possible move to Annapolis.. need info, please!
Julia-Henry
member
Hi ladies, I hope you're not too snowed under today 
I'm looking for info about moving to Annapolis. Dh is looking at a job there. He's been (once), I never have (although I know DC well). Anyway, dh was interested in things like restaurants and waterfront and downtown. I need to know about more practical things like neighborhoods and family activities and commute times...
Can you tell me which neighborhoods are good for families? safe, fun, etc?
And what about family activities? Are the beaches good? if so, which ones?
Finally, there is a possibility that I would be working in Baltimore. How is the commute, in terms of actual traffic? And if I have to commute out of Annapolis, are some neighborhoods better than others?
Do you like Annapolis? WOuld you choose to live there if you could?
Many thanks!
Re: possible move to Annapolis.. need info, please!
Hi!
My husband and I live in Annapolis. We just moved here a little over a year ago. We absolutely LOVE it! I can tell you that most of Eastport (a town in Annapolis) is very nice. Especially a private neighborhood called Hillsmere Shores. If you live there, you get a residential sticker for your call that allows you access to a private beach and playground. Also, it is next to a HUGE park that has a dog park, fields, water, ice skating, etc.
It only takes about 25 minutes to get into downtown Baltimore from here. It is very commute friendly!! I would never choose any other place to live but here. Let me know if you have any other questions.
Kim
We live in Annapolis too- my DH got a job here 2 yrs ago this summer & he relocated here while still in grad school @ the Univ. of MD in College Park. I am from Baltimore originally, so I am familiar w/ Annapolis and was super excited to move here. I lived in NYC for 6 yrs prior.
We rented in Eastport for a yr prior to buying our house. We rented a cute little duplex that was walking distance to downtown Annapolis (aka DTA), as well as lots of greats places to eat, etc. in Eastport. We loved Eastport but couldn't afford anything that was big enough/livable in the main part of Eastport (walking distance to DTA) so we broadened our search and found a house in the community of Saefern, which is past the mall and an Annapolis zip code, but not in the city of Annapolis if that makes sense. We are probably 15 minutes closer to Baltimore than places that are off Forest Drive (like Hillsmere, Bay Ridge, Black Walnut Creek, which are all great little neighborhoods.) On the other side of the Severn (but still considered Annapolis) there is a large neighborhood called Cape St. Clair that has a lot of affordable homes, good schools and good amenities- also I think that the commute from there to Baltimore might not be as bad as dealing w/ Forest Drive.
We are in an amazing parents group called the MRE Moms and Dads. You can google it for their website. MRE stands for Maritime Republic of Eastport. We love it & have made a lot of friends through it- there are playgroups, happy hours, holiday party, mocktail cocktail party for moms to be, moms nights out, dads nights out, etc.
I think there are lots of things to do in Annapolis- lots of free concerts @ City Dock in the summer.
Regarding neighborhoods- depending on your price range I would look for communities (like mine, Hillsmere, Bay Ridge, Cape St. Clair and plenty of others) that have community waterfront & docks and maybe pool, etc. Our neighborhood has a pool, docks, tennis courts and stables. I know Hillsmere has a beach, pool, docks (w/ waiting list I believe) and I think tennis courts? The neighborhood @ the end of the little peninsula we live on is called Epping Forest and they have a club house, beach and docks.
Regarding the beaches- I think that Hillsmere's & Bay Ridge's beaches on the Chesapeake Bay are nice- and I would swim in the Bay, but I wouldn't swim in the Severn too much.
I think that those type of amenities are great for resale value and when people are moving to the area they get really excited about having water access.
Emas who posts here occasionally lives in Annapolis, too and I believe anonsouthernbell does as well.
We've lived here for almost 4 years, in the aforementioned Hillsmere, and really like it a lot. Our neighborhood is nice - fun before we had kids, and great after, too. There's a pool, a beach and playground (with neighborhood happy hours each month in the warm months), a marina, and we're right next to Quiet Waters Park, which has concerts during the summer, a skating rink during the winter, and about 6 miles of walking/jogging/biking trails. A friend who lives here commutes into Balto., and says that it is not bad. If you'd like more info on the neighborhood, feel free to PM me.
If you move into a neighborhood without water access, you'll probably need to join a beach/pool/yacht club, because there really aren't any public beach areas aside from one state park that gets VERY crowded on nice days.
My husband and I have lived in the Arnold area since 06. We are expecting in April and although the condo we bought only has two bedrooms our community has lots of yard space, play parks and lots of places to walk the many neighborhoods.
We are also very close to Broadneck Park, which has dog parks, walking/ biking trails, playgrounds, horse barns and plenty of sports fields. The schools are good in this area as well.
Communities to look into are between Bay Dale and Cape Saint Clair off of College Parkway. There is a variety of houses, condo's, and townhouses to choose from.
Shopping & restaurants are an easy 15 minute drive to Annapolis or Severna Park. Lots to choose from, plenty of variety.
I commute to Baltimore daily from Arnold. Not a bad drive, about 35 minutes and you have plenty of different routes to choose from in case there is an accident or volume.
Good luck!