidential election the Wash Post had a map of the county and highlighted the CCV area as the most consistently conservative area in the county). Full disclosure: I don't live in K-town anymore, but I went to HR K-8. I love the neighborhoods for the large homes with character and the small-town feel. BUT I couldn't live there. I'm a bleeding heart liberal and I'm not into gossip. I don't live there and I know way too much about families who live there thanks to the K-town grapevine. HR is a beautiful church and we still go there for mass. The school is so-so from what I've heard (I know people who switched their kids to BS and other privates; I also know some who switched to public and are happier (but they live in Parkwood, which is slightly less conservative and less cliquey -- but lots of HR folks live there as well).

[Anonymous]

Is Holy Redeemer not as welcoming of a school to children who do not live in the immediate neighborhood? I'm AA and considering the school. We live in North Kensington.

[Anonymous]

I would go visit the school when it is in session and closely scrutinize whether or not there is true diversity. CCV and Byeforde are not diverse neighborhoods. The vast majority of families are white and Catholic. If you can't wait until school is in session (ie: if you plan to make your decision this summer), then I suggest asking to see the yearbook from last year. Question: Do you live in OTES district? If so, I can tell you FWIW that folks have left HR for OTES and are pleased.

[Anonymous]

I'm the OP. Thanks for the ex-insider view. So is Parkview also fairly conservative? How about the rest of Kensington further to the north?

[Anonymous]

We live in North Kensington. I get a much more liberal vibe here.