Garden City: difference between Eastern/Western/Mott/Estates? (Hempstead, Mineola: 2010, crime)

[twingles]

Originally Posted by gardencityresident

)..and IMO there is more of a commercial or light industry "feel" to these areas-especially as you move toward Hempstead Turnpike which may be reflected in the lower $$ of the border areas. I think the border streets are generally less desirable in this section as they are in the South East side of garden city where the streets border Hempstead, (e.g. Meadow Street) and so forth.

The Adelphi Estates section doesn't come close to bordering Hempstead and is no where near Meadow Street. It's also not all that close to Hempstead Tpke as GC's southern border is Cambridge Ave, which is a good distance from Hempstead Tpke. GC South is a very safe area.

If a house in the Adelphi Estates section is significantly cheaper than others in the area, it may be that the people have been there long enough that whatever they make off the house is pure gravy, it may be that they "need" to sell and get out of the house for whatever reason, or it may be that the house needs a lot of updates compared to others in the area. BUt it's a fine area. The biggest drawback for me is that your children if you have them will have to go to Hemlock school even though Homestead is closer, it's just the way they divvied up the town. IMHO it's a long commute for K and 1st graders. However your kids would go to Stratford for grades 2-5 so they'd be in a good position in that regard and would be entitled to bus service (as pp noted that is a battle a-brewing for people who are losing bus service!). I think that is a very nice quiet area of town, you have shopping and restaurants on Nassau Blvd, you're pretty close to the 7th St scene and you're close to the pool. You're also probably pretty close to the train if you need it.

[rf22777]

I think most of the border streets in town carry slightly lower price tags. I probably would not worry as much about a border street in the Adelphi section as some of the other sections of town. And while the houses don't look much different as you head south, as long as you are not talking about too far south, there are some zoning differences in Garden City South that might contribute to the lower price tags on a border street. There are more rental houses in GC South, there are some 2 family houses, and they do allow for overnight street parking, commercial vehicles in the driveway, above ground pools and some other things that may or may not matter to you. And while the houses to the south do look similar, they are usually on smaller plots and carry lower property values than most Garden City houses so some people are inclined to pay more just to be further from the border. And some people would say garden city is a quieter town than garden city south so the closer you are to the border the less quiet it might be. But you can have quiet or loud neighbors anywhere, including in Garden City. As other posters have pointed out, services in the village are the same for all residents and the schools are all really good. So unless its going to really bother you to look up the street and see cars parked overnight, being on the border might impact your resale, but that might already be factored in to the purchase price.

[Walter Greenspan]

Originally Posted by rf22777

... there are some zoning differences in Garden City South that might contribute to the lower price tags on a border street ...

Garden City South is a hamlet and is governed on an at-large basis by the Town of Hempstead while Garden City is a self-governing village in the Town of Hempstead; the Hamlet of Garden City South is in Central High School District no. 2 while the Village of Garden City is in the Garden City Union Free School District.

[Interlude]

GC does border on Hempstead, a low-income area that tends to spill over a bit in certain sections, especially the southeast of town. Watch the area east of Clinton Road and south of Commercial Avenue, it tends to be a thoroughfare for people walking from Hempstead to the Roosevelt Field area.

[Walter Greenspan]

Originally Posted by Interlude

GC does border on Hempstead, a low-income area that tends to spill over a bit in certain sections, especially the southeast of town. Watch the area east of Clinton Road and south of Commercial Avenue, it tends to be a thoroughfare for people walking from Hempstead to the Roosevelt Field area.

Yes, the Village of Garden City does share a border with the Village of Hempstead, and the Garden City Village Police Department is well aware of this geographic proximity.

[Johninwestbury]

Originally Posted by Interlude

GC does border on Hempstead, a low-income area that tends to spill over a bit in certain sections, especially the southeast of town. Watch the area east of Clinton Road and south of Commercial Avenue, it tends to be a thoroughfare for people walking from Hempstead to the Roosevelt Field area.

