Relocating South of Boston (Quincy, Weymouth: high schools, beaches, friendly)

[clevedark]

Yeah but there's that crazy traffic winding thru town in the summer from the Verizon Center, or whatever that outdoor summer stage place is.

[Copley82]

True, the TPC (Tournament Players Club) in Norton has a PGA golf tourney every Labor Day weekend, and the Comcast Center- formerly Tweeter Center- has big-name concerts, but the town of Mansfield, where the venue is located, is adding a Rt 495 South onramp in the next year. The small town center tends to clog with traffic at rush hour during events since the traffic has to come through from a highway exit on the other end of Norton.

But the good news is that these events bring revenue to the town and add jobs during the summer; plus, the residents who have lived here awhile know the back roads home to avoid the congestion. There is always a shortcut

[rdsox101]

Canton Mass. is a nice town for what you seem to be looking for...It's about 40 minutes from Providence, 20 from Boston and has a great community/school system.

Also, don't hesitate to look for homes in RI as well. There are many nice towns in the northern part of the state that are perfect for commuting to the Providence and Boston areas. Southern New England is really a cohesive area, you can't go wrong living here.

[rdsox101]

Canton Mass. is a nice town for what you seem to be looking for...It's about 40 minutes from Providence, 20 from Boston and has a great community/school system.

Also, don't hesitate to look for homes in RI as well. There are many nice towns in the northern part of the state that are perfect for commuting to the Providence and Boston areas. Southern New England is really a cohesive area, you can't go wrong living here. And as some people have pointed out, the entire region is connected by the MBTA commuter rail which connects Providence and Boston daily, stopping at many towns like Canton in between.

[professorsenator]

Definitely take a look at Franklin, MA. People have been suggesting South coast communities, some of which are awfully far from Boston, making shopping and entertainment tough. Also, some of them are very rural/remote, which isn't for everyone. I might be inclined to be a go a little closer to I-95 & I-495

Franklin is a nice suburb. It has lots going for it: lots of families, good schools, on the commuter rail, lots of shopping nearby, charming downtown area.

There is a ton of stuff there on the market right now and at reasonable (at least by Mass. standards) prices. I think this town offers a lot of bang for the buck after the real estate bust. It's a long hike into downtown Boston in peak rush hours, but for those who don't have to make that slog everyday (or can do it by train) Franklin is definitely worth a look. And its proximity to 495 and 95 would make it pretty good for someone who has to drive a lot.

FWIW, Brockton, Fall River, New Bedford and (to a lesser extent) Taunton are old mill towns which have reputations for being rough-and-tough places. They aren't all bad and they each have some nice areas in them, but you really have to be careful about schools, crime, etc. in these towns.

[wattersn]

thanks again to everyone - your input is truely helpful

[quincyguy]

Old NB has seen better days. The South End is not for for safe walking after dark. The rest of it is okay.
Westport is nice, though pricey. The other surrounding communities are okay, too; with the exception of Freetown - not a good choice.
I'd look at Dartmouth with its decent schools and beaches.
Children's Hospital is 60 miles away in Boston; not a difficult run, but - you have kiddies and local hospitals are okay for flu shots, bruises, etc. however
for more serious medical attentions, ya have to go to Boston.
You'll be driving a lot. There is RR service to Boston but you have to drive to Middleborough to get a train.
Hope this is a help to you, and wish you a happy future here

[lrfox]

Quincyguy,

I agree with some of your post. New Bedford has certainly seen better days. I wouldn't actually recommend living ANYWHERE in the city aside from the West End, Downtown, or the far North End. While it's a great, diverse, little city, and one that seems to be undergoing a massive revitalization centered in the Downtown area/ Whaling District, the poor schools and crime concentrated in certain areas (away from the city center) would lead me to suggest Fairhaven or Dartmouth nearby if one is settled on the New Bedford area. The prices are comparable (except, obviously, waterfront portions of either town), the schools are better, and there aren't any "bad" neighborhoods in those towns.

