Bloomfield NJ- Good place to raise a family? (Newark, Irvington: renting, house)

[Calico696]

Originally Posted by cOZZ_2005

Hello People,


If you want to know should you move to Bloomfield:

Oakview school & Brookdale school- top 1% in the state of New Jersey.

Bloomfield high school just finished construction that increased it size by 50%.

Sports activity are plentyfull, with everything encluding disabled/handicap to play with everyone. This is what my childern learn, a piece of Americana. The little league lost the final game in the World series.

The middle school has a large pond that is stocked and clean with programs.

Easy local transportation to all Met areas, up & down town NY, Newark, Paramus, Princeton..... Rt 3-78-95-46-80 & Parkway, Giant Stadium

My house is worth 475K, and I don't lock my doors.

So If your bashing Bloomfield:
You don't live here
We don't want you
You can't afford to live here
Oh ! I noticed the few that bashed Bloomfield should use spell check and finish high school

I lived in Bloomfield for 27 years. Moved to Warren County 12 years ago. Would never go back. My car was stolen right out of my driveway. My brother had the same car stolen twice in a 1 year period. Had a man threaten me with a knife when I was about 13 years old while I was out walking my dog. The scary thing is, I hear it's worse now! The schools were on their was down when I graduated back in the mid 80's. I have friends and relatives who still live there. They all agree that "it's just not the same". My friends are looking to get out since their kids are nearing middle school age. My realatives stay only because they are older and their houses are paid off. Otherwise, they would leave. The area is congested and the home prices and property taxes are ridiculous. My friends pay 10k in taxes for a .17 acre lot in central Bloomfield. The only good thing is the location for those who work in NYC. There is a lot of public transporation, so it is not vital to own a car. Just my two cents.

[brookdaleresident]

fyi, Oakview is a Blue Ribbon school. Brookdale also highly rated. Location is great. The town has a lot to offer. I've been here for 12 years and love it. Never felt unsafe. No one I know that lives here has been a victim of crime. Of course, crime happens all over, including Upper Montclair and Glen Ridge. Cars are stolen in the best neighborhoods.

[IntheBurbs]

Demarest, Oakview, and Brookdale are all excellent. Bloomfield is a wonderful town to raise a family. There are a lot of parks and great proximity to downtown Montclair and NYC for activities. Commuter options are also great - close to all major highways, as well as access to train and bus.
The bottom line is that there is crime everywhere, and everyone should be careful... but people shouldn't give Bloomfield a bad rep... It's a great town!

[veuvegirl]

Check out Maplewood/South Orange, easy commute, great schools and community. You will find plenty of houses in yoru price range.

[Marv95]

Oh c'mon, some of you are telling me the Brookdale section is bad as well? lol

[mmsb]

I have lived in Bloomfield, for seven years. I live on the "south side" of town, although not south of Bloomfield Avenue. I have never locked my door, nor been leery of walking my dog late at night. The people and families here are friendly and tend to be more old fashioned. This is a great town on many levels, diversity, proximity to mass transit, community spirit and relatively affordable housing. My children have been well cared for in their school, Berkeley, and have prospered there. Crime can and does happen everywhere, and I do not know of any crime victims in my whole time living here.

[Busch Boy]

I could live in the fanciest part of Short Hills and I would NEVER leave my doors unlocked. This is the 21st century people and crime can occur anywhere! Of course it occurs more often in some places, but you wouldn't want to be a victim of that small percent of crime in a good place.
As for Bloomfield, I'm not to sure about the schools. But the area by Newark is not nice. I rode an NJ Transit bus from Newark once that went through Bloomfield. As soon as the bus hit Bloomfield, it looked like a continuation of Newark. The town, however, kept getting nicer as I traveled north.

[brookdaleresident]

Originally Posted by mmsb

I have lived in Bloomfield, for seven years. I live on the "south side" of town, although not south of Bloomfield Avenue. I have never locked my door, nor been leery of walking my dog late at night. The people and families here are friendly and tend to be more old fashioned. This is a great town on many levels, diversity, proximity to mass transit, community spirit and relatively affordable housing. My children have been well cared for in their school, Berkeley, and have prospered there. Crime can and does happen everywhere, and I do not know of any crime victims in my whole time living here.

Exactly! Bloomfield is diverse, not only in people, but areas. There's Halcyon Park (wonderful!), historic areas around Bloomfield college, Brookside, and Brookdale (just to name a few), which is located next to a beautiful park.

[lululaurie]

35 years in Bloomfield, no kids so I don't care about school system, but if I had kids, I would not send them to Bloomfield High. Taxes way too high; keep going up for crappy school system, BOE salaries go higher. Shopping in Bloomfield Center is not even worth the trip. Soon as housing market stabilizes, hopefully soon, out of here.

[Calico696]

Originally Posted by lululaurie

35 years in Bloomfield, no kids so I don't care about school system, but if I had kids, I would not send them to Bloomfield High. Taxes way too high; keep going up for crappy school system, BOE salaries go higher. Shopping in Bloomfield Center is not even worth the trip. Soon as housing market stabilizes, hopefully soon, out of here.

Shopping in Bloomfield center . Might as well shop in Downtown Newark or Irvington. Nowadays, it's pretty much a bunch of run down dollar stores and junk shops. I do, however remember the old days when it was a great place to shop. There were quality stores such as Lipton's department store, Janet Shop for the older ladies and many small family owned jewelry stores and the like. I'll never forget stopping at Woolworth's with my mom at the end of a shopping trip to get a banana split at the luncheonette counter.