Towns in Northern New Jersey
March 21, 2011 9:09 AM Subscribe
Despite my life long love of Billy Joel and Howard Stern we've been contemplating maybe possibly in a few years moving to NJ from our current abode in Manhattan. But Where?
We've driven around a little bit but really have no idea what we are looking at. Maybe you Jersey crowd can help me out a little.
We are looking for a town about 30-45 minutes from East Hanover, and about an 1hr -1h 15m via Public Transportation from NYC (can be Car + rail BTW)
Beyond that :
-Older Housing Stock with a neighborhood feel, but neighborhood feel w/ decent sized lots for gardening and play and what not.
-Basically no major thoroughfares - don't care if it is a 25 minute drive to an expressway, def don't want a town with big commercial center/big boxes. But some sort of downtown if just a library, hardware store, a deli, and a place to grab a beer.
-A pretty strong sense of community.
-Excellent Schools, but schools that are well rounded. Would prefer small schools and small class sizes.
-Very importantly - not a Wall Street-culture. Think Manhasset, Garden City. I'm guessing Summit.
In terms of other place I know and like - this is my hometown on LI , and we like the river towns in Westchester, but I think the commute to East Hanover would be crazy.
We've driven around a little bit but really have no idea what we are looking at. Maybe you Jersey crowd can help me out a little.
We are looking for a town about 30-45 minutes from East Hanover, and about an 1hr -1h 15m via Public Transportation from NYC (can be Car + rail BTW)
Beyond that :
-Older Housing Stock with a neighborhood feel, but neighborhood feel w/ decent sized lots for gardening and play and what not.
-Basically no major thoroughfares - don't care if it is a 25 minute drive to an expressway, def don't want a town with big commercial center/big boxes. But some sort of downtown if just a library, hardware store, a deli, and a place to grab a beer.
-A pretty strong sense of community.
-Excellent Schools, but schools that are well rounded. Would prefer small schools and small class sizes.
-Very importantly - not a Wall Street-culture. Think Manhasset, Garden City. I'm guessing Summit.
In terms of other place I know and like - this is my hometown on LI , and we like the river towns in Westchester, but I think the commute to East Hanover would be crazy.
Look in to Monclair or Verona- even East Rutherford? They have some beautiful homes- small and large- most with yards. Easy access to the city (if you want it) with trains and buses. I used to work in Verona/ Monclair and always loved the surrounding area (but then again I lived in Jersey City Heights, so maybe anything with trees, grass and yards would appeal to me).
posted by MayNicholas at 9:46 AM on March 21, 2011
posted by MayNicholas at 9:46 AM on March 21, 2011
Morristown and Morris Plains are nice and both have nice little downtowns and meet all your criteria. Easy access to NJ Rail.
posted by plasticbugs at 9:49 AM on March 21, 2011
posted by plasticbugs at 9:49 AM on March 21, 2011
I grew up in that area and I think you may have to compromise a bit on "Basically no major thoroughfares." The towns in the area of Morris County I'm most familiar with that meet your other criteria (Randolph, Roxbury, Dover, Morristown, Morris Plains, Chester, etc) all fail on this point, and I think honestly every town in that part of the state has a state highway with box stores running through it someplace or another. I'd suggest you focus instead on the positive aspect -- "some sort of downtown" -- and focus on finding a town that meets that criterion instead.
posted by gerryblog at 10:10 AM on March 21, 2011 [1 favorite]
posted by gerryblog at 10:10 AM on March 21, 2011 [1 favorite]
For nice, established communities with walkable downtowns, follow the rail lines out into the burbs. Many of the towns the trains run through were developed in the early part of the 20th century. The further you get from the city, the weaker the "Wall Street" effect will be (until you get to Princeton, which has a large weekend/bedroom Wall Street community). Avoid Red Bank and other burbs that are connected to lower Manhattan by high speed ferry if you want to avoid folks who work there.
