Are there any great walking communities near Springfield, MA? (Amherst: how much, transfer to)

[Sarah.hayes]

My husband and I are considering a work transfer to Springfield, MA.

We currently live in an amazing neighborhood that is a walking community, and it is one of the things I want to find out about as a consideration in making a decision to move.

I can walk through the neighborhood on sidewalks, to the downtown area which is only 5 blocks away, I can walk my son to school, to the grocery store, to CVS.....

This type of community is important to me.

I lived in Metro West MA for 3.5 years before our move to Michigan and we lived in Ashland, with family in Southborough and Holliston....these were NOT walking communities and I found myself driving everywhere. This is not something I'm looking to go back to doing.

I read another thread on walking communities and saw mention of Northampton and Longmeadow. We want to be east of Springfield if we move, and would consider going as far east as Sturbridge.

Any comments, thoughts, or suggestions about this area of MA would be greatly appreciated.

We have to make a decision in less than two weeks so I'm trying to collect as much information as possible, as quickly as possible.

Thanks so much!

[goldenage1]

Originally Posted by Sarah.hayes

I read another thread on walking communities and saw mention of Northampton and Longmeadow. We want to be east of Springfield if we move, and would consider going as far east as Sturbridge.

Amherst might work for you. The center of town is very walkable, but I am not sure how much family housing is nearby.

Palmer is probably under-appreciated because of Route 20 and the train tracks. However, the town looks very walkable. There's a public library, several cute shops and Friendly's Ice Cream shop in the downtown.

By comparison, Sturbridge does not look walkable at all.

Also, look at the pics of Ludlow in post Number 7 here: Old school small New. England cities with a working class, european vibe

When I was a kid in West Springfield, we walked to many places: convenience stores, Friendly's. We also took buses. However, my grandparents still had to use the car for grocery shopping.