Looking to buy in Port Washington (Hempstead, Oyster Bay: estate, budget, showing)

[ftc24]

Hi all,

My first time posting. My wife and I currently live in Manhattan and are considering buying in Port Washington. Our price range is $700-$850. Before reading any of the threads on here, our thinking was:

(1) we need to be within walking distance of the LIRR
(2) we want to be near the water

Those two things seemed to more or less coincide (as the public dock is not too far from the LIRR), so I thought we were all set. But having read some threads here, I am having some serious reservations, mostly because I hadn't considered the elementary school issue. We have an infant (and hope to continue to grow our family), so elementary schools are a major concern. Is the elementary school near the LIRR area a good one?

Even beyond the issue of the elementary schools, the idea of a massive influx of illegals and gangs is downright scary. I am overreacting or is the problem that bad? I had no idea about any of this.

Last summer, we looked briefly at PW, but also Manhasset and Great Neck. My wife is not too keen on the idea of moving to LI in general, but PW is particularly appealing to her because of the proximity to the water and overall charm of Main Street. We want proximity to water, easy commute to NYC and good schools. Any thoughts on what we should do?

Thanks!

[Port North]

Originally Posted by ftc24

Hi all,

My first time posting. My wife and I currently live in Manhattan and are considering buying in Port Washington. Our price range is $700-$850. Before reading any of the threads on here, our thinking was:

(1) we need to be within walking distance of the LIRR
(2) we want to be near the water

Those two things seemed to more or less coincide (as the public dock is not too far from the LIRR), so I thought we were all set. But having read some threads here, I am having some serious reservations, mostly because I hadn't considered the elementary school issue. We have an infant (and hope to continue to grow our family), so elementary schools are a major concern. Is the elementary school near the LIRR area a good one?

Even beyond the issue of the elementary schools, the idea of a massive influx of illegals and gangs is downright scary. I am overreacting or is the problem that bad? I had no idea about any of this.

Last summer, we looked briefly at PW, but also Manhasset and Great Neck. My wife is not too keen on the idea of moving to LI in general, but PW is particularly appealing to her because of the proximity to the water and overall charm of Main Street. We want proximity to water, easy commute to NYC and good schools. Any thoughts on what we should do?

Thanks!

The area you are looking in is zoned for either Sousa or South Salem. Both are good schools. You have nothing to worry about. If you have small children you will enjoy being close to the library and the PRC (Parent Resource Center). Both offer excellent classes/programs for infants, toddlers and preschoolers.

The area to stay away from is Manorhaven. Even that isn't too bad, it just seems bad by comparison because its mainly a blue-collar neighborhood.

Yes there has been some gang activity and yes there are some illegals in Port, but I haven't run into any problems with them. They mostly cause problems amongst themselves. The Port Police do a pretty good job at keeping things safe.

[Walter Greenspan]

Originally Posted by ftc24

My wife and I currently live in Manhattan and are considering buying in Port Washington.

For those who may not be familiar with Port Washington:

Previously known as Cow Bay (the NYS legislature officially changed the name to Port Washington in 1857), Port Washington is a hamlet (an unincorporated area) in the northeast part of the Town of North Hempstead, in the northwest part of Nassau County.

Beginning on the north and moving in a clockwise direction, the Hamlet of Port Washington in the Town of North Hempstead is bordered on the north by the Village of Baxter Estates, the Village of Port Washington North and the Village of Sands Point; on the east by Hempstead Harbor; on the south by the Village of Flower Hill; and, on the west by the Village of Plandome Manor and Manhasset Bay.





Port Washington is one of those villages and hamlets on Long Island where the majority of the places with the community name as part of their mailing address are not in the hamlet: places that have a "Port Washington, NY 11050" mailing address that are not in the Hamlet of Port Washington are in the Village of Sands Point, the Village of Port Washington North, the Village of Manorhaven, the Village of Baxter Estates and the Village of Flower Hill.


For a good set of town-by-town maps showing all the villages and hamlets in each of LI's 13 towns (3 in Nassau County and 10 in Suffolk County): Excellent Long Island Geographic Resource

[Walter Greenspan]

Originally Posted by Port North

The area to stay away from is Manorhaven.

While all places in the Village of Manorhaven have a "Port Washington, NY 11050" mailing address, the Village of Manorhaven is a separate community from the Hamlet of Port Washington.


For those who may not be familiar with Manorhaven:

Manorhaven is a village (incorporated in 1930) in the northeast part of the Town of North Hempstead, in the northwest part of Nassau County.

Beginning on the north and moving in a clockwise direction, the Village of Manorhaven in the Town of North Hempstead is bordered on the north by the Village of Sands Point; on the east by the Village of Port Washington North; on the south by Manhasset Bay; and, on the west by Manhasset Bay and the Village of Sands Point.





Manorhaven is one of those villages and hamlets on Long Island where none of the places in the community have the village name as part of their mailing address: places in the Village of Manorhaven have a "Port Washington, NY 11050" mailing address.


