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Old 01-01-2014, 08:40 AM
 
721 posts, read 1,561,647 times
Reputation: 489

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Quote:
Originally Posted by Quick Commenter View Post
Half day kindergarten seems to work out for the kids at Northport, Elwood, and Harborfields.
How does it work out for the kids? How do you measure that? We just had our bond vote for the turf fields. In talking to neighbors and at meetings you could hear residents say instead of turf they would rather have full day K. I have also heard from friends in South Huntington that ppl from Huntington (1/2 day) use relatives' addresses to register their kids for full day K.

I paid for my daughter to go to full day private K. Many friends in Elwood and Northport send their kids to Trinity for full K. So I guess it works for the district because it saves them money but ask the parents and they will tell you otherwise. In this age of increasing standards, with 1/2 day K the district does the minimum. For AM K the school day is 9:20-12:05 and part of that time is spent getting on and off the bus, walking to the classroom, recess, snack, etc. Several of my neighbors whose children went to 1/2 day K ended up needing remedial math and/or reading in 1st grade.

It does provide revenue for the district to have Treasure Cove in Washington drive, but the preschool itself is nothing special. My kids have gone to a couple of schools and I am not that impressed with Treasure Cove to be honest. They do have Spanish every day, my son loves that but otherwise they are very disorganized and the curriculum is just OK.
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Old 01-01-2014, 11:45 AM
 
5,018 posts, read 3,919,596 times
Reputation: 3621
HS test scores and college acceptances seem just fine. That is how I measure it. Doubtlessly full day kindergarten is preferable to a turf field if there is a choice, and there was not, between the two. I heard suggestions of smaller elementary class sizes, more electives, and 7th grade sports also suggested as alternatives to the unnecessary turf field. Of course, again, it was not a question of alternatives. BTW the residents absolutely slammed that turf notion! 2,075 to 429!

Last edited by Quick Commenter; 01-01-2014 at 11:59 AM..
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Old 01-02-2014, 07:31 AM
 
883 posts, read 3,710,890 times
Reputation: 402
Quote:
Originally Posted by Elke Mariotti View Post
While the Commack SD does indeed have a very good reputation, the RE market is very tight, and very little is available with the size property/house in the OP's price range
IMHO it also doesn't have the charm of Old Chester Hills - but that's merely personal opinion and expressed only because the OP mentioned liking it.
Inventory seems to be limited right now everywhere- very frustrating. Regardless, with the OP's budget I think a large house on an acre in Old Chester Hills will be tough- they will have to compromise and get a smaller house in a neighborhood they love or get the big house they need in a neighborhood that might not be so nice. And with 4 kids it seems like they actually NEED the big 4-5 bedroom house so I think they would be wise to consider a less expensive area like Commack.

I have been looking in HHH, Harborfields and have checked out Old Chester Hills as well- I cannot remember seeing a 4-5 bedroom house on an acre in any of these areas for anywhere close to $650k. And if you did find something for that price it would probably need a gut renovation which would put the house over the OP's budget anyway.
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Old 01-02-2014, 11:18 AM
 
Location: Suffolk
570 posts, read 1,211,594 times
Reputation: 316
Now that Huntington has opened up the STEM school, and is expanding it to another grade level next year, they are looking into getting back the full day Kindergarten, since there will be room in the primary buildings once again.

The Huntington YMCA has a great preschool program that local districts have applauded for the curriculum and developmentally appropriate program. There is also a half-day Kindergarten enrichment class available for children who only have half-day from their district. The district (Huntington) buses them there.
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Old 01-02-2014, 05:35 PM
 
33 posts, read 64,463 times
Reputation: 38
Harborfields resident here. Sorry, you couldn't pay me to send a child to school in Huntington. For years now, frazzled parents have been dealing with bussing, a school closing due to shootings in the vicinity (& the resulting overcrowding at the remaining schools), and gangs and violence in the high school. Our district has a number of families who were lucky enough to get away from Huntington and they are so glad they made it over to Harborfields. In each case, it did cost them mightily, because they took huge hits on the sales of their houses. They do not regret what they did for a second though, and are just happy to be out of the Huntington school district. Some have remarked that the huge percentage percentage of non-English speaking students there caused problems also. No thanks! As for the type of house you are looking for, there is not that much housing stock in Harborfields with large property lots. There are some quiet pockets in Greenlawn with decent houses and big lots within your price range. Near Clay Pitts and Arbutus. There are also houses with large lots in the Salem Ridge section of Huntington (which is zoned for Harborfields schools), but those houses are generally higher than your price range unless you are willing to settle for an older, unremodeled house. A few of those are left in Salem Ridge; most are snapped up, razed and totally re-done. Your price will buy you a house in Centerport but not a new one, and not anything modern either. Centerport is expensive. Lots there are tiny, though, but IMHO it's by far the nicest part of Harborfields. So nice to be able to walk to the water. Schools are excellent. Totally agree with the the other posters' comments about the recent turf vote. It was pushed on the district by a small number of families in the high school with sports-minded kids. Apparently they didn't consider other needs in the district either, like a tech department, or expanded language and AP courses. That was a disappointment for the district, but at least residents spoke up and voted it down in a big way. How brazen to propose not just one but two turf fields! Overall, though, Harborfields is a really solid choice and you can't go wrong. Can't think of anyone here who would want to be elsewhere.
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Old 01-02-2014, 05:52 PM
 
214 posts, read 457,908 times
Reputation: 77
The full day K program at LuDay in East Northport is wonderful!

IMO necessary when your district only offers a half day program.
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Old 01-05-2014, 06:23 AM
 
Location: Queens, NY
5 posts, read 10,021 times
Reputation: 10
Quote:
I have been looking in HHH, Harborfields and have checked out Old Chester Hills as well- I cannot remember seeing a 4-5 bedroom house on an acre in any of these areas for anywhere close to $650k. And if you did find something for that price it would probably need a gut renovation which would put the house over the OP's budget anyway.
[/quote]

I am actually surprised to hear you say this...We have been looking since last summer and there seems to be quite a number of houses that fall within that range and some actually around the 600 price range. We contemplated putting offers on two different houses (1 in HHH and 1 in Elwood) but just weren't sure we were ready yet. Right now the inventory is quite low, but I am hopeful that once the weather starts warming, we will see more houses come on the market.

We are pretty realistic when it comes to finding a home - we're not looking to move into a brand new house and know that there will be work to be done, but I am sure we can find something in that price that is not a total gut.
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Old 01-05-2014, 09:31 PM
 
883 posts, read 3,710,890 times
Reputation: 402
I am actually surprised to hear you say this...We have been looking since last summer and there seems to be quite a number of houses that fall within that range and some actually around the 600 price range. We contemplated putting offers on two different houses (1 in HHH and 1 in Elwood) but just weren't sure we were ready yet. Right now the inventory is quite low, but I am hopeful that once the weather starts warming, we will see more houses come on the market.

We are pretty realistic when it comes to finding a home - we're not looking to move into a brand new house and know that there will be work to be done, but I am sure we can find something in that price that is not a total gut.[/quote]

A 4-5 bedroom farm ranch or colonial in HHH on an acre in the 600's? Where?? I am not as familiar with Elwood but I have not seen anything in HHH close to that unless it's a gut renovation. We have been looking for over a year as well so I have become quite familiar with HHH and I can't think of anything that size with that much property for that low a price. I would love to know which houses you are referring to- I am truly curious!
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