Montclair, Maplewood, Cranford (in declining order of Wall Streety-ness) are places you might look.
posted by apparently at 10:43 AM on March 21, 2011 [1 favorite]
Montclair, Maplewood, Cranford (in declining order of Wall Streety-ness) are places you might look.
posted by apparently at 10:43 AM on March 21, 2011 [1 favorite]
Another nth for Montclair.
posted by safetyfork at 11:10 AM on March 21, 2011
posted by safetyfork at 11:10 AM on March 21, 2011
Response by poster: Yeah I'm not a big Montclair fan. We already checked it out. Our next stop was going to be the areas bordered by 287, 78, and 80. So lots of the places people have named here.
posted by JPD at 11:26 AM on March 21, 2011
posted by JPD at 11:26 AM on March 21, 2011
The excellence of Montclair schools is debatable, as are the Maplewood schools. Many people in those towns with the money to do so send their children to private school, particularly after elementary school. This is very much not the case with places like Millburn, Westfield, or Chatham, where using the public schools is the rule, not the exception, regardless of income.
posted by MattD at 11:28 AM on March 21, 2011
posted by MattD at 11:28 AM on March 21, 2011
Best answer: New Providence is in your geographic sweet spot, gorgeous views, mellow atmosphere (from walking around a couple of times), and (I hear) great schools. Commute to Manhattan is a bit of a pain so that may cut down on Wall Street factor.
Westfield is just south of the 78, but terrific. More lawyers than Wall Streeters, maybe, if that makes a difference...
posted by MattD at 11:33 AM on March 21, 2011
Westfield is just south of the 78, but terrific. More lawyers than Wall Streeters, maybe, if that makes a difference...
posted by MattD at 11:33 AM on March 21, 2011
Response by poster: Yes my hometown is an abysmal commute to Manhattan relative to most of the neighboring towns, and I think it makes a huge difference culture wise. Also housing prices.
posted by JPD at 11:46 AM on March 21, 2011
posted by JPD at 11:46 AM on March 21, 2011
NB Essex county (Maplewood, Millburn) tends to have horrendous even by NJ standards real estate tax.
As to schools, check the usual suspects
posted by IndigoJones at 2:45 PM on March 21, 2011
As to schools, check the usual suspects
posted by IndigoJones at 2:45 PM on March 21, 2011
Nthing the Caldwell, Verona, and Montclair area. For me the easiest way into the city is to get to Secaucus Junction and take the train in. It saves me some of the local transfers.
Plus Verona, Caldwell, and Montclair all have great houses with the neighborhood you are looking for within walking distance of the downtown so it is very easy to only use a car for commuting.
posted by Nackt at 2:49 PM on March 21, 2011
Plus Verona, Caldwell, and Montclair all have great houses with the neighborhood you are looking for within walking distance of the downtown so it is very easy to only use a car for commuting.
posted by Nackt at 2:49 PM on March 21, 2011
Best answer: I grew up in Murray Hill (which lost its Post Office in my youth)/New Providence. NP is a very pretty town and has a nice chunk of woods in the center that are protected by the Green Acres act and are likely to stay that way. New Providence and many towns on the same train line were colonial and later become weekend home areas for wealthy New Yorkers.
The school system is terrific. The nightlife doesn't exist. Last time I was there, the town still rolled up the sidewalks around 8. Up until recently, it was one of three dry towns in New Jersey. The first liquor license for a dining establishment was granted to the hotel. I don't know if there are more. There are no bars. There is no movie theater. It's hell if you're a tween or a teen without wheels. It is also muy expensive in terms of housing.
My advice is that you follow the cities on the train lines out of Hoboken. You basically want to find train->Hoboken,Path->Manhattan. There are also bus lines that run through that area to Manhattan. I knew people who swore by them.
Fairly nice towns, IMHO, include Chatham, Madison, Morristown, Mendham, Millburn, Berkeley Heights, Florham Park, and Summit (it varies a bit in Summit - Summit is the most city like of the set, although Morristown is a close second).
