Relo from Boston – urban mom wants it all

[ocrenter]

[quote=SD Realtor]My suggestion would be to come and rent for awhile and get to know the city. Taking a description from an internet blog can be helpful but I would not limit myself to it. I also know plenty of transplants that wanted one thing when they came out and when they spent time here, they ended up locating in parts of the county that they never even thought about. You may find that you are enchanted with a north county coastal area or want the Poway schools after you spend time here. Nothing wrong with taking walks on the beach every day or two.

Spend some time, check it out, then decide.[/quote]

agree, we were from OC originally and we rented for several years when we moved to SD (a little more than planned due to the bubble). We logged a lot of miles and drove all over town. We would drive to a potential neighborhood, get out the jogging stroller, and just walk the neighborhood for an hour to really get the feel of the neighborhood. Just renting for 6 month to a year would be quite enough to give you a chance to to really understand the various neighborhoods and get a much better feel for where you ultimately would like to be.

you’ll get a better sense of traffic flow as well. that’s huge if you will be commuting.

lastly, use http://www.wunderground.com, they actually break down the local weather down to the local weather stations. it is amazing that some locations are always 5 degree hotter on hot days and also 5 degree colder on cold days compared to locations just minutes away. Sabre Springs in north county/RB area is one of these examples.

[scaredyclassic]

Eldest homeschooled till hs
middle got the urge for ps last year and went to 8th grade
little one still being brainwashed at home in family culture.

[Anonymous]

scardey,

Are your homeschooled kids enrolled in a charter school?

Did you know that you are a Buddhist?

[scaredyclassic]

Charter school, yes, p/t all of them since I think 04 or 05.

We tried to raise them catholic but they turned out to be absurdists.

[scaredyclassic]

Ever since reading Josh dienstag’s 2006 award winning book “pessimism; philosophy ethic spirit” I have identified myself proudly as a pessimist. Should be a religion.

[sjglaze3]

You can come close to having it all, but in a lot of cases it’s luck rather than careful planning. I’m a single mum in South Park – Bohemian, walking neighborhood, kids riding bikes to friends’ houses etc – and was fortunate a good charter school moved in a few blocks from the house (Albert Einstien Academy). Luckily the kids got in. There’s also the VEEP program so local kids get the chance to attend La Jolla schools with free busing, although that is threatened every year with budget cuts.
have to agree with other posters though, rent before buying. San Diego is not the East Coast – very different vibe, values, etc.

[protorio]

I would move here, rent, and apply to the charter schools and see where you get in. Einstein (Golden Hill), Co-op (Linda Vista), Museum School (Banker’s Hill) provide what the OP’s looking for. Then you might be able to live in an “urban” neighborhood in North Park/Normal + University Heights/South Park. These are good places for people who want the aesthetics of city life. Those neighborhood’s home prices are no where near rents, though. I think they’re really inflated.

That being said, I was very skeptical when we moved to La Mesa last year. And I’m surprised how much I like it – walkable downtown, custom houses, progressive community, Trolley, 10min. to downtown/airport, pretty much connected to the diverse urban core, but separate and quiet when you need it. Schools are excellent. I also like Allied Gardens, Rolando, and San Carlos in terms of value – but there’s little walk-ability there. Still great neighborhoods.

[afx114]

As a recent buyer on the border of North Park/South Park, and as a recent father, we couldn’t be happier. Though we’re not yet at the point where we are considering schools (that’s 4 years away), everything else about this hood has been amazing. I can walk one mile north to hit the vibrant North Park restaurant/bar/craft beer/boutique scene, or I can walk one mile south to hit the same in South Park. We’ve got gourmet burgers (Station Tavern), sushi (Zensei), Mexican (El Take It Easy, Ranchos, Sombreros, Saguaros), French (Madeline’s), Chinese (Wangs), sausage factory (Linkery, not Congress), seafood (Sea Rocket), breakfast joints (Big Kitchen), fine dining (Urban Solace is UH-MAY-ZING), coffee shops (Santos, Rebeccas), ice cream shops, boutique shops, book stores, toy stores, wine bars (Rose), beer bars (Hamiltons, Stone, Toronado), dive bars (Bar Pink, Whistlestop), night clubs, etc all within walking distance. Many of these said establishments (Linkery, Station Tavern, Toronado, Sea Rocket) are family/baby friendly. A surprising amount are dog friendly (I’ve seen dogs literally belly up to the bar at the Whistlestop). If craft beer is your thing, 30th Street is the epicenter of the craft beer explosion in San Diego. All of this is within a 10-20 minute walk.

I see lots of families on bikes, lots of kids, lots of strollers, lots of joggers, and lots of dog owners at all hours of the day and night. I see lots of people tending their gardens. Everyone is friendly. Lots of old homeowners who have been in their houses for 50+ years, but also lots of young hipsters. A Friday night in South Park looks like San Diego’s version of Portlandia. And I’m seeing lots of 3/2s and 2/2s recently hovering around the high 400s. So it’s definitely in your price range if you look hard enough.

We’re 5 minutes from Balboa Park and the Zoo, and 10 minutes from Downtown/Airport. I work from home, and take the little one to her grandma’s house down in Chula Vista two days a week, and it takes me about 40 minutes to drive down there and back in both the mornings and evenings. Not bad. The only thing we lack that I wish we had was a trolley line going down 30th/University/Park. If I had that I’d probably ditch my car.

Hit up urbanrealtor, he knows his stuff about these areas. He did us good. But renting in any area for a while before you purchase is always a good idea.

