Want to know more about these towns in MASS: Beverly, Salem, Peabody, Lynn, and Saugus (Boston: car insurance, YMCA)

[pischev08]

Thank you very much. I will take Lynn and Saugus off the list.
Any more info on the Peabody area? Schools, outdoor sports like soccer, Mall. Which one is best? Beverly or Peabody you prefer for work and for living?
Do any of the moms out there know if the schools there have after care programs?
Thank You

[MAtoNC!]

I would only consider Beverly. But the schools aren't great. I would not consider Peabody schools. My choice would be Danvers.

[pischev08]

I know I will be new there, never been out East.. what,s the deal with the parking meters? Do you have to pay to park at your apt or just to work? How much is it to park? Thanks

[rabbit2976]

I lived in Salem for several years, and loved it. Although the month of October is INSANE thanks to Halloween! Beverly is beautiful too.

[TigerBlue62]

Hi, PISCHEV08! I am a New England native, but have lived in the south for over 30 years due to the military. I, too, am trying to relocate back to MA. I will tell you that my daughter lives in Beverly and I go there quite often to visit. Beverly is a lovely town. They have a place called Lynch Park...that is wonderful..You may be able to play a little family soccer there. There is a ball field there, but I don't know the rules in playing on it. It is a very family oriented town. I have seen kids playing soccer, but I don't know who owns the fields. It is a "hop on/hop off" the highway (128) to get to two malls (Liberty Tree and Northshore). Liberty Tree has a Target, Bestbuy, Old Navy and a nice theatre. Take Endicott Street to 114 and go right. Go down about 2 miles and there is a Walmart (not super walmart). There is also a Petsmart right next to it, if you have a pet. The roads can be tricky, but have faith...you will learn your way around in no time. Also, the train comes right into Beverly from Boston. The best thing about the Eastern side of MA is the train. There are 3 stations in Beverly alone. I do love going "next door" to Salem and I enjoy the history there, but I don't know it as well as I know Beverly. You have 2 Stop&Shops and 1 Shaw's in Beverly for grocery stores, but if you are on a budget, you will want to go to Market Basket in Danvers. It is very near the Liberty Tree mall and has good prices and a great variety of food. If there is anything, I have not covered, ask me. Good Luck!

[luvmyguys]

I'll jump in here since I live in Beverly, been here most of my life.

It is very family oriented and yes, Lynch Park is awesome. Can't beat a summer night down at Lynch listening to the bands, grabbing an ice cream, etc. Homecoming week is the best! There is nothing like being a teenager in Beverly and riding your bike to the beach every day in the summer to hang out with friends.

Anyway, does Beverly have some negatives, absolutely-like every city and town. The biggest negative right now is budgeting and schools. There is a lot of talk going on right now about closing two elementary schools and consolidating which in turn will result in larger class sizes. Is this problem specific to Beverly, absolutely not but regardless it is very unsettling. Would it make me move out of Beverly? No. On the plus regarding schools, Beverly is in the process of building a new state of the art High School and surrounding athletic facility. It will take a few years to complete but will be incredible when it is done. I will have one child who will be in the high school during renovations (although they have a plan in place to make it as disruptive to the students as possible) and another who is scheduled to be the first incoming class when the high school is complete.

Regarding sports...Beverly is HUGE on youth sports. Soccer is big, baseball is HUGE! Basketball and hockey are very well managed/attended also. There is a fairly newly renovated YMCA too. They baseball fields are impeccably kept and there is a new soccer field.

I too would stay away from Lynn, Saugus and Peabody. Peabody is very BIG and commercial. I lived in Peabody for three years after I was first married/first baby and decided to return to Beverly. Peabody didn't have that "family" feel I grew up with in Beverly.

Danvers is lovely. I know it has a new middle school but I don't have anything good or bad to say about their schools.

Danvers and Peabody both have malls within five minutes of each other but they are both right off the highway so getting there from Beverly takes about 10 minutes. Getting there from Salem is a nightmare. Salem has no highway access which can be a problem if you work down route 128.

The commute from anywhere on the North Shore down Route 128 can be tricky but unless you are one of the lucky ones to work right in the Cummings Center in Beverly, Cherry Hill Park in Beverly or Centennial Drive in Peabody, driving down route 128 or taking the train into Boston to commute to work is pretty much unavoidable.

For what it is worth, I moved out of state a few years ago and decided to return to MA, specifically Beverly. Guess I felt the winters, taxes, cost of living and schools weren't so bad after all..........

Good luck. Hope I was able to help. Feel free to PM me.

[luvmyguys]

just re-read my post. Obviously I mean to to say (although they have a plan in place to make it as NON-disruptive to the students as possible)

Originally Posted by luvmyguys

I'll jump in here since I live in Beverly, been here most of my life.

It is very family oriented and yes, Lynch Park is awesome. Can't beat a summer night down at Lynch listening to the bands, grabbing an ice cream, etc. Homecoming week is the best! There is nothing like being a teenager in Beverly and riding your bike to the beach every day in the summer to hang out with friends.

