[elinyc]

I have a friend who has a job opportunity in Waterbury, but is concerned about living in that city because it doesn't exactly have a good reputation. Are there any nice neighborhoods in Waterbury and/or nice towns around Waterbury? Looking for something safe, family friendly, not rural and preferably walkable. Thoughts?

[kidyankee764]

The suburbs of Waterbury are beautiful, but not very walkable. They are also primarily single family homes and can get expensive. There are many safe areas within the city though. I don't know the good vs bad neighborhoods but I'm sure someone else on here does.

[elinyc]

Would commuting from Shelton be too far to Waterbury? Google says it's only about 23 minutes, but I have no idea if that path gets busy during traffic times? I've never driven in that area and am not at all familiar with it. It seems like Shelton has more or less what my friends are looking for - a safe town with a lot of amenities and something not at all rural.

[matools]

I've lived in Waterbury my whole entire life. While it certainly isn't one of the more desirable places to live, there are many areas within Waterbury which are very nice and safe. These neighborhoods include Bunker Hill, Town Plot, Country Club, East Mountain, and various parts of the East End and Bucks Hill. Basically, if you live right outside the outlying suburbs, you can live in a very nice neighborhood. Naturally, as you get closer to downtown, you encounter the areas you would probably want to avoid.

Schools aren't the greatest, which shouldn't come as a shock to anyone but there are a handful of good public schools in Waterbury. If not, there are quite a few private schools.

Suburbs surrounding Waterbury are nice for the most part, but as kidyankee said they are not very walkable.

[elinyc]

Originally Posted by matools

Schools aren't the greatest, which shouldn't come as a shock to anyone but there are a handful of good public schools in Waterbury. If not, there are quite a few private schools.

Suburbs surrounding Waterbury are nice for the most part, but as kidyankee said they are not very walkable.

My friends do not have any school-age children so schools are not a concern. Do you think the commute from Shelton to Waterbury would be too long with traffic? It seems like Shelton is the closest suburb/town that still has amenities and isn't rural. Or am I missing some place? I'm not at all familiar with the area, so any insights would be appreciated.

[matools]

Originally Posted by elinyc

My friends do not have any school-age children so schools are not a concern. Do you think the commute from Shelton to Waterbury would be too long with traffic? It seems like Shelton is the closest suburb/town that still has amenities and isn't rural. Or am I missing some place? I'm not at all familiar with the area, so any insights would be appreciated.

The only time I've ever experienced traffic on route 8 down to the Shelton area is due to road work. But then again, I don't drive it every day between 7am-8am so I can't really speak on that. Otherwise, the drive is really easy and 23 minutes sounds about right.

Moving up on the map, Derby is kinda meh. Seymour is personally a little too rural for MY taste, but it's a nice little town. Oxford is nice but rural. Beacon Falls is really small and doesn't have much going on there. Naugatuck is another meh. Then you hit Waterbury.

[elinyc]

They definitely want something not rural, dense, full of amenities, but still safe/nice. Does Shelton make sense?

[matools]

Originally Posted by elinyc

They definitely want something not rural, dense, full of amenities, but still safe/nice. Does Shelton make sense?

If they like Shelton and don't mind commuting 25-30 min one way, then I would say it makes sense. I would be really, really shocked if he/she had a hard time getting to Waterbury in the morning via route 8 because it's basically a reverse commute since some people here head to FFC or a train station down there.

[matools]

Do they know where in Waterbury they will be working? Like I said, route 8 is fine in most cases but if they have to jump on i84 for a few, that could add some extra time because i84 in Waterbury is just a big headache.

[elinyc]

Originally Posted by matools

If they like Shelton and don't mind commuting 25-30 min one way, then I would say it makes sense. I would be really, really shocked if he/she had a hard time getting to Waterbury in the morning via route 8 because it's basically a reverse commute since some people here head to FFC or a train station down there.

They've never been to Shelton, but I thought I would recommend it to them based on the (very little) information I have about Shelton vs. the other towns. The others on the way to Waterbury seem quite rural and Waterbury itself sounds like a city with high crime. No?