[melhuber]

We are renting a house in Plantsville and we we really like the elementary school our kids are attending. However we are ready to buy a house now. I was wondering if any of you could compare the pros and cons of Cheshire vs Southington or Plantsville.

For example:

Taxes
Lifestyle
Schools
Activities for families
Etc.

Thanks

[Rich Lee]

Originally Posted by melhuber

We are renting a house in Plantsville and we really like the elementary school our kids are attending. However we are ready to buy a house now. I was wondering if any of you could compare the pros and cons of Cheshire vs Southington or Plantsville.

For example:

Taxes
Lifestyle
Schools
Activities for families
Etc.

Thanks

I live in Cheshire, but within jogging distance to Southington (Marion). In my opinion, you can't go wrong with either town. But since you brought up a few specific categories, I'll try to address them:

Taxes are definitely higher in Cheshire. We have less retail and business to offset the tax burden from residential property owners. Up until recently, this has been the preference. The waters are becoming muddied with the proposed retail site.

Lifestyle is illustrated in pride of home ownership. A drive down any street shows that folks put a lot of emphasis on curb appeal. In most instances, the homeowners do the work themselves as opposed to having a professional landscaper do it. We do have a YMCA which is part of the Southington-Cheshire Community YMCA. There's also Linear Trail Park (the old Farmington River Canal). Note: a leg of this same Rail-to-Trail exists in Southington next to the Super Stop & Shop.

I would have to say that Southington probably does more in the way of community events especially on its town green. Cheshire does rally behind Race for the Cure. Recently, one of our police officers, Lorin Webber, enlisted the help of Yellowfin's Seafood Restaurant in a "Tip-a-Cop" fundraiser for the Special Olympics which raised more than $2,000 on 06/14/2007.

As a real estate agent, I can't comment on either town's schools.

Now, my questions to you:

1) How long have you lived in Southington.

2) What do you like about it? What don't you like that you would hope is different in Cheshire?

3) What is your long-term plan?

4) What does your family like to do together? What are their extra-curricular interests and activities? Do you see one of these towns as a closer match than the other?

[JayCT]

I am not a real estate agent, so I can comment on schools. While the lower grades are probably not much difference, the upper grades, Middle and high schools, are very different. There is a reason people are willing to pay more for Cheshire and it is the schools, particularly the high schools. My wife has been to Southington High School and found it to be enormous and over crowded. She was not impressed with the classes and thought them to be way too big (25 students or more on average). Cheshire High School rates very well overall scholastically and the class sizes are smaller than Southington's. It is up to you if the cost difference between the two towns is worth the extra cost in housing or not. Jay

[glxyman21]

Taxes: Cheshire does have a higher mill rate according to the states millrate website, so you would most likely pay more of you bought the same house in either town

Lifestyle: Not too sure what you mean by this...shopping, etc?

Schools: Both school systems have recieved many awards (Blue ribbon, what parents want, Expansion Magazine, etc) Southington's school system is one of the larger ones in the state. SHS has about 2200 students vs. CHS with 1600 students, personally, I found both High schools to contain between 25-30 students per classroom.

Activities: I believe both towns run programs from their parks department, plus things at the high schools. Rich may be right about more activities in Southington. I have heard of the "music on the green" and have visited the Italian Festival as well.

Both towns are nice and very comparable. Many very nice neighborhoods in both. I say look around in both for the best house for the best price in a location that fits you. A 3-4 bedroom colonial in a 1/2 acre in these towns will cost about $400,000

[sun]

I may be wrong, but I thought that Southington High had an one of the area Vocational-Agricultural technical programs that kids attended from other towns, and that Southington was slated for a state funded expansion. Sometimes a larger school offers more class choices which isn't necessarily bad.
Also, test results reflect how well a group of students perform and are not an absolute indication of how well the teachers teach.
I never particularly cared to see the Chesire prisons whenever I happened to drive by them, but mentioning this is really without any logical reason. And sometimes the traffic on Route 10 in Chesire seems to be slow going when you really want to get somewhere.
While Chesire is more spread out and does have more of a rural character,
Southington has a hospital, with more convenient shopping, and a closer proximity to Bristol, Plainville, and nearby towns to the north.
So maybe it all boils down to whether you favor slightly higher or lower density living, considering all of the associated conveniences/inconveniences and your personal preferences.

