cicero, or Tully which is a better place to live (Syracuse: relocating, landscaping)

[FoxFox]

I am relocating form Long Island to the Syracuse area. These are two towns that seem like a nice place to live. Anyone know about these areas, schools,medical facilities,crime rate, etc.. Thanks

[vicarian]

Well, Bellafinzi is incredibly knowledgeable about the Syracuse suburbs, but maybe I can offer a little input.

Cicero has about 30,000 people, and is the fastest growing town in the region. It is situated on Oneida Lake, and there are some state parks nearby. Cicero is in a large school district called Cicero-North Syracuse (I graduated from there).

Tully, meanwhile, is much more rural, located in the hills south of Syracuse. Tully has about 3,000 people, and is home to a ski resort. The school distict here is much smaller (compare the sizes of their senior classes last year- about 90 in Tully, versus 700 in Cicero).

Comparing the two, both are middle class to upper-middle class communities. A three bedroom house with amenities will cost you about 175k-225k on average (houses are fairly inexspensive in CNY). Tully isn't as developed and retains a rural charm, and Cicero has a more suburban flavour. Both have recrational facilities, and decent school systems. Both are close to the interstate, so travel to the city is also easy, usually within 20-30 mins. Cicero is close to the North Medical Center, but I am unaware of any medical clinics in Tully. Crime rate is low in both places, but lower in Tully. Deciding between the two won't be easy, because they are both good, clean suburbs. However, if you have any specific questions, don't hesitate to ask!

[bellafinzi]

Vicarian did a great job of summarizing these two areas.

Tully is like living out in the country without any supermarket or shopping nearby. Tully does have a highway exit off I-81, so it's an easy commute to Syracuse. The problem is Syracuse doesn't have any southern suburbs, so residents south of the city...including Tully residents... need to travel to the eastern, or western or northern suburbs to shop.

Cicero has all the basic stores for shopping....Lowe's, Home Depot, Wal-Mart, Target, Wegmans and a few restaurants.

So basically...Tully is hilly, Cicero is flat. Tully is country, Cicero is suburban. Tully has a very small school district, Cicero a very large school district. Both have low crime rates. Cicero is much closer to medical facilities. Tully has very little traffic, Cicero can have heavy traffic areas.

Hope this helps!

[tullyviking]

FoxFox - My name is Fox and coincidentally I lived in Cicero for 4 years until moving to Tully and have been there the past 2 years, so I have experience as a homeowner in both places. I agree with everything said above, BUT they forgot to add Cortland for shopping, eating, entertainment, etc. Cortland (pop. 25,000) is just south of Tully and will take you about 10 minutes to drive. Everything you need is there (State Univ), all the major retail shopping stores, restaurants, downtown area, etc.

Pro's: Cicero has a nice, safe suburban feel. Shopping is close by, restaurants, schools offer lots of programs, close to city (more like a 10 minute drive to downtown), close hunting/camping/lakefront areas, lots of parks, pretty quiet. Housing is fairly affordable but has gone up a lot in the last 5 years.

Con's:Cicero definitely has some traffic issues if you live off 31 or Thompson during the work commute home (but that's only because its a two lane road). Lots of new development (constant construction in some areas). CNS highschool is like a "big city" school with some of the problems (drugs, kids hanging outside smoking/drinking). Cicero has many areas in swampland - so get ready for LOTS of mosquitoes (I mean 5 - 10 bites everytime you walk to your mailbox or talk w/ your neighbors outside for a few minutes). In the mid to late summer this improves, but April - June is usually bad. North Med is close but the quality of care is suspect. Major hospitals are within 10-15 minutes.

Pro's: Tully has a very small town feel to it. The "downtown" portion is very small, but has 2 dollar stores, pizza parlour, video store, fitness club, restaurants, 2 major banks (Alliance & HSBC), a great big fuel station, car wash & deli), Ford & Chevy car dealerships, a large Kinney Drug store, Burger King (Mickey D's is just 5 miles north in Lafayette). There are more stores & businesses. The school is nice (my kids are in elementary) and still seems to have more a of small town feel. West of 81 has some huge, gorgeous homes. East of 81 is more farms until you drive up in the hills. 3 ski resorts within minutes and beautiful landscaping around the surrounding areas. Driving through the countryside within seconds you can pass from cattle farm to ski chalet-style homes. A minute more and your up in $300 - 500k 5,000+ sq ft homes. Most homes outside the town have 4 - 5 acres or more, think really big lot suburbs. Tully also has several small lakes (one only open to Tully residents). In Spring & Summer, hunting, fishing, camping are abundant, parks to go picnic. In winter snowmobiling, skiing & sledding are the main activities.

Con's: Tully the town is definitely a little rundown looking in some areas. Snow isn't removed as quickly as in Cicero, although they do a great job of getting it moved out on most roads a couple of times a day (consider getting a 4wheel drive). Housing can be as if not more expensive than Cicero in some areas. Major hospitals are 15 - 20 minute drive (downtown Syracuse). Outside the town you deal with Septic tanks, propane tanks (country living) although you can get cable tv & highspeed internet & digital phone service. Limestone throughout the hills which equates to Radon. Get you home inspected and if needed negotiate a radon abatement system ($1 - 2k) before purchasing the home.

All in all though very good places to live - loved 'em both, I'm just more a country person (although my place isn't really country). My main and only complaint would be the taxes (of course). Both Cicero & Tully are in Onondaga County (Syracuse) and you can expect to pay 3 - 4% the value of your home in annual property/school taxes. Most other places I've lived (MN, VA, WA, CA) it's 0.5 - 1.5%, so while the monthly home payments are very reasonable, it's the monthly tax bill that hurts. For instance, when I lived in Cicero, I had a $90k house (3 bed, 1 1/2bath, 1500 sq ft on a 1/4 acre) and paid $3500/yr in taxes. Now I have a $265k house (4 bed/ 2 1/2 bath, 2800 sq ft house on 4 acres) and pay $9000/yr in taxes. This part blows my mind and will probably be the reason I move out of NY state once the kids are older. Good news though - the surrounding counties (only minutes away) offer lower taxes (nice communities like Cazenovia, Central Square, etc).

Much to do in the Syracuse region (Adirondacks are beautiful, gorges, state parks to visit, finger lake region is great (winery tours, boat tours). Most major areas are within a day's drive (Philly is 4 hours, Boston is 5, NYC is 4, Toronto is 4, Baltimore/D.C is 6). Airport is small and is never really congested. Some large shopping malls, Carrier dome for Div IA Syracuse Univ sports, lively downtown area with clubs & music, river communities and great restaurants, day spas, historical spots & museums, and lots of history. Some areas of downtown during day & night leave a lot to be desired - but most of the crime is designated to one specific low income area - so if you stay out of there, you'll be fine.

Hope this helps.

[christinalackey]

Hey there!

Is there a reason that you have narrowed down to these two areas?. It is north, nearer to Cicero, but less congested, more like Tully. I also happen to think it is one of the better areas for investment based on the trends I am seeing because it is still very reasonable to get a house there

[dnickason]

I commend you all on saying nice things about CNY. It's the greatest place to live. From here, you can do anything.