[maggiemay]

Any idea of what the commute from Norwalk to Sikorsky (north Stratford) would be?

[Rich Lee]

Originally Posted by maggiemay

Any idea of what the commute from Norwalk to Sikorsky (north Stratford) would be?

This is a reverse commute on the Merritt Pkwy (Route 15) meaning that you will be going against the flow of traffic. An alternate would be I-95. In any event, you are probably looking at 15 - 25 minutes.

[acornsower]

Moderator cut: copyrighted image

Definitely take a look at Black Rock. Four minutes from Fairfield Center with its own restaurant/gallery strip and one of the most beautiful oceanfront promenades in the state. It has a beautiful hilltop estate district and a lot of nice '20s-period houses.

[JayCT]

Originally Posted by Familyof6fromCT

Look in Guilford

The commute from Guilford would be horrible.

If being near the water is important, then you would want a coastal town. Access to beaches from inland towns is somewhat limited. I believe if you live in Trumbull you can purchase a pass to Fairfield beaches at a higher cost than to town residents. Not sure what that is anymore. Trumbull is very nice (stay north of the Parkway though), but for some reason Fairfield is still considered a bit better for resale. It might be because of access to New York and the train. Anyway, you are right about Fairfield having excellent resale value, but you will get more house for your money in Trumbull than Fairfield.

The Norwalk to Stratford commute is about 30 mintues depending where you live. But there are questionable areas of Norwalk, so be careful. Fairfield would be 15 to 20 minutes. Growing up a lot of people who lived in Fairfield worked at Sikorsky, but that was when housing prices were a lot more reasonable there.

Black Rock is part of Bridgeport. Taxes are high and there are portions of it that are questionable because of a nearby public housing project. Resales may be more difficult there, but the city was recently identified by Money Magazine as one of the best places to buy real estate in the country. Jay

[tbapppp]

Orange and Trumbull are far from the beaches in my estimation( of course, since I only live three houses from the beach I may not be the one to ask). If you need to be within a close commute to Sikorsky ,and want to be near the beach, Milford is the logical choice (unless you buy right in Stratford). Unlike Jay's opinion of Milford, it is a beautiful town with so much more to offer than other bordering towns. Yes, there are some uglier neighborhoods: this town has been on the books since 1640 and of course, any town that age is going to show some wither. However, Fairfield has some very "questionable" areas as well particulary on its Bridgeport border...and our crime problems are very mild when compared to Stratford and West Haven.
At any rate, Milford is an extremely easy commute to Sikorsky and has so much to offer: beautiful beaches (17 milles of shoreline--the longest in CT) strong schools, and excellent activities and opportunities for children and for families and so much offered by our recreation department and our local youth and adult sports organizations. The majority of our beaches are also public to ALL residents and there is access to all of them other than three of our beach neighborhoods which are private . Our downtown is also beautiful with great restaurants and lots of activity; our center green is such a pleasant spot and is the longest green in all of New England. The city is a very interesting mix of provincial historic New England with the ammenities of modern America!

[JayCT]

tbapppp - I did not mean to sound like I think that Milford is not a nice town. It is great and has a lot to offer. There are a lot of wonderful homes and neighborhoods. You can not beat the shopping opportunities. The beaches are beautiful. But I have a friend that is a cop there and he talks about "certain" neighborhoods. I do not know where they are. Maybe you could help if the original poster is interested.

As for Fairfield, the nicest neighborhoods in Bridgeport (Black Rock, Brooklawn, the North End) border Fairfield and there is not one neighborhood in town that I would not live in. And I am pretty particular about where I live. JMHO Jay

[tbapppp]

I guess the worst part of Milford that your cop friend talks about with crime issues must be Devon which borders Stratford--there is a great deal of work going on in that area and it is becoming an artist's colony but it certainly will not happen overnight. The only other area that may be questionable, other some very old beachside side streets is where we have a truck stop with all the social issues that occur in such establishments...but there fortunately is not a residentail area directly surrounding that property and it is directly off I-95.

[sugarlips]

Originally Posted by maggiemay

We are trying to stay as close to the beach as possible. What is it that you like about orange? How long do you think the commute to Sikorsky would be? It's a "reverse commute" so we were hoping traffic wouldn't be as much of an issue.

Sorry, I forgot to check back on this thread. I like Orange because you are close to the shopping of Milford but you don't have to deal with the traffic of living in it. Post Road (Rt1) is always crowded at all times of the day! Orange is more of a bedroom community but it is close to what you need. It's not far from the beaches in Milford. I liked going to Hammonassett. So, I can't comment on the beaches in Milford. Also, Orange is closer to Sikorsky than Milford.

I lived in the Huntington section of Shelton. I never lived in Milford. So, this is only my opinion but I never really liked Milford. I always thought that Orange was nice when we would drive through on the way to the mall on Rt.1 (we would often take the scenic route).

[maggiemay]

Thanks for all of the information. We are in CT right now, shivering and trying to stay dry. BUT, we've had a great time and everyone has been so nice. We drove all around Fairfield today and then visited the Black Rock section of Bridgeport. Very cute, I must say. Tomorrow is a quick look at Stratford, Trumbull and Milford. Thursday we are touring New Haven. I appreciate all of the feedback. It has been very helpful. MM

[sugarlips]

Originally Posted by maggiemay

Thanks for all of the information. We are in CT right now, shivering and trying to stay dry. BUT, we've had a great time and everyone has been so nice. We drove all around Fairfield today and then visited the Black Rock section of Bridgeport. Very cute, I must say. Tomorrow is a quick look at Stratford, Trumbull and Milford. Thursday we are touring New Haven. I appreciate all of the feedback. It has been very helpful. MM

If you are going up the coastline, Orange is one town inland from Milford and directly inbetween Sikorsky and Milford. (as the bird flies).

I hope you enjoy your stay.