Atlanta, GA - Emory residence/child care filter

February 15, 2013 12:41 PM

I am starting grad school at Emory U in Atlanta in the fall and am moving there from the northeast with Spouse and 1.5 year old toddler. I am wondering where is best to look for non-university housing (which neighborhoods are best) and child care (child care being our main concern). Thanks in advance, hivemind!
posted by anonymous to grab bag (9 answers total)

I can't speak to safest or best, but I want to recommend CLOSEST! Atlanta public transportation is seriously lacking and the traffic jams are stuff of nightmares. It is not a normal city in the sense that it is set up in a walkable grid. You want to be near where you have to go to avoid long commutes.
posted by ejazen at 1:14 PM on February 15

I have some info on Decatur child care centers. Feel free to PM me.
posted by FergieBelle at 1:17 PM on February 15

Emory alum here. I'd recommend Decatur or Druid Hills.

Atlanta traffic is bad but Emory's suburban location shouldn't make it that bad. To give you a reference, I lived in Dunwoody just inside the Perimeter when I was an Emory grad student and the commute wasn't bad at all.
posted by Tanizaki at 1:22 PM on February 15

Welcome to the ATL!

I recommend Decatur and Druid Hills. There are tons of apartments in the area.

If you live in Decatur, you'll be close to Your Dekalb Farmer's Market.

I like For Rent for a good listing of Apartment Complexes.

If you Google, Apartment Complexes Briarcliff Rd, you'll get a nice list in the North Druid Hills area. (where they have a Kosher Krogers with a Kosher food court and Rabbis on duty!)

Decatur is an adorable, funky kind of place. Judging by the large number of doggie day cares, I'm sure there are plenty of Kiddo Day Cares too.

Either way, you'll find affordable housing in a very pretty environment.

There are tons of rental properties and they are all pretty well kept and inexpensive! Most don't ask for a deposit ($250 Moves You In!)

If you want me to drive you around and point out my favorite haunts, MeMail me and we can meet up.
posted by Ruthless Bunny at 1:52 PM on February 15 [2 favorites]

For what it's worth (which might not be much), we lived here when my wife was at Emory for grad school 20 (!) years ago. Easy to get to from the interstate, nice enough, close to school, and lots of fellow grad students all around us.
posted by MrMoonPie at 2:04 PM on February 15

Nthing Decatur and Druid Hills.... Great neighborhoods, lots (LOTS) of young families.... easy to find housing that is walkable to tons of stuff. Glenn Memorial Methodist (the church on the Emory campus) has a wonderful preschool program....I'm not sure how young they accept but it is considered very good.... Lots of other churches with good programs close by as well. And, in my neighborhood, Emory undergrads are always available to Nanny or babysit so that may be an option. I live close so memail me too if you want more info... And Welcome!!!
posted by pearlybob at 2:43 PM on February 15

> at Emory U in Atlanta

Emory isn't really "in" Atlanta, certainly not the way Georgia Tech or Georgia State U are in Atlanta. Emory is sort of betwixt and between Atlanta and Decatur in a bubble of its own. If you can by any manner or means find a place in the neighborhoods close by Emory, they are quiet and hilly and have big old houses in good repair (many with rentable garage or basement apartments) and huge numbers of great big old trees. If I had to return to Atlanta for some reason and had my choice of any living location at all, Emory/Druid Hills would be my first choice. With the amount of time you've given yourself I'd say you have quite a good chance of finding something you'll be sad to leave when the time to leave comes.
posted by jfuller at 4:27 PM on February 15

In Atlanta, there are a lot of websites (e.g. ProMove that will get you into a corporate-owned apartment complex, if that's what you're after. If you'd rather rent a house, then your best bet is Craigslist (other than driving around and looking for yard signs).

In Atlanta, the key is minimizing your commute. Recommendations above to look in Decatur or Druid Hills are accurate, but I'd also recommend looking south of Ponce as well as farther west of Emory. Candler Park, Virginia Highlands, Poncey Highlands, and Inman Park are all fantastic neighborhoods with a lot of character and a lot going on. These are all easy commutes to Emory, depending on the exact street you take. I used to live in Poncey Highlands, and my commute was 8 minutes to the Peavine parking deck by taking back roads. At rush hour.

For me (at the time, mid-20s single male) it was a no-brainer to live there. Druid Hills is almost 100% residential--it's just a lot of houses, and kind of sleepy. Given that you have a kid, this may be exactly what you want. However, it also means you will almost certainly have to drive to go to any commercial establishment. The neighborhoods there tend to be a grid of streets with sidewalks of varying quality. Parks are a little sparse, in my experience, but maybe I'm not looking in the right places. Morningside is a similar neighborhood you might consider, also close to Emory and mostly residential. Very safe.

Poncey Highland, Inman Park, and Candler Park are all at the intersection of the existing Freedom Park/Path trail and the brand new, very popular Beltline Eastside Trail. Freedom Park is a large park filled on any nice day with small crowds having picnics and individuals throwing tennis balls for their dogs. There are a lot of commercial establishments sprinkled in between the houses in these neighborhoods--I lived a block from a grocery store, and there were at least 10 bars and restaurants, all with patios, within a safe 10 minute walk of my house. (Poncey Highland was previously Creative Loafing's best neighborhood in Atlanta, as have Inman Park and Virginia Highland.) And it was an 8 minute drive to Emory.
posted by wondercow at 5:05 PM on February 15 [1 favorite]

> In Atlanta, the key is minimizing your commute.

Oh, amen to that.
posted by jfuller at 5:26 PM on February 15 [1 favorite]