Valley Stream (Oceanside, Rockville Centre, Merrick: apartment, schools, living)

[violeta]

I have the possibility of moving to Valley Stream, LI and commuting to the UES of manhattan. Does anyone have any insight on the town , safety wise, etc. I am a 22 year old single , female and will be living alone. The place I might be moving to is off Merrick Rd about 5 blocks from the train. Is that walkable, safe? Or should I try and park? How is the commute? I need to get to 64th and 1st, is there any shortcut..like switching at Jamaica or taking a bus to the subway? Any info would be greatly appreciated.

[TheTruth08]

I live in Valley Stream, but im 15. Its a pretty safe community but I really dont know for the future years since this is a landing point of people moving out of Queens and Brooklyn. This town has lots of delis and some good pizzerias. Theres also a mall in Valley Stream called Green Acres even though they dont really have any good stores.

[violeta]

Thanks for the info. Do you know anything about commuting to the city...,or maybe have relatives that do?

[budsvtec]

I grew up in the area, and I still have friends that live there. The area of Valley Stream that you are referring to is actually very nice still. I believe you will be near the Valley Stream Pool, and there is a really nice park that goes around it where a lot of people excersize in the warmer months of the year.

Merrick road is thriving with many stores, restaurants, fast food places etc....

As far as the commute to the train station, you should be fine. That area is still pretty good.

[8Kids1Cat]

I was born and raised on Long Island and unfortunately, Valley Stream is not what it used to be. You should definitely try to move a little further east maybe a couple towns away. Rockville Centre, Oceanside even Lynbrook is pretty nice and close to the LIRR that goes directly to Jamaica AND Penn Station. Rockville Centre is really nice and the LIRR station there is very safe. Also, Rockville Centre is booming with young people and night life. I'm married with kids now but in my single days, Rockville Centre was a very fun, safe place to hang out at night. Pretty much everything is walking distance with many bus stops. Good luck!

[budsvtec]

Oh ya 8kids1cat is right. If you can, move to Lynbrook, oceanside or Rockville Center. I grew up in Lynbrook. I lived 5 blocks from the train station. Lynbrook was a great town to grow up in, and if you can find an apartment there for a good price I would move there in a heart beat.

My sister lives in oceanside and she says it is a great area too. Very safe.

As far as Rockville center goes....Beware of anything in Malverne Schools, or Lakeview Schools and you should be fine.

Rockville center is loaded with Bars, restaurants, and plenty of things to do.

[NYLATINQT]

Originally Posted by violeta

I have the possibility of moving to Valley Stream, LI and commuting to the UES of manhattan. Does anyone have any insight on the town , safety wise, etc. I am a 22 year old single , female and will be living alone. The place I might be moving to is off Merrick Rd about 5 blocks from the train. Is that walkable, safe? Or should I try and park? How is the commute? I need to get to 64th and 1st, is there any shortcut..like switching at Jamaica or taking a bus to the subway? Any info would be greatly appreciated.

I used to live close to Valley Stream. I also did the whole commuting thing into the City. Let me tell you, it will wear you down after a while. Valley Stream is great and the upper east side is fantastic, but to commute will be horrible! It is very expensive and time consuming. You're gonna have to pay for the LIRR plus the subway metrocard. if you can live in NYC or any of the boros where you can just hop on the train, it would be better. Plus, if you are only 22 yrs old, you're gonna want to party in NYC anyway. Good Luck!