Considering a move from PA to NY

[wwhickok]

Originally Posted by ckhthankgod

That would be most suburbs, but given the places of employment I mentioned in the Syracuse area, I’d say areas/SD’s like Baldwinsville, West Genesee and East Syracuse-Minoa are a few to look into or would/could fit. Those are a few districts within a close proximity/short commute to those facilities.

Is community size a factor? Walkability? Character of community(more blue collar, white collar, rural, a mix...)?

Hopefully others will chime in with other suggestions.

Community size I'd only say would be a factor in that I want more than a pinky finger distance between me and the house next door.

As far as character of community, that's not an issue to me but I wouldn't want to live in a place where it might be an issue to others. What I mean is, I'm not "wealthy", so if there's a 'complex' in some communities where they expect all their neighbors to be 'high class', probably not the community for me. I'm not against living amongst the wealthy as long as they can accept me not being "one of them". Does that make sense? So I guess a good mix would be my preference. Diversity is also welcome, I think it's an important part of raising children, so I'd want to be somewhere that I could expose my kids to a variety of characteristics and even cultures. That in itself isn't any type of deal breaker, just more of a bonus.

[gt87]

I would look into the west side of Rochester. Great communities, friendly people, good schools, and has a more blue collar feel then compared to the east side of Rochester which is more “snobby” I guess you could say. Towns I recommend would be Spencerport, Brockport, Churchville, or Chili. All of those towns are close enough to the actual city of Rochester for work, entertainment, etc but far enough away to not have to deal with day to day things like crime, drugs, and all all the other negatives a city the size of Rochester has. However I will say the city has some very nice and safe neighborhoods. Just avoid the bad pockets and you will be perfectly fine. People who say the whole city of Rochester is bad are just ignorant. Plus Rochester has some of the best suburbs in the whole state. But if blue collar is more your style (definitely is mine) you would love the western suburbs. Good luck on your decision and let me know if you have any other questions.

[ckhthankgod]

Originally Posted by wwhickok

Community size I'd only say would be a factor in that I want more than a pinky finger distance between me and the house next door.

As far as character of community, that's not an issue to me but I wouldn't want to live in a place where it might be an issue to others. What I mean is, I'm not "wealthy", so if there's a 'complex' in some communities where they expect all their neighbors to be 'high class', probably not the community for me. I'm not against living amongst the wealthy as long as they can accept me not being "one of them". Does that make sense? So I guess a good mix would be my preference. Diversity is also welcome, I think it's an important part of raising children, so I'd want to be somewhere that I could expose my kids to a variety of characteristics and even cultures. That in itself isn't any type of deal breaker, just more of a bonus.

I understand what you are saying. I think all 3 of the areas I mentioned would work. I’d dare say that ES-M would fit everything due to it having economic diversity, is relatively more culturally diverse in comparison and also has ability diversity(i.e.- more Special needs services). However, B’ville and West Genny have better academic reputations.

There are other districts could/would work in the Syracuse area and in other areas as well. Hopefully others will offer more suggestions.

[Isonwoods]

Thanks to all of you for your comments. They were very helpful and I will keep an eye on real estate in this vicinity.