Wakefield? What stands out and how is the school system? (Lynn: to rent, how much)

[syracusa]

We have decided to include Wakefield in our search for a house to rent.
So far, we have looked at Newton, Arlington, Belmont and basically any
other area within a 15 mile radius of Reading. But at the price we are looking at, the first three options certainly do not bring much house.

In a nutshell, what should we know about Wakefield, as compared to the first three options? I do understand that schools will not be as good as those in Newton, Belmont or Arlington, the question is how much less good?

Granted we don't have any substantive information beyond dry/official school rankings such as those on greatschools.net, all we know is that Wakefield schools are ranked a 9, instead of the 10 that the first three towns get.

Also, are there any specific "ethnic" communities in that area?
For example, I heard that Watertown has a large Armenian community. I am Eastern European and would not mind finding some immigrants from my region in the area we will live.

Is the downtown/"commons" area relatively vibrant? Any places to walk to?
Any information about Wakefield would be highly appreciated. Thank you so much.

[CaseyB]

Lots of stats here: http://www.city-data.com/city/Wakefi...achusetts.html, including links to other posts on this forum. You may also want to run your own search by using the "search this forum" tool. It's considered to be middle to upper middle class, good schools. Lynnfield is another town you may want to consider.

[Cliff Clavin]

Wakefield is a nice town. A little more 'blue collar' than Newton. Easy access to 93 and Rt 1. Active downtown area (Main St). There is a deli/restaurant called Brother's that is fantastic. There is also a Thai place called Duck Walk that I've heard good things about.

Lake Quannapowitt sits just north of downtown and is insanely popular with joggers, walkers and roller bladers year round. It's a 3 mile loop. You also have Breakheart Reservation if you prefer wooded area. There are a couple ponds in there that allow swimming during the summer months.

I would assume the school system is decent. I'm sure there are some better, but there are many much worse. My cousin and his wife actually both work at the High School.

As far as "ethnic" goes, 3rd generation Italian might be as ethnic as you'll get in Wakefield.

[syracusa]

Thank you Casey and Cliff.

[CaseyB]

There's a nice photo here of the downtown and the lake.

[syracusa]

Originally Posted by CaseyB

There's a nice photo here of the downtown and the lake.

Oh, that is the cutest thing!. I have been looking for a place like this in the Atlanta area for 11 years with no avail. It looks VERY pretty!

If only the schools were referred to as a bit more than "decent". I know I have received a bit of flack in the past for being obsessed with top notch schools only but we really don't want to ever have to consider private school. The alternative would be homeschooling and I am not sure I would be able to commit to something like this with my older one. After-schooling, yes; but homeschooling, I can hardly imagine it.

But on the Wakefield site, they say:

"Wakefield is proud of its educational system. The town has 4 neighborhood elementary schools, a middle school and Wakefield Memorial High School. Elementary testing consistently places our students above the national norm".

So maybe I should chill and let go of that darn axis of wallet evil ("Newton-Arlington-Belmont).

[holden125]

Originally Posted by syracusa

If only the schools were referred to as a bit more than "decent". I know I have received a bit of flack in the past for being obsessed with top notch schools only but we really don't want to ever have to consider private school.

***

So maybe I should chill and let go of that darn axis of wallet evil ("Newton-Arlington-Belmont).

I don't believe you'd have to resort to homeschooling-the Wakefield schools are quite good. I'm not going to assert that the quality of public education is so high in Massachusetts that any school here is better than every school somewhere else, like suburban Atlanta. But there are many, many good public school districts in this area. The "top of the top" in people's perceptions will tend to be in those towns that are very high-income. In other words, Arlington will be the most affordable of those towns. You're talking about Newton, Belmont, Weston, Wellesley, Lincoln, Lexington, Concord, etc.

I don't know how much stock to place in the Great Schools numbers, but the 9 assigned to Wakefield is the same 9 given to the schools in Scarsdale and Great Neck, NY, which send a huge number of students off to top universities. With intelligent and engaged parents, I don't have any doubts that your kids can do great in Wakefield.

[Billericares]

Check out massstats.com for lots of info!

[Irishperson]

Wakefield is a pretty good community..like the others have said it does have an active downtown with some shops and resturants..the lake is very popular most of the year...its also next door to Reading...has good access to highways and shopping in other nearby cities...can't comment on the schools as we don't have kids but have lived here a couple of years and have enjoyed it...as I suggested in a PM..check out Melrose too...has an active downtown and its next to Wakefield and not that far from Reading...I think you will find what your looking for in this neck of the woods

[syracusa]

Thank you Irishperson, we will surely take a look at Melrose too!