[Blackwelma01]

I've lived in Stratford, Fairfield, and Milford. I plan on moving to Orange in the next two years. Favorite town is a subjective question, as I can say that while I would prefer to raise my children in Fairfield, I personally prefer Milford as a young man (32). I am married now and my wife and I chose Orange to live as it seems to combine the best of multiple CT towns.
Most CT towns have something unique to offer and as I've noticed in this, and other forums, no two people seem to ever agree on which town is 'the best', or 'better'. It completely depends on your politics, socio-economic status, preference for proximity to stores/restaurants/shops, ability to handle crowds (i.e., high density populations), preference for shoreline, or inland areas, etc...For the best objective answers, go to CT.Gov and wikipedia the town.

[sevdie]

That's great advice. Every time I think I "zeroed in" in a town, I hear something about another that makes me take another look. Oh, an I am almost too embarrassed to ask: what do you all mean when you refer to "town green"?

[Rich Lee]

Originally Posted by sevdie

That's great advice. Every time I think I "zeroed in" in a town, I hear something about another that makes me take another look. Oh, an I am almost too embarrassed to ask: what do you all mean when you refer to "town green"?

A town green is open space (a/k/a land area) usually accompanied by park benches and surrounded by trees in a town center.

[sevdie]

Oh okay. That's nice.

[paper doll]

I haven't moved around to claim a favorite, but I love West Hartford. It's nice to walk around there, get some coffee, visit book stores, the sidewalk trees provide some shadow for people sitting outside the cafe, etc..

The beauty of the town green is that a lot of free concerts take place there during the summer. It's nice to take the kids out and bring a picnic basket and blanket. Some people bring their dogs and are surrounded by children who want to pet them. Children and toddlers usually gather around the little stage and dance to the music. Grown ups join them. Lovebirds dance cheek to cheek. Old ladies follow their lead.

[JViello]

Originally Posted by sevdie

That's great advice. Every time I think I "zeroed in" in a town, I hear something about another that makes me take another look. Oh, an I am almost too embarrassed to ask: what do you all mean when you refer to "town green"?

Here is New Haven's town green:



New Haven Green - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

They are basically and generally a center square in the cities and towns with a monument or two comprised of grass and trees with the DT area built around them. Think mini walking parks.

Waterbury, Milford, Branford, Guilford, Colchester all come to mind as having very nice "Greens" as well and most New England towns (even the small ones) have one.

[sevdie]

It is beautiful! Thanks for sharing that picture. I can not wait to find a town in CT to call home. It's gorgeous.

[Coffeecake]

Hands down ......... living in a house overlooking the Saugatuck River and downtown Westport, best place ever!

[jumbolaw]

I grew up in West Hartford and thought it was a great place for a family, though probably not so much for younger couples. Wouldn't want to have grown up anywhere else!

[kidyankee784]

I've lived in Norwalk, Oxford, Cos Cob and Danbury (in that order).

My favorite was Cos Cob - has a very down to Earth feel with excellent restaurants. You can't really beat the convenience of getting to Manhattan in the blink of an eye. Pizza Post was my favorite pizza place and if you get bored on a sunny day, you can visit any of the town's beautiful beaches and take in the NYC skyline.

My second favorite was Oxford. It's fairly close to NY and centrally located between New Haven, Danbury, Waterbury and Bridgeport. It has a lot of traditional New England architecture; white clapboard homes, red barns, etc. The town is growing so much that traffic along Oxford Road is becoming a shame, but they don't allow chain restaurants, drive-thrus or strip malls with big-box stores.

Third is Norwalk. It has a cosmopolitan feel, a great bar scene for the younger crowd, excellent public transportation and a highly sophisticated population.

Last is Danbury. Danbury is a nice city but the illegal immigration issue is enough to make me want out. I don't normally bring politics into the forum, but the issue is severely lowering the quality of life in Danbury. It's mostly concentrated downtown; the more rural areas in Danbury are beautiful (Middle River, Aunt Hack, etc)

Next stop: either West Hartford or White Plains, NY. We'll see what happens