Moving to DC Area from Westchester, NY, Want a Different Vibe...Where Should We Definitely Avoid?

[Anonymous]

Definitely look at Reston. It's a diverse and active community. There are over 50 miles of walking paths that are heavily used, lakes, lots of treed properties. We bought in Reston a couple of years ago and could easily find lots that were quarter to half acre. There are 2 metro stops, plenty of restaurants, 15 pools, lots of tennis courts.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I’m from Westchester and I live in Bethesda. I think you will find a tremendous amount of diversity here, it is quite multicultural and very educated. There is a lot to do, a lot of nature as well. It is close to DC also. Bethesda has many different areas, check out all of the different ZIP Codes: 20814, 20816, 20817.

Avoid Potomac like the plague, you will absolutely hate it.

My extended family live in Westchester and I agree with this. I do think that potomac has a lot of racial and ethnic diversity but no economic diversity (it is also far out of the city). Our county-based school system just does not create the same type of bubble as the small independent town systems that westchester has. If you want racial diversity and don't care about economic diversity Walter Johnson HS or Bethesda-Chevy Chase HS clusters would be a good area to target. If you want racial and economic diversity buy in-bounds for Blair HS (I'd look at houses zoned to Takoma Park MS.

Why are you moving and how old are your kids? My friends and family who live in westchester county seem to have almost private schools. If you are used to a town-based system, I doubt you will prefer our large county-based system. Schools are huge. Bureaucracy is huge. Most decision-making is made at the county level rather than school level so curriculum, etc. is very prescibed and one size fits all.

OP here. Economic diversity is important - that's a big reason we're moving. Kids are in elementary, and we really have not been impressed with the schools in Westchester, so I'm sure we'll be fine with the county-based system.

Economic diversity is important but you are going to spend a million + on a house? Ok then.

[Anonymous]

Try Arlington, but not “North Arlington.”

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I’m from Westchester and I live in Bethesda. I think you will find a tremendous amount of diversity here, it is quite multicultural and very educated. There is a lot to do, a lot of nature as well. It is close to DC also. Bethesda has many different areas, check out all of the different ZIP Codes: 20814, 20816, 20817.

Avoid Potomac like the plague, you will absolutely hate it.

My extended family live in Westchester and I agree with this. I do think that potomac has a lot of racial and ethnic diversity but no economic diversity (it is also far out of the city). Our county-based school system just does not create the same type of bubble as the small independent town systems that westchester has. If you want racial diversity and don't care about economic diversity Walter Johnson HS or Bethesda-Chevy Chase HS clusters would be a good area to target. If you want racial and economic diversity buy in-bounds for Blair HS (I'd look at houses zoned to Takoma Park MS.

Why are you moving and how old are your kids? My friends and family who live in westchester county seem to have almost private schools. If you are used to a town-based system, I doubt you will prefer our large county-based system. Schools are huge. Bureaucracy is huge. Most decision-making is made at the county level rather than school level so curriculum, etc. is very prescibed and one size fits all.

OP here. Economic diversity is important - that's a big reason we're moving. Kids are in elementary, and we really have not been impressed with the schools in Westchester, so I'm sure we'll be fine with the county-based system.

Economic diversity is important but you are going to spend a million + on a house? Ok then.

Right! If you want economic diversity head to a low income section of Alabama or Ohio or Arizona and really show them a different view of the world. Westerchester -> suburbs wont change a thing economically. Your claims to love diversity is obviously pathetic lip service and virtue signaling and it's genuinely contemptible.

[Anonymous]

^*Westchester -> DC suburbs

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:^*Westchester -> DC suburbs

Yeah, if you really like segregation and want to pay high taxes to perpetuate it.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Arlington

+1

Only area that matches everything you're looking for.

+2

It sounds like everyone on this thread is from Maryland? North Arlington is the answer here.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Takoma park strikes me as more like Brooklyn without the amenities.

It’s not at all like Brooklyn.

[Anonymous]

OP sounds like she’s looking for a unicorn. She wants accepting diverse neighborhood with great schools no snobs and a million $ home. Hmmm.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:OP sounds like she’s looking for a unicorn. She wants accepting diverse neighborhood with great schools no snobs and a million $ home. Hmmm.

No, she is not. Takoma Park and Silver Spring fit her bill

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I’m from Westchester and I live in Bethesda. I think you will find a tremendous amount of diversity here, it is quite multicultural and very educated. There is a lot to do, a lot of nature as well. It is close to DC also. Bethesda has many different areas, check out all of the different ZIP Codes: 20814, 20816, 20817.

Avoid Potomac like the plague, you will absolutely hate it.

My extended family live in Westchester and I agree with this. I do think that potomac has a lot of racial and ethnic diversity but no economic diversity (it is also far out of the city). Our county-based school system just does not create the same type of bubble as the small independent town systems that westchester has. If you want racial diversity and don't care about economic diversity Walter Johnson HS or Bethesda-Chevy Chase HS clusters would be a good area to target. If you want racial and economic diversity buy in-bounds for Blair HS (I'd look at houses zoned to Takoma Park MS.

Why are you moving and how old are your kids? My friends and family who live in westchester county seem to have almost private schools. If you are used to a town-based system, I doubt you will prefer our large county-based system. Schools are huge. Bureaucracy is huge. Most decision-making is made at the county level rather than school level so curriculum, etc. is very prescibed and one size fits all.

OP here. Economic diversity is important - that's a big reason we're moving. Kids are in elementary, and we really have not been impressed with the schools in Westchester, so I'm sure we'll be fine with the county-based system.

Economic diversity is important but you are going to spend a million + on a house? Ok then.

Right! If you want economic diversity head to a low income section of Alabama or Ohio or Arizona and really show them a different view of the world. Westerchester -> suburbs wont change a thing economically. Your claims to love diversity is obviously pathetic lip service and virtue signaling and it's genuinely contemptible.

OP doesn't need to head to Alabama, Ohio or Arizona to find economic diversity. She can find it right here in MoCo.

# 1& 2 in socioeconomic diversity are right here.
https://wallethub.com/edu/most-diverse-cities/12690

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Do you have kids? If not, Old Town (although I think the schools are fine, others will disagree)

. The schools are not good.

+1 Old Town schools suck, plus everyone is rich so...

Def avoid Great Falls, McLean, Tysons, Falls Church, Vienna, Bethesda.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:OP, the good news for you is that there are no distinct towns here so you are not as enclosed in a bubble as you are in Westchester. Many school pyramids pull from a wide geographic area so it's hard to find an area that is exclusively lily white (with the exception of the Whitman and Churchill pyramids in Bethesda/Potomac). There's also just a lot more diversity in the area. I have family and many friends in Westchester, mostly in Bronxville, Pelham and Rye, so I know what those are like and there is really so similar vibe here.

I haven't read this whole thread so I'm not sure if any one has already pointed out that Churchill is not "lily white". Sometimes I don't think people posting have actually ever had students in these schools that they comment on. If you look at the most recent Churchill profile, you'll see that Churchill is less than half white (46.7% white). It is a popular misconception that Churchill is mostly white.

https://www.montgomeryschoolsmd.org/departments/regulatoryaccountability/glance/currentyear/schools/04602.pdf

I also think someone up thread had actually suggest that BCC would be more racially diverse. BCC is actually whiter than Churchill with a 57.6 % white student population.

https://www.montgomeryschoolsmd.org/departments/regulatoryaccountability/glance/currentyear/schools/04406.pdf

OP - just take what you read here with a grain of salt and fact check any comments like these.