I'm curious as to why you say Freetown is not a good choice? I know it's not the perfect town (what is, really?) but I hardly find anything wrong with it. The schools are good, not the best in the state, but absolutely good. There is no crime, the town has coastal waterways on one side, lakes on the other and a state forest in the middle. It's ideally situated on two major highways (24 and 140) and a bunch of other lesser routes (18, 79, etc) and roads. It's relatively little known and as such is much more affordable than many surrouding communities. It's also right next to Lakeville where one can get the train to Boston. Again, what's wrong with Freetown? You don't owe me an explaination by any means, but maybe it would help to clarify for the OP as to why it's not a good choice?

I agree that Dartmouth is good, but I don't think Westport is too pricey. Again, sure it's pricey on the waterfront, but the majority of the town is relatively inexpensive and little known. It's no more expensive than most of Dartmouth of just about all of Fairhaven. Anyway, the OP can easily check real estate costs in Westport to see what prices look like.

Healthcare is a non-issue in these areas. Boston is just about as good as it gets in terms of healthcare, no place can compete. If there is a serious health problem, Boston is close enough to not be an inconvenience to get to. For minor and moderate stuff, the South Coast Hospital Group is actually pretty highly regarded and rated (South Coast Hospitals include Charleton in Fall River, St. Anne's in Fall River and St. Luke's in New Bedford and all relative outpatient facilities). You also forgot to mention that Providence is actually closer to this area (known as the Southcoast- which includes Westport, Fall River, Freetown, New Bedford, Dartmouth, Mattapoisett, Marion, etc) and as a result, Providences facilites are easily accessed by those living in the Southcoast. Hasboro Children's Hospital in Providence is excellent as are many of the other facilities there. They're only 20-40 minutes away depending on where in the Southcoast you are.

Finally, Railroad Service is currently only available from Middleboro/Lakeville. However, a South Coast Rail Project is moving closer to fruition which will serve Fall River and New Bedford (via Freetown) by 2016... that's a few years off, but it'll make things a bit easier.

Anyway, I still don't understand the negative P.O.V. on the Southcoast... no, it's not as suburban or high end as metro Boston, and Fall River and New Bedford certainly have their flaws, but the surrounding towns (i.e. Freetown, Lakeville, Westport, Dartmouth, Fairhaven, etc) are quite nice. Once again, good luck to the O.P. the final decision is wattersn's and I'm sure he/she'll find what their looking for.

[quincyguy]

Hi,
I have in no way a negative view of south coast life. But I also have no interest in being a pitch-person for the place, either.
This person will spend a large amount of money relocating here ( as we did...) and therefore rates an as objective look at the area as we can give;
therefore, I'm not uncomfortable relaying the views of Freetown as told to me by a long-time resident of the town.

Also, "future" NB/Boston RR is linked to the removal of the old FR/NB RR track running parallel to Rt 6, and then being re-used to connect New Bedford to Middleborough. Those rails remain in place, and are likely to be there for a long time; a very long time.....
Fuel costs will rise again, and nearby rail/bus/T service should be high on anyone's list.
However, the intel-gathering is the prospective resident's job/duty/choice
In that vein, FBI.gov has the crime numbers for all US communities.
And, yes, I think Westport is pricey, but my 'pricey' might be your 'reasonable'.
Personally, I'd go for Quincy; not 'good' schools - but truly outSTANDING ones!
Been very busy, slow to reply; and not likely to change.
God Bless

[lrfox]

Thanks for the reply... we're all busy, no need to worry about late replies!

I think Quincy is a great selection. I don't know why, but it sometimes gets a bad name. I saw proposals for a project set to revitalize the entire downtown area with the reconstruction of much Hancock Street. It looks interesting (and expensive at over $1 Billion).

I also appreciate your objectivity... it's not always easy to do on a forum like this.

The future NB/Boston Railroad will not go through Middleborough at all and will not require any use of the old Fall River/New Bedford Rails along Route 6. In fact, Fall River and New Bedford will not really be connected by this project at all. The proposal will instead go through Stoughton and Fall River and New Bedford stations will be along separate spurs that split off/ meet in Myrics junction in Berkley (this rail already exists and is used today). The rail will then go through Taunton, Mansfield, Easton and connect to the current line in Stoughton. However, you are right in that an existing station would be a nice thing to have when moving so one doesn't have to wait on a project that's not yet complete.

Anyway, thanks again for the reply.