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Thanks for all the advice...There a lot of different parts of Milford--is there one or more areas in particular that might be better for us? Know anything about Orchard Hill school and Morningside Beach? Silver Beach and the Pumpkin Delight school? Where is the "town green" or town center with shops?
The center of Milford covers a couple of different streets. It is basically where Broad Street intersects with River Street and New Haven Avenue. Board Street has a nice Green down the middle with beautiful older homes and buildings on either side. The shops are along River Street and Daniel Street. It is small but nice enough. The train station is also off North Broad while City Hall and the State Courthouse is on river Street West north of the railroad.
PS - How can you help but love a school named "Pumkin Delight"? Jay
Sorry Jeremy - I did not mean to be rude, but I was very surprised (shocked may be a better word) that someone would think that Fairfield schools were not excellent. They have been among the best in the state for many many years. Long before even I attended them. It is one of the reasons that the town is considered so desireable of a place to live and why it is so expensive.
I will agree with you that Westport has a reputation for being more "liberal" than Fairfield. This reputation dates back to when Westport was more of an "artist colony" and home to many actors and theater people. I am not sure how true that is today.
I also will say that Fairfield is a lot more liberal than some of the other towns you name (Greenwich, New Canaan and Darien), and it is at least as liberal as the others (West Hartford, Glastonbury, Southbury, Middlebury, Woodbridge, Bethany, Orange and Weston). Sorry to disagree with you, but I do and strongly. Jay
I do understand that schools in Fairfield are probably excellent, especially with test scores being so high. The fact that it's expensive is, IMO, a direct result of its proximity and convenience of getting to NYC. I was just saying that I was surprised that Fairfield's schools are among the top in the state. I really didn't know that - I usually say correct me if I'm wrong (just not this one time) and you surely did. My only experience with the Fairfield schools are with a family friend being so displeased with the special education at one of the town's high schools, so I may have been biased in my response. My apologies.
I don't think Southbury, Middlebury, Bethany and Weston are all that liberal. Southbury and Middlebury are mainly very conservative.
I'd highly suggest checking out Woodbridge. The town is beautiful, upscale and leafy. Cheaper than Westport, about on par with Fairfield. People here are also very liberal, and there is a high Jewish population in the area.
Well you obviously have not been listening very well. Fairfield has always been among the top school systems in the State. I do not have the time to get into all of the statistics, but for the 8th Grade Connecticut Mastery scores, 93,2% of Fairfield students meet or exceed the math proficiency levels; 92.0 for reading and 94.9 for writing. If that isn't considered excellent for a town as diverse as Fairfield, I do not know what is. Jay
Coincidentally, the Hartford Courant published the results of the latest Connecticut Mastery Tests in this morning's issue. The current results are lower than those posted by me above. Fairfield's scores were in the low 80's, not 90's as I indicated. I am not sure why there is such a difference. I tok my scores from the interet. I do apologize, however I will point out that Fairfield's results are in line with towns like Glastonbury and West Hartford. Still considered excellent. Jay
Jay and others- Yes i may be wrong in comparing Milford schools with Fairfield Schools...but i think the comparsion has very narrow margin of error and therefore...lets leave it to Milford schools being desireable.
Now as far as Nicer areas in Milford - North Milford is very desireable, you will find mostly new homes built in that section of the town. I don't recall what they call the name of the area located around the Golf Course, but obvisouly its very desireable..We are located right around mall area and i can't describe how easy it is for us to shop. Pretty much there are not really bad areas to say, just that Devon is not that desireable.
Lastly, i was recommending Milford in Grand scheme of things..quality of life, access to shopping and highways, access to downtown and beach..and may be Jay is right in his assessment of Fairfield ...but again, when i buy things, i look at the overall value..but that's just my perspective...
I hope this helps. Look at the houses on FSBO.com ...they have very nice houses listed from sale by owner or let me know and i know couple of good realtors in the area that i could recommend.
I do understand that schools in Fairfield are probably excellent, especially with test scores being so high. The fact that it's expensive is, IMO, a direct result of its proximity and convenience of getting to NYC. I was just saying that I was surprised that Fairfield's schools are among the top in the state. I really didn't know that - I usually say correct me if I'm wrong (just not this one time) and you surely did. My only experience with the Fairfield schools are with a family friend being so displeased with the special education at one of the town's high schools, so I may have been biased in my response. My apologies.
