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We just recently found out we need to move by July into New Haven area. My husband will be commuting to Meriden, but we wanted to be closer to the NY so we chose the areas of WOODBRIDGE, ORANGE, or Possibly Cheshire (Southern). We have three kids : 5, 3, and 7 months. We would like to rent first, but rentals seem pretty seldom in these areas. We would like to purchase a home between 400k-600k. Would love some input in the school system. I hear all three are amazing. Orange and Cheshire have several elementary schools.
Which is the most preferred one in Orange and also in Cheshire? Also, what areas of Orange desirable areas to live? Also, if there are some amazing Private PRE-SCHOOls in this area, can you share them? Not familiar with the CT area so all your expert info will be gladly welcome. Thank you.
If you want to be closer to NY definitely opt for Orange. Most parts of Cheshire are a bit of a pain to access highways from, and it's not as convenient to many places like Orange is.
All parts of Orange are very nice, but generally north of Route 1 is the most desirable. All the schools are good.
You could rent for a year in Milford or Hamden until you find a home to buy as there are much more rentals in those towns. Milford schools are good if you decide to stay there, but Hamden's are a bit more mixed in performance.
If you want to be closer to NY definitely opt for Orange. Most parts of Cheshire are a bit of a pain to access highways from, and it's not as convenient to many places like Orange is.
All parts of Orange are very nice, but generally north of Route 1 is the most desirable. All the schools are good.
You could rent for a year in Milford or Hamden until you find a home to buy as there are much more rentals in those towns. Milford schools are good if you decide to stay there, but Hamden's are a bit more mixed in performance.
If you need to commute to Meriden during regular rush hour, go with Cheshire. It's an easy back road commute and is a great town with excellent schools. You won't want to commute through Hamden and the West Rock tunnel during the evening rush to get to Woodbridge or Orange, as many days it can be gridlock. Cheshire would be my #1 choice here.
I don't agree Cheshire is a pain to access highways. Actually it's quite the opposite. It's convenient to 84, 691, 91 and 15, which goes through all bordering towns and most very close to the Cheshire line. Stylo, you can't go by the handful of times you've been there and traveled Route 10 through Hamden into Cheshire. That's like saying the only way into Milford is Route 1. Cheshire is a pretty convenient town. I'd actually argue Woodbridge is more of a pain to access highways. Orange is a nice town but IMO, the housing stock isn't great - seems to be an abundance of ranches with additions, that LOOK like they were not tastefully added on to.
Orange to Meriden doesn't have much traffic. Obviously a longer commute than Cheshire because of distance.
Woodbridge is like Cheshire in that it's harder to get to highways. Living closer to 34/15 can be convenient though, just as living closer to highways in Cheshire can be a good move.
Also, I did the Route 10 drive probably two dozen times, and tried a number of different backroad combinations. It was still pretty frustrating. I could see how certain parts of Cheshire could be more convenient than others though. It also seemed like a really cookie-cutter town, even though Orange is not that charming in pats, there are still farms and some pretty sections with character. I think Woodbridge is the most attractive of the 3.
If you need to commute to Meriden during regular rush hour, go with Cheshire. It's an easy back road commute and is a great town with excellent schools. You won't want to commute through Hamden and the West Rock tunnel during the evening rush to get to Woodbridge or Orange, as many days it can be gridlock. Cheshire would be my #1 choice here.
I don't agree Cheshire is a pain to access highways. Actually it's quite the opposite. It's convenient to 84, 691, 91 and 15, which goes through all bordering towns and most very close to the Cheshire line. Stylo, you can't go by the handful of times you've been there and traveled Route 10 through Hamden into Cheshire. That's like saying the only way into Milford is Route 1. Cheshire is a pretty convenient town. I'd actually argue Woodbridge is more of a pain to access highways. Orange is a nice town but IMO, the housing stock isn't great - seems to be an abundance of ranches with additions, that LOOK like they were not tastefully added on to.
I agree with all of this, except ease of access to 15 and 91 from Cheshire. I've always found it a PITA to get to/from Cheshire from 91 or 15. But considering that you'll be commuting to Meriden, it shouldn't be an issue.
If you need to commute to Meriden during regular rush hour, go with Cheshire. It's an easy back road commute and is a great town with excellent schools. You won't want to commute through Hamden and the West Rock tunnel during the evening rush to get to Woodbridge or Orange, as many days it can be gridlock. Cheshire would be my #1 choice here.
I don't agree Cheshire is a pain to access highways. Actually it's quite the opposite. It's convenient to 84, 691, 91 and 15, which goes through all bordering towns and most very close to the Cheshire line. Stylo, you can't go by the handful of times you've been there and traveled Route 10 through Hamden into Cheshire. That's like saying the only way into Milford is Route 1. Cheshire is a pretty convenient town. I'd actually argue Woodbridge is more of a pain to access highways. Orange is a nice town but IMO, the housing stock isn't great - seems to be an abundance of ranches with additions, that LOOK like they were not tastefully added on to.