Well I've taken the bus through there and that part of GC seems fine. I bet the GC Police make sure of that. Usually the thoroughfare between Hempstead and Roosevelt Field is Oak street.
The ride on Clinton street sure is one of largest contrasts I've ever seen. Just before the GC border there's bodegas and unsavory characters hanging around, but once you get north of it, trees and beautiful houses.
It really is amazing how they are able to keep the filfth in Hempstead out of Garden City. The bus rarely has to pick up or drop off anyone once it's in GC.
I dont ride it down there that often though. Its hard to imagine that there wouldn't be guys on bikes wearing backpacks and covered in dirt racing their bikes south down Clinton in the afternoon going back to Hempstead, after doing some yards in GC.

[Interlude]

Originally Posted by Walter Greenspan

Yes, the Village of Garden City does share a border with the Village of Hempstead, and the Garden City Village Police Department is well aware of this geographic proximity.

Oh I know. I lived in GC for 15 years and I'm quite familiar with their tactics. One that sticks out in my mind: as a teenager I worked at Roosevelt Field Mall and a guy I worked with would constantly be pulled over - while on his bicycle - when he rode to and from Hempstead via Franklin Avenue. Once they gave him a citation because he didn't have a bell on his bike, but really, it's because he was black.

Still, the police can't be everywhere at once, which is important to consider no matter where you live.

[gardencityresident]

I think Twingles misunderstood my analogy. I know the Adelphi section does not border Hempstead like the South East section of streets like Meadow. I was trying to make the analogy--that r2f7777 pp said much more clearly-that border streets in general are generally less desirable. The Adelphi section runs up against Garden City South and that is a busier commercial area with everything from gas stations to restaurants to plant nurseries to dancing schools, etc. (e.g, Nassau Blvd South which intersects Hempstead Turnpike). It's much more of a mixed use commercial area than 7th Street.

[azzurrony]

I've been in GC since December. We looked at all of the areas of GC and ended up choosing the Estates section just north of the GC Country Club. We love the area because the Stratford School is nearby and you can walk to either the Nassau Blvd station or Merillon Ave LIRR station. After much time spent looking at homes in GC, here's a breakdown of the areas of GC:

1. Mott Section--Lovely section with mostly 3 bedroom homes on smaller plots of land. This borders Mineola. The downside is that the homes are smaller, but the upside is that you can pretty much walk to the village very easily and the neighborhood is still really nice and picturesque (lots of trees).

2. Southeast Section--This section has BIG plots of land and some really lovely homes. You can find some great deals on homes here. The big negative of course is that you are near the Hempstead border. Like it or not, its troublesome being 3-5 blocks away from one of LI's worst areas. The police do a nice job of patroling, but scum from Hempstead always come north. There was just a story in the paper about a Hispanic guy from Hempstead who would drive up and prey on GC women and little girls by flashing himself and/or masturbating in front of them. Finally, he was arrested.

3. Central Section--This has the largest homes and biggest lots. This is Susan Lucci country where the wealthiest of the wealthy live. Not much downside here if you can afford it. The only negative is for those near the Hempstead border if they happen to be in the south part of the Central Section.

4. Estates Section--I love this section of town because it's architecture is tremendous (especially the areas from about Wickham all the way to Adelphi). It's a nice balance between the size you find in Central vs. Mott. You are near schools, and you have that great St. Paul's field nearby. Plus you are close to some nice businesses in GC South if you want. The negatives are that you are not within walking distance of the village center. Also, flights to JFK can be a problem overhead.

5. Western Section--This section normally tends to have the best deals in GC from a price standpoint. Houses tend to be much more "cookie cutter" like the rest of Long Island. You don't see as many "classic" homes as the rest of GC. There are however some streets where this is not true and classic homes are lovely (near the Stewart Manor border). Negatives of the Western Section include the following: a) more McMansions popping up b) JFK flight issues as well and c) you are far away from the rest of the village. All this can be tolerated however because you get some really good price deals on your home in GC.

Hope that helps.

[ooom416354]

I just bought in the southeast section and honestly I don't think there is anything to fear about living close to the hempstead border. i think everyone, including me, expects the entire village to be free of crime but that's just not a reality. some of the nicest areas in NYC are bordered by areas which are considered not so nice - example being the upper east side / harlem. i did have a fear of moving to the southeast but after talking with neighbors and people who have lived in the area for many years, they assured me there was no cause for concern. if you read the gcnews online you can do a search and see the police blotter; it seems like aside from meadow st the police activity is scattered the same throughout the whole village. i guess people may just not want to live near the border areas- to me in reality it seems to have the same type crime rate and crime type then any other area in the village.