Difference in culture between Port Washington and Rockville Centre (Hempstead: house, neighborhood)

[RocklandorLongIsland]

I'm debating between Rockville and Port b/c of the great school districts and close proximity to NYC.

Can anyone recommend other towns that are kid friendly with lots of activities for the little ones and great schools that are also close to NYC.

THanks all!

[DawnSells]

I think that Port Washington has more of an old town feel. RVC is nice. I grew up a town over. I find it to be a very Catholic area. It does border a not so great town though.

[RocklandorLongIsland]

Thanks DawnSells, I feel I'm at my wits end here trying to find a nice quiet town with nice quiet borders and SAFE and clean schools where my kids will get a great education etc....

where are these towns!? must I be a millionaire to have these things for my children?! sheesh, sorry I'm venting a bit of stress not directed at anyone in particular

[Port North]

Originally Posted by RocklandorLongIsland

Thanks DawnSells, I feel I'm at my wits end here trying to find a nice quiet town with nice quiet borders and SAFE and clean schools where my kids will get a great education etc....

where are these towns!? must I be a millionaire to have these things for my children?! sheesh, sorry I'm venting a bit of stress not directed at anyone in particular

Both Port Washington and Rockville Centre are great places to live. Both have clean, safe schools and your kids will get an excellent education. I live in Port and find it an excellent place to live. Rockville Centre may be close to Hempstead but I really haven't heard of many problems spilling over from Hempstead. That kind of logic would make Garden City bad because it's next to two questionable areas - Hempstead and Uniondale. People really need to get beyond the idea that any place that isn't 85% or better white is automatically a ghetto.

With demographic trends being what they are there soon won't be a choice but to live an area that is relatively diverse or near one that is. Like it or not this is reality, the sooner people stop trying to run away,the sooner things will stabilize. Look at the demographics of exurban school districts in Orange and Putnam and Dutchess Counties, even these far flung areas are becoming more diverse at an even faster rate than many places on Long Island. There is literally nowhere to run, nowhere to hide.

People on this board need to get over the neighborhood paranoia. I admit I kind of got sucked into it when I first moved here, but over time I've accepted the fact that an area can be diverse and be safe, have good schools and be a good place to live. People have to work on making this a reality.

[RocklandorLongIsland]

Port North - your post was excellent and I thank you. I live in Mill Basin in Brooklyn and our block was very diverse, we have african americans, jewish neighbors, arab neighbors, irish and latin one ONE block!! I love it!! BUT then someone rented their home to a family on assistance and it is NOT SAFE, not only were we (my neighbors and I) surprised to find out that these people had about 8 kids, most teenagers, but they are rude, rowdy, don't work, out all day and they make you feel uneasy by staring when you walk to your house.

They have prompted me to "hate" brooklyn and move upstate or Long Island where I hope not to have my children around that type of mean undesirable attitude.

[Port North]

Originally Posted by RocklandorLongIsland

They have prompted me to "hate" brooklyn and move upstate or Long Island where I hope not to have my children around that type of mean undesirable attitude.

Unfortunately you will run into that attitude most anywhere. A few years back I had doctors that lived behind me and they had 5 teenaged kids. The parents always worked long hours and their kids had parties all hours of the night, making loud noise, harassing the 95 year old neighbor across the street and throwing beer bottles into my yard. They finally moved two years ago and now there is an Asian couple with small children that I hardly ever hear a peep from.

My point is that no matter where you go, you will run into knuckleheads no matter what their income level. In fact sometimes the rich people can be worse because they often have this annoying sense of entitlement or that their kids can do no wrong.

By the way if you are going to make the break from Brooklyn, I would recommend going up to Northern Westchester if you can swing it. It is a real nice quiet beautiful area. The traffic getting on and off Long Island is a real pain. I would be so happy if I didn't have to cross those bridges and fight traffic on the LIE and Cross Island everytime I want to visit relatives upstate, unfortunately my office is wedded to Garden City.

[Walter Greenspan]

RocklandorLongIsland, Rockville Centre is a self-governing village in the Town of Hempstead while Port Washington is a hamlet and is governed at-large by the Town of North Hempstead.

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".

Also, 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".

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.

When you do find a house that you like, you can find out in which community (city, village or CDP) that house is actually located, which is oftentimes different from the community named in that house's mailing address, by using the Census Bureau's online address search function. (CDP or Census Designated Place is the Census Bureau equivalent for a hamlet in Nassau and Suffolk Counties.)

And, very importantly, among other things, the Census Bureau's online address search function also indicates in which school district an address is located.

[DawnSells]

Syosset is a great area too with a wonderful school district. I cannot speak about activities for the kids but their express train gets you to NYC in less than an hour. Again, Garden City has sooo much going on for the kids. Plus It is not too far from the LIE, Northern State or Meadowbrook.

[Walter Greenspan]

Originally Posted by DawnSells

Syosset is a great area too with a wonderful school district. I cannot speak about activities for the kids but their express train gets you to NYC in less than an hour. Again, Garden City has sooo much going on for the kids. Plus It is not too far from the LIE, Northern State or Meadowbrook.

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Syosset is a hamlet and is governed at-large by the Town of Oyster Bay, while Garden City is a self-governing village in the Town of Hempstead.
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[SamTheCatRocks]

RVC is a great town. Easy commute to Penn Station (40 minutes), good schools and a nice sense of community. Easy access to the south shore and beaches (Long Beach is only a skip by car). There are tons of restaurants and shops and has a nice walkabout feel.
Because RVC is an incorporated village and has it's own utilities, the cost of living is definitely less expensive - and the utilities are dependable. During the big blackout (August, 6 years ago), RVC only had one rolling brownout that lasted 30 minutes, rather than losing power like most areas did.
I can't speak of Port Washington, but we bought a house in RVC 7+ years ago and are very happy.
Good luck!!!