Long Island, Jericho or Garden City (Hempstead, Oyster Bay: homes, school districts, income)

[Troy1]

I need your help folks. I am looking at Long Island as an option as well. Considering the towns of GArden city and Jericho after reading thru this forum. Our considerations are : (a) safe, friendly, family oriented town (b) an easy/short commute to midtown and (c) Good schools.
How would you guys rate these two towns on these 3 points? Which place has better schools? How is the commute from Jericho and how long does it take? How long does it take from Garden City?
Would be grateful if you took the time to answer some of these. We are trying to decide between westchester county and Long Island. It would help to hear people's opinion here. Is there anyplace else we should be considering as well? Thanks a lot.

[OvertaxedOnLI]

My vote is for Garden City on all counts. You didn't mention "ambiance" but in that category too, Garden City also rates better in that also (IMHO). It has a beautiful 'downtown' area whereas Jericho is more what people think of when they speak of Long Island's "strip-mall" development. A lot of Garden City was "old money" in the past (part of it still is!) and it still gives that impression. Classy without having to be gaudy. Maybe "understated wealth" is the description I'm looking for?

My suggestion would be to come out and drive around both communities on a Saturday and then you will be able to judge the differences between the two firsthand, to see which appeals to you more.

By the way, if you go to the Long Island Railroad site and look at the schedules for trains going to and from Penn Station and Garden City and Jericho, that will give you the actual commuting times.
http://www.mta.info/lirr/html/ttn/lirrtt.htm

[GCGuy]

Originally Posted by OvertaxedOnLI

My vote is for Garden City on all counts. You didn't mention "ambiance" but in that category too, Garden City also rates better in that also (IMHO). It has a beautiful 'downtown' area whereas Jericho is more what people think of when they speak of Long Island's "strip-mall" development. A lot of Garden City was "old money" in the past (part of it still is!) and it still gives that impression. Classy without having to be gaudy. Maybe "understated wealth" is the description I'm looking for?

My suggestion would be to come out and drive around both communities on a Saturday and then you will be able to judge the differences between the two firsthand, to see which appeals to you more.

By the way, if you go to the Long Island Railroad site and look at the schedules for trains going to and from Penn Station and Garden City and Jericho, that will give you the actual commuting times.
http://www.mta.info/lirr/html/ttn/lirrtt.htm

I agree. I was looking at these, and other areas, and chose Garden City. I think it's a better location, with much better LIRR access than Jericho. There's 5 stops in GC, and 3 right there (incl Mineola). Close to malls and local shops. The downtown is very nice. I guess estimate 35-40 min or so.

The area is more attactive in my opinion, most of the village (all 5.3 sq. miles of it) is very nice, kinda story book. Jericho is more of a ranch and split type of place.

Jericho is ranked very highly academically, one of the tops in the nation. GC is also excellent, but not as high numbers wise. What it is high in is well-rounded focus. 70% of the kids play sports and the village really supports the teams. Also, strong music and art programs. I would rather a 94 avg, 1250 SAT, and playing baseball for my kids than a 98, 1450, and nothing else. That's the impression I got from Jericho.

Also, GC is an inc village, so it has it's own police, fire, sanitation, water, etc. I like that very much...great service and attention.

Finaly, the community. GC is SO focused on community and family, it's crazy. So many kids come back to raise families. It really is like a throwback. I am really pleased with GC. My wife loves all the group activities for mom's too (play groups, book clubs, gourmet clubs, etc.).

If you'd like, feel free to PM me and I can get into more detail if you'd like.

Westchester is great, too. I like LI a lot b/c of the beaches and the fact that the North Shore and South Shore are so different and unique. Westchester is great, but it's more "rural" or "New Englandy" in feel...throughout the county.

If I may, where do you live now? What are you looking for?

[Troy1]

Originally Posted by GCGuy

I agree. I was looking at these, and other areas, and chose Garden City. I think it's a better location, with much better LIRR access than Jericho. There's 5 stops in GC, and 3 right there (incl Mineola). Close to malls and local shops. The downtown is very nice. I guess estimate 35-40 min or so.

The area is more attactive in my opinion, most of the village (all 5.3 sq. miles of it) is very nice, kinda story book. Jericho is more of a ranch and split type of place.

Jericho is ranked very highly academically, one of the tops in the nation. GC is also excellent, but not as high numbers wise. What it is high in is well-rounded focus. 70% of the kids play sports and the village really supports the teams. Also, strong music and art programs. I would rather a 94 avg, 1250 SAT, and playing baseball for my kids than a 98, 1450, and nothing else. That's the impression I got from Jericho.

Also, GC is an inc village, so it has it's own police, fire, sanitation, water, etc. I like that very much...great service and attention.

