New Paltz, NY (Monroe, Newburgh, Middletown: best town, for sale, rentals)
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Hi, I am thinking of relocating to New Paltz from Brooklyn, NY. I was considering Saugerties and Woodstock, but think that I might be more comfortable in a bigger town. I have a young child, so schools are important. I also want to live in a walkable town that has families and a local playground that actually gets some use. My husband and I both work from home, so employment isn't an issue.
I was wondering if anyone who is familiar with the area could tell me whether the college is a problem. I'm looking for something in the Village and was wondering whether the campus takes over the town. I don't want the frat party to spill over onto my lawn or feel like the town is overrun by drunk college students.
Hi. I live in Wallkill, which is about 15 minutes south of New Paltz. New Paltz is nice to visit and walk around. There are alot of nice restaurants up there and we love the fact that they have a brand new Stop and Shop where we can shop for groceries! But as for living in the village I just don't know. I have friends that live in a development outside the village and they like that. I have 5 little boys and one day my friend suggested we meet at the park up there so the kids could have a playdate. I had been up there before, but it had been a while, so I agreed. While the children were playing 2 public works workers showed up and asked us if we had seen any broken glass, bc there had been a report for some. We said no, but we had seen plenty of empty liquor bottles. The older man asked us where they were and we showed him. He picked them up and told us there was a problem with vagrants hanging out in the park. We haven't been back to that park since. In fact, this summer I bought a pass so we could go a park in Newburgh that requires you to have a sticker on your car in order to get in. Maybe I'm getting older and that sort of thing is bothering me more, or something has actually happened to our area in recent years. I really don't know which--but it just seems when I was bringing my boys to the different playgrounds in the area, we kept running into certain undesirable characters. So, now we go to this new park and it is clean and always full of nice, young families. New Paltz in and of itself is not a bad area. In fact the school system is awesome and it really has alot going for it. I, personally, would not choose to live in town. Take care and good luck.
I personally would not live in N Paltz. It is a college town with all the bells and whistles. Property is overvalued IMHO.
Check out towns further south like Walden, Montgomery, Goshen and Monroe. Wallkill is a very nice town and very good schools, cheaper property and taxes. But it is quiet.
All towns I mentioned have wonderful school districts and pretty much 0 college influence. If you choose walden then go for the outskirts.
NYC people come up to the area and tend to adjust well even to the rural areas. There is plenty to do when you hop in your car anyway..Feel free to ask away if any of these towns are of interest.
Hi, I go to SUNY New Paltz, it is a very progressive town, I always see young children running around campus (it is a very nice campus if I do say so myself) I can see how people with kids could be turned off by the actual town. The townies, as we stsudents tend to call them range from average families to ex-hippies still stuck in the 60s. Everyone is really cool though, but I wouldn't recommend a house right on main street. (there are about 5 bars which are open all week and it tends to turn into a party town come Thursday, but what college town doesn't!) The town is adorable, lots of cute shops (which are a bit on the expensive side) but it is down the road from the Thurway, which is very convenient, and there is an Eckerd, Stop and Shop, Shop Rite, etc all on the way to the Thruway.
I've been to the park that the women in the other post has been to and it is a lot of fun, there is a big field and a baseball diamond, i didn't notice glass or bottles but I wouldn't be surprised if there were...
One awesome part of New Paltz is Mohonk Mountian. There is a hotel up there with an amazing view, we do have great scenery from the town, and there are places where you can jump off rocks and go swimming, rock climbing, hiking, etc
My parents just moved to Pine Bush which is about 20 miles from New Paltz, (about 35 min away) and they seem to love it. The taxes are much cheaper than Nassau County where we moved from. Both of my parents are originally from Queens and so are my aunt and uncle who moved to Bloomingburg (the next town over) My sister just started 6th grade in Crispell Middle School in Pine Bush and my mom and sister seem to like it. The other towns that were mentioned I don't know much about because they've only been living up here since July, but we have family friends in Goshen and the school is supposed to be really good and the town is very cute.
Good luck, and if you have any specific questions about NP I can try and help out more as best as possible.
I have raised my family in New Paltz. I am originally from Long Island, but came here on the 70's for the college. We looked at several towns in the area before settling here and the college was definitely a deciding factor for chosing New Paltz instead of towns such as Highland or Wallkill. Pine Bush in particular has had some anti-semetic and racist incidents. We liked the diversity -racial, religious, economic, political- of New Paltz. We live in the town , not the village , but less than a mile from Main St. We live in a mixed neighborhood with families with and without children, retirees, professional singles, but no student rentals. Most of the student rentals are within a small aea of the village and problem houses are dealt with by complaints. There is definitely not the frat atmosphere you are afraid of.
Before moving to New Paltz, we lived in Cornwall- south of Newburgh, but left for several reasons, the main being that we felt the town was too homogeneous. Everyone there belonged to the same church and judged you by the size of your house. They are seeking weays to kepp outsiders out. Only residents there can use the pool and riverside aeas.
New Paltz has lots to offer. The Bakery in the village has a small play area where parents meet with their children. We have our favorite restaurants in town and many others nearby. We especially make use of the Mohonk peserve and Minnewaska areas.
