Considering taking a job in Belltown/Lower Queen Anne - need info on schools/housing! (Seattle: transplants)

[mattsalad]

Hi! I'm considering moving to the Seattle area with my wife and twin 4 1/2 year olds. Top priority for us is to settle in an area with GREAT public schools within a reasonable commute to the area (reasonable for me is 10-45 minutes each way, the shorter the better). Looking for recommendations from the natives and transplants... here's what we know so far:

- Bellevue/Redmond have fantastic schools, but they're way too far from where my potential job will be

- We'd consider moving to Bainbridge Island, just not sure of the commute, and what I've of read of the public schools on the island so far is not very flattering; is this true?

- We want to own/rent a single family home in a nice neighborhood with a backyard; no attached housing, no overly "urban" feel; don't want to feel like we're living in the thick of the city, much more comfortable in the 'burbs. Where would you recommend we look within a 45 minute radius of Belltown? What schools should we check out or avoid?

I've got a ton more questions, but some direction on the notes below will help us refine our search. We're heading up to Seattle in a few weeks to check it out, would be good to know where to look and where to avoid.

Thanks a ton in advance to whoever happens to respond to this post!

[Ira500]

Bainbridge Island has very good schools. The ferry ride is 35 minutes, but add some time to get to the ferry dock on Bainbridge, and then another 10 ish minutes to get to Belltown. Lots of people do it.
Redmond might be a bit of a schlep to Belltown, but there are some very quick buses to downtown Seattle from Bellevue...Bellevue is physically pretty large, so if you made sure you were pretty close to I-90 on the Bellevue side, that would minimize the commuting pain. And Bellevue does have great schools.
Mercer Island is certainly a lovely place that's a quick commute to downtown Seattle ( Belltown is the northern reach of DT Seattle), and has awesome schools, is pretty, safe, and pleasant. But it is expensive.
There are neighborhoods with Seattle itself that have very good schools. Including Queen Anne and Ravenna/Wedgwood, and parts of West Seattle. But Seattle does have many subpar schools.. The top of Queen Anne is especially nice, and not at all inexpensive..
Most of the city of Seattle is not too urban. Most Seattle neighborhoods have a lot of single family houses and trees. I wouldn't live in Belltown or Capitol Hill or lower Queen Anne if I were trying to avoid the more urban thing, but most other in the city neighborhoods, while they aren't exactly suburbs, are not urban either.
Issaquah is another nice place with good schools.

[tobester]

There are lots of good private schools in Seattle ... then you have your choice of neighborhoods.

[SpikeDurden]

Bellevue is "way too far" of a commute but you're willing to commute from Bainbridge island and take a ferry? Doesn't make sense to me. You can get from downtown Bellevue to downtown Seattle in 15 minutes with good traffic. 30 max with bad traffic. Trust me, Redmond and Bellevue are not too far of a commute if you're working downtown and taking a ferry everyday will be a *****. Bainbridge is nice and quaint but in my opinion would be a giant bore to live. I'd look at the north side and east side suburbs. The east side suburbs have really good schools and are really nice.

[mattsalad]

I'm just talking out of my *ss when I say one place is way too far over another; I've spent very little time up there to date... knowing I could get from Bellevue to Seattle in 15-30 is huge... opens the options up significantly. what about Issaquah? How far of a ride is that? Sammamish? Found some nice places in both...

[mattsalad]

I'm all for private schools, but if they're anything like those in Northern California, I won't be able to afford to send two kids to them. Any idea what the relative price of private school is? I know that's a broad question, just looking for a ballpark.

[SpikeDurden]

Originally Posted by mattsalad

I'm just talking out of my *ss when I say one place is way too far over another; I've spent very little time up there to date... knowing I could get from Bellevue to Seattle in 15-30 is huge... opens the options up significantly. what about Issaquah? How far of a ride is that? Sammamish? Found some nice places in both...

I actually grew up in Issaquah/Sammamish. I can get from Issaquah/Sammamish to downtown Seattle in 30 minutes. 45 minutes with lots of traffic in rush hour. Really not that bad. And it's a great area for families and kids.

Oh and just fyi, Seattleites love to talk about how much traffic there is in the Seattle area but it's really not that bad especially compared to southern California, Chicago, or other metro areas. The longest it would possibly take you to get from Issaquah to downtown Seattle during the very worst traffic is 50 minutes and I don't think that's ever happened to me.

[tobester]

Originally Posted by mattsalad

I'm all for private schools, but if they're anything like those in Northern California, I won't be able to afford to send two kids to them. Any idea what the relative price of private school is? I know that's a broad question, just looking for a ballpark.

Ballpark - elementary $10K, middle/high $15K

Church-based a little less ... the primo schools (Lakeside, Bush) quite a bit more.

[Nell Plotts]

The schools on Bainbridge Island are fantastic. The only complaint I heard from a parent was that his daughter had no interest in academics and they weren't symphetic. They also have strong sports program.

My husband did the commute from the south end of the island to downtown Seattle (the longest commute on the island). The bus schedule synchronizes with the ferry schedule, he boarded the bus 30 minutes before the ferry departure. The ferry takes 35 minutes. The commute, while long, is easy on the nerves. Many a commuter is on wi-fi responding to e-mails, some are on the phone (as a courtesy many go topside), breakfast is available, many chat with their neighbors, the topside lounges are only for silent activities - naps & reading. Some exercise on the topside deck (running is forbidden). It is a very pleasant commute. [One of the sights of the Bainbridge ferry in the morning is the transformation that takes place in the ladies room. There is a mirrored section and places to plug in a hair dryer. Some riders must board in their PJs and depart in heels.]

My only frustration was that getting to the airport isn't the greatest because of hauling luggage to the ferry. For this I recommend a lift from a friend, the local taxi service, or .. the bus. There is a limo service on the Seattle side that many use which does a great job however. I don't know how my experience compares to others going to the airport from north Seattle suburbs. Because you are subject to ferry service I don't recommend Bainbridge if you need flights that arrive after 11PM or before 6AM. That requires a drive-around, I recommend sleeping in Seattle.

[have since retired to Portland]

[Vinylly]

Seattle schools are notoriously bad. Housing in the area are notoriously expensive.