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I am interested in hearing from anyone who in the past two years moved to either Cranford or Westfield. How do you like the city you chose? We need to make the move and I am not sure if Westfield is a little too "wealthy" of a community for us. I love the vibe that Westfield has but I worry about our children feeling the need to keep up w/ everyone. Thank you!
I moved to cranford in March 2008. I do no have kids so I can't help on that one. But I like cranford. At times I would like the town to be bigger like Westfield but for me Nomahegen and Lenape Park sold me. It's nice to get out of the house and run through those parks. There are always people walking/running through those parks. Some people, myself included, travel through to Echo Lake and sometimes continue to Watchung Reservation. The best part is 95% of it is on bike paths.. Nomahegen also has a music fest + downtown has street fairs..
The downtown needs more... but the restaurants in cranford are always packed. At dinner you actually have to wait @ Emmas Pizza, The Hotel, and Avenue East. I wonder how some stores stay open but they do and try to support them as much as I can.
As per attitude. When I was looking @ westfield a few things turned me off. Like a few packs of teenage girls all decked out wandering the streets. But that's everywhere i'm sure but usually hidden in the malls I guess.
Today I was in Bank of America in westfield and couldn't believe how friendly everyone was. I swear, the tellers knew every other customer by name.. It was a weird scene - I really like it..
I recently moved from Cranford and I really loved it there. Everyone was really nice and I liked the smaller downtown vs. Westfield's. I really enjoy Westfield as well, but it tends to have that snottier factor - but that is also based on my opinion, not fact.
Everyone has always said Westfield's school system is superior to Cranford's, but that has been changing in recent years. I do not pay much attention to the rankings for educational value, but for real estate value Westfield was #27 and Cranford was #29 from NJ Monthly.
One concern I did have about Cranford is it borders Roselle. It borders the nice side of Roselle, but Roselle has been seeing a large increase of problems in the last 5 years and I would not live on the Roselle/ Cranford border.
I chose Cranford over Westfield almost 24 years ago. I've never regretted that decision.
Regarding Roselle, I'm not aware of any increase in problems there, and I think it would be more obvious to me having lived here for so long. But I may just be oblivious. Living in Cranford, the towns of Roselle, or even Roselle Park, could just as well be in Kentucky for all it matters.
Regardless, only a small portion of Roselle borders Cranford to the east on the South side of town. The North side is bordered to the east by Roselle Park. These two boroughs differ a bit in demographics, Roselle Park being somewhat nicer. The border of Roselle Park and Cranford is really only one street, North Avenue. The Garden State Parkway basically separates Cranford from both towns on the east side anyway.
In any event, Cranford is one of the safest towns to live in NJ, and probably most of the country. With a rating of 1.0 representing the national average for crime, in every category but murder, Cranford doesn't even rate 0.1 according to one national comparison (Weichert). Three years ago a woman was murdered by her boyfriend, skewing the murder rate index to 0.11. Using anyone's statistics, however, Cranford rates very low on crime.
Westfield is relatively safe too, but crime is lower in Cranford. So is the snoot factor to some degree.
I moved to Westfield in October 2007. We also considered Cranford. In terms of schools I believe the schools are pretty much the same in terms of test scores, I think Cranford's are very slightly higher. Right now my older son is in preschool, and there are plenty of (all private) preschool options in Westfield, his classmates are from all around the surrounding towns.
The downtown in Westfield is bigger and to me, more useful and easier to walk around. But Cranford's downtown is really neat too.
As for the snoot-factor, I have yet to meet anyone who wasn't friendly and open. I have been pleasantly surprised, since this was a concern of mine as well. We are not rich, and so far I don't feel like the town hillbillies. Of course there *may* very well be a different situation with the teenagers, but I haven't encountered that yet as a parent. The teens I have seen do hang out at Starbucks and sometimes roam around downtown in packs giggling and/or horsing around, but it all seemed very innocent and they've been polite to me and my family. ie teenage boys have held open doors so I could get through with the stroller, teenage girls have stopped me to say how cute the baby is, most recently we sat next to a table of boys and girls in Jersey Mikes and they were all playing peek-a-boo and waving at my sons.
