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I disagree with that too. I know one family in Centereach that has more than 3 people & they are african american. My cousin's neighbor's are too. I'm postive they aren't the only families in those two towns!!!
I would recommend Elmont. I used to live there and motly middle class black families moved in (I would try to look in the part that border Franklin Square, the racetrack side isn't nice at all). Baldwin may also be a nice place to look as well as Huntington Station.
Someone recommended Malverne, but I would not for you. I lived there and my parents still live there. The entire town is almost all white, but the school district incorporates a town called Lakeview. The school is almost all African American (most of the white families send their kids to private school). Lakeview is not middle class at all...it's more along the lines of the poverty found in the Roosevelt area. When you drive through Lakeview, you see gangs and houses boarded up. Quite a few Malverne residents are still bitter over the integration of the schools so it may not be the most welcoming place or type of area you are looking for.
llama 8 I have been reading your negative posts about the Malverne schools for some time now. I am a white Malverne parent and send my children to Malverne schools. I spend some time in Lakeview and can post that at least 85% of the parents from Lakeview that I know are different from me only in color. They are committed to their families, hard working, civic minded and only want the best for their children. The hamlet is clean with a great park, beautiful new library and nature preserve. The homes are well kept but there are MAYBE 35 boarded up in a neighborhood of about 700. Many of the lots are tremendous by Nassau standards and the Nassau County Gang Unit has said there is no real threat of organized gangs in Lakeview. Just b/c a teen wears do-rag does not make him a gang member. As for integration-it was 40 years ago. The bitter ones have aged out. You need to revisit the area and your own thoughts.
Sean, I live in a town that is always labeled as being "bad" by people that have never lived, worked or spent any time here. I have given up on trying to get the newsady reading sheeple of Long Island to see things for what they really are. I can understand completely why the OP would want to live in a community with other families like theirs & to fit in.
Kelly, I have no idea what you're even talking about. I think you misunderstood one or both of my previous posts....
There is no question about why the OP would want to live somewhere that had at least some other African American families of similar economic backgrounds. Above all other reasons to not live there, I wouldn't really want to live in Roosevelt or Wyandanch because I'd stick out like a sore thumb. Similarly, there's no question that a place like Garden City isn't anything resembling a middle class area, so it's equally as ridiculous to suggest something like that.
My question was why are the oh-so-often maligned communities suggested in this thread not drawing the typical reaction we always see in other threads? I was not criticizing you (or anyone else) for suggesting them, nor do I think they're bad places to live, it just seemed very curious to me that the typical barrage of posts "warning" of the "dangers" of these places have so far been absent.
Sorry to sidetrack this thread somewhat, but I also think it's something the OP might want to take into consideration when hearing these opinions.
On the original topic, I forgot about South Hempstead completely. I have a black friend who grew up there, attended South Side HS (RVC) and I know he had a good experience with the community and the school. It's not an especially mixed district, about 75% white in the HS, but I don't think he ever felt out of place or unaccepted. South Hempstead is a great value for one of LI's top districts and a solidly middle class area. The part of the hamlet closer to Grand Avenue goes to Uniondale Schools which I don't know enough about to comment, but I'm sure it's not on the same tier as RVC.
I disagree with that too. I know one family in Centereach that has more than 3 people & they are african american. My cousin's neighbor's are too. I'm postive they aren't the only families in those two towns!!!
The demographics could have shifted a lot in the last eight years, but as of the 2000 census, only 1.98% of Centereach' population were African-American.
maisy123 - I'm with you on Lakeview. It looks identical to some places in North Wantagh or Plainedge, except with black people.
I would recommend Elmont. I used to live there and motly middle class black families moved in (I would try to look in the part that border Franklin Square, the racetrack side isn't nice at all). Baldwin may also be a nice place to look as well as Huntington Station.
Someone recommended Malverne, but I would not for you. I lived there and my parents still live there. The entire town is almost all white, but the school district incorporates a town called Lakeview. The school is almost all African American (most of the white families send their kids to private school). Lakeview is not middle class at all...it's more along the lines of the poverty found in the Roosevelt area. When you drive through Lakeview, you see gangs and houses boarded up. Quite a few Malverne residents are still bitter over the integration of the schools so it may not be the most welcoming place or type of area you are looking for.
How exactly is lakeview not middle class at all. The median income in 2005 in Lakeview was $76,300, very close to mostly white middle class Levittown $77,900, and a bit higher than Elmont $69,700
The demographics could have shifted a lot in the last eight years, but as of the 2000 census, only 1.98% of Centereach' population were African-American.
maisy123 - I'm with you on Lakeview. It looks identical to some places in North Wantagh or Plainedge, except with black people.
Agreed, and median income as of 05 in Lakeview was very similar to Plainedge and North Wantagh, actually in the middle of the two of them.
Plainedge $75,300
Lakeview $76,300
North Wantagh $78,300
Malverne, Baldwin, Amityville, Wheatley Heights, Coram, Middle Island, Centereach, Ronkonkoma, Bay Shore. I think all of these towns are diverse & everyone feels welcome.
I am white and grew up in a very "white town", but my best friend as a child was african american, she & her two brothers & maybe 2 other kids were the only african american kids in our high school. It was rough for her socially because she didn't want to date white guys. Although she was very well liked I remember her confessing to me sometimes that she hated being "different". She moved to South Carolina after college.
Good luck in your search!
Didn't want to date white guys? Wow, I'm offended.
llama 8 I have been reading your negative posts about the Malverne schools for some time now. I am a white Malverne parent and send my children to Malverne schools. I spend some time in Lakeview and can post that at least 85% of the parents from Lakeview that I know are different from me only in color. They are committed to their families, hard working, civic minded and only want the best for their children. The hamlet is clean with a great park, beautiful new library and nature preserve. The homes are well kept but there are MAYBE 35 boarded up in a neighborhood of about 700. Many of the lots are tremendous by Nassau standards and the Nassau County Gang Unit has said there is no real threat of organized gangs in Lakeview. Just b/c a teen wears do-rag does not make him a gang member. As for integration-it was 40 years ago. The bitter ones have aged out. You need to revisit the area and your own thoughts.
My apologies. I was just giving my opinion from my own experiences in living there. Considering the very high taxes in Malverne (my parents pay $14,000) I really don't view the schools that highly at all. If you look at the Newsday school report card, their scores are near the bottom of passing schools. I don't think Lakeview is extremely dangerous, but I can't call it an ideal area (or middle class), which is what this posting is requesting. I'm not an elitist by any means, but I really do not like the Malverne schools. I am happy to see that they are trying to make improvements, but all I can post is my own opinion. Nobody has to agree with me.
As for integration-it was 40 years ago. The bitter ones have aged out. You need to revisit the area and your own thoughts.
My parents only moved to Malverne 8 years ago...I am originally from Elmont and I really liked the area. I also like Malverne. I have encountered people in Malverne that spoke about the 1960's and the issues with integration and their views on it regarding the school system today. I just felt that so many people complaining about the schools and Lakeview may not make it ideal for a black family to live there without feeling some bitterness. I don't hold these ideas (although I don't like the school district from an educational standpoint). I wasn't alive during the integration period, but I have noticed that many people didn't get over it. (I can't speak for all of Malverne) I just felt, in my own opinion, that there are better choices for this family.
(FYI; did you ever vote in Malverne. Lakeview is rudely segregated to the back of the gym while the "white" Malverne residents vote in the front. I always found this troubling and sort of obvious).
Disliking a school system or a town does not equal racism, which is what I think you are implying. There are many white towns and white school systems that I am not thrilled with either. I just felt I should make that clear.
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