Advice on Nutley (Clifton, Passaic, Hoboken: buying a house, safe area, buying)

[manjri]

After the mixed reactions to clifton I am not too excited about buying a house there . I am now considering Cambridge Heights townhomes in Nutley . How is the area ? Is it safe n good for kids . Are there any other good townhome communities ? any advice would be welcome as I need to take a call soon . How is the commute from there to midtown . Any good express bus services ? Please help !

[DowntownJerseyCity]

Originally Posted by manjri

After the mixed reactions to clifton I am not too excited about buying a house there . I am now considering Cambridge Heights townhomes in Nutley . How is the area ? Is it safe n good for kids . Are there any other good townhome communities ? any advice would be welcome as I need to take a call soon . How is the commute from there to midtown . Any good express bus services ? Please help !

That's a pretty safe area, but I hear Cambridge already had, or is about to have a large spike in property taxes. I'm not 100% sure if its already happened, so you might want to ask around.

You can walk across the street for the bus to Manhattan (it stops in front of Clifton Commons on Route 3). If you go to the city during normal rush hours, my experience is that's is pushing 40-50 minutes with the traffic heading into the Lincoln Tunnel.

Good luck in your home search!

[lorib49]

I have lived in Nutley and my family still lives there, in fact my mother is a teacher in one of the elementary schools. I have heard good things about Cambridge Heights. I have also lived in Clifton and my advice would be that if you are moving with kids it would be better to live in Nutley because of the schools. Clifton still offers a good education, but the schools are really overcrowded. Nutley has a great school system and the teachers really care about the kids. I can tell you that with experience because I personally know many of the teachers in Nutley and also Board of Ed members. Nutley also has a great parks and recreation system. NJ transit runs express buses to NYC. I think that there is a stop at Cambridge Heights. There is definately a stop near by at the Clifton Commons. It is about a 30 minute commute door to door, from the stop to Port Authority on the express bus. Hope that this helps! The only negative about Nutley is that the property taxes will be much higher than in Clifton. Hope this helps!

[tahiti]

Originally Posted by lorib49

I have lived in Nutley and my family still lives there, in fact my mother is a teacher in one of the elementary schools. I have heard good things about Cambridge Heights. I have also lived in Clifton and my advice would be that if you are moving with kids it would be better to live in Nutley because of the schools. Clifton still offers a good education, but the schools are really overcrowded. Nutley has a great school system and the teachers really care about the kids. I can tell you that with experience because I personally know many of the teachers in Nutley and also Board of Ed members. Nutley also has a great parks and recreation system. NJ transit runs express buses to NYC. I think that there is a stop at Cambridge Heights. There is definately a stop near by at the Clifton Commons. It is about a 30 minute commute door to door, from the stop to Port Authority on the express bus. Hope that this helps! The only negative about Nutley is that the property taxes will be much higher than in Clifton. Hope this helps!

lorib - i found your post very interesting. from what I know, nutley is very much a "lifer" place - you're born there, and more likely than not, you remain there after HS/College. I have a friend who married a "lifer" and now lives there - she grew up in Passaic/Sussex counties. She, maybe because of her "outsiders" view, has a very different perspective on Nutley.

She finds the schools adequate at best - they are old and in desparate need of repairs (remember the ceiling collapse last summer? Thank God school was not in session at that time.). parents seem to be ok with the "status quo" and are not ready to adopt different things. It seems there is new astroturf being laid on the HS field while the school infrastructure is crumbing. To be fair, the field is funded by a grant, but you KWIM. Kids still go home at lunchtime (this *may* have changed), there doesn't seem to be much regard for families with 2 working parents. Technology has not caught on there - you can't email teachers, websites are woefully behind. There are no G&T programs and now they are going to be accepting students from other towns b/c they got a grant for an autism program - this when the schools are overcrowded - you've got some special classes being held in broom closets. All this after the reassessment last year - taxes in some cases doubled! From her perspective it seems people are resistant to change, and it's coming from those how have a long history there. If she had her way she'd move to another town, in addition to the school issues she sees, she just finds it a someone difficult place to be in, since she's 1) not originally from there, and 2) not Italian and 3) not Catholic.

I think it's a very cute town though.

Would be interested in your comments!

[mishi]

Is there any public transport in Nutley that takes you into Hoboken?

[manjri]

Thanks Lorib your comments are very helpful . I am planning to take a tour of the elementry school for cambridge heights area . The idea of ceiling collaspe is scary . Are the schools really that old n in need of repairs ?

[lorib49]

Some of the school buildings are really old. You will find this in most of nothern NJ because it is so overcrowded that there is no place to build new schools.

That being said, I have a lot of feelings about Nutley. I'm an outsider, having grown up in Clifton. I'm not Catholic or Italian, just to let you know. I guess that I'm in somewhat of a different position than your friend that lives in Nutley. My mother taught in one of the elementary schools for a long time, so she made lots of friends in the community. Also, she married a Nutley lifer, so was able to make a lot of friends through him. I have met lots of those people and everybody was very nice and accepting. Also my mother and I are Jewish, not even Christian and again everyone was accepting.

