[JayCT]

Originally Posted by netdragon

Connecticut is mostly wealthy, not rich. Aside from Greenwich and a few other areas, it is mostly middle and upper middle class people in almost every town. That's partly because almost the entire state is suburban. Areas like Greenwich are balanced with some extremely poor urban areas. Connecticut lacks the large stretches of rural poor and working class areas that many other states have and has a large number of middle to upper middle class versus the poor, making it more balanced than most states. There's still more poverty than there should be in Connecticut, but I'm talking in general.

The unfortunate thing is the concentration of poverty in urban areas. Like other areas around the country, Connecticut can improve upon that by re-introducing the middle to upper class back into the inner city with more improvements like what went on in Hartford, but with more of a focus towards city-wide neighborhood improvement (like around Trinity) once the anchors like Adrian's Landing are complete.

Average family income of $120,000 is upper middle class. That's two people with a $60k salary.

I hate to disagree with you, but there are a LOT of rich people in this state and they are pretty much everywhere. I will agree that there is a concentration of wealthy people in Fairfield County but there are also many "rich" people in other parts of the state as well. Check out the shoreline east of New Haven or the hills of Litchfield.

I do agree that $120,000 is not much more than middle class these days. Jay

[JViello]

And if anyone believes "medians" are not soft numbers might want to move to FL where the average Summer high is 85 degrees.

[notjustamom]

Originally Posted by JayCT

I hate to disagree with you, but there are a LOT of rich people in this state and they are pretty much everywhere. I will agree that there is a concentration of wealthy people in Fairfield County but there are also many "rich" people in other parts of the state as well. Check out the shoreline east of New Haven or the hills of Litchfield.

I do agree that $120,000 is not much more than middle class these days. Jay

ITA with you, Jay.

[netdragon]

Also, the median household income in Glastonbury is $92,000 as of 2005 (Glastonbury, Connecticut (CT) Detailed Profile) . However, if you ignore the center of town or homes with only one working household member, the number probably gets closer to $120,000. You could say "if you ignore such and such" about any town or city, though.

[TENN24]

yeah, i agree $120,000 doesn't seem THAT affluent, but you have to realize that this is just the median. In fact glastonbury is very comparable to many boston suburbs. I'm not saying glastonbury is greenwich, but it still has many rich people.

[bstnguy]

I am sorry this post has generated so much negative feedback, it was not the intent. My original post was in regards to Hartford, not Fairfield or other parts of the state. I did not mention Avon or Simsbury, because I know these towns are "upperclass". I have also spent much time in West Hartford I think their are some really nice areas (near Avon Mountain, West Hartford Center, etc) but there are also some not so nice areas (Elmwood, Park Rd., etc) Coming from Boston, I make $160k a year and my wife makes $320k as a oncologist. If I moved to West Hartford, I would be living better off than I am here in Brookline MA. All I was starting is that people in West Hartford/Glastonbury need to put everything in perspective. I have travelled the country and price, especially on homes is all over the board.

[Srib]

I'm not really sure what the point of your post was then - to say that WH and glastonbury aren't upperclass because they have areas that you deem are not upperclass?? the term upperclass is subjective as far as I am concerned - what one person thinks is upperclass is not to another. If you try to find an income definition for classes they are typically all over the place relative to where one lives.

Only someone really insecure and concerned about their status in society uses the term upperclass anyway. All of the towns you mentioned above can be considered upscale which is what you would hear them referenced as around here. In my experience, people here don't usually run around saying they live in an upperclass town. BTW simsbury has areas that mimick what you determined are the "not so nice" areas of west hartford so that just tells me you really don't know what you're talking about.

[Bob The Builder]

Originally Posted by bstnguy

I previously posted a thread on how to fix Hartford. I agree with most people's responses. Hartford does have much to offer. My point is that the Hartford area needs to focus on Hartford the city not suburbs like West Hartford and Glastonbury. Some argued that West Hartford and Glastonbury are creating a divide....rich get richer. I must say as someone who has split time in Hartford and Boston, the people living in West Hartford and Glastonbury are not upperclass. I can buy a nice home in either of these communities for $500k. However $500k would by be a shack in a 40 mile radius to Boston.

People in West Hartford and Glastonbury need to realize with out a center city (i.e. Hartford), their property values will grow smaller and smaller. Where are the jobs??

BstnGuy

Are you confusing Upperclass with housing cost?

[JayCT]

Glastonbury and Simsbury are very similar in character, income and home price levels. In fact i have found that homes in Glastonbury are priced slightly higher than similar homes in Simsbury. So if home price is the criteria you are using, then Glastonbury would be more "upperclass" than Simsbury.

Also, just because a community has a wide range of housing options does not mean it is not a good place to live or even that it is not "upperclass". Greenwich has a wide range of housing options including public housing. I guess that means that it is not "upperclass" by your standards.

Some of Connecticut's wealthiest people live in West Hartford and Glastonbury. It is kind of sad that you feel a town should be classified the way you are doing it. I find that a diverse community is a lot more interesting to live in and people are a lot more down-to-earth. I have also found that people whose wealth is thin really care about such things and live in communities that best suit their needs. JMHO Jay

[Srib]

JayCT - well said!!