Safe, vibrant neighborhood great for working from home?

[DoubleZ OTP]

Originally Posted by SuddenlySouthern606

Hi, midcareer female professional here. Looking for a great, safe neighborhood close to dining/coffee shops for lunch breaks working from home. Want to feel safe walking around the block. Ideally close to parks/greenery. Because I work from home I don’t have to hop in the car much except for errands or social excursions.

I love walkable neighborhoods (coming from Chicago), but Midtown didn’t feel right to me. Virginia-Highland okay but a little grungier than I expected as far as their mom-and-pop retail districts. Inman Park felt a little too transitional. So now I’m looking further north.

Thoughts on Peachtree Hills, Morningside, Collier Hills, Chastain Park, Vinings? (I’ve been told to avoid Phipps/Lenox and Lindbergh due to crime). Vinings seems a little far if I want to do in-town activities but looks nice.

Also curious where the young/mid professional transplants land in Atlanta.

Thanks for your help!

Hello again, SuddenlySouthern606

Hi, midcareer female professional here. Looking for a great, safe neighborhood close to dining/coffee shops for lunch breaks working from home. Want to feel safe walking around the block. Ideally close to parks/greenery. Because I work from home I don’t have to hop in the car much except for errands or social excursions.

Noted

I love walkable neighborhoods (coming from Chicago), but Midtown didn’t feel right to me. Virginia-Highland okay but a little grungier than I expected as far as their mom-and-pop retail districts. Inman Park felt a little too transitional.

Midtown is generally considered to be the most walkable "intown" neighborhood in Atlanta, and the Eastside Beltline neighborhoods (Va-Hi and Inman Park as well as Old Fourth Ward, Poncey-Highland, and Reynoldstown) are close behind. Furthermore, Midtown and the Eastside Beltline neighborhoods (within a half-mile or so of the trail itself) are typically considered to be among Atlanta's most upscale and desirable "intown" neighborhoods. Unfortunately, if you are intent on living in the city, you're not really going to find other neighborhoods that come close to meeting your criteria of walkability and safety (except for maybe Buckhead Village, but calling that area walkable is a stretch, and it seems as if you've gotten the impression that Buckhead is less safe than Midtown/Va-Hi/Inman Park, which is almost certainly false).

Thoughts on Peachtree Hills, Morningside, Collier Hills, Chastain Park, Vinings?

Vinings seems a little far if I want to do in-town activities but looks nice.

Peachtree Hills, Morningside, Collier Hills, and Chastain Park are very nice, largely safe neighborhoods, but they are not walkable. These neighborhoods are close to parks and walking paths, but they do not allow for "walkable" access to restaurants, coffee shops, etc. These are "suburban" neighborhoods consisting almost entirely of single-family homes. Additionally, these neighborhoods mostly cater to families with kids.

Vinings is also nice. Vinings is the most walkable of the neighborhoods you mentioned (particularly the Vinings Village area at the intersection of Paces Ferry and Paces Mill), but calling Vinings "walkable" is still a stretch. Furthermore, Vinings is located relatively far away from central Atlanta in Cobb County, and Vinings typically caters to wealthy empty-nesters.

You will almost certainly need a car for most trips in any of those neighborhoods. They are not worth looking into given your criteria, IMO.

I’ve been told to avoid Phipps/Lenox and Lindbergh due to crime

Lindbergh is definitely the more dangerous of the two. I'd call the neighborhood "sketchy" but not necessarily dangerous. It's not that nice, and it's not particularly walkable. You can definitely do better.

The Phipps/Lenox area, I'd say, is still a safe neighborhood for the most part. It's definitely not any more dangerous than Midtown is (though the malls themselves do have significant problems with theft, etc.). However, it's not an especially walkable area. Not worth it.

Also curious where the young/mid professional transplants land in Atlanta.

Atlanta is very much a city and region of transplants, so the answer to your question is: almost everywhere. But high-income professionals typically gravitate towards Atlanta's north side, especially the 400 corridor (Buckhead, Perimeter area, East Cobb, North Fulton, South Forsyth, West Gwinnett) and more recently, "intown" neighborhoods like Midtown and the eastside neighborhoods stretching into DeKalb County. Younger professional transplants are typically attracted to the "intown" and eastside neighborhoods as well as the southern end of the 400 corridor (Buckhead and Perimeter area) whereas older transplants and transplant families with kids are more drawn towards the distant suburban areas (East Cobb, North Fulton, South Forsyth, West Gwinnett).

So now I’m looking further north.

Good call. This is where you will find most of the Atlanta region's safest and most "professional" neighborhoods. In the suburbs north of Buckhead, however, walkable neighborhoods are few and far between.

