UrbanTurf Reader Asks: AU Park or Cleveland Park?

• June 30, 2009

by Mark Wellborn

In this week’s installment of UrbanTurf Reader Asks, a reader who is relocating to DC with her family wonders if AU Park or Cleveland Park is the better fit.

“My husband recently got a job in DC and he is moving in the next month. I am following with our two boys sometime in September after we sell our house. Our children are elementary-aged, so I have started researching neighborhoods that are good for a young family in DC.

I have narrowed my search down to American University Park and Cleveland Park because of their proximity to public transportation, the quality of schools and the family-oriented homes that each seems to offer. Does one of these neighborhoods better suit my needs than the other? Is there a neighborhood that I am not looking at that I should?”

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8 Comments

1. Brandon Green said at 8:58 pm on Tuesday June 30, 2009:

   Cleveland Park is one of my favorite neighborhoods in DC: great houses, beautiful streets, and amazing restaurants (like 2Amys). Welcome to DC!

1. maria said at 12:12 am on Wednesday July 1, 2009:

   Agree with Brandon. While AU Park is nice, it doesn’t offer quite as much as Cleveland Park. From the Uptown to Palena to the great Italian food at Vace, the neighborhood is great for a young family that wants to live in the city.

1. john said at 10:03 am on Wednesday July 1, 2009:

   forget overpriced cp and au. browse the neighborhoods near north capital. join the movement of progressive white folks, who strap babies onto their chests, migrating to urban dwellings. the typical activities include running, attending farmers markets, getting dragged by rescued dogs, walking vicious looking guard dogs, etc. the schools will provide your children with experience that will grow hair on their chest. the public transportation infrastructure that you desire, you will not find in au or cp because those folks drive and tear up bumpers while badly attempting to parallel park their hybrids. my favorite reason for suggesting the north capital region is due to the abundant access to liquor stores. i haven’t been sober in two years.

1. Tom A. said at 10:41 am on Wednesday July 1, 2009:

   I’d really recommend Capitol Hill.  There’s so much more diversity there, and the cluster school program is a big hit with white middle-class parents.  And it feels like a wonderful urban neighborhood with great parks and great amenities like Barracks Row Harris Teter, and Eastern Mkt.  Those other areas feel more like suburbia to me, but I haven’t spent much time in either.

1. kate said at 10:46 am on Wednesday July 1, 2009:

   Right on, John!

1. John2 said at 12:01 pm on Wednesday July 1, 2009:

   Don’t neglect Takoma Park, MD.  Slightly fewer ammenities but FAR superior public schools and easily HALF the home cost.  And, TP has an estamblished reputation as friendly to young families. Plus it’s Metro accessible.  The only thing TP lack is a Starbucks, which is only a mile south on Piney Branch with a good Safeway.  Plenty of close organic outfits too if you’re into that.  Roscoe’s pizza is superb!

1. smatter said at 9:48 pm on Wednesday July 1, 2009:

   With young kids you really should be considering lower montgomery county… Takoma Park for one but Bethesda as well.  Contrary to popular belief downtown Bethesda is not all teardowns and $2 million mansions.

   You can get classic comparables to AU and CP that are near the metro, affordable, and you get some of the best schools in the nation to boot.

1. Double Trouble said at 11:21 pm on Saturday July 4, 2009:

   If you value education and expect to use public schools, please perform additional research.  Living in the city is convenient, but the Cleveland Park Schools are not great, even by DC standards and the AU park schools are merely good by DC standards.  Note that DC has repeatedly been found to have the worst schools in the country. So what is good in DC is not close to what would be considered good in most other places

   We are moving to Fairfax County, VA because of this issue, but as the previous poster pointed out, Montgomery County in MD is another option.  I would strongly suggest moving to either of these locations over DC.