Any bad areas in Port Washington? (Great Neck, Manorhaven: charges, reputation, great)
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I read these threads two years ago before moving to Port from Manhattan. I'm so glad I ignored them! I live on Manhasset Isle and simply love the area. No problems with crime, or gangs, or any of that nonsense. It's a family neighborhood a block from the water. Hard to beat that. My son attends middle school here and is having a great experience. This is a diverse community with a large Latin presence, so if that makes you jumpy you should probably look elsewhere, but around here when a house gets sold it's often being torn down and replaced with a massive, single family house. No signs of urban decay here folks.
During 2009 (when I was staying in Long Island for most of the year), I visited my cousin's house in Port Washington 4 or so times during the year (where he, his wife, and 3 teen daughters live). Judging from various negative statements and reports in this thread about Port Washington, I guess I must not have seen every square inch of Port Washington and the peninsula it is on. What I saw and experienced overall was a rather upper-middle-class, affluent community which was pleasant and wholly walkable in Villlage of Port Washington at least (with all the shopping, services, and other useful features all being walkable from many of the surrounding residential areas, relatively speaking) and had many nice homes and a pleasant overall environment. And the police force there, for which they have their own village police force, is vigilant (I even got a $180.00 traffic ticket for turning right on a red light in downtown Port Washington . . . where I thought it was allowed). My cousin has a nice townhouse-type home on Bayview Avenue (about 3 blocks walk from the LIRR station) and I was very impressed by the quality-of-life in Port Washington and vicinity. And an old family friend who has explored the area much more in-depth than myself by car and lives in Queens says that she loves Port Washington. And she has rather high standards for judging a geographic locale as suitable or unsuitable.
So I am quite surprised (maybe even shocked) at some of what is being said about the Port Washington area on this thread (crime, gangs, drugs, etc. etc. etc.). That isn't the impression that I got of Port Washington at all. Did I miss something? Maybe I did, maybe I didn't. I don't know.
The idea that PW is a high crime, dangerous area is absurd. Aside from Manorhaven, most of PW is downright upscale and the rest is solidly middle class/upper middle class. The crime stats, school performance, home values all completely discredit these claims. There are people on here who say that Schreiber HS is dangerous and gang infested, yet the stats say it has a 98% graduation rate and the state classifies the school district as "outstanding". The actual crime rates are also very low, just check the police data. Even Manorhaven doesn't have a statistically high crime rate and it's not a ghetto, it's a working class community with hispanic immigrants and a low/moderate level of crime. The average home price for PW in 2011 was over 700K and there has only been a minor drop in home values since the recession. PW has weathered the housing crisis better than most anyplace in the nation. These are actual stats, not just the opinions of people in the midst of a "hispanic panic". Sorry, but a school can't be dangerous and have a 98% graduation rate at the same time. A community can't be crime infested or in the midst of great decline and still have avg home prices of over 700K (and maintain those prices thru the recession).
PW is not 100% white, nor is it completely crime free, but that doesn't make it a bad place to live.
PW has some economic and ethnic diversity, but the majority of residents are still upper income. If you want a community that has virtually no crime and virtually no working class or middle class people i would suggest you try Manhasset or Great Neck. I would avoid buying or renting in Manorhaven, Harbor Rd, S Bayless Rd if your concerned about crime or trashy neighbors, the other 80% of PW is very nice.
The idea that PW is a high crime, dangerous area is absurd. Aside from Manorhaven, most of PW is downright upscale and the rest is solidly middle class/upper middle class. The crime stats, school performance, home values all completely discredit these claims. There are people on here who say that Schreiber HS is dangerous and gang infested, yet the stats say it has a 98% graduation rate and the state classifies the school district as "outstanding". The actual crime rates are also very low, just check the police data. Even Manorhaven doesn't have a statistically high crime rate and it's not a ghetto, it's a working class community with hispanic immigrants and a low/moderate level of crime. The average home price for PW in 2011 was over 700K and there has only been a minor drop in home values since the recession. PW has weathered the housing crisis better than most anyplace in the nation. These are actual stats, not just the opinions of people in the midst of a "hispanic panic". Sorry, but a school can't be dangerous and have a 98% graduation rate at the same time. A community can't be crime infested or in the midst of great decline and still have avg home prices of over 700K (and maintain those prices thru the recession).
PW is not 100% white, nor is it completely crime free, but that doesn't make it a bad place to live.
PW has some economic and ethnic diversity, but the majority of residents are still upper income. If you want a community that has virtually no crime and virtually no working class or middle class people i would suggest you try Manhasset or Great Neck. I would avoid buying or renting in Manorhaven, Harbor Rd, S Bayless Rd if your concerned about crime or trashy neighbors, the other 80% of PW is very nice.
People only see what they want to see so don't let it bother you. The high schools where I live have a 99% graduation rate ... yet an in-law who hates where I live (my theory is because he grew up there and was picked on in school) ALWAYS tells the same old story almost every time I see him and my town is mentioned, "I was waiting for my nephews to get out of school and they were the only white kids there!" (A GROSS exaggeration!) But it never fails, the same old story. For some people it wouldn't matter if the school had ALL the Intel semi-finalists in the country ... they still have something negative to say.
What about the Port Washington North area? It looks rather unique on Google Maps
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