West Central Winchester holds Handley High, John Kerr Elementary, Glen Burnie and the Abrams Creek Wetlands Preserve, all in ZIP 22601.

Last checked Oct. 19, 2026. The area and its boundaries are the City of Winchester’s West Central planning area from its 2022 Comprehensive Plan (Chapter 11). School zones, parks and bus stops come from the city’s open GIS data; ratings from Virginia’s School Quality Profiles; home values from the Zillow Home Value Index (Zillow Research); stores and road distances from OpenStreetMap (© OpenStreetMap contributors).

West Central is the largest of Winchester’s 10 planning areas by land: the residential west side between Amherst Street and the Winchester and Western Railroad. It holds John Handley High School, John Kerr Elementary, Glen Burnie and the Museum of the Shenandoah Valley, and about 1,800 of the city’s 16,729 address points.

What this means for you

  • High school: John Handley High School, 425 Handley Blvd., inside the area, rated Distinguished
  • Elementary: John Kerr Elementary for most addresses; part of the area is in the Quarles zone
  • Typical home value, ZIP 22601: $349,952 in September 2026, according to Zillow
  • Nearest I-81 exit: Exit 313 (U.S. 17, U.S. 50 and U.S. 522), about 2 miles by road

Where it is

The city’s plan draws West Central north of the Winchester and Western tracks, west of Valley Avenue and Stewart Street, and south of Amherst Street (U.S. 50), out to the city line on the west. Handley Boulevard, Meadow Branch Avenue and Jubal Early Drive cross it.

The plan describes low-density single-family houses, the Abrams Creek wetlands and a Green Circle Trail spur, the Glen Burnie open space and four schools. It names two possible community hubs: the former hospital site and the regional museum. One of its development ideas is new building along Meadow Branch Avenue.

Every address is in ZIP code 22601 and in City Council Ward 1, on the city’s voting wards map.

Schools

Every city student goes to the same intermediate, middle and high school. Only the elementary school depends on the address. On the city’s School Districts map layer:

School Grades Share of area addresses State rating
John Kerr Elementary, 427 Meadow Branch Ave. Pre-K to 4 About 74% Approaching Expectations
Garland R. Quarles Elementary, 1310 S. Loudoun St. Pre-K to 4 About 23% Meets Expectations
Virginia Avenue Charlotte DeHart Elementary, 550 Virginia Ave. Pre-K to 4 About 3% Meets Expectations
Daniel Morgan Intermediate, 48 S. Purcell Ave. 5 and 6 All Approaching Expectations
Daniel Morgan Middle, 48 S. Purcell Ave. 7 and 8 All Approaching Expectations
John Handley High, 425 Handley Blvd. 9 to 12 All Distinguished

All seven city schools are Fully Accredited. John Handley High’s framework score is 99.36, the highest in the division. The map layer is undated, so check one address with the division’s WebQuery lookup or call Winchester Public Schools at 540-667-4253. Our schools guide has every rating and how to register.

Home values

The Zillow Home Value Index for ZIP 22601 was $349,952 in September 2026, up 1.1% from $346,046 in September 2025. Zillow’s index for Winchester as a whole was $398,946, up 1%. The index is a modeled typical value for the middle third of homes, not a sale price, and one ZIP covers the whole city. Our home prices guide has the trend.

Parks and trails

  • Abrams Creek Wetlands Preserve, West Jubal Early Drive, about 25.6 acres, on the city’s parks map
  • Green Circle Trail: the city’s trail map shows more of the built loop in West Central than in any other area, including the stretch past Glen Burnie and the Museum of the Shenandoah Valley.

Our parks and trails guide has the full loop and the city’s park hours.

Getting around

  • Interstate 81: Exit 313 (U.S. 17, U.S. 50 and U.S. 522) is about 2 miles by road from the middle of the area’s homes; Exit 315 (Route 7) is about 3.2 miles.
  • Downtown: the Loudoun Street Mall is about 1.6 miles by road.
  • Washington Dulles International Airport: about 54 miles by road.
  • Buses: the Loop Route stops on Valley Avenue at John Handley High School and on Amherst Street at Westside Station, Linden Drive, the Museum of the Shenandoah Valley and Boscawen Street, according to the city’s bus stop map. The Laurel Ridge Route stops at Handley and the Shihadeh Innovation Center in the fall and spring semesters.
  • On demand: WinReady rides cover the whole city.

Distances are measured on the road network with OSRM routing on OpenStreetMap data. They are distances, not drive times. More in our getting around guide.

Groceries and everyday stores

From OpenStreetMap:

  • CVS Pharmacy, 1725 Amherst St.
  • Walmart Supercenter, 501 Wal Mart Drive, just outside the city line in Frederick County

How we built this

The boundary is the one the 2022 Comprehensive Plan gives in words; we drew it on the city’s own street and rail lines. School shares count the city’s address points inside each elementary zone on the city’s map layer. We do not name individual subdivisions or describe who lives in an area.

Related guides: all Winchester neighborhoods, moving to Winchester and property taxes.

Frequently asked questions

What schools are in West Central Winchester?

John Handley High School, 425 Handley Blvd., and John Kerr Elementary School, 427 Meadow Branch Ave., are both inside the West Central planning area.

What elementary school serves West Central Winchester?

About 74% of addresses are in the John Kerr Elementary zone, about 23% in the Garland R. Quarles Elementary zone and about 3% in the Virginia Avenue Charlotte DeHart Elementary zone, on the city’s School Districts map layer. Check one address with the division’s WebQuery lookup.

What parks are in West Central Winchester?

The Abrams Creek Wetlands Preserve on West Jubal Early Drive, about 25.6 acres, and the Green Circle Trail, which runs past Glen Burnie and the Museum of the Shenandoah Valley.

What is the typical home value in West Central Winchester?

The area is in ZIP 22601, where the Zillow Home Value Index was $349,952 in September 2026, up 1.1% from a year earlier. It is a modeled value, not a sale price.