Current Mansfield, MA residents seeking a more exciting place to call home. Berkshires? Rhode Island? Help! (Boston: real estate, apartments)

[russiandressing]

Okay, City Data peeps. Here we go. My wife and I currently live in Mansfield and have ultimately decided that this is NOT where we want to stay. We are 7 months pregnant with our first child so we’ve got some time before we have to make any kind of decision when it comes to schools. Now, you may or may not be aware of Mansfield and their “great schools” so you may or may not be wondering why we want to leave if we’re about to have kids? Let’s get to that.

Why do we want to leave Mansfield and the surrounding area? Because there is absolutely NOTHING to do around here. Nice little town that I’m sure many folks would love to live in, but it’s just not for us. Mansfield Family Fun Night just doesn’t cut it. Jimmy’s Pub and salty Cibo Matto? Not gonna cut it. There is no downtown Mansfield. There are no retail shops. There are no cool cafes. Can’t get to a cool brewery unless you drive 30 minutes away. It just doesn’t match our lifestyle or interests. Plus, they just knocked down a pretty large building in the center of town which I thought might provide a little bit of the stuff mentioned above, but nope — they’re putting apartments there. Cool.

So what do we like to do? Pretty much outlined it above. We are seeking a place where we can get our weekly fruits and vegetables at a farmer’s market or a local co-op. We’re seeking a place with a bit of a live music scene - both for enjoyment purposes and also performing purposes as I am a musician myself. We’re seeking a place with good local restaurants and coffee shops. We’re seeking a place with breweries and other similar attractions. We’re seeking a place that always has something going on. We’re seeking a place with an awesome sense of community and keeping things local. We’re seeking a place that can hold it’s own amongst other cool towns. We’re kinda seeking the city feel without being in a legit city — think Burlington, VT. We’re seeking a place with a cute “downtown”. Finally, we’re seeking good schools. Perfect schools? No. Good, solid schools? Yes. I had a wonderful public school experience in upstate New York and hope to give my kid something similar.

Here’s the catch: my family is from Saratoga Springs, NY and hers is from Stoughton. We’d like to be somewhere in between so that both families are accessible. We currently drive to Saratoga around once a month to hang with my family - 6 hours of driving, round trip. I’d prefer not to make that trip longer. Shorter would be great, but not a requirement.

What towns do we love but don’t want to live in? We love Somerville and Cambridge but aren’t willing to pay that kind of premium for cost of living. Plus, they’re a bit too city for my upstate NY soul. We love Burlington, VT but don’t want to be that far from both of our families. We love Providence but are well aware of how horrible the schools are and don’t want to go the private school/charter school route. We love Saratoga Springs but I’m not super confident in how happy I’d be with my whole family being within a stone’s throw — I went to UVM for college when I was 18 and never really went back home, so I’ve gotten pretty good at doing my own thing. I’m not entirely opposed to it, but I’d probably be a bit nervous about it if we opted to go that route. We’ve also considered Portland, ME and Portsmouth, NH because we do love them, but they’re both a bit too far off the beaten path when we do so much traveling to upstate NY.

Housing budget? Sure, let’s talk about it real quick. We purchased our new construction home in Mansfield for about $550,000 a couple of years ago. Budget for our next home would be around there — maybe $650,000ish to get something we really love.

I’ve spent the last couple of days researching towns that might suit us. In no particular order, here are some I’ve hit on:

Great Barrington, MA
Northampton, MA
West Stockbridge, MA
Lenox, MA
Lee, MA
Barrington, RI
Warren, RI
Bristol, RI

The Berkshires are very appealing to me; Great Barrington, in particular, seems to check off most of our boxes. I love the rural-yet-hip feel that it offers. Reminds me of Burlington just without the lake! I did a quick real estate search and immediately found 4 homes that I absolutely love. Old but remodeled farmhouses with wide plank floors and wood burning fireplaces. HEART EYES CITY. 😍 I did the same in Northampton and didn’t find as much that seems like our style. I haven’t researched the others in depth yet.

So, here’s where you all come in. Tell me everything you know about the above towns. Got another recommendation? Please share! I am all ears. As mentioned, we’ve got a couple years to make this decision. I figured I’d get the ball rolling since we’ll likely want to visit some of these places and really “try them on”. I realize I’ve given many variables here, but I’ve lurked here for a long time and I’ve seen you people work — no better place to ask for help. We just want to LOVE where we live. Thank you in advance!

[massnative71]

Why are you in Mansfield in the first place? Must be for a job, no? If so, I find it strange that you would be scouting out these places so geographically scattered from Mansfield and from one another. I personally think you are being a little rough on Mansfield, it's not totally without some of the things you claim it doesn't and actually does pretty well for a regular bedroom community. But it does sound like you want a college town type environment, first places that come to mind are Amherst or Northampton.

[FCMA]

Ah, Mansfield, a hive of thoroughly dull Massahole suburbia. I feel like every third bro I met at UMass Amherst was from Mansfield with ambitions that began and ended at getting back to Mansfield as quickly as possible to settle down and make more Massaholes, forever and ever til the end of time. To the eternal soundtrack of annual DMB concerts at Great Woods / whatever corporate parasite has the naming rights to that venue currently.

