How is the Highland Park/Metuchen/Edison/New Brunswick area? (East Brunswick: middle-class, apartment complexes)

[shadow9d9]

We are a couple in our mid to late 20s with a 1 and a half year old son who are looking to move from Florida to a younger and friendlier area.

We are coming to check out the area next week but I would appreciate any thoughts about the area.

Is it safe?

Are the downtowns interesting?

Are people friendly?

People at the dog parks friendly?

How is the traffic?

Overall thoughts?

[No5]

based on your questions, you might want to stick with metuchen and highland park

new brunswick is not what i would consider safe and edison lacks any real "downtown" area

both metuchen and highland park are friendly, family-oriented communities with nice downtowns

i don't know of any specific "dog parks" in either town, though...

traffic is typical for central nj -- there is a fair amount going throgh all of these towns during rush hours

[mikieguns]

Highland Park - decent downtown, good location and access to train stations (new brunswick on one side, edison on the other). Pretty diverse town (big Jewish town, recently an influx of asians, blacks, hispanics). High taxes. Good schools. Many older, colonial type houses. Cheaper and smaller houses (and less desirable neighborhoods) on the south side as compared to north side. Overall is very safe, although like I said, some questionable recent trends on south side.

Metuchen - nice downtown, the best of this list. good location. its own train station. High taxes. Good schools. Mostly a white town (not very diverse). Sort of similar to Highland Park in some regards, although I think it may be one notch better. Very safe.

Edison - no real downtown, although a town center on route 1 is in the works. good location and access to highways. its own train station (2 actually). very big town. north edison is near metuchen: large lots, expensive houses. south edison is closer to highland park: smaller lots, less expensive houses. I would say that almost all of edison has nice neighborhoods overall that are safe. more affordable taxes then HP and metuchen. pretty good schools. Quite diverse, mostly due to asian population.

New Brunswick - good to visit but you may not want to live there. it has the largest and most vibrant downtown in central jersey. train station. home to Rutgers, Johnson & Johnson, Robert Wood, etc. Has many questionable / not very safe areas. You'll go here to go out to dinner and stuff but may not want to live there unless you can afford the expensive new townhomes / condos right off the main strip downtown. schools not very good.

[SweepTheLeg]

Traffic in Highland Park/Edison/New Brunswick etc. is not that good, especially with Rush Hour and Rt. 18/27/1 having issues.

I'm not that familiar with Metuchen, but you may want to look into the other Brunswicks if you're looking in Middlesex County, like East Brunswick, North Brunswick, and South Brunswick.

[skunj]

Originally Posted by shadow9d9

We are a couple in our mid to late 20s with a 1 and a half year old son who are looking to move from Florida to a younger and friendlier area.

We are coming to check out the area next week but I would appreciate any thoughts about the area.

Is it safe?

Are the downtowns interesting?

Are people friendly?

People at the dog parks friendly?

How is the traffic?

Overall thoughts?

We live in Highland Park right now, and we have done some research into nearby towns so we would be happy to share some tips.

Highland Park: It is a fairly family-oriented town with a very liberal population. It has a walkable downtown area with shops, restaurants, etc. I would definitely recommend staying north of Raritan Ave (also known as Route 27), as the South side is generally much less "desirable." It is a fairly small town for the area (population ~13,000 circa 2007), but it doesn't really have that small-town feel. For example, shopkeepers generally don't really seem to know all the patrons, although there may be exceptions. Also, when you walk down the street, people generally don't greet you (as they may do more frequently in other towns). Another really important thing to know is that Highland Park is home to many Rutgers students, who rent in town and drive 5 minutes to campus. Hence, the local Rite Aid has long lines of teenagers buying alcohol by the case on weekend nights. There are a couple of parks in town that offer walking trails, and recreation areas for tennis & baseball. Overall, it is a middle-class town that is relatively safe for families and convenient to transportation/shopping.

New Brunswick: It has a pretty good downtown scene, IF you are looking for 5-star dining or bars or theaters. However, I wouldn't consider raising a family within the borders of New Brunswick.

Edison: This is a huge town (>70,000) that spans a greater spatial area than other nearby towns. There is reasonable shopping opportunities in Edison: Target, Walmart, Marshall's, TJ Maxx, large shopping mall. You might find yourself coming to Edison to do your shopping if you choose another town nearby. To live within Edison, however, you might want to be somewhat aware of the racial enclaves that form within certain areas of the township. There are areas that are quite dense in Asian populations, and there are areas that are quite dense in Indian populations. Schools in Edison seem to be mediocre at best. However, Edison can be a safe place to raise a family.

Metuchen: This is the most upscale of the four towns you mentioned. We currently live in Highland Park, and Metuchen is on our list of possible towns to relocate to. Metuchen has easy commuting options, being so close to Rt 1, I-287, I-95 and also having a Midtown Direct train line in the center of town. Schools in Metuchen are rated fairly well. It has a walkable downtown area with shops, restaurants, etc.

Other towns you may want to consider that are within 5 miles of the towns you already listed are East Brunswick and Milltown.

[block911]

PIscataway too and the rutgers bus runs by it so you can take the bus to the train station as well as better access to 287

[ansky]

Highland Park is a very good town. I lived there for several years. As others have said, the streets that are "north" are generally better than "south". So "North 4th Ave." is generally going to be better than "South 4th Ave." But the south side really isn't that bad. I actually lived on the south side just off South 11th Ave. The north side of town is where you will find most of the single family homes. The south side is more multi-family homes and apartment complexes. I would not consider any part of town "bad", just the north side is generally nicer and wealthier than the south side. Crime is not an issue at all in town.

[angelabrian]

Originally Posted by ansky

Highland Park is a very good town. I lived there for several years. As others have said, the streets that are "north" are generally better than "south". So "North 4th Ave." is generally going to be better than "South 4th Ave." But the south side really isn't that bad. I actually lived on the south side just off South 11th Ave. The north side of town is where you will find most of the single family homes. The south side is more multi-family homes and apartment complexes. I would not consider any part of town "bad", just the north side is generally nicer and wealthier than the south side. Crime is not an issue at all in town.

My husband and I have been looking in Highland Park and we have been focusing on the North part of town.

[mikieguns]

is it me or does highland park slowly seem to be taking a turn for the worse over recent years. don't get me wrong, it is overall still a nice, safe, jewish town. but i have been picking up on trends that lead me to believe that perhaps things are heading in a more negative then positive direction. anyone else feel this way?

[ansky]

Originally Posted by mikieguns

is it me or does highland park slowly seem to be taking a turn for the worse over recent years. don't get me wrong, it is overall still a nice, safe, jewish town. but i have been picking up on trends that lead me to believe that perhaps things are heading in a more negative then positive direction. anyone else feel this way?

I moved out of HP 5 years ago but I still go there a few times a year for various things. From what I have seen the downtown area actually seems to have improved over the last few years. Everything else seems pretty much the same as before.