Bel Air in West Orange for raising children (Newark, Elizabeth: high crime, townhomes)

[BelairProspect]

Hi friends

We are seriously considering the new development of Bel Air in West Orange for raising children, 2 and 1 year old. Part of the criteria is good public schools for the expensive tax dollars, but also safety and commute to midtown NYC.

We'd be moving from Hudson County and such a purchase could be a lifelong decision, for our kids, and our commute!

Any comments, especially from folks with children in the grammar schools there and/or residents would be greatly appreciated.

[ansky]

People who don't know anything about the WO schools will say they are just average. But my wife and I are very involved in the community and know a lot of parents that send their kids to the WO public schools and they are very happy with the education their kids are receiving. WO high school was ranked among the top high schools in the nation by Newsweek magazine 2 years in a row.

[nybbler]

Safety shouldn't be a problem; it's a very large upscale development not near any high crime areas. Commute to NYC is less good; you're going to have to drive some portion, probably either to Harrison PATH or to Northfield Arena for the #77 bus to Port Authority.

Note that it's not finished yet, nor is the nearby Vizcaya, so you'll have to deal with construction for a while.

[nykstevenyg]

In my opinion West Orange is an excellent town to raise a family. The Bel Air townhomes are beautiful, if you have a chance to live their I would go for it.

[bradykp]

i don't see many reasons not to. i'm very confident in the schooling up to at least high school...then i don't know. it's good, but is it as good as i want it to be? but, i'm 13/14 years away from dealing with that, so i'll cross that bridge...

[BelairProspect]

suffice to say that some West Orange residents send their children to high schools outside of West Orange?

[mumra]

Originally Posted by BelairProspect

suffice to say that some West Orange residents send their children to high schools outside of West Orange?

of course, my parents sent my sister to Our Lady of the Lake then to Mt. St. Dominic. I have friends that I grew up with that went to Newark Academy, Seton Hall Prep, Montclair Kimberly Academy, & St. Elizabeth.

[bradykp]

Originally Posted by mumra

of course, my parents sent my sister to Our Lady of the Lake then to Mt. St. Dominic. I have friends that I grew up with that went to Newark Academy, Seton Hall Prep, Montclair Kimberly Academy, & St. Elizabeth.

i personally will have an issue with paying close to $9,000 in school taxes, and then feeling i need to send my son to Seton Hall Prep at the current tuition of $12,000/yr. Who knows what it will be in 13 years! But, my feeling is that the High School is a good option, and I hope it stays that way.

[BelairProspect]

Originally Posted by bradykp

i personally will have an issue with paying close to $9,000 in school taxes, and then feeling i need to send my son to Seton Hall Prep at the current tuition of $12,000/yr. Who knows what it will be in 13 years! But, my feeling is that the High School is a good option, and I hope it stays that way.

is $9K your full taxes or you're allocating some portion to schooling? cause that is on the relatively low side from what I've been hearing

you're saying that the HS in West Orange is a good option?

[Magic78]

Are u looking at the single family houses or the townhomes?