Why not check out Greenfield MA and Brattleboro VT too. They’re like smaller Northamptons but a little more ‘real’ and down to earth. And now that the music scene in Northampton is disintegrating as Iron Horse’s dishonest business practices and disrespect of artists has finally come to light, much of this has spread to Greenfield and Brattleboro, and Holyoke. The schools “suck” but the crunchy trustafari folk find ways around it by farming their unvaccinated (beware!) contra-dancing kids out to charter schools or nearby districts like Amherst or Frontier. So far as breweries, you can hit at least six within twenty minutes of Greenfield. Three in downtown Brattleboro alone.

And just two hours from Saratoga Springs.

[mdovell]

Have you heard of those festival in Holyoke lately at Gateway City Arts. It's starting to look like mini Boonaroos every month.

[russiandressing]

Originally Posted by massnative71

Why are you in Mansfield in the first place? Must be for a job, no? If so, I find it strange that you would be scouting out these places so geographically scattered from Mansfield and from one another. I personally think you are being a little rough on Mansfield, it's not totally without some of the things you claim it doesn't and actually does pretty well for a regular bedroom community. But it does sound like you want a college town type environment, first places that come to mind are Amherst or Northampton.

We landed in Mansfield because I had a Job in Providence and my wife was working in Waltham; we’ve both since left those jobs and have more freedom to find a place that we love. I’m not being hard on Mansfield, I’m simply describing it for what it is: 100% suburbia. Again, nice little town that might be perfect for others but just doesn’t suit our social and cultural needs — especially as we bring a kid into this world.

[russiandressing]

Originally Posted by FCMA

Ah, Mansfield, a hive of thoroughly dull Massahole suburbia. I feel like every third bro I met at UMass Amherst was from Mansfield with ambitions that began and ended at getting back to Mansfield as quickly as possible to settle down and make more Massaholes, forever and ever til the end of time. To the eternal soundtrack of annual DMB concerts at Great Woods / whatever corporate parasite has the naming rights to that venue currently.

Why not check out Greenfield MA and Brattleboro VT too. They’re like smaller Northamptons but a little more ‘real’ and down to earth. And now that the music scene in Northampton is disintegrating as Iron Horse’s dishonest business practices and disrespect of artists has finally come to light, much of this has spread to Greenfield and Brattleboro, and Holyoke. The schools “suck” but the crunchy trustafari folk find ways around it by farming their unvaccinated (beware!) contra-dancing kids out to charter schools or nearby districts like Amherst or Frontier. So far as breweries, you can hit at least six within twenty minutes of Greenfield. Three in downtown Brattleboro alone.

And just two hours from Saratoga Springs.

For having lived in Vermont for 6 years, I can’t believe I haven’t been to Brattleboro. Also, if I hadn’t gotten married, I’d be living in VT right now. Something special about that state and I just adore it! Will check it out but could possibly be a hard sell to my wife. Will also take a peek at Greenfield! Hadn’t considered Amherst either. Thanks!

[alidmc]

If you want to keep things a little closer to the city of Boston and don't mind extending the distance to Stoughton and Saratoga Springs, I suggest Salem or Beverly. Both will meet your needs, though I lean towards Beverly for families for the better schools and a touch more suburban feel in parts. Both offer close proximity to farms and open space, live entertainment and culture (museums and galleries), and tons of breweries and restaurants. Further north, Ipswich and Gloucester would also fit your needs. However, with Salem or Beverly as your home base, you will have easy access to the rest of the north shore.

[bizcuit]

What is your budget? This house just came on the market in Northampton that sounds kind of what you're looking for. Pricey though.

Northampton sounds like it fits what you're looking for. Great downtown with lots to do. Many restaurants, cafes, breweries, coffee shops and a good music scene. We have farmers markets and a great food co-op.

I moved here (from NH) in February and am impressed by the sense of community here. Lots of community things happening here.

The one thing I can't quite tell from your post is how you are making a living. Is it all through music? Do you need to find a local job? Anyway, there are a few of us from the area here, so feel free to ask more questions!

[timberline742]

I feel you on this. Also left for Burlington at 18 and just kept moving from there because, well, no jobs there. Portland and Burlington are probably the best places in New England for living from my POV. I chose Providence, but I don't have kids. I, sadly, think what you are looking for is in short supply in this region. Best of luck. Places like Greenfield or Brattleboro or even Northampton has most of these things, but jobs and schools are the question mark. The live music scene in Bratteboro with Stone Church is solid, and Hawk and Reed alongn with the Root Cellar in Greenfield are both excellent, I travel to those regularly.

[Dm84]

You'd be stupid to leave Mansfield IMO. You have potential free baby sitting a 15 minute drive away in Stoughton.

You won't have time to do all this cool crap you seem to care about once the kid comes, unless you have babysitting.

You don't like the 6 hour drive, but if you move equidistant you'll be doing a 3 hour drive more often. And once the kid comes you'll be pressured alot into seeing everyone more than you do now.