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Social neighborhoods Bethesda/Chevy Chase/Potomac?
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Anonymous
| Hi -- my husband and I are looking to relocate and would like to find a neighborhood with a real community spirit. One where neighbors are friendly and socialize together and where there are lots of kids. Any suggestions? Thanks in advance. |
Anonymous
| Great question! |
Anonymous
I should add we are specifically looking only in Bethesda/CC/Potomac due to commuting constraints. Thanks. |
Anonymous
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Georgetown is becoming an amazing place to raise kids. Lots of play groups, great nursery programs, parks, music classes, concerts and family events in the parks, etc.
I lived here for many years without kids - went to work everyday and knew few people. But now with kids, it's a real community. We love it. |
Meconbear
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| AU park is overflowing with families and kids. We have a regular dinner with neighbors (take out for all) every Friday night. We see lots of block parties in the summer. The two parks, Turtle Park and the smaller Ft. Bayard Park are always full of kids and Turtle Park has a great May Fair and Halloween parties for the neighbors. I see my neighbor's kids running around in nicer weather and it makes me feel nice that there's a place where parents still let their kids play outside on a regular basis. |
Anonymous
PP - I am interested in Gtown for the same reasons - everyone keeps telling me its a "scene" - I think, implying snobbery and such - do you agree - or is there a good mix? |
Meconbear
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| I haven't been impressed with the moms I've met from Georgetown (OK, full disclosure I've only hung out with 3). They do seem really snobby and have this holier than thou attitude about living in the city (trashing people in CC as unfriendly and hicky until I told them that I live there). That said, I'm not going to trash the entire neighborhood because I talked to three insecure jerks. I would think the logistical downside would be enough. I worked in G'town for a few years and the traffic is a nightmare and the houses that are anywhere near the university suffer from the effects of the student population: noisy weekends and sometimes vomit on your front stoop. If you're looking for close-in city 'hoods (which this mom is not) I'd much rather look at Woodley or Cleveland Park. |
Anonymous
| OP, I see you are asking specifically about Beth/CC/Pot. We live in the Town of Somerset in Chevy Chase. 10 streets, our own mayor and town council, a community pool, great elementary school, lots of young families. |
Anonymous
| Chevy Chase DC. Lots of families - sidewalks - friendly neighbors - alleys that are improntu playgrounds and meeting places. It is considered the more friendly than Chevy CHase MD maybe because it isn't quite as expensive and elitist and because the houses are closer together. Although I really like somerset as PP suggested. |
Anonymous
| Somerset is great for families. Barnaby Woods in CC, DC is also overflowing with kids and a very fun social area. |
Anonymous
I think there's a great mix in Georgetown and I've lived here for ten years. It's a mix of lots of old people who have lived here forever (get ready for lots of stories about the Kennedys), tons of young professionals, lots of new young families, and some students. I live about six blocks from the university and have no problems with students. Those problems are rare (unless you choose to live next to campus or down by M Street) now that the university built its new dorm. Anyhow, to answer your question, I don't think it's a scene at all. There are some very wealthy and famous people like most of the neighborhoods mentioned here. But most people are not like that - and people are really friendly. You can walk outside your house and say hi to all your neighbors - it's not like we have big yards and fences and go everywhere in cars - we walk and therefore we get to meet lots of people. I love walking to the supermarket or the coffee shop - we walk everywhere. It's a great sense of community and people really do look out for each other. My kids are exposed to all sorts of people and everyone knows them by name. I'm sure that you could move here and go to tons of elite parties and get your picture in Washington Life, but I hardly know anyone like that. It exists but you have to go looking for it. PS: parking is fine on my street, traffic is relatively easy, and I don't use my car that much anyhow. I can't tell you how nice it is to walk to the bank and supermarket and nursery school - if I need to go downtown, I hail a cab at my corner. It's great to live in the heart of the city but have parks and trees all around. Anyhow, sorry, I know that OP is looking for info on different neighborhoods, but I had to defend G'town. It's a great place for families! |
Anonymous
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Chevy Chase West! It is directly north of Somerset, which a PP already noted. Great community with lots of neighborhood activities (Halloween Parade, 4th of July Parade etc), a huge park with 2 playgrounds plus fields, walking distance to downtown Bethesda, Bethesda pool, or Chevy Chase DC.
You honestly could not pick a better neighborhood on the globe for raising a family, IMO. CCW is the neighborhood between Somerset to the South and Bradley Blvd to the North. On the west side of Wisconsin. |
Anonymous
| Check out Wood Acres, off Mass. Avenue in Bethesda. It's full of kids, there's an elementary school with a great playground/park in the middle, and the community has a 4th of July bike parade, a Halloween parade, a house tour, etc. It's wonderful for families with kids, and the houses are well-built and adorable with tons of trees. |
Anonymous
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People in Georgetown think the people in Chevy Chase are hicks?!! *snort* Come to my neighborhood and meet the genuine article!
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Anonymous
| OP here. Thanks for all of the recommendations! |