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I never thought I'd say this, but...I am considering looking into the possibility of moving to Staten Island.
We live in Brooklyn now (I like it, hubby doesn't).
I work in southern Brooklyn, he works in Staten Island.
He's dying to move to a more suburban environment (like NJ or Pennsylvania) but that would entail me changing jobs and...I'm not sure I'm ready to do that now.
I always dismissed Staten Island as somewhere I wouldn't like to live but...maybe it's not so bad?
I will admit I don't know much about Staten Island.
Do any board members here know more about it, can give me more information about it?
Are there parts that feel more suburban or even rural, but still have a nice small town feel?
I would like to be walking distance to stores, but not just strip mall kind of places. Are there any "town center" kind of places like you would find in a town in NJ, for example?
Is there a sense of community?
Also, we are Jewish (traditional but not so religious or terribly Orthodox, although a very modern Orthodox community might be our speed) - are there nice Jewish communities there? (We are American and Israeli, respectively).
Are most of the Jewish communities in Staten Island Russian/people from the FSU?
There are plenty of communities that feel suburban, especially the south shore. Rural, definitely not. Those days are long gone. Also there are some areas where you can walk around but in general a car is required on SI except near the ferry which is definitely not suburban.
The south shore doesn't have much of an American or Israeli community but does have a large Russian population.
There are plenty of communities that feel suburban, especially the south shore. Rural, definitely not. Those days are long gone. Also there are some areas where you can walk around but in general a car is required on SI except near the ferry which is definitely not suburban.
The south shore doesn't have much of an American or Israeli community but does have a large Russian population.
Oh.
Actually I'm trying to get away from a Russian population...
There are 2 main modern Orthodox communities on the island. Willowbrook which I would say is the larger community is mostly American. New Springville/Heartland Village area has a fairly large Israeli community.
Both definitely have a community feel if you choose to be involved but neither has a town center. For that you would have to go to maybe Highland Park NJ or 5 Towns in LI.
I never thought I'd say this, but...I am considering looking into the possibility of moving to Staten Island.
We live in Brooklyn now (I like it, hubby doesn't).
I work in southern Brooklyn, he works in Staten Island.
He's dying to move to a more suburban environment (like NJ or Pennsylvania) but that would entail me changing jobs and...I'm not sure I'm ready to do that now.
I always dismissed Staten Island as somewhere I wouldn't like to live but...maybe it's not so bad?
I will admit I don't know much about Staten Island.
Do any board members here know more about it, can give me more information about it?
Are there parts that feel more suburban or even rural, but still have a nice small town feel?
I would like to be walking distance to stores, but not just strip mall kind of places. Are there any "town center" kind of places like you would find in a town in NJ, for example?
Is there a sense of community?
Also, we are Jewish (traditional but not so religious or terribly Orthodox, although a very modern Orthodox community might be our speed) - are there nice Jewish communities there? (We are American and Israeli, respectively).
Are most of the Jewish communities in Staten Island Russian/people from the FSU?
Thanks for any information you can provide!
What area of Brooklyn are you in now? Do you guys have a car?
The Bulls Head part is mostly (IIRC) the area just north of Willowbook Park/CSI campus as you come off 440 by Christopher Lane.
Reformed or otherwise are scattered all over SI.
As for trying to "get away from the Russians", can't say I blame you on that score. To be fair many Staten Islanders lump all Eastern Europeans together under "Russian", but never the less.... The NYT did a piece about tense relations awhile back: Staten Island Hates Russians (And Other Groups, Too) - Sheepshead Bay News Site
I've driven through a couple of areas of SI that have stores that you can walk to but a lot of areas are not like that. I think suburban PA/NJ = a big leap from Brooklyn if you're not ready for that type of environment, so if you're trying to meet halfway, I guess SI might be a good compromise. There's a chance you'll still be driving to most places though---anyone I know who has moved to SI mostly drive everywhere.
I'm guessing areas like Marine Park and Shore Road in Bay Ridge are still too city for him, eh?
Nice borough lots of places do have a suburban feel there. The Greenbelt is there and the second largest NYC park. Most do indeed drive to get where they have to go. Anytime I go to Staten Island from Brooklyn I feel really far away. SI has a unique feel to it also, Cant really explain it though. The large ferris wheel and waterfront development that is planned is supposed to bring more activity as well to the area.
Staten Island has fast become a giant **** hole. A poor man's brooklyn if you will as all the people fleeing Brooklyn have brought their Brooklyn tudes and driving habits to the borough. Don't come here.
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