[waterlily1010]

Hello

We're looking at a towns in CT to move to (husband will be commuting to NYC by train). We're a young culturally diverse family with 2 toddlers, looking for a recent single family house for rent ($5k), needing Chinese groceries and Target and Costco! At the moment, I'm only looking at preschools (not charging $20k a year like they do here in Mass.) so really asking about Stamford school-wise.

1. Greenwich: seems the closest in terms of commuting but the boss thinks it isn't diverse enough (although I found an interesting preschool there already)

2. Stamford: more diverse? - we know nothing about it but the houses on offer are good value for money- Wiki says it's extremely safe but some posts in this forum don't seem to recommend it.

3. Ridgefield: how will the commute be into Manhattan? Looks crazy on the MTA map. Only mentioning it as our friends just moved there and they highly recommend it.

Thank you in advance.

[MetsNY]

Ridgefield is nice, the commute to Manhattan is weird, you can commute into NY State and take the Harlem line ride into Manhattan or you can take the station there in Ridgefield but would have to transfer stations which can be a pain.

As for diverse towns, lets just say Greenwich is more diverse than Ridgefield, by far.

[Stratford, Ct. Resident]

At your price point, you'll be in the safest areas of Stamford. Those areas will have more of a town feel to them, rather than a big city. Target is downtown and the nearest Costco is not far away in Norwalk. Chinese groceries? I would guess that you'll be able to find the "basics" in Stamford but you're probably going to be happiest traveling in to the city for a better selection. Stamford is far and away the most diverse of the 3.

[waterlily1010]

[quote=Stratford, Ct. Resident;9544967]At your price point, you'll be in the safest areas of Stamford.

May I check which areas do you consider "safe"? We are planning to view a few houses this week.
Thanks

[Stratford, Ct. Resident]

Originally Posted by waterlily1010

May I check which areas do you consider "safe"? We are planning to view a few houses this week.
Thanks

Sure. You can list them here, or DM me the streets if you're not comfortable with listing them publicly.

[waterlily1010]

Originally Posted by Stratford, Ct. Resident

Sure. You can list them here, or DM me the streets if you're not comfortable with listing them publicly.

No problem, they're public info:

EDEN RD , STAMFORD, CT 06907
WALNUT RIDGE LN , STAMFORD, CT 06904
LONG HILL DR , STAMFORD, CT 06902
Another one only has "Darien border"

I'm a bit curious as my oldest child will start kindergarten in 2010. Are the public schools any good or are we better off just moving straight to Greenwich (though what we can afford there doesn't look too nice)?

Thanks for your time and input!

[JayCT]

Only you can decide if Stamford would be good for your family. It is a city, but it is a pretty nice one. The schools generally perform under the state average on the Connecticut Mastery and Connecticut Academic Performance Tests. Class sizes appear to be reasonable. You can access information on schools in Connecticut at the links below. Jay

Strategic School Profiles by District

Strategic School Profiles by School

[Stratford, Ct. Resident]

Originally Posted by waterlily1010

No problem, they're public info:

EDEN RD , STAMFORD, CT 06907

Eden lies between Hope St. and Newfield Ave in the Springdale section. It's a winding, curvy road not suitable for walking, but the neighborhood is excellent with larger lot sizes. No safety issues at all.

Originally Posted by waterlily1010

WALNUT RIDGE LN , STAMFORD, CT 06904

06905. This is a newer street(~6yrs.old) off of High Ridge Rd. in the Ridgeway section. The houses are very nice, the lots are a bit small and steep/rugged though. Getting out to High Ridge from this street will take awhile due to the volume of traffic and the speeds of the traffic. No safety issues at all(aside from the speeding traffic on the 4-laned High Ridge Rd.).

Originally Posted by waterlily1010

LONG HILL DR , STAMFORD, CT 06902

This is an established street located between Long Ridge Rd. and Stillwater Rd. in the Westover/Roxbury section. Very safe as well, although it is slightly closer to the "urban" element than your other 2 choices. Note that Stillwater Rd. is fine whereas Stillwater Ave, which is located south of Stillwater Rd., is a cesspool. If you consider this home, take a closer look at the Connecticut Ave./Stillwater Ave. areas before you commit.

[HelloSam]

"Darien border" could mean upper Springdale, which is very nice and safe, or the Cove, which is adjacent to borderline sketchy.

[waterlily1010]

Originally Posted by HelloSam

"Darien border" could mean upper Springdale, which is very nice and safe, or the Cove, which is adjacent to borderline sketchy.

I found the address: HOLLY COVE CIR , STAMFORD, CT 06902 - sounds like the Cove?