I don't think Southbury, Middlebury, Bethany and Weston are all that liberal. Southbury and Middlebury are mainly very conservative.
I'd highly suggest checking out Woodbridge. The town is beautiful, upscale and leafy. Cheaper than Westport, about on par with Fairfield. People here are also very liberal, and there is a high Jewish population in the area.
Just my .02
Jeremy, any particular streets you would recommend? Are there any streets that one can walk on/that have sidewalks? Any town "center" in Woodbridge or is it all residential with large lots?
Woodbridge does not have a town center. It is pretty suburban/rural in character. Older towns like Milford or Fairfield have downtowns. Other towns in the area like West Haven and Straford have them too, but they have school systems that have issues.
Fairfield does have some beautiful neighborhoods with very nice homes that are within walking distance of downtown. If your price range is really up there, check out the Southport section of Fairfield. It is a stunningly charming 19th Century waterfront village that will blow your socks away. Jay
I have lived in Milford for 3 years, near the beach. My son has been attending the public school for nearly 3 years and we are thrilled with the quality. I taught 1st grade in both Westport and Wilton and I see NO difference b/w the quality of what is taught in those towns vs. Milford. Milford is a very up and coming town, housing is do able compared to lower Fairfield county towns. There are TONS of activities for children. It is a VERY family oriented town. I wouldn't say it is more diverse than Fairfield as someone said previously. Fairfield borders Bridgeport, need I say more? Milford only shares a border with Orange and a slight border near the BEST part of West Haven. It is very insulated from some of the stuff that goes on in either Stratford of Bridgeport, not the mention New Haven. If you are looking for a good home for the money, GREAT schools, and more than 12 beaches plus shopping and an awesome, accessible downtown, Milford is your BEST bet in this part of CT.
Jay and others- Yes i may be wrong in comparing Milford schools with Fairfield Schools...but i think the comparsion has very narrow margin of error and therefore...lets leave it to Milford schools being desireable.
Now as far as Nicer areas in Milford - North Milford is very desireable, you will find mostly new homes built in that section of the town. I don't recall what they call the name of the area located around the Golf Course, but obvisouly its very desireable..We are located right around mall area and i can't describe how easy it is for us to shop. Pretty much there are not really bad areas to say, just that Devon is not that desireable.
Lastly, i was recommending Milford in Grand scheme of things..quality of life, access to shopping and highways, access to downtown and beach..and may be Jay is right in his assessment of Fairfield ...but again, when i buy things, i look at the overall value..but that's just my perspective...
I hope this helps. Look at the houses on FSBO.com ...they have very nice houses listed from sale by owner or let me know and i know couple of good realtors in the area that i could recommend.
Hope this helps.
CoolStrom.
I live seconds away from one of the nicest beaches in Milford in an older, very desirable neighborhood with beautiful homes. These homes are all unique and have TONS of character. The people that live in this neighborhood have the ability to send their kids to PRIVATE schools, believe me. They choose the public schools in Milford however because they are EXCELLENT and getting better every year. Fairfield has great schools too, so I've heard but DON"T downplay Milford public schools please.
I wouldn't say it is more diverse than Fairfield as someone said previously. Fairfield borders Bridgeport, need I say more?
Again, I will repeat that just because Fairfield borders Bridgeport does not mean that there are problems in Fairfield. The 2006 crime rate in Fairfield was 29 per thousand residents, Milford's crime rate was 41 per thousand. I think that is a significant difference considering Fairfield borders a major city and Milford does not.
Fairfield is 93% white, while Milford is 91%. The poverty rate in Fairfield is 2.9% verses Milfords 3.7%. 72% of Fairfield's residents have had a college education, Milford is 57%. The median household income in Fairfield is $103,371 while in Milford it is $74,500. The median home price in Fairfield is $570,000 while Milford it is $332,800. There are 501 units of subsidized housing in Fairfield, there are 979 units in Milford.
As for the schools, Milford does have very good schools and the students there do score above the state average on Connecticut Mastery and Academic Performance Tests. Fairfield students do however score higher however with well over 80% of the students meeting state goals in all categories. In Milford just over 70% of the students meet the goals (still not bad though).
I am not denying that Milford is a nice town and a great place to live. I would consider living there myself if I needed to work in the New Haven area. But Fairfield is very nice too and the facts support this. Jay
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My only experience with the Fairfield schools are with a family friend being so displeased with the special education at one of the town's high schools, so I may have been biased in my response. My apologies.
