Crofton/Bowie vs. West Springfield/Burke

[Anonymous]

DH works in Bowie/Crofton and I work near the S side of Bolling AFB. We have a 5 month old son, are planning on having more, and are starting to look for our 30 year house. Ideally something with a yard etc. The big contenders right now are Bowie/Crofton (to minimize overall commute time, less expensive houses) and West Springfied/Burke (my commute is shorter, better schools, less isolated).

Other options are Alexandria proper (we could afford a very small house west of old town) but we don't want private schools (not sure how their public are?) and the Huntington/Belle View etc. area (but not as good schools there, not as good an area??).

I would love some help from people who know the area better!

[Anonymous]

If you want good public schools then West Springfield/Burke seems like your best option. Especially if you don't want to move again when the kids are past elementary school.

[Anonymous]

If you do decide the Bowie/crofton area definitely go with crofton over Bowie. Bowie is pg county schools and not good. Some of the elementary schools in Bowie are OK but not the middle or high schools.

[Anonymous]

Agreed. Avoid Crofton/Bowie - PG county schools are terrible.

[Anonymous]

We live in Bowie and love our home and community...but would never go to the public schools...private is what makes sense. You kind of have to decide your trade off...larger home for better price but have to pay for private school or smaller more expensive home in a good public school district.

I can say, however, Crofton is a different and better school district than Bowie.

[Anonymous]

OK. PP here. Cross off Bowie in favor of Crofton (in general we prefer public schools). What about lifestyle? Parks, things to do with the kids, the different types of suburban life they offer? Thanks guys.

[Anonymous]

Burke here, it's a great neighborhood with excellent schools (I'm partial to Burke Centre, only because I live there). But you have to consider your quality-of-life if you're having to commute into Maryland each day. I commute into DC, but my location is transit-friendly and I can get there within 30-45 by slugging, bus, VRE, etc. If you're driving into Maryland each day, that commute could wear down on you. Fast. Soon enough your child (children, eventually) will be in school, and you'll want to have greater flexibility. If you can telework often-enough, that's a good balance. Otherwise, I'd be hesitant to live in Burke but commute each day to Maryland. But I could be wrong, it'd be interesting to hear from others here that do make the commute each day.

FWIW overall, though, I love Burke. It's very family-friendly, the neighborhood is great with so many amenities, and the schools are fantastic.

Good luck to you!

[Anonymous]

I live in PG county and think that despite what the extremely biased MoCo and NoVa slant of DCUM that the Crofton school district is mediocre. It isn't bad and it isn't the strongest. It's a fine school system and I know plenty of kids from the area that got a decent education and went to good colleges.

I personally think that if your DH works in the Bowie/Crofton area that it would be a HUGE mistake to move to the Burke/W Springfield area. Unless you like feeling like a single parent. The commute may be a reverse commute, but you are talking a hideous commute. You have to deal with the Wilson Bridge and the SE portion of the Beltway and US-50 twice daily. While it may not be as bad as the mixing bowl, it is still not a good commute. Your DH is likely to be getting up early enough that he will be no help in the mornings and not getting home until the kids are in bed or close to it. So, he'll be a weekend parent and you will be handling 95% of the weekday parenting. Google says that the trip takes about an hour. On a typical weekday with commutes anywhere in the vicinity of the rush hours and he will be lucky to make the trip in 90 minutes each way. Also, in the summer, US-50 can get worse around weekends and holidays as he'll be hitting beach traffic on top of regular traffic.

I would definitely take the lower housing and COL for PG County, save up the difference for a few years and put your kids in private school. I think the entire family will do much better that way. We have a much better house for a lot less than our friends in MoCo. We greatly appreciate our under-30 minute commute and would hate to be spending that type of time away from our kids trying to commute from a better school district and we'll pick schools for our kids when they are of school age.

[Anonymous]

Have you considered Alexandria? I don't know what the schools are like, there - maybe someone can chime in.

Ditto about Huntington area.

[Anonymous]

What private schools in Bowie are recommended?

[Anonymous]

Holy trinity in Bowie is pretty popular. We also know several people that go to Key school from Bowie but that's actually in Annapolis. Bowie Montessori is another choice.

[Anonymous]

I would do Crofton instead of Bowie. Being in Anne Arundel County gives you better schools (at least for elementary and maybe middle school), better services, better reputation, etc. There are many parks, libraries, kid's play places around. And you'll be kinda half way between Wash and Balt for weekend activities. And then the money you save in a housing price and COL as compared to Virginia you can use if you need it for private school later. Just be sure to do your research as to what neighborhoods to live in for the best schools in Crofton area. You might even want to consider Davidsonville area (the part off rt. 424 to the north of rt. 214).

[Anonymous]

Crofton is very suburban, but it's a nice area. Schools don't compare to the best of the best, but they are fine. I agree with the person who suggested Davidsonville, and even Crownsville (if you are looking for a big house). Stay away from PG county (bowie) if possible.

[Anonymous]

Bowie town center is very nice. Heather Hills is probably the top school in that area for elementary. Look it up... scores are great and it is a TAG center. For HS, you'd definitely have to do private. Bowie/Mitchellville has some nice areas, but you might want to live a little further out.

I actually live close to Burke/Springfield, but I'm thinking you probably should not live in this are if you think your husband's work location is going to stay in Bowie/Crofton for a LONG time. Better to be close for school activities, sick calls, dr. apptmts, etc. If you think his location might change, then it's worth considering West Springfield.

The public schools in City of Alex./Fort Hunt are not what you are going to be impressed with. People send their kids to private when they live in Old Town. The Rt. 1 corridor is unfortunately a lot of apartments and lower income units. The best in that area -- which might work for you -- is Waynewood (and there is another elementary that starts with an "S" -- can't remember the name), down south of Ft. Hunt, in the Mt. Vernon area. This might work for the commutes. But, truthfully, you'll get a lot more house further out in Md.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Have you considered Alexandria? I don't know what the schools are like, there - maybe someone can chime in.

Ditto about Huntington area.

PP 20:48 here again. Unfortunately, Alexandria and Huntington really are not much better than Burke or West Springfield (commute-wise). The worst parts of the commute are the Wilson Bridge, the interchange where I-295/US-210 meet the beltway and US-50 east. The portion of the commute between Burke and Alexandria is simple compared to the rest of the commute.

It's up to the OP to decide if schools are more important than quality of life, but I think the family's quality of life will be pretty low if the father has to commute from West of the Wilson Bridge to Bowie/Crofton daily. You can choose to make sacrifices for schooling, but I think everyone in the family will be happier with the easier commute, more family time, lower COL/home prices and private schooling. Just my 2 cents, but unless DH is willing to change jobs, I don't think anything in VA is a realistic option.

FYI, I work in Lanham, which is about 20 minutes closer to VA than Bowie/Crofton and my coworkers who live in VA have a horrible workday/commute. One leave home at 5:30 AM to get to work by 7AM so that he can beat the traffic and leaves at 3:30 and is at the top of the afternoon rush and it sometimes takes him 2 hours to get home. Another hates that it takes 2 hours each way to come in at roughly normal business hours. Do you really need a 12.5 hour work day just for a 8.5 hours of standard work?