Woodstock

Located 30 miles from Atlanta, Oak Grove offers proximity to a large fresh lake, historic downtown areas, highly rated schools and contemporary homes. “Oak Grove is between Woodstock and Acworth, which both have nice downtown areas with local businesses and community events. Residents are also close to Lake Allatoona, great schools and medical centers,” says Shawna Merrill, a Realtor with Coldwell Banker and Woodstock local who has served the area for four years. Depending on their position in this sprawling suburban neighborhood of almost 20,000 homes, residents can choose to Acworth or Woodstock to find a concentrated space for events and amenities. The neighborhood is comprised of planned developments on gridded streets, though there are properties on quieter, forested streets in the northern part of the neighborhood. Homebuyers can find ranches and rustic Cape Cods built in the 1970s and 80s with shaded grass yards for about $350,000. “There are a lot of new developments that tend to bring a lot of new families with young children,” Merrill says. Newly built three-bedroom townhomes in modern designs sell for around $370,000. Single-family New Traditional homes built within the last 10 years usually sit on landscaped lots, priced between $450,000 and $550,000. The northern edge of Oak Grove borders Lake Allatoona, a popular reservoir with 270 miles of shoreline. Locals and tourists enjoy boating or swimming in the lake’s freshwater or fishing for native species, which are stocked annually. Within the neighborhood, residents can find sandy beaches at Galt’s Ferry Park and boat launches at Kellogg Creek Boat Ramp and Harbor Town Marina. The marina also has a floating gas island, so boaters can easily refuel on lake days. Residents can enjoy an adventurous staycation along the lake at Payne Campground. The neighborhood also hosts one of the most heavily used athletic parks in Cherokee County. Hobgood Park offers baseball and softball diamonds, batting cages, tennis courts and a playground. Blankets Creek Bike Trails features over 15 miles of volunteer-maintained mountain bike trails for every skill level. Students are zoned to the Cherokee County School District, which is rated as the 10th best school district in the Atlanta area. Kids can begin learning at Sixes Elementary and advance to Freedom Middle. To finish, students can attend Woodstock High. All three schools earn A-minus ratings from Niche. The high school offers career learning pathways for students to begin developing career skills. Pathways include nutrition and food science, computer science, graphic design/ communications and cloud computing. Large supermarkets, like Walmart and Lidl, stock groceries and household essentials. A collection of retailers can be found at The Outlet Shoppes at Atlanta, located 3 miles east of the neighborhood. To shop at locally owned boutiques and other retailers, residents can head to downtown Acworth or downtown Woodstock. “Both downtown areas have unique, local restaurants and coffee shops. Plus, Woodstock has an open container law that allows people to carry alcoholic drinks as they walk around,” Merrill says. Downtown Woodstock has restaurants like Century House, which serves elevated American dishes in a historic home. The Woodstock Coffee Company offers seasonal iced lattes and breakfast sandwiches. 1885 Grill in Acworth serves seafood and steak. There are seasonal community events in downtown Woodstock, like a costumed trick-or-treat event with downtown merchants called Ghouls Night Out. Residents can kick off their holiday shopping and drink festive cocktails during the Holiday Sip and Shop. Woodstock also hosts a summer concert series at the Northside Hospital-Cherokee Amphitheater. Historic downtown Acworth hosts the Acworth Art Fest in April, which showcases artists from across the country, as well as food from local vendors. During the holidays, Acworth has visits from Santa and the Light Up Main Golf Cart Parade. Sidewalks are rare in this sprawling suburban neighborhood, and there is no public transportation. Residents depend on personal vehicles to drive to work and run errands. Georgia State Route 92 runs through the neighborhood. “Oak Grove residents only need to drive about 10 minutes to merge onto Interstate 75 and Interstate 575,” Merrill says. These interstates take residents 12 miles to Marietta and 30 miles to Atlanta.

If education is a priority, then moving to the Sandy Plains area of East Cobb is a smart choice. The public schools here are so well regarded that locals often reference the local high schools to explain where they live. “People will say, ‘I live in the Lassiter school district,’ or ‘I live in the Sprayberry school district,’” says Victor Rodriguez, a Realtor and creator of ‘Living In Atlanta, Georgia’ YouTube channel. “People move here for the good schools and for the community. Because of the quality of schools, there are a lot of families with kids. So, people have that in common.” The wealth of parks in the area are popular gathering spots and residents enjoy proximity to plenty of shopping centers. “Sandy Plains is a road in East Cobb. Anything around there is referred to as the Sandy Plains area. It’s a small area. It’s about a tenth of East Cobb,” says Rodriguez, who lives in the Sandy Plains area. “Off of Sandy Plains Road, there are a bunch of neighborhoods, but Sandy Plains Road is all commercial.” Located less than 10 miles from downtown Marietta, those looking to move here will largely find traditional two-story homes with two-car garages built in the 1980s and '90s. However, there’s a smattering of more recent builds to choose from as well. “This is an established area,” Rodriguez says. “It’s been developed for a long time, so there’s not a lot of new construction.” Houses here typically offer 2,000 to 3,000 square feet of living space and rest on sizeable lots of at least a quarter-acre with mature oak and maple trees that are common to the area. The average sales price hovers around $500,000. Costs can range from $350,000 to well over $1 million, depending on size and condition. “In the last 60 days, I would say the average days-on-market is five to seven days,” Rodriguez says. “Things sell quickly. It all goes back to the schools.” Public school students may attend Davis Elementary, Mabry Middle, and Lassiter High. Part of the Cobb County Schools district, the middle and high schools earn A Niche grades, while the elementary school scores an A-minus. In addition to its stellar academics, Lassiter boasts a nationally recognized marching and concert band. “All of the schools here are really highly rated,” Rodriguez says. Outdoor options abound in the Sandy Plains area. At Noonday Park on Hawkins Store Road Northeast, soccer games take place on the park’s 12 soccer fields, people walk their dogs along the trails and BMX bikers catch air on the dirt jumps. Harrison Park on Shallowford Road offers a playground with a 60-foot-long zipline, 16 tennis courts, and multiple baseball fields to catch a little league game. “It’s a suburban area for people with kids. What people do for fun is attend their children’s extracurricular activities,” Rodriguez says. “Parks are very popular. There are so many parks around that area. If parents get a free day or night. We go to Atlanta or downtown Marietta.” Residents have access to plenty of nationally known chains along Sandy Plains Road. At Sandy Plains Centre, locals can stock up on groceries at Kroger, get a massage at Massage Envy or take a Pilates class at Club Pilates. For dining out, try Yeero Village for traditional Greek cuisine like lamb-stuffed gyros and grilled octopus. Other local favorites on nearby Canton Road include Marietta Fish Market for seafood and Ray’s Donuts, a family-run business. Pro tip: get there early because by noon their doughnuts are almost always gone. Interstate 575 traces the western edge of Sandy Plains, making for an easy 23-mile commute south to downtown Atlanta. Locals are also just 9 miles east of Roswell and 6 miles southwest of downtown Marietta via Sandy Plains Road.