Best Boston suburb with artsy vibe

[P Larsen]

Definitely not Melrose. Mind you there are folks in Melrose who might want it to be thought of in that light, but not most. Melrose is neither gritty nor artsy. It's mostly just a quiet place with a remarkable circuit of parkland around it that keeps people from wandering in by accident, and people historically have preferred it that way. City government is very much not interested in people who question those in power and expect transparency and accountability, whether Republican (the city used to be a longtime GOP stronghold back in the day, but the GOP ran city government into the ground, so the city turned purple) or Democrat (the powers that be now, in the more recent past posing as good government but in substance still the same protect-the-insiders culture - doesn't matter which party is in power, as it turns out).

[yellowstatus]

Originally Posted by dadicalidea

I'm so glad I posted this question! So much great info! Thank you all so much.

Your responses confirmed my suspicion that there's no single down that meets all the criteria, and that Arlington probably comes closest. I wish there was a better way to get a sense of the school quality aside from GreatSchools ratings; I'm sure the reality is more nuanced. We just want a place where our introverted and somewhat nerdy kids can thrive.

We'll continue to look in Arlington. Unfortunately, inventory is extremely low, a zillion people come to each open house, and the house prices are still outrageous!

Just wait 10 more years and today's outrageous will be tomorrow's cheap.

[jackshaw]

@dadicalidea, I'm sympathetic to your quest. My wife is an artist who studied in Providence and we have lived in Cambridge, New York and Concord (with some stints in the Bay Area as well) over the last many years. We also own a unit in an artists building in Somerville. Our kids went to school primarily in Concord public and private schools.

One question I always have when people ask for artsy is whether they are looking for design-y / indie shops or a community with artists. The Boston area doesn't have lots of pockets of artists. Places to look: Somerville (there are two or three artists buildings, with families living there), Maynard (the mill buildings now have lots of artists working there, not sure there is a live/work place), and Waltham (we have at least one artist friend in a building in Somerville). W. Concord has the Bradford Street building (which I think was undergoing renovation) and the building over the Nashoba Bakery (had some artists) and concord Center has Emerson Umbrella. There are a few very able artists in Concord.

Overall, my wife would say that the intensity that she found when we lived in NY (we were in SoHo when it was edgy but you'd now need to be in different areas) or San Francisco is much more muted than in Boston. San Francisco has galleries like Hosfelt and Berggruen that just don't have an equivalent in terms of ambition or quality in Boston. The galleries here are mostly not that adventurous and many are going to fail (this is happening all over the country) because of economic trends that began before COVID.

For design-y/indie shops, Arlington is pretty good as is Somerville. West Concord has some as well. I don't really know Medford or Melrose, but they are more affordable and hence likely to attract artists and indie stores. There are still some artsy stores in Cambridge, but I suspect that over time they will be priced out (or become very expensive) as rents are no doubt very high. Arlington had more of the "artsy/edgy/crunchy" feel than it does now. Overall high prices drive that out.

Cambridge and Somerville will win on the progressive side of the equation. Cambridge is not nearly so scrappy anymore -- when they ended rent control in Cambridge, it pushed lots of the artsier types to Somerville and now that Somerville has become expensive, further out. Concord is pretty politically liberal in a New England-y kind of way. Does not feel particularly diverse. Lexington has diversity in terms of Asians, who move there for the schools. Acton has significant communities of Indians (my son had some friends there) and I believe Asians. I am honestly not sure if you go farther out if there are any towns with an indie/crunchy feel. Bedford is a little less expensive than Concord but I have not sensed an artsy/crunchy side to it.

West Concord. We lived in W. Concord and we were very happy with Thoreau and CCHS, though both kids have flown the nest so we may be out of date there. Our kids could walk / bike to friends in the neighborhood, go into W. Concord center and buy candy and soda they couldn't have at home and feel independent when they were a little older, and then walk to the train station to go to Cambridge or Boston when they were in high school. A lot less chauffeuring than is required in most places. It is connected to nature. There are easy hikes in W. Concord and you can drive to amazing ones in Concord. It is road cycling paradise. There is a put-in for kayaking in W. Concord. Maynard and Sudbury will also have easy access to the out of doors.