[bearishgurl]

WOW, afx!! Great post! I’ve got biz on Park Blvd once a week for the next five weeks so will have to get down there and see these things for myself! I’ve been “asleep at the switch” down here in “Leave-it-to-Beaver” slow-moving Chula Vista and it seems whenever I have a free few days I leave the county for points north :=0

I remember caroling in South Park and Burlingame before X-mas in the “olden days” and it was baby and dog-friendly then but what you are describing now sounds amazing!!!

[bearishgurl]

I saw in Albertson’s last night that SD Magazine had an article 10 reasons to Love San Diego.

I thumbed thru it in the checkout line and one of the 10 reasons was that the City offered the most “school choice” in the nation!

http://www.sandiegomagazine.com/media/San-Diego-Magazine/February-2012/10-Reasons-to-Love-San-Diego/

[an]

[quote=bearishgurl]I saw in Albertson’s last night that SD Magazine had an article 10 reasons to Love San Diego.

I thumbed thru it in the checkout line and one of the 10 reasons was that the City offered the most “school choice” in the nation!

http://www.sandiegomagazine.com/media/San-Diego-Magazine/February-2012/10-Reasons-to-Love-San-Diego/%5B/quote%5D
Uh, we’re #4, not #1. Even at #4, we only got a B-. You might be happy with a B- but I’m not. I would put Louisiana at the top of the list for School choice.

[bearishgurl]

[quote=AN][quote=bearishgurl]I saw in Albertson’s last night that SD Magazine had an article 10 reasons to Love San Diego.

I thumbed thru it in the checkout line and one of the 10 reasons was that the City offered the most “school choice” in the nation!

http://www.sandiegomagazine.com/media/San-Diego-Magazine/February-2012/10-Reasons-to-Love-San-Diego/%5B/quote%5D
Uh, we’re #4, not #1. Even at #4, we only got a B-. You might be happy with a B- but I’m not. I would put Louisiana at the top of the list for School choice.[/quote]

Uh, guess I didn’t have time to read it thru. AN, lol. Given the after-effects of Katrina, I can understand why LA would have the most school choice, but why don’t you think SD residents don’t have enough school choice? I think probably close to half of the students residing in SDUSD do NOT attend the school in their attendance area.

UCGal sounded kinda pessimistic about her kid(s)’ chances of being picked to attend HTM. As she knows, you can’t “win” a spot if you don’t apply for it.

And what’s wrong with Standley MS and UCHS? Last time I looked (albeit not recently), these were very good schools.

edit: sorry, I first directed my reply to UCGal. It was actually AN who read the article.

AN, what’s wrong with the schools in MM? I thought they had been high-scoring in recent years?? And why don’t you think your kid will be able to “choice?”

[UCGal]

UM… BG… AN posted that bit about Louisiana. Not me. (Just saw you edited it to correct.)

To your other point… I live in the UC cluster -so Standley MS and UCHS are always an option. They look great on paper… but my experience has been that API’s don’t tell the whole story.

I’ve had friends with kids with very good experiences at those schools- and friends who’s kids failed to thrive there. One pulled her son from Standley to go to Roosevelt. Not convenient – but a better fit for her son.

(My other friends who’ve choiced into Roosevelt live closer and had crappier (on paper) neighborhood middle schools.)

HTM is one option. As you’ve noted – it seems to line up with my kids strengths and interests. Why not apply? Improves the odds infinitely (from zero to greater than zero)

But they get so many more applications than have slots available – according to the website – 4 times the number of applications than spaces… 25% odds are not the best.
http://www.hightechhigh.org/admissions/HTH-AdmissionsFAQ.php#I_won_t_be_able_to_attend_an_information_session_at_the_HTH_village_where_I_intend_to_apply__Can_I_attend_one_elsewhere

[an]

[quote=bearishgurl]
Uh, guess I didn’t have time to read it thru. AN, lol. Given the after-effects of Katrina, I can understand why LA would have the most school choice, but why don’t you think SD residents don’t have enough school choice? I think probably close to half of the students residing in SDUSD do NOT attend the school in their attendance area.

UCGal sounded kinda pessimistic about her kid(s)’ chances of being picked to attend HTM. As she knows, you can’t “win” a spot if you don’t apply for it.

And what’s wrong with Standley MS and UCHS? Last time I looked (albeit not recently), these were very good schools.

edit: sorry, I first directed my reply to UCGal. It was actually AN who read the article.

AN, what’s wrong with the schools in MM? I thought they had been high-scoring in recent years?? And why don’t you think your kid will be able to “choice?”[/quote]
For all the same reason why I think LA have the most school choice.

Go here to see LA’s school choice law/program description:
http://www.edchoice.org/School-Choice/State/LA.aspx

There’s nothing wrong with MM school. Their scores have been going up in recent years, but that’s neither here nor there. It’s irrelevant to the topic of school choice. Even if I live in the coveted Carmel Valley, it wouldn’t change the face that we don’t have enough choice.

[bearishgurl]

[quote=AN]…There’s nothing wrong with MM school. Their scores have been going up in recent years, but that’s neither here nor there. It’s irrelevant to the topic of school choice. Even if I live in the coveted Carmel Valley, it wouldn’t change the face that we don’t have enough choice.[/quote]

AN, I don’t think it’s irrelevant to those who already live in an attendance area of good schools and are complaining they have little school choice.

It could be compared to the employee who complains that a lesser-qualified person was hired over them for a promotion that they themselves didn’t apply for.

AN, what school choices would you LIKE to have that you don’t feel your child could “choice” into (within SDUSD)?

And have you made application to “choice” into any schools outside of your attendance area??

You must realize that once your child reaches HS, his/her school choices will be greater, no??

And you must also know that HS grades (grades 10-11) are the only grades considered for public college admission purposes in CA … right?

[Author]

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