I agree about there being a lot of people in Nutley who don't want to change anything. I think that it is definately a problem. I believe that Nutley will be getting a G & T program. I know that the person who was previously in charge of that area recently retired, so hopefully there will be some change with that. However, I went to Clifton High School which was seriously overcrowded to the point that you couldn't walk down the hallway. Classes were given in closets, the cafeteria and the auditorium. I dealt with gangs, fights, and tons of people who didn't speak English, and that was 10 years ago. So, to me, the Nutley school system is much better. I'm also a teacher and have taught at Lakeland Regional High School and I can tell you that Nutley offers a better quality of education than LRHS. Also, as a teacher, I know that teachers really want to get into the Nutley school district. The downside is that people do get jobs that aren't qualified because they know the right people, but I think that you will find that everywhere.

The positives that I see about Nutley are that it has a really community feeling, with most people taking pride in where they live. The parents of students and community are very involved in community activities. There are street fairs, movies in the park and all kinds of activities that are really good for families. The parks are great. The town is cute, and there are a lot of restaurants and shops, with the Clifton Commons near by for movies, Barnes and Noble, etc.

[job]

I've lived in Nutley since 1994. I've have children in the Nutley schools. Many, if not most, of the elementary schools are 100 years old. There are many things that the parents, the PTO and the citizens are working on to improve. The fact of the matter is that the Nutley school budget was recently approved. In addition, the Nutley voters recently approved a $500,000 technology budget. And a separate budget to make improvements on all 5 Nutley elementary schools was approved in a special election.

The music program in the middle school and the high school gets very high marks. My daughter has performed 4 times at Carnegie Hall. The Chamber Singers (my daughter included) recently performed in Venice, Salzburg and Vienna. The choir over the past 8 years has grown from 50 singers to over 500. The past performance of the Nutley HS “Hot Mikado” was wonderful. In the Spring 2007, the students will perform “Westside Story.” And now there is talk of an Arts Academy. The high school has a brand new Science Wing. Franklin Middle School has been just about gutted and re-built. And the principal is a class act.

I could write pages. I am a Jersey Guy. Out of 567 NJ towns, I decided to live in Nutley, because of the people, the community and the schools. In my view, you could do a lot worse, but not much better. Besides Nutley being know for Annie Oakley living here at one time as well as Martha Stuart, US Senator Frank Lautenberg graduated Nutley High School. There is a lot town and community pride. I invite you to attend our Columbus Day parade or St Patrick Day parade (March 1, 2008) or Memorial Day Parade. Attend the Academic Booster Committee's Science or History Fairs. Come check out our Nutle Public Library and join the Friends of the Nutley Library. Come to the Chamber of Commerce Run for Fun in May (where the Mayor pledges $1.00 for every runner who comes in before she does). Come walk in the Johnny Walker Walk-a-thon in May and help remember a great educator and friend. Come check out our Nutley Park ShopRite and join other shoppers from miles around who come to buy their fresh fruit and produce. Come to "Swing Night" in our Resturant District on Franklin Avenue in August and dance and sing your heart out. Come ride you bike through several interconnected parks from Harrison Street to Kinglands Avenue (close to Clifton Commons) by Yantacaw Pond and water fall. I could go on. I wish you good luck with your shopping and you hunting.

Regards!

Originally Posted by lorib49

Some of the school buildings are really old. You will find this in most of nothern NJ because it is so overcrowded that there is no place to build new schools.

That being said, I have a lot of feelings about Nutley. I'm an outsider, having grown up in Clifton. I'm not Catholic or Italian, just to let you know. I guess that I'm in somewhat of a different position than your friend that lives in Nutley. My mother taught in one of the elementary schools for a long time, so she made lots of friends in the community. Also, she married a Nutley lifer, so was able to make a lot of friends through him. I have met lots of those people and everybody was very nice and accepting. Also my mother and I are Jewish, not even Christian and again everyone was accepting.

I agree about there being a lot of people in Nutley who don't want to change anything. I think that it is definately a problem. I believe that Nutley will be getting a G & T program. I know that the person who was previously in charge of that area recently retired, so hopefully there will be some change with that. However, I went to Clifton High School which was seriously overcrowded to the point that you couldn't walk down the hallway. Classes were given in closets, the cafeteria and the auditorium. I dealt with gangs, fights, and tons of people who didn't speak English, and that was 10 years ago. So, to me, the Nutley school system is much better. I'm also a teacher and have taught at Lakeland Regional High School and I can tell you that Nutley offers a better quality of education than LRHS. Also, as a teacher, I know that teachers really want to get into the Nutley school district. The downside is that people do get jobs that aren't qualified because they know the right people, but I think that you will find that everywhere.

The positives that I see about Nutley are that it has a really community feeling, with most people taking pride in where they live. The parents of students and community are very involved in community activities. There are street fairs, movies in the park and all kinds of activities that are really good for families. The parks are great. The town is cute, and there are a lot of restaurants and shops, with the Clifton Commons near by for movies, Barnes and Noble, etc.

[meameame12]

cambridge crossings is a rip off. they are 3 stories, hardly any room per floor. this is purposely designed so that people wont raise kids there. its a yuppy community. avoid if you want to raise kids. property taxes are outrageous for those townhomes. they say they r generous offering 2000 + sqaure feet, but when you go there, it seems like nothing.

[Ellwood]

I was raised in Nutley and moved away about 15 years ago. As with all towns, it has changed considerably. Property taxes are outrageous (as all Essex county taxes). My opinion on Cambridge Heights is the construction is poor and last I heard the taxes were $11K.

You might consider Whippany or Cedar Knolls. There is adequate transportation from NYC (approx. 50 minutes by bus) with park and ride lots available. Whippany schools are excellent and up to date. Townhouses you might want to look into: Oakridge/Eden Lane.