If you're willing to give up proximity to central Atlanta and its offerings, there are a few neighborhoods in suburbs north and east of the city that come close to meeting your criteria. As you don't seem to be fond of Midtown and the Eastside Beltline neighborhoods (the "intown" neighborhoods with the best combination of walkability and safety), this is a logical next step (if you're intent on moving to the Atlanta region, that is).

There are a few neighborhoods for you to consider, which consist of suburban "town centers":

1) Downtown Decatur. Downtown Decatur (the area around the MARTA station) is pretty walkable (on par with some of the Beltline neighborhoods) and there are lots of restaurants, coffee shops, etc. You could go car-free in Decatur is you wanted to, and the city is a quick MARTA ride away. It's safe (almost certainly safer than Midtown, Buckhead, etc.). The neighborhood is increasingly affluent and professional.

2) Alpharetta City Center/Avalon. This area is extremely safe and very affluent, to the point of feeling sterile. Walkability is about as good as it gets for a distant Atlanta suburb (which is just okay). Everything is new and luxurious. There are lots of restaurants and cafes in the area. There is no "riff-raff" around there, which may be ideal for you. The neighborhood leans more towards wealthy empty-nesters than young professionals. Unfortunately, Alpharetta is far away from Atlanta, there is no good public-transit access to Atlanta, and you would almost certainly need a car.

3) City Springs/Downtown Sandy Springs. This area is very safe, with many restaurants and cafes. Walkability is just okay. It's not too far from Atlanta. There are MARTA buses, and MARTA trains are a short drive or Uber ride away.

4) Marietta Square. It's safe, and it's decently walkable. However, it's pretty far from Atlanta with inadequate to nonexistent public transport. There is limited multifamily and attached housing within walking distance of the square, unfortunately. You would need a car.

Also worth considering are:

- Downtown Chamblee along Peachtree Blvd
- Brookhaven Village (Dresden Drive near the MARTA station)
- The Battery (next to Truist Park in the Cumberland area)
- Historic Roswell (Canton Street area)
- Suwanee Town Center
- Downtown Woodstock

And possibly consider:

- The Downtowns of Norcross, Duluth, and Sugar Hill in Gwinnett County
- Crabapple/Downtown Milton in North Fulton County
- Avondale Estates near MARTA
- Trilith in Fayette County

[JMatl]

^Post of the Month, B2R!

[Further North]

I get the desire to want to be closer to the city core, but if you're working from home that really opens you up to living anywhere in the Metro area. Especially if you're not finding the areas you've visited so far to be very appealing.

I'm a transplant to the area myself and I've been living in Alpharetta for the past year. Both Alpharetta and Roswell are safe areas with lots of shopping, restaurants, etc. Roswell especially has a very charming downtown full of restaurants.

You may want to look into either the Avalon or Halcyon communities as well. Both are the whole "live, shop, play" developments but they fit the bill for being able to leave your home office and take a stroll for coffee or lunch during the day. They both have luxury apartments, town homes, and SFHs surrounding restaurants, bars, shops, a movie theater, etc. However I will say that Avalon is more shopping orientated (Whole Foods, Apple Store, West Elm, etc) and Halcyon is smaller but has more restaurants and bars.

I've also been told that The Battery by Truist Park (The Braves Baseball Stadium) is also a similar format.

[Tarzanman]

Originally Posted by SuddenlySouthern606

Hi, midcareer female professional here. Looking for a great, safe neighborhood close to dining/coffee shops for lunch breaks working from home. Want to feel safe walking around the block. Ideally close to parks/greenery. Because I work from home I don’t have to hop in the car much except for errands or social excursions.

I love walkable neighborhoods (coming from Chicago), but Midtown didn’t feel right to me. Virginia-Highland okay but a little grungier than I expected as far as their mom-and-pop retail districts. Inman Park felt a little too transitional. So now I’m looking further north.

Thoughts on Peachtree Hills, Morningside, Collier Hills, Chastain Park, Vinings? (I’ve been told to avoid Phipps/Lenox and Lindbergh due to crime). Vinings seems a little far if I want to do in-town activities but looks nice.

Also curious where the young/mid professional transplants land in Atlanta.

Thanks for your help!

The closest you'll get to a walkable Chicago type neighborhood are small sections of Buckhead and maybe slivers of Sandy Springs.

I'm not sure how long you've been here, but Midtown comes into its own in the spring. IMO, there are few places around the metro as nice or vibrant than the Ansley/Midtown/VaHi/Emory corridor in the spring.

[hungryhippy]

Buckhead Village (corner of West Paces Ferry and Peachtree Road) or Brookhaven Village (along Dresden Drive) have what you are looking for.