gotta job in seaford! (Dover, Milford: rentals, crime, to buy)

[hashford]

moving the family up to Delaware this month, actually we have about 2 weeks to go up find a place then move evrything from Georgia to the new place. I heard from some people to not ever move to Seaford. So i was wondering what peoples thoughts were about Milford, Harrington, Dover and Camden. WE have a high schooler and a middle schooler, so the schools are REALLY important. We also only have 1 car, guess I'll be walking alot! Need a place where I can get to stores by bike or foot. We also will rent as I do not want to buy a house. Let someone else fix everything for a change. Although I did get very tired of seeing all the freakin corn fields(this is coming from someone moving from a farming community!) the state itself seemed to be quite nice and close to big cities, beaches and mountains. maybe an hour or two to new york or philadelphia or washington. I posted this here since the places are in two different counties. Any thoughts, advice, warnings or friendly hellos are needed, wanted and appreciated.

[momonthemove]

Congrats on the job! Seaford is about 40 minutes from the Delaware beaches, 2 hours from Philadelphia, DC and Baltimore but almost 4 hours from New York City.

[doctorjef]

Some Sussex County natives will be along to advise you better than I can, but the school district that would be the combination of best and closest is Cape Henlopen, which is headquarterd in Lewes (although covers a larger area). If Seaford is a forty minute drive to the beaches, that would suggest you will be at least a good half hour commute from Seaford, maybe 20 minutes at best, depending on where in the school district you can find an acceptable rental. You would surely want to be west of Rt 1, to best avoid the worst of the summertime beach traffic. Dover and Camden-Wyoming are really too far IMO for a comfortable daily commute to Seaford, and the local school district isn't all that great by reputation in any case.

[rdlr]

Originally Posted by doctorjef

Dover and Camden-Wyoming are really too far IMO for a comfortable daily commute to Seaford, and the local school district isn't all that great by reputation in any case.

I'm on the road most of the time, throughout the state. I do the trip between Camden and Seaford 2-3 times a week, and it's a pleasurable 30-35 minute drive - a straight shot on Rt. 13 with very sparse traffic. Not sure which school district you're speaking of.

[DelawareLiz]

I teach in eastern Sussex County, Delaware. The only not-so-scary district in western Sussex is Delmar, which is a short drive down the highway from Seaford. Delmar is pretty decent, actually. Woodbridge district isn't too shabby....nothing to get excited over, but it's nowhere near as bad as Seaford or Laurel districts. It's just north of Seaford.

The best districts in Sussex are Cape and Indian River. If you want an excellent education for a high schooler, then Sussex Tech in Georgetown is the way to go but it's not so easy to get in. You would have to put in an application NOW and hope for the best. Sussex Tech and their bus service serves the entire county.

Just do yourself a favor and avoid Seaford school district at all costs, especially given your children are teenagers.

[hashford]

I was warned about the seaford schools and area. Scary since thats where the job is! I was also told to stay out of Dover itself since its schools are lacking. Caesar rodney and Milford schools were hinted at by some people I spoke with. Milford seemed to be a quaint town thats very walkable for carless folk like me. Dover scared me when i drove through, Maybe I'm not ready for the big time city life. haha. Harrington I also went through on the way to Dover. Seemed sad from a driving by point of view! Half dressed man was pushing a cart over the train tracks. I do have a question about the 2 county split of Milford. Why? Does it make a difference as to which county to line in there? Going up this week to find rentals.

[DelawareLiz]

Harrington scares me...lots of crime and poverty. It used to be nicer back in the day though. Milford is a decent town, although there are some sections where shootings and stabbings have occurred. But, these areas will be evident when you drive through there. However, most of Milford is pretty nice, and the school district is one of the better ones in Sussex. Yes, Milford is in two counties--Kent and Sussex. Which county you live in will determine where your kids go to school.

My husband was born and raised in Seaford. He went to school there and it was a nightmare even back in the late 80's-90's. He graduated in 1994. I hear it's 10x worse now...yikes.

[rdlr]

As Liz said, Milford covers 2 counties - Kent and Sussex, with the dividing line being the Mispillion River. However, all of the Milford area (even Sussex County) are a part of the Milford School District.

Here's an interactive map showing the school district boundaries.

Interactive Maps of Delaware's Public Schools

Similarly, the Smyrna School District extends north into New Castle County.

[hashford]

well we have 4 days to find a rental. ugh. of course if i just happen to drive by a beach and just happen to have a swimsuit on..........really hoping locals will point us some rental properties. i do have a small list. we'll see how it goes.

[hashford]

so nothing is available in the areas of milford and camden in our price range.found some in dover but the dover high and central academy seem scary. any ideas or advice from anyone?