For a good set of town-by-town maps showing all the villages and hamlets in each of LI's 13 towns (3 in Nassau County and 10 in Suffolk County): Excellent Long Island Geographic Resource

[ftc24]

Originally Posted by Port North

The area you are looking in is zoned for either Sousa or South Salem. Both are good schools. You have nothing to worry about. If you have small children you will enjoy being close to the library and the PRC (Parent Resource Center). Both offer excellent classes/programs for infants, toddlers and preschoolers.

The area to stay away from is Manorhaven. Even that isn't too bad, it just seems bad by comparison because its mainly a blue-collar neighborhood.

Yes there has been some gang activity and yes there are some illegals in Port, but I haven't run into any problems with them. They mostly cause problems amongst themselves. The Port Police do a pretty good job at keeping things safe.

Port North - thanks for the highly informative reply! My wife is in fact very interested in being close to the library, so that is a major plus. We checked out the library schedule and it seemed to have a tremendous amount of activity.

As to the elementary schools, any idea which is better: Sousa or South Salem? Is there a toxic dump near the latter? Do you have children in the system?

I hate to sound negative, but isn't the predominance of lower-income kids in Manorhaven a concern insofar as those elementary schools feed into the same intermediate school and high school? Won't this ultimately pull down the quality of those schools, particularly if "white flight" ensues? Relatedly, any thoughts as to the future of property values for the same reasons?

Finally, are there other towns that we should consider, given our price range ($700K - $850K) and given our priorities (easy LIRR commute, good schools, proximity to water, or at least other "charming" qualities)?

Thanks!

[all mixed up]

How about Little Neck or Bayside, Bay terrace. Both are in queens, good schools, near the LIRR and pretty close to the water. Just something else to consider.

[I_Love_LI_but]

Originally Posted by ftc24

Port North - thanks for the highly informative reply! My wife is in fact very interested in being close to the library, so that is a major plus. We checked out the library schedule and it seemed to have a tremendous amount of activity.

As to the elementary schools, any idea which is better: Sousa or South Salem? Is there a toxic dump near the latter? Do you have children in the system?

I hate to sound negative, but isn't the predominance of lower-income kids in Manorhaven a concern insofar as those elementary schools feed into the same intermediate school and high school? Won't this ultimately pull down the quality of those schools, particularly if "white flight" ensues? Relatedly, any thoughts as to the future of property values for the same reasons?

Finally, are there other towns that we should consider, given our price range ($700K - $850K) and given our priorities (easy LIRR commute, good schools, proximity to water, or at least other "charming" qualities)?

Thanks!

How about Sea Cliff?

[Walter Greenspan]

Originally Posted by I_Love_LI_but

How about Sea Cliff?

The Village of Sea Cliff is the most unique community on LI: Sea Cliff is the ONLY city, village or hamlet in either Nassau County or Suffolk County where the same-named ZIP Code postal zone (Sea Cliff, NY 11579 = 752 acres) is coterminous with the community whose name it shares (Village of Sea Cliff = 752 acres).


For those who may not be familiar with Sea Cliff:

Sea Cliff is a village (incorporated in 1883) in the northwest part of the Town of Oyster Bay, in the north-central part of Nassau County.

Beginning on the north and moving in a clockwise direction, the Village of Sea Cliff is bordered on the north by the City of Glen Cove; on the east by the Hamlet of Glen Head; on the south by the Hamlet of Glenwood Landing; and, on the west by Hempstead Harbor.





Unlike every other of the 293 communities (2 cities + 96 villages + 196 hamlets = 293 communities) in either Nassau or Suffolk Counties, the village (Sea Cliff = 752 acres) and the ZIP Code postal zone postal zone (Sea Cliff, NY 11579 = 752 acres) that use the same name, have the exact same border.


For a good set of town-by-town maps showing all the villages and hamlets in each of LI's 13 towns (3 in Nassau County and 10 in Suffolk County): Excellent Long Island Geographic Resource

[hilip]

We are in the same situation as you are -- my husband and I (and our baby) have been looking for quite awhile in Port Washington. We have a similar budget as yours and the same need for a good train to the city. Having spoken with a lot of people living in Port I am not at all concerned about gang or immigration issues. We have a bunch of friends who are also looking in PW and we are really psyched to (hopefully) be there soon. The Port Washington train line is the best, so there will always be professionals from the city wanting to live there. As for the toxic dump, yes, there was one right near Salem elementary. It's been clean for years, though -- google "Port Washington landfill" and you can read more about it.

Good luck!

[ftc24]

Originally Posted by all mixed up

How about Little Neck or Bayside, Bay terrace. Both are in queens, good schools, near the LIRR and pretty close to the water. Just something else to consider.

Thanks. We looked a bit in Little Neck and Bayside. We actually liked a house in Little Neck quite a bit, right near the LIRR station. But I didn't really notice any great water access in Little Neck comparable to the watefront in PW. Did we miss something?