whitney point should we move there? (New York, Syracuse: daycare, houses, neighborhood)

[jdshamong]

My wife and I are thinking of moving to Whitney point and would like to know the good the bad and the ugly my father-in-law lived there when he was 14 now he's 66 Please Help.We now live in n.j.
p.s. we have 3 kids 5,7,8
thanks

[Hartwick]

There is not much to really recommend about Whitney Point, New York. It's a small, rural community in South Central New York. It's about 35 miles southeast of Ithaca, and about 16 miles north of Binghamton. It's not much more than 2 stoplights...it's more a small town you pass through on the way to somewhere else. Route 81 runs through parts of the town, and Route 79 is a major two-lane road linking it to Ithaca, which gets heavy traffic from Cornell University and Ithaca College students/parents/staff.

There's no industry to support it. Residents tend to own small farms, are retired, or work in Ithaca, Binghamton, or Endicott, New York. The schools are adequate, certainly not top-rated in any category other than in sports. If we had school-age children, Whitney Point would not be our choice for schools. Much better schools are located in Ithaca, or the Binghamton and Cortland areas.

Housing tends to be old but there are some very nice areas on the outskirts of town that have newer, attractive houses with big yards.

The area tends to be safe...no big murders, rapes, etc., that come to mind.

There is a small, satellite medical clinic in town. Other than that, residents travel to Binghamton area hospitals and clinics, or to those located in Ithaca or Cortland. There is a small Physical Therapy clinic in town.

There's not much there for shopping either. There's a small grocery store, a small hardware store, a number of fast food restaurants and gas stations. Again, most residents travel to the Binghamton area for shopping. No WalMart, no Target, no Lowes, no Home Depot, no department stores... There is a great family-owned Italian restaurant in town.

There is a very nice county-operated resevoir used for summer recreation such as swimming, fishing, camping, and boating(small boats only). No movie theaters...

You can find better living environments and educational opportunites in the Ithaca and Binghamton areas, as well as other areas such as Oneonta, Norwich, Cortland, Cooperstown.

[Tioga]

I'd say that pretty much describes it. A lot of traffic through there on certain weekends enroute to Ithaca, etc...

[debber]

I went to Point school (We natives call it Point) and the 9th grade was in
the Jr.High-Elementry school. It wasn't in the Sr. High building.
Is that still the case? They're heavy into sports. The teams are good,
but the Arts, Music, etc. have to earn money for stuff they need, or want. But, the sports don't have to do this. That's the way it is for most of the
schools in this area.

[gpj]

After Moving here from the South and growing up out west. Whitney Point is one of the most pleasant and family-friendly places I've lived.
The positives include the beautiful lake and parks. My kids go the dorchester park 1 mile from main st. We love the beach and the many playgrounds. It is one of the safest place I've lived.
Excellent primary and UPK schools and daycare.
Best math scores in the county, sports aren't as big but thats okay for most of us here.
Main Street: Library, gas, bank, chinese, italian and drug store.

Ithaca has great cultural events (40 minutes).
Binghamton has decent shopping (20 minutes).

Negatives:
It is in a farming/rural area. It has one nice restaurant in the village (Aiellos). Target/mall are 20 minutes away. Camping, trails, and skiing are all within 30 minutes.

Most of the danger comes from the speeding ithaca students and average property crime. But we have a small friendly and quiet neighborhood.

The biggest negative is probably that it is in NY state, with Michigan one of the worst governed states. High Property taxes (all taxes are high) and very low gov't services (volunteer everything).

[HomerBrink]

If you're looking for a rural environment (not suburban) it wouldn't be a bad place to live. It's rural but not remote. Most of the other comments about WP are on the mark (although I like NYS myself). I'd also like to add that you would be less than an hour from Syracuse which has good medical centers, a decent airport and access to Amtrak.

[jdshamong]

Originally Posted by gpj

After Moving here from the South and growing up out west. Whitney Point is one of the most pleasant and family-friendly places I've lived.
The positives include the beautiful lake and parks. My kids go the dorchester park 1 mile from main st. We love the beach and the many playgrounds. It is one of the safest place I've lived.
Excellent primary and UPK schools and daycare.
Best math scores in the county, sports aren't as big but thats okay for most of us here.
Main Street: Library, gas, bank, chinese, italian and drug store.

Ithaca has great cultural events (40 minutes).
Binghamton has decent shopping (20 minutes).

Negatives:
It is in a farming/rural area. It has one nice restaurant in the village (Aiellos). Target/mall are 20 minutes away. Camping, trails, and skiing are all within 30 minutes.

Most of the danger comes from the speeding ithaca students and average property crime. But we have a small friendly and quiet neighborhood.

The biggest negative is probably that it is in NY state, with Michigan one of the worst governed states. High Property taxes (all taxes are high) and very low gov't services (volunteer everything).

GPJ can you email me the amount that most people pay for taxes?
where I live in New Jersey I have a 30x50 lot and I pay $4700 a year in TAXESThank You for your HELP
jdshamong@aol.com

[jdshamong]

Where can I get Pictures of Whitney Point I've looked all over and NO ONE has posted any pic's of Whitney Point.