We are very happy with our choice, and in the end glad we chose it over Cranford, mainly because of downtown.
I don't see how you could go wrong with either town. Good Luck!
PS If you do a search here there are many threads on the merits of Westfield and Cranford, I did this myself when I moved here and it was super useful!
I don't see how you could go wrong with either town.
I agree with this, and my previous remarks were not meant to put down Westfield. Both towns are very nice in many ways. I prefer Cranford, though, and it's a better value.
Quote:
Originally Posted by tiggywink
We are very happy with our choice, and in the end glad we chose it over Cranford, mainly because of downtown.
The Westfield downtown is certainly larger and more impressive than Cranford's downtown, although Cranford's dowtown has dramatically improved in recent years. But choosing Westfield because of its downtown is a little odd to me unless you actually live in the downtown or within a few minutes walking distance. That's because I can get to the Westfield downtown from my house in Cranford just as quickly as most Westfield residents.
Since the entire surrounding area utilizes the Westfield downtown, a prospective home buyer who prefers the Westfield downtown has more than a few options, all of them pretty good.
I don't think I'm "a little odd" for wanting to live in Westfield because of the downtown. We do live walking distance from town, this was the main criteria for us, and we seemed to find more houses in walking distance from downtown in Westfield in our price range/taste than Cranford.
Though I *can* take advantage of nearby downtowns, Scotch Plains, Fanwood, Cranford, etc. I almost *never* do. Practically everything I need or want in a downtown is in Westfield. What's not here is on nearby route 22. We also live walking distance from the YMCA. Which was another criteria my husband had.
To the original poster, I agree it's a vibe thing, for me, Westfield has that vibe, Cranford doesn't. Feel free to send me a direct message if yo have any other questions.
I don't think I'm "a little odd" for wanting to live in Westfield because of the downtown. We do live walking distance from town, this was the main criteria for us, and we seemed to find more houses in walking distance from downtown in Westfield in our price range/taste than Cranford.
Well, you're not a little odd. As I stated, "But choosing Westfield because of its downtown is a little odd to me unless you actually live in the downtown or within a few minutes walking distance." Actually I was referring to the notion as being odd, not you as a person.
The point is that one doesn't have to live in a particular town to enjoy what it has to offer, and there may be alternative options in the surrounding area. This may be worthwhile stating to people who are unfamiliar with the area, because the way so many small towns are intermingled in NJ can be quite different from other parts of the country.
As a example, I'm looking to move to Greenville, SC. I have chosen Greenville because of the downtown, but I don't plan to live in Greenville proper, rather one of the surrounding towns in the greater area. But things are much more spread out down there. Of course, I don't know where the OP currently lives.
Living in Cranford, my wife and I regularly do our food shopping in Garwood, large item non-food shopping up and down the many towns on Rte 22, visit outdoor activities in both Cranford and Westfield, and dine predominantly in Westfield, Cranford, and Kenilworth, although we have probably spent far more money dining in Westfield over the years. I'm sure we're not unusual in this aspect.
As for "the vibe," it's a little different in both towns, with Westfield being slightly more urban, slightly more upscale. This is mostly due to the stores Westfield has attracted, particularly the chains. Cranford could have had a similar situation, but some years ago the awful downtown management committee blew it big time when they turned down a Baby GAP, among other idiotic decisions driven by pressure from tired old failing businesses whose time had already come and gone. Finally, it seems that they are making better decisions, and the downtown in Cranford has really changed dramatically for the better in terms of restaurants, stores and appearance. Some people prefer its "vibe." But to each his own. It really doesn't matter because the two downtown areas are located just slightly more than 2 miles apart, less than ten minutes even with lights, in traffic, on North Avenue.
In the overview, some might feel that the lower taxes and somewhat smaller town feel of Cranford make it preferable to Westfield, but again that's a matter of individual choice. Both are very nice towns, very close together.
Thank you all for your input!! I met w/ a realtor on Friday and looked at 8 homes in Westfield. I love the area but you definitely pay for it. Our search continues.
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I chose Cranford..
