Looking for a Nice Neighborhood to Call It Home!

Hi,
We live in Maple Leaf which is about 6 miles north of downtown.. In 2000 -2002 we live in S. everett.. I am so thankful to live closer to seattle I never worry about traffic.. we are a few miles from Greenlake, northgate ect.. I think maple leaf is more afordable than ravenna and wallingford.. We walk to parks and coffee shops.. I am not sure about schools I heard they are o.k. but my oldest is in kindergaten at King's in shoreline a private christan school that I went to when I was a kid. There is a mix of older people with younger familes which is so much fun. I rarely take the freeway I am so close to everything. If money were no object my dream neighborhood would be Broadview area they have such beautiful views and still close to the city but for now I am so happy with where we are located :)
Best of luck,
Lenci

Hi K., we live in Lake Forest Park, which I think is the best suburb nobody talks about. We are in the shoreline school district and I have heard really great things about both of the lake forest park elementary schools. My daughter will start kindergarten next year so I can't speak from first hand experience about that. Shoreline is a good district, but not super great like northshore or bellevue.

What I can talk about is the community hear. We have lived here for eight years and this is a really great place to live. The location is ideal. Pretty easy commute to either side of the lake (my husband used to work downtown Seattle and now works in Bellevue and has also done the redmond commute as well. The flexibility to easily take a job on either side of the lake is really nice.

The town center here is really something special. It is truly a community gathering place with kid friendly activities, music, as great book store, good food and a place to meet and interact with your neighbors. It is walking distance from many parts of town and they are currently starting major renovations to the whole shopping center. Most houses in town also come with deeded rights to one of the two beach clubs that for a reasonable annual membership fee you get private beach access on lake washington and another great social network to meet other parents in town and for kids to meet and socialize with other kids in their neighborhood.

I also like that it has a quiet and serene feeling that I just don't feel in other neighborhoods.

Can you tell I love it here?

Great question, K.-- . I am a retired teacher ( retired from Northshore schools) IN MY EXPERIENCE AND IN MY OPINION___ Northshore, Lake Washington and Bellevue are the best school districts in the Puget Sound. There are brilliant, commited teachers in other districts- but Northshore by and large is best. Seattle School District is not nearly as good- 30 years of poor financial situation has taken it's toll ( again- there are schools that can be the exception- but by and large- Seattle is not nearly as good) That isn't just my opinion -- when Northshore students move to other districts - there have been SCREAMS of dismay from parents saying '''' wait, this isn't NEARLY as good ---;''''''' --- yes, we know.

Shoreline District is ok, Edmonds, Mukilteo - - ok -- Lake Stevens --- spotty-- . ( and again- there are schools that can be ''the exception'' - but that has been my experience- and I've taught for 40 years.

Blessings-
J.

Shoreline is a great area, K.. Very good schools. (I have one in 2nd grade and one in kindergarten.) There isn't a formal downtown shopping district, but it has everything you could possibly want within a few minutes drive. You have the big stores like Costco, Fred Meyer, and plenty of Starbucks, it also has many locally owned, reputable businesses in North City, Richmond Beach, and along Aurora. There are many parks (beaches and skate parks included), reasonable housing, a forward-thinking city government, well-run youth sports programs, a great rec center, a new YMCA, good libraries, low crime, easy access to the main thorough-fares of Highway 99, I-5, and Lake City Way. When there is little traffic, I can be downtown in 15 minutes. When there is lots of traffic, I have multiple drive options from the main thorough-fares, through Ballard along 15th Ave. N.W. or even through Fremont.

Shoreline is consistantly named one of the best places to live by Seattle Magazine.

Good luck!

K. - You are in a really nice area. I know, I live there! My son goes to Mill Creek Elementary, and it scored a 10/10. I don't know what Penny Creek Scored, but you may be able to do a transfer if you are really not satisfied with your school. Also, we are in the Everett School District. The best scores in the state are Nortshore, so that would be North Bothell or Kenmore. You could move a bit closer to "downtown" Mill Creek so you are closer to Mill Creek Towncenter.
Personally, I love the area we are living in! There is a fabulous water park, Silver Lake, Everett Mall and you can travel 20 minutes and be in Seattle or 20 minutes and be in Snohomish, right in the middle of everything. There is low crime, and this area isn't as developed so I still feel like I am in a small City as opposed to being suffocated in Seattle.
HOWEVER!!! Some girlfriends of ours just bought a house in Shoreline and it's beautiful, close to the water, and closer to the city. BUT, they paid about $600,000. Ouch
Good Luck, L.

You want to stay north of downtown,or east, for sure. I would personally avoid seattle because of taxes and the school district, but the northern seattle schools aren't as bad as the southern ones. Northshore schools, mukilteo, and bellevue I've heard are the best.

For neighborhoods, I'd choose wallingford, ravenna, bryant, laurelhurst, montlake, sand point, and some parts of shoreline, bothell, mill creek, or mukilteo.

Let me know if you have any other questions, I grew up in seattle and am pretty familiar with most of the surrounding areas. Good luck!