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Hi there. Moving back to NY from the West Coast. Job offer in Queens, looking for job in Manhattan. Need great school for 1st grader, public & private are both viable options, care more about quality teachers, parental involvement, test scores, & a great principal. All my family's in the NE Bronx so want to stay in this area for a while. Any suggestions? Have done a bit of research on schools so far, seems that City Island may have best public elementary wheras Throggs Neck/Country Club has better private schools. Rents are comparable in all the areas, although Throggs Neck & Pelham Bay seem a bit less expensive. Pelham (Westchester) rents are definately more expensive but schools are best. Is there anyway to transfer from Westchester public transit to NYC transit? I don't know of any "easy way". Taking Metro North to 42th to switch to # trains doesn't seem too fun Any tips are appreciated. Also, suggestions for fun things to do with extremley outdoorsy (& wilderness pampered lol) kids would be great. These kids are used to hiking, fishing, skiing, biking, water skiing, etc all the time. We do have 1 vehicle so driving for recreation is an option on weekends, holidays, long schools breaks etc. Local suggestions are also appreciated for after school, regular weekend activities (other than Pelham Bay Park, we know about that one!) & reasonably priced activities in Manhattan that 4-6 year old would enjoy. Sorry so long & thanks in advance!!!!!
Well, you can certainly get to and from the Bronx or Westchester via Bee Line bus which goes in and out of both counties.
If you want to get to Manhattan by public transportation from Westchester, than the only thing I can say is take the Metro North down into Manhattan. Unless you want to live in the Bronx, specifically around the areas you mentioned, then you'll have no problem catching the 6 train which happens to be one of the more reliable trains in the whole MTA in my opinion.
As for the areas you mentioned in Pelham Bay, Country Club, Throggs Neck, City Island which are located in the Bronx, they are all wonderful areas with great schools. However, when it comes to transportation all 3 areas besides Pelham Bay; you might want to have a car. Throggs Neck has the 40 and 42 bus which runs pretty much all day and night but late (like passed 12AM) at night it runs a little slower and is very surburban and far away from any train. City Island has the 29 but that bus is very slow and waiting for it to come depending on the day can be lengthy. Country Club as well, it has the number 14 bus which is usually almost always empty but its schedule isn't the best. Not that its always late but the time gaps for waiting for it or long.
All those areas do have great recreational things for your child to do, especially Pelham Bay though. If your child wants to bike ride, Pelham Bay has the Pelham Bay Park which has an awesome trail around the park into Orchard Beach and even City Island I believe (haven't biked around there in so long). Besides that, there's a few baseball fields, 4-6 Tennis courts, an astro turf where people play Soccer, Football, Frisbee amongst other things and a track where the astro turf is for people to jog and all. There's also two parks with swing sets, slides and all for kids. So if you want your kid to enjoy themself, I think Pelham Bay would be the ideal place to go since its really easy to walk right to the beautiful park.
As for Pelham in Westchester, there's a few Bee Line buses that run through that county and its of course absolutely gorgeous. There's plenty of parks and good school district and something to do for your kid but if you want your kid to traverse between Westchester and the Bronx, I think its best you have your child stay put in Pelham for it can be a pain trying to get your very young child to traverse between both counties are this stage in their life.
As for Manhattan, there's plenty to do of course but that's something I would need you to be more specific about. There's Central Park, Chinatown, Times Square etc.
City Island is nice, but I have complained of the commute before. The public school is very good and there is lots of parental involvement.
I'm not sure if you see your family daily, but I would try to live closer to my job, i.e. Queens, and drive to see the family on weekends. Between the three bridges connecting Bronx and Queens, you can usually beat the really heavy traffic on the weekends. I go to Queens often on the weekends.
The commute by public transportation from the NE Bronx to Queens is difficult. The QBX1 goes from Pelham Bay to Flushing, right near the 7 train. From City Island to the last stop on the QBX1 that connects to the 7 train is approx. 40 minutes. Going into Manhattan and connecting to Queens trains would take a very long time. If the 6 train is the most reliable, I feel bad for passengers on the other lines. After Parkchester, the 6 is very slow and usually spends a few minutes at each station with an even longer wait getting into Pelham Bay Park station.
Driving to Queens daily is expensive with a $5+ toll in each direction.
Pelham Bay Park, Flushing Meadows Park and Central park are all fun. The Appalachian Trail is a short drive away. Don't eat the fish you catch in NYC waters. It's somehow considered 'safe' but its recommended that you only eat it once a month and pregnant women should avoid it. That's enough for me to stay away from it.
In NYC a commute of an hour is considered 'not that bad'. My commute is an 1:10 to 1:40 (City Island to West Side Manhattan). A lot of that time is waiting for connecting trains and buses.
What about driving from city island to Jacobi Medical Center around 6 am. How long would that take? And also, the return trip around 5 pm?
Thanks
The drive from City Island to to Jacobi at 6 am should be 10 mins or less.It is only a couple of miles straight down Pelham Parkway....maybe 3 stop lights.It might take 15 minutes at 5 pm most of the time and maybe 20 or 25 mins at 5 pm in the middle of summer as there can be tie ups going to City Island on summer evenings.
The drive from City Island to to Jacobi at 6 am should be 10 mins or less.It is only a couple of miles straight down Pelham Parkway....maybe 3 stop lights.It might take 15 minutes at 5 pm most of the time and maybe 20 or 25 mins at 5 pm in the middle of summer as there can be tie ups going to City Island on summer evenings.
I agree. Even 25 minutes would be rare. That may happen on the weekends around 5:00 if the drawbridge is up and then you hit traffic arriving on City Island. During the week at 5:00 its not bad even in the summer.
That is a commute most people would be jealous of.
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Any tips are appreciated. Also, suggestions for fun things to do with extremley outdoorsy (& wilderness pampered lol) kids would be great. These kids are used to hiking, fishing, skiing, biking, water skiing, etc all the time. We do have 1 vehicle so driving for recreation is an option on weekends, holidays, long schools breaks etc. Local suggestions are also appreciated for after school, regular weekend activities (other than Pelham Bay Park, we know about that one!) & reasonably priced activities in Manhattan that 4-6 year old would enjoy. Sorry so long & thanks in advance!!!!!