I can understand what Stylo is saying about Cheshire being a bit more remote. Getting to the Wilbur Cross Parkway (Route 15) and I-91 is not easy from most of Cheshire. Route 10, the main road through town is busy with multiple traffic signals so it can take time particularly during rush hour to get to these highways.
I-84 and I-691 are in the extreme north side of Cheshire and most of that area is commercially zoned with little residential properties. That makes it a bit inconvenient to get to these highways. Still for a commute to Meriden, you are right, you can't beat Cheshire for convenience. It would be a little bit harder and longer to get to New York but since the OP will likely only be going there on occasion, I would stick with Cheshire. Jay
We just recently found out we need to move by July into New Haven area. My husband will be commuting to Meriden, but we wanted to be closer to the NY so we chose the areas of WOODBRIDGE, ORANGE, or Possibly Cheshire (Southern). We have three kids : 5, 3, and 7 months. We would like to rent first, but rentals seem pretty seldom in these areas. We would like to purchase a home between 400k-600k. Would love some input in the school system. I hear all three are amazing. Orange and Cheshire have several elementary schools.
Which is the most preferred one in Orange and also in Cheshire? Also, what areas of Orange desirable areas to live? Also, if there are some amazing Private PRE-SCHOOls in this area, can you share them? Not familiar with the CT area so all your expert info will be gladly welcome. Thank you.
School systems in Connecticut are generally small in size and the curriculum offered fairly uniform across districts. This is particular true in the towns you have chosen. One school may perform slightly better than another within these towns but that likely has more to do with the socio-economic background of the students than with quality of the education.
In my opinion you should be more interested in finding a home in your price range that best suits the needs of your family. We bought a home in the lowest performing school in a high performing school district (Naubuc School in Glastonbury). People we knew in town who are a bit snobby questioned why we would buy in that school district. The school has a large range of family incomes from modest means (from a small public housing project) to upper middle class. The school still performed well above the state averages on the CMT's. Our kids got to see that not everybody had as much as they did and that not everybody lived in a big single-family house. They got friendly with students who were black, Hispanic, Asian, Middle Eastern, South American and Eastern European. That would have been harder if we had chosen to live in another part of town.
If you still wish to know which schools perform best, please check the link below. It give profile information for every public school in Connecticut. Look for schools that generally perform above the state average on the Connecticut Mastery Test (for elementary and middle schools) and the Connecticut Academic Performance Tests (for high schools). Good luck, Jay
I can understand what Stylo is saying about Cheshire being a bit more remote. Getting to the Wilbur Cross Parkway (Route 15) and I-91 is not easy from most of Cheshire. Route 10, the main road through town is busy with multiple traffic signals so it can take time particularly during rush hour to get to these highways.
Jay, Route 10 is not the only main road through town. Route 68 bisects town and you can take that down to the parkway in Wallingford in less than 10 minutes from where 68 and 10 meet. On the opposite side you can take 68 into Prospect to access Route 8 and the Valley in less than 10 minutes from the center of Cheshire. I know Cheshire well as my brother in law lives there. When I would go from Branford, I would take 91 to exit 15, then 68 past the parkway into Cheshire. It was extremely easy.
As for 691 and 84, they both go right through northern Cheshire so yes it would naturally be further from southern Cheshire, but then again in southern Cheshire you're close to Hamden and back roads to New Haven.
Jay, Route 10 is not the only main road through town. Route 68 bisects town and you can take that down to the parkway in Wallingford in less than 10 minutes from where 68 and 10 meet. On the opposite side you can take 68 into Prospect to access Route 8 and the Valley in less than 10 minutes from the center of Cheshire. I know Cheshire well as my brother in law lives there. When I would go from Branford, I would take 91 to exit 15, then 68 past the parkway into Cheshire. It was extremely easy.
As for 691 and 84, they both go right through northern Cheshire so yes it would naturally be further from southern Cheshire, but then again in southern Cheshire you're close to Hamden and back roads to New Haven.
You are right that Route 68 also travels through Cheshire but it is still not that close to a major highway. There is no interchange at the Wilbur Cross Parkway (Route 15) so you have to snake down to Route 5 making several turns to get to the parkway. I-91 is about 6 miles from Cheshire center which is not far but not close either. And Route 8 is about 9 miles the other way and there is no direct interchange there either. From southern Cheshire, you can catch the Mount Carmel Connector (Route 40) which gets you over to I-91 fairly quickly but the access to the parkway is not easy or direct. Still for a commute to Meriden, Cheshire is a good choice. Jay
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