Newburyport "lifestyle" (Andover, Amesbury: condos, houses, cinema)

[Pstoep]

This forum has been so helpful - thanks to all who contribute! I've been trying to narrow our list of towns/areas that seem to meet what we are looking for, and I'm really attracted to Newburyport. One thing I'm curious about: a Pinterest poster said that she hates the Newburyport "lifestyle," although she thinks the town is beautiful. How would you define the lifestyle, or what do you think she meant? It may be exactly what we want, or it may not be!

[Thomas144]

lots of interesting people. pretty good diversity of incomes. rednecks on welfare mixed in with the independently wealthy. middle class trying to sell boats to the rich. I can't go much into what I think are the demographics without offending someone. a great town. my favorite place.

[Woodchucker]

I think Thomas pretty much has it. I certainly wouldn't say anything bad about the "Newburyport Lifestyle", but I have never lived there so maybe there's something i'm missing. It's definitely a great town to visit!

[in_newengland]

I wouldn't know what to say either other than what Thomas said. LOTS of boats, I know that much. I live nearby and do my shopping there and the people are nice. Very busy downtown, extremely busy in summer tourist season. Lots of people walking around. Lots of very wealthy people. I've met some nice friendly people just walking my dog in the park but I don't know about the lifestyle.

[johngolf]

I did not live in Newburyport while living in the area (Andover) but I did spent quite a bit of time in Newburyport prior to 2001, loved their First Night, as I liked the town and had friends/colleagues/lover there.

It was a town undergoing change from blue collar to white collar. It had all the flavors of each collar color mingling. Some did not like such, nor each other, nor the changes happening. Especially the locals. The newer folks moving in were definitely changing the town. Many wanted it to be another Andover and there were clashes.

Hard drinking, hard working fishing boat people do not mix well with white wine sipping, Volvo driving folks no matter how hard the Volvo drivers try to be "one of the crowd".

Newburyport can be a dichotomy.

[goyguy]

^This.
Even on State St (the main north-south drag) the townie/preppie schism can be felt. These days the latter are holding sway a great deal more with their boutiques, pricy restaurants, art-film cinema, etc. But the Richdale convenience store and the Thirsty Whale pub are firmly entrenched as "downscale" local institutions.
Similarly, along Water St headed toward Plum Island, on the one hand you can find a yuppie-oriented health club and "running gear" store - as well as additional expensive places to eat, including a Thai spot. On the other, there's a humongous flea market in a warehouse close to the river. And the Starboard Galley is a decidedly "local" eatery, where you can catch up on all the gossip while dining on mediocre food and watching whatever game is on TV.
South of Water St and east of State is where you can see the creep of gentrification happening. Most of the fancier Newburyport houses have long since been purchased and moved into or "flipped." So now the focus is on upgrading the small and less ornate homes or, failing that, demolishing them in favor of expensive condos. (Fortunately lot sizes preclude McMansion construction.)
As a car-less visitor I can't address how the west side of the city (outward to, and beyond, I-95) is faring. But since it's no historical landmark with distinctive buildings, instead a largely post-WWII landscape of generic subdivisions, little is likely to have changed over time.
From what I've seen of the downtown and close-in areas, despite the ongoing ascendancy of the upper classes there is still a notable proportion of citizens that fit the label of "townie" and wear it with pride. To some degree these are the people who are driving the taxis and working in the trendy restaurants. Unlike in many other places - particularly coastal resort areas - any class-related tensions no doubt exist but aren't especially palpable.
My suspicion is that any disliked "lifestyle" is probably the one led by those who own flashy boats, live in tastefully made-over Federal and other mansions, and eat at the place to be seen of the month. Flaunting of wealth does go on a great deal there. Amesbury seems to have been spared that historically, though if housing prices are any indication it's tipping in the same direction. Meanwhile, Salisbury and New Hampshire's "Hamptons" (never mistaken with those of New York) remain about as unpretentious as you can get.

[luvmyhoss]

Much like any other tourist town.

[Thomas144]

I don't even know why I think this exactly, which is why I didn't go into it in my first answer, but I usually think of Newburyport as having a fairly large lesbian community - so that's actually what I thought of when someone alluded to the "Newburyport lifestyle". Or maybe the "lifestyle" is having a long commute to work. Or maybe it's all the stores selling souvenir t-shirts Or maybe it's the 25 cent hotdogs at Richdale's.

[luvmyhoss]

Love those hotdogs. Now you let the secret out.

[Shutout]

It has a nice little down-town area to roam around in, with a historic feel. There's a decent selection of small shops and local pubs. The boardwalk area on the Merrimack area is a nice, little (very short) walk. It's better to sit and gaze out at the boats and water.

Some of the people there can be a bit "yuppie" and give off the vibe that they think they're better than everyone else. If you listen close enough you can figure out who are the "yuppies" as they talk a bit different than everyone else in the area.