Moving North (Putnam) (Port Chester, Peekskill, Fishkill: condo, affordable house, buying)

[Port Chester Local]

After searching for an affordable House/condo/co-op in southern Westchester my partner and I have basically given up and decided we would be better off relocating to greener fields in Putnam or Southern Dutchess County and then buying there. Any suggestions for towns that may meet the following criteria:
1. Must be a resonable commute (no more than 40-45 min from Mt. Kisco)
2. Must have a thriving downtown/ commerce- I hate having to drive more than 10 minutes to go shopping/ out to eat etc...... actually I resent having to drive altogether, I prefer walking, I used to live in NYC years ago and miss the convienience of walking everywhere)
3. Preferably should have some element of uniqueness/ edginess (think New Paltz or Northampton MA, maybe not on the same scale, but something that makes the town special)
4. Should be somewhat attractive as a place to live also, I don't want to feel like I'm living in Jersey. Minimal stripmalls and sprawl.

I live in Port Chester now and like the restaurants and liveliness of the place, but housing here is just unreasonable for the amount of space you get verses what you pay, and the taxes are outrageous. Perhaps I'm just expecting too much here, but any suggestions would be greatlty appreciated!

[NJGirl12]

Have you considered Peekskill? We were considering Port Chester when we were looking a few months ago but ultimately decided Peekskill was the better choice for us because we would get more space and pay less taxes. The downtown is not quite as developed, but does have several restaurants and larger supermarkets are not far. It's about a thirty minute commute from Mt. Kisco by car and about 45-60 minutes to Grand Central on Metro North.

[Port Chester Local]

Thanks for the info as I have been lost on where to begin looking, I'll check it out.

[FishkillRes]

Have you consider Fishkill?