[baseballa56k]

I am being transferred for work from Dallas, TX to Shelton, CT in about 4 weeks (Mid Feb) and am trying to figure out where I should live. If you know anything about Dallas it has a great night life and tons of things to do anytime of the week.

I am 24 years old and single so I am looking for a place that will have bars/night scene during the weekend and the occasional week day. I've heard New Haven might be the best place to go in terms of looking for that? Also, I am curious what type of rent I will have to spend to live in those areas and have heard that some of those areas can be rough? Trying to avoid any problems in terms of that..

Curious what you guys think would be a good fit for a single male in his twenties who likes to have a night life during the weekends but am pretty quiet during the week.

Any help or advise would be great! Never realized moving across the country would be so difficult.

Thanks again

[nep321]

The best nightlife in CT is indeed in New Haven. If you do decide to move to New Haven, just be cautious of where you choose to live. The city has many sketchy areas.

[willow wind]

First of all, consider this. Dallas has a population of some 1.24 million people. New Haven, CT has about 130,741 . Stamford, the other CT city somewhat close to Shelton, has 125,000 or so. Thus, what ever you know of Dallas, it's not going to be anything like that in CT. Everything is on a much smaller scale. We're little.

Connecticut cities are small and self contained. There is plenty of stuff to do, the state has lots of cultural activities, museums, theaters, indoor and outdoor recreation of all types.

What CT doesn't have for people of your age is lots and lots of dance clubs and bars of the type where young men & women go to have fun and meet. There are some, but nowhere near on the scale of Dallas.

You're quite right, New Haven will be your best bet for socializing. Many, many quality restaurants, some club and bars. Stamford also has some, but it is very, very expensive to live in Stamford. New Haven is much more affordable and a much easier commute to Shelton. You will be fine living in New Haven, you just have to pick your neighborhood. ( as with any large city). The pub and theater district, is fine for socializing.

In New Haven, look in these neighborhoods, East Rock ( closest to downtown pubs, etc.) Westville and Wooster Square. There are apartment complexes and also many 2-3 family homes.

New Haven is also close enough to NYC to socialize there now and then. Taking a train makes the trip fairly easy, although not necessarily cheap, if you're on a tight budget. Welcome to CT and good luck

[nep321]

Originally Posted by willow wind

First of all, consider this. Dallas has a population of some 1.24 million people. New Haven, CT has about 130,741 . Stamford, the other CT city somewhat close to Shelton, has 125,000 or so. Thus, what ever you know of Dallas, it's not going to be anything like that in CT. Everything is on a much smaller scale. We're little.

Connecticut cities are small and self contained. There is plenty of stuff to do, the state has lots of cultural activities, museums, theaters, indoor and outdoor recreation of all types.

What CT doesn't have for people of your age is lots and lots of dance clubs and bars of the type where young men & women go to have fun and meet. There are some, but nowhere near on the scale of Dallas.

You're quite right, New Haven will be your best bet for socializing. Many, many quality restaurants, some club and bars. Stamford also has some, but it is very, very expensive to live in Stamford. New Haven is much more affordable and a much easier commute to Shelton. You will be fine living in New Haven, you just have to pick your neighborhood. ( as with any large city). The pub and theater district, is fine for socializing.

In New Haven, look in these neighborhoods, East Rock ( closest to downtown pubs, etc.) Westville and Wooster Square. There are apartment complexes and also many 2-3 family homes.

New Haven is also close enough to NYC to socialize there now and then. Taking a train makes the trip fairly easy, although not necessarily cheap, if you're on a tight budget. Welcome to CT and good luck

If he wants to go to NYC, he would have to spend at least $40 each time, just for transportation costs (train, parking, city transit, etc.). Then, on top of that, he'd have to spend probably $20+ on drinks cover charges, coat checks, etc. A night out in NYC can easily cost at least $60. If he did that on a weekly basis, that's $3,120 per year.

[SeaDoo342]

Originally Posted by nep321

If he wants to go to NYC, he would have to spend at least $40 each time, just for transportation costs (train, parking, city transit, etc.). Then, on top of that, he'd have to spend probably $20+ on drinks cover charges, coat checks, etc. A night out in NYC can easily cost at least $60. If he did that on a weekly basis, that's $3,120 per year.

If you go on a weekend, parking at the small stations is free. Darien, Fairfield, Milford, all free Fri night to Sunday.

[Stratford, Ct. Resident]

Originally Posted by nep321

A night out in NYC can easily cost at least $60.

Cuz, i think i dropped that much in 10 minutes during intermission at the Met like 15 years ago.

[Lintu]

I've never been single in CT, but just wanted to say hi since I'm also from Dallas.

What about South Norwalk?

[jp03]

Originally Posted by nep321

If he wants to go to NYC, he would have to spend at least $40 each time, just for transportation costs (train, parking, city transit, etc.). Then, on top of that, he'd have to spend probably $20+ on drinks cover charges, coat checks, etc. A night out in NYC can easily cost at least $60. If he did that on a weekly basis, that's $3,120 per year.

60 dollars????? and you said drink(s) as in plural? A DRINK costs 10 dollars alone last I looked if you go to a club. I bet its even more now. If you want to spend $60 including transportation you'd better buy a 6 pack for the train ride. How about eating? A cab ride? 60 dollars with transportation????

[UconnHusky1]

Originally Posted by nep321

If he wants to go to NYC, he would have to spend at least $40 each time, just for transportation costs (train, parking, city transit, etc.). Then, on top of that, he'd have to spend probably $20+ on drinks cover charges, coat checks, etc. A night out in NYC can easily cost at least $60. If he did that on a weekly basis, that's $3,120 per year.

Only $60 bucks?? Those gay clubs must be a bargain.

[Stylo]

If you want the biggest nightlife and arts scene, New Haven is a good option. The colleges contribute greatly to the nightlife and culture. There's really no places with nightlife on the level of places like BAR in the rest of the state, except maybe Stamford. Stick to downtown, East Rock, or Wooster Square. The Westville area would be a good commute to Shelton, but it's only got a couple bars and restaurants and is divided from downtown by some sketchy areas so a car is required to go out.

Another choice would be Milford - much, much smaller scene than New Haven but quite lively - especially in the summer. It's a pretty young crowd too. Mostly 20's and early 30's. I would live right in downtown. Great beaches, very safe, not too sleepy. You can walk anywhere safely. The commute would be slightly favorable to the commute from New Haven. You might want to check out the Spinnaker and Metro Star apartments downtown:

Apartments in Milford CT | Milford Apartments | Spinnaker Apartments
Quality apartment rentals in Milford, CT convenient to Metro North

My 3rd choice would be Black Rock. It's a good area of Bridgeport with a good amount of young people and a few good bars. Like New Haven, it has colleges nearby which influences the vibe - although on a smaller scale than New Haven. Just don't go too far west on Fairfield Ave as it starts to get sketchier.

Stratford would be another option, but honestly doesn't really have much of a nightlife scene or a ton to do. It's a nice town though, and probably the least expensive of these options. I would not bother with Shelton, it's pretty dead for a 20-somethings except for a couple bars. South Norwalk has a small but vibrant scene, but is too far from Shelton. Stamford has a decent scene too, but is even further. New Haven is 9 miles to Shelton, but Stamford is 35 miles.

New Haven is a proper city, but like a previous poster said - it's not Dallas. Much smaller scale. However, it's actually more dense than Dallas and a much, much smaller area (19 square miles to 385 square miles). Don't think the New Haven area is the boonies, it's actually home to almost a million people. It's just nowhere near as major of a city as Dallas. I personally think New Haven very much feels like a small chunk of NYC.