[Rich Lee]

Originally Posted by sun

I never particularly cared to see the Cheshire prisons whenever I happened to drive by them, but mentioning this is really without any logical reason.

Huh?

Originally Posted by sun

And sometimes the traffic on Route 10 in Cheshire seems to be slow going when you really want to get somewhere.

It can be during peak periods. That's why many folks use the alternate parallel routes.

Originally Posted by sun

While Cheshire is more spread out and does have more of a rural character, Southington has a hospital, with more convenient shopping,...

Actually, Cheshire is compact and Southington is spread out. Retail in Cheshire is along Route 10 starting at the center of town and heading south and again along Route 68/70 west (a/k/a West Main Street). In Southington, you can be driving along Marion Avenue and, BAM, a mini-strip mall in a residential area.

For the record, there's nothing wrong with things being together or spread out as long as the zoning makes sense.

As for hospitals, they're like home improvement centers - there's one or two in most of our surrounding towns [(one town away: Waterbury - 2; Meriden - 1; Southington - 1); (two towns away: Bristol - 1; New Haven - 2)].

Originally Posted by sun

...and a closer proximity to Bristol, Plainville, and nearby towns to the north.

I didn't see where the OP stated that these were important. And yes, anyone looking at a map could easily see what borders Southington to the north. To continue this, Berlin is on the east, and Wolcott is on the west.

By the way, it's Cheshire.

[Rich Lee]

The prisons on which you commented and then opined that you had no logical reason for mentioning wasn't the only point to which I compared/contrasted Cheshire to Southington.

I appreciate this article but must comment on its date: 17 years ago! I can tell you that no one in Cheshire is terribly concerned about the prisons as can be illustrated by our real estate values. As a matter of fact, our high-density subdivision, built after 1990, is located less than a mile away from the Correctional Facility. These properties often command more than the per-square foot average in town. (Sri, this is where we met on Dundee.)

Also, my last point was in regards to Bristol and Plainville. I don't see where the OP wanted to be in close proximity to them.

[sun]

My opinion was clearly that the prisons, for whatever illogical reason, look unappealing when I drive by them on the main road and it's difficult not to notice them.
Nothing much has changed in the last 17 (or 40) years, since they still look like the same huge brick monoliths that they have always been, except now they're larger.

[Rich Lee]

Originally Posted by sun

My opinion was clearly that the prisons, for whatever illogical reason, look unappealing when I drive by them on the main road and it's difficult not to notice them.
Nothing much has changed in the last 17 (or 40) years, since they still look like the same huge brick monoliths that they have always been, except now they're larger.

I'm guessing that there's a riddle in here somewhere...right? The article states, from the vantage point of 1990, that the residents are alarmed over the fact that the size (i.e. number of beds/inmates) of the prisons is to be increased. I stated that whatever has happened since 1990 hasn't had an impact on property values. Somehow, we've gone on to aesthetics...

[Dave dave]

The real differences are the people and their outlook. Cheshire has many people that are here only for the schools. They will leave when the kids graduate. They are not necessarily eager to make long term friends and have a perhaps over-emphasize on "curb appeal". Southington has more of a population that is there for the long term. The average family is middle class and not much higher. They are more concerned with meeting neighbors than keeping up with neighbors.
Traffic: The Cheshire High School is on route 10 and has too many outlets which create grid lock twice a day. Not sure why the state or town allows this to continue, but that is reality.
These are my observations and does not make either town better or worse. It is just the way it is. If your only concern is school or your outlook is short-term, then Cheshire has the upper hand. As you may know, parts of both towns have their small minor higher crime areas.