Relocating to CT - job in Essex (Milford, Middletown: appointed, house)
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Jay, being as anal as I am, after I gave my estimate of 40 minutes, I took my GPS out and asked for travel time from center of Durham to center of Essex and it calculated 37 minutes. The ride on route 9 is longer than 20 minutes.
Route 148 starts at Route 79 in Durham and travels directly east to Chester where you can pick up Route 9. This is about 10 miles. It is then two exits south on Route 9 to Essex which is another 5 miles. These are all pretty uncongested roads, so to get from the southeast part of Durham to Essex could take 20 minutes or less. This is a very easy ride, even during rush hour. Jay
Jay CT - I can always count on you for good advice. Thanks for the info!
Dophindude - thanks for your input! I guess the best thing do do is have my husband try it out one night and see how fast he can drive it!
Drifter - As strange as this sounds, we are actually looking forward to moving to a more rural area, and we don't mind that we will need to drive everywhere. Here in Bergen County, it takes me at least 20 minutes to get most everywhere we need to go with all the traffic (with he possible exception of the grocery store). Clinton is back on our list though, since it is so close to my husbands work. And it's hard to resist a playground on the beach! Any thoughts on the schools there?
Clinton's 8th Grade Connecticut Mastery Test scores are well above the State average and the class sizes appear to be pretty reasonable. Their Mastery test scores for the lowers grades aren't as impressive with a couple of key grades under state averages. That may have changed in the most recent tests, but with the upper grades doing okay it should not be a problem.
I agree with trying to live as close to your husbands job as possible. First of all, it is such a lovely area to begin with. Did I mention I am so jealous of you. Secondly, I like being close to the kids school so I can duck out of the office to attend school activities easily or get home reasonably fast for dinner. It does make my life so much easier. Try to stay as near as possible if you can. Good luck, Jay
Mind if I impose yet again for some advice? It's down to Essex and Madison, no question. We loved both towns and since my husband works in Essex, it would be great for him to have a short commute. We have found two homes that we love - one in Essex, one in Madison.
The one in Essex is nicer, newer, but a stone's throw away from the Essex Steam train. I know it only runs during the day, but I don't know if it would drive me crazy to hear the whistles from the train all day long. Also, the schools are still a big question mark for me. We are not averse to using Catholic schools, which I believe are in Middletown, but it would be nice to use the local elementary school. It seems like a quieter lifestyle there (aside from the train). There is no newcomer's club or any organized activities for very you kids (age 2 and 3) that I've found so far. Beautiful Main Street and nice library for the kids.
The home in Madison is older, needs a little work, but is bigger and we could easily live there forever. Neighborhood seems nice. Tons of activities for me as a stay at home mom and my kids and close to New HAven when I decide to go back to work. The schools are a sure thing. Will have to deal with some pretentiousness in the community (but really, couldn't you find that anywhere?). Closer to shopping
As you can probably tell by the tone of my post, my husband strongly favors Essex, while I prefer Madison. Just wondering if someone could weigh in on these factors I've mentioned, if I've gotten all my info correct. Thanks!
Boy Kristin1 - you are asking a tough question. Both towns are wonderful and offer great features. It is hard to make a choice or tell you one is clearly better than the other.
I will say a few things though. The Conecticut Mastery Test scores for Essex are almost as high as Madison and class sizes are lower (20 students or less). So I would not necessarily be worried about which school system is better.
I also believe that your characterzation of Essex being a quieter lifestyle is true and that there would be more for you and your young child to do if you lived in Madison. That should be very important since you will not know anyone and will need to make some friends and do things while you husband is at work. The commute from Madison to Essex would be less than a half hour and should have very little traffic for your husband to face. Only you and your husband can decide which of these is more important. Good luck, Jay
I am in the process of rellocating to Killingworth CT because I live in northern NJ and have gotten so sick of the traffic, pollution, attitudes, and taxes. I will continue to ccommute to Bergen County several days a week (Tenafly and Bergenfield), but I do not want to live here anymore. Killingworth is so peaceful and I think Ill be happy there!
I am in the process of rellocating to Killingworth CT because I live in northern NJ and have gotten so sick of the traffic, pollution, attitudes, and taxes. I will continue to ccommute to Bergen County several days a week (Tenafly and Bergenfield), but I do not want to live here anymore. Killingworth is so peaceful and I think Ill be happy there!
That would be one LONG commute even if it is just a couple of days a week. While Killingworth is a great town, have you considered something closer to northern New Jersey like Rockland County, New York? It is much closer to your work and is fairly quiet. Jay
Robbieobern - Can I ask what made you settle on Killingsworth as opposed to the other towns in this area?
I agree with Jay, the commute is something you could do if it was only once or twice/week, no more. My spouse is doing the commute right now 4 days/week, and it is horrible. From Essex to northern Bergen County is at least 2 hours with traffic. On Friday evenings, it is never less than 3 hours. And you would also have to deal with the traffic on Route 4 as well.
I am likewise over the NJ traffic. Lots of great people here, but we want more family time, not a 2 hour daily commute (whcih will hopefully come to an end soon when we sell our home). How much will you NOT miss the Garden State Plaza?
How much will you NOT miss the Garden State Plaza?
Kristin - I use to live in NJ years ago and loved all of the shopping. There were so many choices in Paramus. What is wrong with the Garden State Plaza other than the traffic? I haven't been there in years. Isn't it still home to a huge Macy's (formerly Bambergers, am I dating myself now)? I use to sneak in the back way off Passaic Street and Paramus Road. Has that gotten bad too? Routes 4 and 17 were always a nightmare. Jay
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