Turns out that a buddy of mine from New Providence High School, Tom McCarthy, has recently shot a film in and set in New Providence, called Win-Win. He also did The Station Agent, set in Chatham.
Ask questions and I'm happy to answer to my best ability.
The last time I was in the area (about a year ago), I was distressed to find that all the local small bakeries in the area are gone. It's quite a shame as some of them --Wayne's Bakery in particular--were quite good and what passes for baked goods in the grocery stores are pure crap.
posted by plinth at 5:43 PM on March 21, 2011 [1 favorite]
The school system is terrific. The nightlife doesn't exist. Last time I was there, the town still rolled up the sidewalks around 8. Up until recently, it was one of three dry towns in New Jersey. The first liquor license for a dining establishment was granted to the hotel. I don't know if there are more. There are no bars. There is no movie theater. It's hell if you're a tween or a teen without wheels. It is also muy expensive in terms of housing.
My advice is that you follow the cities on the train lines out of Hoboken. You basically want to find train->Hoboken,Path->Manhattan. There are also bus lines that run through that area to Manhattan. I knew people who swore by them.
Fairly nice towns, IMHO, include Chatham, Madison, Morristown, Mendham, Millburn, Berkeley Heights, Florham Park, and Summit (it varies a bit in Summit - Summit is the most city like of the set, although Morristown is a close second).
Turns out that a buddy of mine from New Providence High School, Tom McCarthy, has recently shot a film in and set in New Providence, called Win-Win. He also did The Station Agent, set in Chatham.
Ask questions and I'm happy to answer to my best ability.
The last time I was in the area (about a year ago), I was distressed to find that all the local small bakeries in the area are gone. It's quite a shame as some of them --Wayne's Bakery in particular--were quite good and what passes for baked goods in the grocery stores are pure crap.
posted by plinth at 5:43 PM on March 21, 2011 [1 favorite]
quick aside: The Station Agent was filmed in Newfoundland. It's pretty much the only notable thing about Newfoundland, so I can't let it go uncorrected!
posted by apparently at 6:18 PM on March 21, 2011
posted by apparently at 6:18 PM on March 21, 2011
Thanks for the correction - from what I had seen of it, it had scenes shot in several towns in the Chatham area including Rockaway as well IIRC. I did not know that the bulk of it was in Newfoundland,
posted by plinth at 7:19 PM on March 21, 2011
posted by plinth at 7:19 PM on March 21, 2011
I grew up in chatham. Great little town to grow up in imho. Chatham's technically 2 towns with 2 town councils, mayors, police & fire depts, but 1 school district and 1 library. Each chatham (the borough & the township) has a slightly different feel. Downtown has a chinese place or 2, a great bar with good food, a japanese/sushi place, a cute little cafe, good pizza places, some shops. Great school system on all levels with support for all learning styles/abilities. On the (potentially) negative side, little to no diversity to speak of (race or class), expensive housing prices, high taxes. Madison is similar, but with slightly more diversity and a slightly more active downtown.
posted by ellebee at 7:52 PM on March 21, 2011
posted by ellebee at 7:52 PM on March 21, 2011
Bloomfield, Belleville and Nutley are three nice little NJ towns. They're close to NYC, with good public transport via bus and rail. They all have a few, sort of "hidden", off the beaten track neighborhoods that are quiet, safe, with nice homes and some great little parks. The schools are hit and miss on an individual basis. There are some great ones, and some not so great ones.
Certain areas of West Orange and Livingston would fit the bill, and the schools are generally excellent.
posted by EvilPRGuy at 8:35 PM on March 21, 2011
Certain areas of West Orange and Livingston would fit the bill, and the schools are generally excellent.
posted by EvilPRGuy at 8:35 PM on March 21, 2011
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posted by roomthreeseventeen at 9:14 AM on March 21, 2011