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Location: New Albany, Indiana (Greater Louisville)
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Stereotypically I think of both Cleveland and Buffalo as being historic hubs of eastern European immigrants. Polish descended populations are quite large in both.
Worcester, MA perhaps? It's part of the Greater Boston area, but pretty far out to the west and so has housing well within your budget. It's status as the center of its own local area before Greater Boston expanded out to turning it into part of its commuter shed means that there's an actual walkable urban core with multifamily housing (apartments) which isn't all that common within the US. It did have some notable crime issues though they have gone down dramatically and even during the pandemic which is generally been bad for crime in the US, Worcester came out pretty well. I think there's also an existing recent Ukrainian population in the city.
There's also the possibility of taking fairly frequent train trips to Boston proper if there's a desire to go visit a larger city.
My guess is that something similar to this, that is, a city of its own that became a part of a larger city's commuter shed and so is still somewhat walkable and has some form of frequent access to the larger city if so desired while being much cheaper than the much larger city, probably also exists for satellite cities outside of Philadelphia. NYC certainly has it, and that's where recommendations like Danbury come in, but I think the Boston and Philadelphia ones will be cheaper per square foot and similar in local walkability.
What about Michigan? As a Michigander, I will admit my bias but it seems like you might like it.
Cost of living is low (most 2 bedroom apartments here rent for $1500-2000 a month in the nicer suburbs). Crime is low pretty much everywhere that's not the city of Detroit or Flint. Gun crime is a thing, like anywhere else in America, but outside the high-crime areas, isn't a big concern. Walkability is going to be the hardest thing to find, because it is very car-centric here and walkability is only found in a few places like Royal Oak and Ann Arbor.
I don't know how important this is, but we do have a small Ukrainian community here. However, most people of Ukrainian descent live on the east side in places like Warren and Sterling Heights, which are not very walkable.
OP, you may find this interesting in regards to Ukrainian Federal Credit Union locations within the US: https://ukrainianfcu.org/locations-hours/ (I’m kind of surprised that there aren’t locations in the Albany, Binghamton and Utica NY areas as well).
On a side note, in between Syracuse and Auburn, the suburban school districts in between such as Solvay, Westhill, West Genesee, Marcellus and Jordan-Elbridge all are in the 3-7% Ukrainian descent range. So, while that doesn’t seem like a lot, those percentages are a bit over the national percentage and those suburbs would put you in between 2 cities with the cultural outlets, as well as within 4 hours or so from family in Bedford/Westchester County. Out of these districts, West Genesee is the biggest and is based in Camillus. It has Pre-K and would put you right in between the 2 cities, while having plenty of shopping and some apartments. You would have to be a bit strategic in terms of walkability/public transportation, but schools are good and don’t be surprised if you hear the native tongue being spoken at the local Costco. Solvay, a district where about 6-7% of the residents are of Ukrainian descent, also has Pre-K. For both of those districts, look into apartments near West Genesee Street, where there are some in both districts and shopping/restaurants nearby. While more rural and closer to Auburn, J-E has 3 and 4 year old Pre-K programs too.
I think you should consider New Britain, CT. It has a very large Polish population with Polish speakers and stores (see "Little Poland" on Broad Street). Crime statistics can appear high for New Britain, but that's because there are a few places with very high crime. Most of the city is fine. You can also look at apartment complexes in the neighboring towns (Plainville, Newington), which should be affordable and still have decent transit.
OP, you may find this interesting in regards to Ukrainian Federal Credit Union locations within the US: https://ukrainianfcu.org/locations-hours/ (I’m kind of surprised that there aren’t locations in the Albany, Binghamton and Utica NY areas as well).
On a side note, in between Syracuse and Auburn, the suburban school districts in between such as Solvay, Westhill, West Genesee, Marcellus and Jordan-Elbridge all are in the 3-7% Ukrainian descent range. So, while that doesn’t seem like a lot, those percentages are a bit over the national percentage and those suburbs would put you in between 2 cities with the cultural outlets, as well as within 4 hours or so from family in Bedford/Westchester County. Out of these districts, West Genesee is the biggest and is based in Camillus. It has Pre-K and would put you right in between the 2 cities, while having plenty of shopping and some apartments. You would have to be a bit strategic in terms of walkability/public transportation, but schools are good and don’t be surprised if you hear the native tongue being spoken at the local Costco. Solvay, a district where about 6-7% of the residents are of Ukrainian descent, also has Pre-K. For both of those districts, look into apartments near West Genesee Street, where there are some in both districts and shopping/restaurants nearby. While more rural and closer to Auburn, J-E has 3 and 4 year old Pre-K programs too.
so, say you like the apartments in Camillus, you can still take a bus to the plaza in Solvay for the Ukrainian store or say to the Ukrainian Credit Union or Ukrainian Club on Syracuse's Tipperary Hill neighborhood on its West Side. A street view in that city neighborhood: https://www.google.com/maps/@43.0483...7i16384!8i8192
So, that can give you an idea about some options in that general area in between Syracuse and Auburn as well.
Last edited by ckhthankgod; 09-21-2022 at 08:49 AM..
Many thanks you all for sharing your thoughts and ideas. We considered every suggested places, but decided to check Ohio with our own eyes and decide. We also reestimated (we were shocked with a price of family insurance honestly) our rental budget to 2000K (preferably with utilities bills) for 2BR and it is nearly impossible to find in some kind of walkable area, in pretty safe neighborhood with park or playground or Pre-K nearby in NY/CT/NJ.
So we are going to check OH.
Thanks again everyone!
Many thanks you all for sharing your thoughts and ideas. We considered every suggested places, but decided to check Ohio with our own eyes and decide. We also reestimated (we were shocked with a price of family insurance honestly) our rental budget to 2000K (preferably with utilities bills) for 2BR and it is nearly impossible to find in some kind of walkable area, in pretty safe neighborhood with park or playground or Pre-K nearby in NY/CT/NJ.
So we are going to check OH.
Thanks again everyone!
Are you referring to the NYC area or in those states in general?
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