Anyway, does Beverly have some negatives, absolutely-like every city and town. The biggest negative right now is budgeting and schools. There is a lot of talk going on right now about closing two elementary schools and consolidating which in turn will result in larger class sizes. Is this problem specific to Beverly, absolutely not but regardless it is very unsettling. Would it make me move out of Beverly? No. On the plus regarding schools, Beverly is in the process of building a new state of the art High School and surrounding athletic facility. It will take a few years to complete but will be incredible when it is done. I will have one child who will be in the high school during renovations (although they have a plan in place to make it as disruptive to the students as possible) and another who is scheduled to be the first incoming class when the high school is complete.

Regarding sports...Beverly is HUGE on youth sports. Soccer is big, baseball is HUGE! Basketball and hockey are very well managed/attended also. There is a fairly newly renovated YMCA too. They baseball fields are impeccably kept and there is a new soccer field.

I too would stay away from Lynn, Saugus and Peabody. Peabody is very BIG and commercial. I lived in Peabody for three years after I was first married/first baby and decided to return to Beverly. Peabody didn't have that "family" feel I grew up with in Beverly.

Danvers is lovely. I know it has a new middle school but I don't have anything good or bad to say about their schools.

Danvers and Peabody both have malls within five minutes of each other but they are both right off the highway so getting there from Beverly takes about 10 minutes. Getting there from Salem is a nightmare. Salem has no highway access which can be a problem if you work down route 128.

The commute from anywhere on the North Shore down Route 128 can be tricky but unless you are one of the lucky ones to work right in the Cummings Center in Beverly, Cherry Hill Park in Beverly or Centennial Drive in Peabody, driving down route 128 or taking the train into Boston to commute to work is pretty much unavoidable.

For what it is worth, I moved out of state a few years ago and decided to return to MA, specifically Beverly. Guess I felt the winters, taxes, cost of living and schools weren't so bad after all..........

Good luck. Hope I was able to help. Feel free to PM me.

[azaleaeight]

Originally Posted by pischev08

Relocating from Tennessee, and I want to know which one is better for a family?
I already read about these towns north of Boston like Beverly, Salem, Peabody, Lynn, Saugus, and I am not sure which one is the best. So I would appreciate it if you can recommend the best place? We love to play Soccer.
Thank you

Salem is a city, and recently they have been in the process of turning it into a nicer city. Many historical buildings have been renovated, they've done some things with cultural sites, etc.; and have a state college there.

Whether Beverly, Salem, Peabody, or Saugus - there are nice enough areas in those towns/cities to live in. I do not recommend Lynn whatsoever - and few people would. There's a commuter rail that goes to Beverly. I think - if I had to choose one of those towns I'd choose either Beverly or Peabody.

[NorthShoreBeauty]

Okay so here we go.
I've grown up in East Boston & live on the northshore now (in Beverly). I go to school & work in Salem, boyfriend lives in Peabody. Let's get this straight, if you're coming from TN, I agree with everyone else and have to say avoid Lynn. It sucks enough having to deal with Lynn KNOWING about it and living in MA, never mind moving to Lynn from out of state! It would just be a pain...the school systems aren't very good; overcrowded, lots of teachers being laid off, and many gang problems around the schools & even in the relatively 'nice' areas. The housing may be cheap, but that's why. Saugus is a busy little town near Boston, but from what it sounds like, you're better off staying more on the northshore. "Out of the mountains" and around the beach area. Salem, being close to Lynn, (as someone said before), is starting to have some of the same problems with gangs & violence. Besides that, there is all the traffic & problems (because of Salem's incredible history) and so from about August to December there are tons of tourists, etc. running around town. Peabody is okay...huge Portugese neighborhoods developing, but around a lot of commercial businesses. South Peabody is near Lynn (so there ya go), West Peabody is way upperclass, downtown Peabody is, eh, like any kind of bustling downtown area...and although it's home to a mall, yes, it's just an average city. School systems are okay. The best place (excuse me if I'm being biased, because I'm not trying to be) for you guys, it seems to me, would be Beverly. Pretty busy, diverse, not too expensive, no "wicked bad" neighborhoods, a ton of schools, and it's beautiful. If you still wanted to work at the mall, it's only about a 10 min drive, if that.
Hope I was of some help

[lindsey814]

The best public high school on the northshore is Masconomet Regional in Topsfield. It serves as the highschool for Topsfield Middleton and Boxford and rivals private schools in the area like St John's prep in terms of education quality. They also have very good sports progrsms. Personally in the area i would recommend Middleton. I have lived there for 15 years went to school there and it's a really good family town. It's a little more pricey than the others but worth it in quality. It's in the middle of lots of major highways (minutes to 114, 62, 95, rte 1, 495) Takes about 15 minutes to get to the Northshore Mall in Peabody which is in the process of a huge renovation and the same to the Liberty Tree mall in Danvers.