There are houses in W. Concord for $900K but I think the general price level has been rising. If there were an edgier town with good schools, a town center feel, and access to nature, we would have considered moving there. With respect to the SuperFund site, I suspect the ideal move would be to live in W. Concord Village rather than near the site. I believe the drinking water comes from elsewhere.

[welovethewc]

West Concord aka The Village meets all of your criteria! Plus, if your kiddos are in elementary school you will be happy to hear that the local elementary schools are back in person for the majority of the day. If you need a great real estate advisor for this area let me know. Either way, best of luck in your search!

[yesmaybe]

Scrappy is about the last thing I would call West Concord.

[Shrewsburried]

Originally Posted by yesmaybe

Scrappy is about the last thing I would call West Concord.

The barbed-wire surrounding MCI-Concord does cast a certain vibe.

[zoeyjane]

"Your responses confirmed my suspicion that there's no single down that meets all the criteria, and that Arlington probably comes closest. I wish there was a better way to get a sense of the school quality aside from GreatSchools ratings; I'm sure the reality is more nuanced. We just want a place where our introverted and somewhat nerdy kids can thrive."

OP, I would throw in Roslindale and Jamaica Plain in Boston itself. They have a growing art and music scene. Both are diverse and progressive. In both neighborhoods, it's generally safe to walk around and be independent (e.g. hopping on a subway to Cambridge or Copley Square) because there's plenty of public transportation and sidewalks.

You're right that GreatSchools ratings don't really show you anything about the quality of the school. It just shows you how affluent the families are in that town. What you should do is go to the school's website, especially at the high school level and look at the curriculum and extracurriculars available. If your kids are smart and nerdy, they might want to have some AP/IB options and a chance to participate in some favorite activities.

I am personally determined to send my own children to Boston Latin School (BLS), though it's a highly competitive exam and so there's no guarantee. The kids would enter either in 7th or 9th grade. The school has wonderful art and music options: a devoted arts wing with a blackbox theater, band/orchestra practice rooms, photography darkroom, and of course, its gorgeous auditorium has a frieze enshrined with the names of famous alumni. The history behind the school will make any nerd's heart thump a little harder. It includes five signers of the Declaration, Leonard Bernstein (of West Side Story fame), and George Santayana, who founded the school's literary magazine which is still run by students. Not only that, the school is situated in the arts corridor of Boston. Within a 15 minute walk of school (or a hop on the trolley), you will have the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum (literally, right next door to the school), the Museum of Fine Art Boston, Berklee School of Music, the New England Conservatory, the Boston Ballet studios, MassArt, the Hungton Theater, and the Boston Sympathy Orchestra. I was a BLS student, and I have many fond memories of walking over with my classmates and teachers to preview an art exhibit, watch the BSO rehearse, and watch plays at the Huntington during school hours.


Look, I'm not saying Boston Latin School or Boston is for everyone. But I'm sayin' not every family around here is gravitating to a top 25 school district. My husband and I care about education a lot (we got those HYPS creds) but we're really city folk at heart. Before Covid hit, several times a week, we were at a museum, live performance, or cultural festival. It's a life we miss but we're sure it will come back.

If I were you, I would join some local parent listserves and ask people directly (e.g. GardenMoms on TinyHood.) I think there is a neighborhood Facebook group just for Arlington. There's a LexFun group for Lexington parents that anyone can join and they might recommend other nearby towns that fit your criteria. I think your instinct is right--GreatSchools rankings and all that tell you nothing about the school or town culture.

[semiurbanite]

Somerville, Cambridge and Jamaica plain are the only places that will come remotely close to your Berkeley/Madison vibe. There are excellent schools in Cambridge and Somerville with plenty of honors and AP classes, though the schools are more diverse so pay no attention to rankings like greatschools. We are raining a family in Somerville and love it as do so many other families that have recently put down roots here. The 900k price point is the problem though...

[bostongymjunkie]

The only things that usually go with nearly million dollar homes is pretense and passive-aggression--not scrappy. Good luck with that. You might get a fake version of scrappy somewhere. Boston was once a scrappy town, until it wasn't.

[brk330]

Originally Posted by bostongymjunkie

The only things that usually go with nearly million dollar homes is pretense and passive-aggression--not scrappy. Good luck with that. You might get a fake version of scrappy somewhere. Boston was once a scrappy town, until it wasn't.

I'm with you. "Scrappy" made me think of Fitchburg's art scene.