Looking for family-sports-music friendly school districts (St. Louis, Chesterfield: transplants, for sale, cliquey) - Missouri (MO) - City-Data Forum

SC616 · 10-29-2013, 05:16 PM

Moving to St Louis area from CA and we have two teenagers (middle and high school). Please advise if you have any info on the following: Family friendly towns--looking at $500-800k home range. Public schools preferred, since we have always sent our kids to public. Prefer a neighborhood that would welcome us into fold; as opposed to cliquey/harder to meet people. Kids now enjoy basketball, baseball, soccer and horseback riding. Which high schools have active participation in any of these sports? Also, they are now in the school band, but I wasn't sure what the school bands are like there...I realize that much will vary among schools, but am looking for an idea based on any experiences you all have.

Lastly-- the home (most important!!). We do have time to look-many months, so we hope to find a place with 4 bedrooms, a decent sized lot, and a street where the families know one another and look out for each other. Here in CA I have to admit many people don't even really know their neighbors, let alone spend time with them. If you know of any resources also, please let me know. Here are districts we have been researching: Ladue, Kirkwood, Rockwood, Lindbergh. Areas: Creve Couer, Olivette,Sunset Hills, Kirkwood, Wildwood and Chesterfield. Thanks!

SC616 · 10-30-2013, 09:23 AM

I should add that I really love some of the homes in Sunset Hills, but can not seem to find any specifics on this area-good or bad.

zach_33 · 10-30-2013, 09:50 AM

Well, you do have a lot of options with that budget. You are sure to get a lot of opinions regarding which areas are more or less cliquey. To be honest I am sure you can find friendly, welcoming neighborhoods within municipalities that are known for being insular and stand-offish. Ladue and Kirkwood are good examples. Both good areas with great schools, but there are some clear divisions between the astoundingly wealthy and the merely comfortably well-off, and also some clear divisions between the multi-generational natives and the recent transplants. Even so, you can certainly find subdivisions in either municipality where your neighbors are wonderful, friendly, and caring.

Something about your post suggest Chesterfield and the Parkway Central School District to me. There you would find a nationally acclaimed jazz band, as well as division 1 sports of every kind. A very well regarded school district overall, and some jaw dropping homes within your price range (newer, all the bells and whistles). Also nearby to equestrian farms. Just one man's opinion - I might take a close look there if I were you.

MUTGR · 10-30-2013, 10:20 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by SC616

Moving to St Louis area from CA and we have two teenagers (middle and high school). Please advise if you have any info on the following: Family friendly towns--looking at $500-800k home range. Public schools preferred, since we have always sent our kids to public. Prefer a neighborhood that would welcome us into fold; as opposed to cliquey/harder to meet people. Kids now enjoy basketball, baseball, soccer and horseback riding. Which high schools have active participation in any of these sports? Also, they are now in the school band, but I wasn't sure what the school bands are like there...I realize that much will vary among schools, but am looking for an idea based on any experiences you all have.

Lastly-- the home (most important!!). We do have time to look-many months, so we hope to find a place with 4 bedrooms, a decent sized lot, and a street where the families know one another and look out for each other. Here in CA I have to admit many people don't even really know their neighbors, let alone spend time with them. If you know of any resources also, please let me know. Here are districts we have been researching: Ladue, Kirkwood, Rockwood, Lindbergh. Areas: Creve Couer, Olivette,Sunset Hills, Kirkwood, Wildwood and Chesterfield. Thanks!

Your budget will allow you to live pretty much anywhere you want, although on the high end Ladue and Clayton in particular might be a stretch. I personally think the best public districts are Clayton, Ladue, Kirkwood and Parkway, not necessarily in order. I think Lindbergh is pretty good too. Rockwood is probably fine as well, I think Marquette and Lafayette high schools are generally well thought of.

Clayton and Ladue are more pricey. Clayton is more walkable if that's important. Kirkwood has older, but very nice, housing stock. The Parkway district encompasses many municipalities in what is generally called west county, which includes Chesterfield and parts of Wildwood. They have many nicer, newer homes, primarily subdivision living. I don't know about horses - that sounds more like Wildwood to me where you can find really big lots if that's what you want.

I think any of those districts I mentioned would fit what you are looking for, it primarily depends on the type of community you are looking for (i.e. walkable or not) and the age of the home and size of the lot.

SC616 · 10-31-2013, 03:32 PM

thank for the feedback! The Chesterfield area sure has lovely homes for sale, but not sure if a huge high school would be a pro or con...(they have twice as many as we are used to). I do want areas where I can safely walk my dogs> Is that what walkable means? Or are you referring to the distance from homes to stores,etc...?

zach_33 · 10-31-2013, 06:29 PM

mutgr is talking about having schools, shops, libraries in walking distance. Clayton is tops in that category, at least among the areas with excellent schools. Chesterfield is not walkable, but it is as safe as it gets and you would be able to enjoy long moonlit strolls with your dog, since Chesterfield vanilla, upper-middle class suburbia. It has plenty of good shopping you can drive to in short order. Not a ridiculous commute to downtown St. Louis (30 min or so, 40 at rush hour). Parkway Central is very large, though. I guess that could be a drawback. My friends whose kids went there just love to brag on that school though.

I agree that Marquette and Lafayette are also good choices in the Rockwood district, and they cover much of the Wildwood area, somewhat newer than Chesterfield overall, more remote and further out from center city. But I have also heard of some horse farms down there.

Parkway or Rockwood school districts, you can buy a nice house with a little land (perhaps an acre or two, maybe more) on your budget. If you are happy enough with an acre or less, you could move in a little closer to the city and still have the semi-secluded feel while being closer to the action. If lots are more than an acre, you really aren't even probably going to see much of your neighbors - that would be pretty spread out. Town and Country, Frontenac, Ladue, Creve Couer would all be places to look. All would be pricier than Chesterfield on the whole but still in your sweet spot. Plenty of families, some probably nicer than others, but you'd find a circle of like-minded people.

Kirkwood and Webster Groves are two other options you should look into if you like white picket fences and tightly knit communities that are American as apple pie with good schools and excellent amenities. They stand out as different to me from the rest because they started out as free standing towns or maybe just summer getaways for wealthy St. Louisans back in the early 20th century and then morphed into middle and upper class bedroom communities. Tend to have older housing stock (many 100+) and some very extravagant. The larger lots tend to be very expensive, though not really out of your range so you should check those out too.