Finaly, the community. GC is SO focused on community and family, it's crazy. So many kids come back to raise families. It really is like a throwback. I am really pleased with GC. My wife loves all the group activities for mom's too (play groups, book clubs, gourmet clubs, etc.).

If you'd like, feel free to PM me and I can get into more detail if you'd like.

Westchester is great, too. I like LI a lot b/c of the beaches and the fact that the North Shore and South Shore are so different and unique. Westchester is great, but it's more "rural" or "New Englandy" in feel...throughout the county.

If I may, where do you live now? What are you looking for?

Thank you, Overtaxed and GCguy:

Looking at your posts, GC does seem to be the place for us. I think it would be best if we drove around these places this weekend. To answer your question, we are living in princeton, nj for the past 6 months. While we love this place, the commute is really getting to us. We were in Manhattan before but with an 8 yr old girl, we decided to move to the burbs. What would be the good sections of town that I shd be looking at? Our budget ranges from 800K-1.2M. Thanks once again and I will PM u once I am a little clearer on my questions.

[rkk12]

I have lived in both Westchester and LI and places like Chappaqua, Scarsdale, Rye brook are definitely worth considering, and a better choice if you are working in the city.

Jericho has no downtown, unless you consider the malls in neighboring Hicksville. Its almost purely residential. Jericho is a different town than GC. Its population is more diverse, with more Asian familes. Jericho is traditionally Jewish, while GC's ppopulation is traditionally Christian. Jericho schools are academically rated better, and they traditionally do very well in Science competitions etc. But they are good at sports and music too.. and I think both GC and Jericho are well-rounded excellent schools. Jericho can be more competitive academically.

Also note that PO and school districts often don't match exactly, so when you are searching, search by school district and not by town.

With your budget, you have wide choices in all areas, less so in Westchester, but prices have come down everywhere.

[TANaples]

If you can afford it, I agree with Garden City also.

[Elke Mariotti]

IMHO, Garden City definitely has more of a "community feel" - something I personally find lacking in Jericho.

I second pretty much everything that's already been said about GC and you'll definitely be able to find something in your price range, more so than in Westchester.

This weekend the weather is supposed to be pretty nice, have a look and enjoy your time on our beautiful "Long Island" - it's a great place to live!!

[Walter Greenspan]

Troy1, in case you are unfamiliar with the local geography:

What people refer to colloquially as "towns" are actually villages and hamlets, which are within actual towns; and, because villages and hamlets are referred to as "towns", then, many times, the error is compounded when actual towns are referred to as "townships".

Garden City is a village in the Town of Hempstead while Jericho is a hamlet in the Town of Oyster Bay. While the Village of Garden City is within the Garden City Union Free School District, all or parts of 5 upper-income villages, in addition to the Hamlet of Jericho, are in the Jericho Union Free School Districts. These upper-income villages are: Muttontown, Brookville, Upper Brookville, East Hills and Old Westbury.

Also, you should be aware that many colloquially refer to a "downtown business district" in a hamlet as a "village".

http://www.city-data.com/forum/new-y...-glossary.html and http://www.city-data.com/forum/long-...-resource.html may be of some help to you in understanding the geography of "Lawn Guyland".

There are areas outside the Village of Garden City that have a "Garden City, NY 11530" mailing address and http://www.city-data.com/forum/long-...you-think.html may help you understand the great geographic confusions caused by non-conforming ZIP Code postal zones.

[rkk12]

Jericho does have friendly and cooperative communities. I am not sure what part of Jericho you are referring to. Some east Birchwood homes have banded together to negotiate agreements with oil companies for heat. Many Jericho communities have active civic associations. If this is not community feel.. I don't know what is. People who usually choose Jericho are upper-middle class professionals who want their kids to have superior education in professional fields. A lot of well-to-do Asian immigrants choose Jericho for the same reason.

Originally Posted by Elke Mariotti

IMHO, Garden City definitely has more of a "community feel" - something I personally find lacking in Jericho.

I second pretty much everything that's already been said about GC and you'll definitely be able to find something in your price range, more so than in Westchester.

This weekend the weather is supposed to be pretty nice, have a look and enjoy your time on our beautiful "Long Island" - it's a great place to live!!

[Smash255]

Both are nice areas, both have a strong community feel. Garden City has a pretty nice downtown, Jericho doesn't really have a true downtown, though has nice areas near it. Both have very good schools, though Jericho is typically rated a bit better. Jericho is a bit more diverse than Garden City.

The biggest differences between the two are religion and politics. Jericho has a pretty diverse religious spectrum with a fairly large Jewish population, where Garden City has a very small Jewish population. Jericho is largely liberal and heavily Democratic, Garden City is conservative and very Republican.