Relo from Chicago…Ridgefield vs. Wilton vs. Redding

[ctnewbie]

MovinEast,

We just moved here from Lake Barrington, IL (also Lake County). We ended up choosing New Canaan as it has a beautiful town center similar to Barrington but a little larger. We also liked having the space we had in LB and found that New Canaan offered that as well. I will say though, that my daughter was in honors in Barrington and she was behind a little when she came here. The teachers were incredible helping her catch up but we were still a bit shocked because we thought Barrington was so great. Lots of luck to you and your family.

[novzj]

Dr. R,

I grew up in Redding, and my husband is from Wilton. I've lived in CT all my life, and am a Realtor in Newtown (but serving all of Fairfield County). I dare say each of these towns offers an excellent school system, and solid home values. The character of the towns varies as JayCT mentioned. Redding is very rural and "spread out" with no real town center / commercial area. Ridgefield and Wilton offer much more in terms of shopping and activities. Weston, too, is more rural. I must agree with jad2000, Rt. 7 is to be avoided if possible. A bad day on that route can mess up your commute big time.

Hopefully, you're coming out to "test the waters" and look at housing possibilites. You'll get a feel for the character of the towns if you go out with a Realtor who is willing to take the time to introduce the areas as well as show you homes. Make sure that you stress how important that is to you when you set up the appointment.

Welcome to CT, and good luck to you.

[Diamonds1]

I am a NY resident, from Bedford, and presently reside in South Salem/vista area. We love Ridgefield- and when we were first married made a few offers (a few years ago when the market what hot) and none worked out. We always ended up going for a condo in Vista/NY b/c they have special tax rate for condo residents. I do really enjoy the area since we have Pound Ridge (esp. the Reservation), Bedford, New Canaan, Ridgefield all around! My family is from Bedford, as well as DH family. However, we are not planning to stay in S.Salem/Lewisboro long term since the taxes on SFR are astronomical! We will probobly go to Bedford or Ridgefield. Bedford/North Castle (w/ Byram Hills schools) has very reasonable taxes,(partly thanks to IBM in Armonk) but high home prices. We are in real estate in both NY & CT, so it is interesting to hear everyones opinion of these towns.

In re: to Ridgefield, my dh & I love to walk main street, everyone is so nice and friendly compared to many "stuffier" towns in Westchester. Good luck!

[eabtpurcell]

Originally Posted by roastpatoni

Hi!

I know this thread has been dormant a while, but I thought I would comment, since I live in the Ridgebury area of Ridgefield, about 6 minutes from the Boeringer-Ingelheim entrance.

We moved to Ridgefield 4 years ago, and I constantly think how lucky we are. I love, love, love this town. Now, unfortunately, my husband is looking to move to MA for a job, and the possibility of leaving is really hard.

Of the towns you mentioned, I think that Ridgefield is the most young-kid oriented. I have a 2 yr old, so I can't comment on teenagers and the like, although the ones I know seem very happy here. The highlights for me:
*Very active Newcomers club (which is how i found my little playgroup)
*Additional Mom's club
*free programs for kids of all ages at the library
*free concerts in the park downtown on summer tuesday evenings, including some special ones that are really kid centered
*The Ridgefield Playhouse, which has fabulous concerts/singers/performers for adults, as well as great kids programs throughout the year, and first run movies which are great fun, and often kid/family oriented
*Great schools, although I don't have any first hand experience since my daughter is still too young for school. I haven't specifically heard anything about one grade-school ebing better than another, but I may not be tapped in to that information either.
*Wonderful downtown area. Great for walking (my moms group walks there in nice weather at least a couple times a week)
*Dog park
*Community lake/beach, which is inexpensive and wonderful in the summer, with super lifeguards. There are also several neighborhoods that have community pools
*Great people, who are very down-to-earth and unpretentious, despite living in huge, expensive homes
*Easy shopping - Ridgefield has lots of shopping, and if you're in the Ridgebury area you halso have easy access to all the chain/discount stores in danbury (Costco, Target, Wal-mart, Stew Leonards (which is SUPER with kids)).

In all, it has been the most amazing place to live. If you're still looking for a house, we'll probably be selling ours soon if you're interested in a 3bd/2ba renovated Cape. We thought we'd be living here for 30 years, so we just renovated the kitchen to my dream kitchen, which I am already missing.

Anyway - if you have specific questions about the sub-areas of Ridgefield, please let me know!

We're moving to CT in a few months and I've pretty much decided Ridgefield is the best place for us to live. It was great to hear your detailed account of why you love Ridgefield. Thank you! I'm in the preliminary phases of house hunting and wondered if you ever moved/sold your house. We're looking for something about your size. Just thought it wouldn't hurt to ask.