The park you're talking about in new paltz I helped build when i was 8, it was a great big community project- the whole town helped, one of those things that makes new paltz so special. don't listen to people about not wanting to live in the college town, the only thing the college does to the town is make it more diverse, and improve the nightlife and music scene. The college is very low on frats, and most college houses are on the college side of town. I grew up here and I think it's probably the best town to grow up in, I know a lot of kids who grew up further out (in walkill and what not- the schools aren't very good)and I don't think it was as a good an experience for them. Other schools like walkill, rondout etc tend to be a lot less excepting of differences socially.
by the way pine bush used to be the KKK capital of the Northeast-
I have lived in Orange County for 14 years now, previously from Staten Island. We built our first home here in the town of Newburgh with Wallkill School taxes ( this is the highest tax bracket in Orange County). I was not too fond of the Wallkill school system for my own children, but there are other parents who love it. We now reside in the town of Montgomery with a Walden address and my grandson is attending Valley Central Schools. There are many that say they don't think that this is a good system either but so far we are pretty happy with it. He is in 2nd grade. My daughter in law teaches in the Pine Bush district and she coming from a school system in Rhinebeck, loves it.
Anyway, New Paltz seems to be a great town, (I have a lot of freinds there0 although the homes and taxes are higher than the outskirts, but you have to remember it is a College town.
There are great towns in a short driving distance that are in theNew Paltz school district, Gardiner, for one is an upcoming and fast growing town, although it is not a shopping district you would have to go to Pine Bush or New Paltz for groceries and to Middletown for your mall and other large ticket items, but that is only 20 minutes away.
Good Luck and if your interested, our home a 3300 sq. ft. newly renovated 5 bedroom, farm house sitting on 11.6 acres of farm land with a 5000 sq. ft. barn and a 3 room rentable cottage is for sale.
I have lived in Orange County for 14 years now, previously from Staten Island. We built our first home here in the town of Newburgh with Wallkill School taxes ( this is the highest tax bracket in Orange County). I was not too fond of the Wallkill school system for my own children, but there are other parents who love it. We now reside in the town of Montgomery with a Walden address and my grandson is attending Valley Central Schools. There are many that say they don't think that this is a good system either but so far we are pretty happy with it. He is in 2nd grade. My daughter in law teaches in the Pine Bush district and she coming from a school system in Rhinebeck, loves it.
Anyway, New Paltz seems to be a great town, (I have a lot of freinds there0 although the homes and taxes are higher than the outskirts, but you have to remember it is a College town.
There are great towns in a short driving distance that are in theNew Paltz school district, Gardiner, for one is an upcoming and fast growing town, although it is not a shopping district you would have to go to Pine Bush or New Paltz for groceries and to Middletown for your mall and other large ticket items, but that is only 20 minutes away.
Good Luck and if your interested, our home a 3300 sq. ft. newly renovated 5 bedroom, farm house sitting on 11.6 acres of farm land with a 5000 sq. ft. barn and a 3 room rentable cottage is for sale.
Nonnak: What can you tell me about your house for sale-taxes,etc.& why you want to leave that farm of yours ?
New Paltz is definitely a college town. My parents met at SUNY and I grew up there. I saw the town through the eyes of a child and teenager, so I feel my opinion is pretty accurate. It was a WONDERFUL town to grow up in. In fact, I miss it greatly now as an adult and visit often even though all of my family has moved to the west coast. Taxes are an issue- they are high, no way around that.
NP follows a cycle- when school is in session, the town population almost doubles- so YES, there are alot of college kids roaming around till 4am on weekend nights. When college gets out for the year, some students remain, but for the most part the college clears out. Then the tourists come in.
I would also say that it is a very outdoor oriented town- biking, hiking, a walkable downtown area, and the rail trail.
With all that said, I personally would not want to move into the Village. I would try the town, but close by. Cul de sacs and rural roads are everywhere, so it shouldn't be hard. The Village does have a high percentage of rentals which students occupy alot of. I'm sure there are some properties that are gems and could work, but for the most part, Village homes with what you are looking for will not be easy to find.
Hi Yavel - I live in New Paltz and I think it's GREAT! The college is only a part of the town, but the young people bring great energy and life. We have a 9 year old and she loves it here. The village pool and the Gardiner town pool are awesome. She takes riding lessons, goes to art, tennis and nature camp in the summer, plays sports (schools are amazing) and plays with her friends in our neighborhood. I've lived here for six years and absolutely love it myself. We live walking distance to town and it is very romantic to take a stroll to the village for a glass of wine at any one of a number of fabulous places. We are close to Mohonk Mountain House where you can spend the day (www.mohonk.com) or lake Minnewaska State Park. It is worth a trip up just to hang out for the day. There are also so many things to do in Ulster County from hiking, climbing, boating, horseback riding, to a rich and varied cultural scene with dance, music and art everywhere. Each area of Ulster has it's own flavor. I'm a Realtor in Ulster, Greene, Orange, Sullivan and Dutchess counties and this is one of the best places to live in the Hudson Valley (IMHO). I travel everywhere in the Hudson Valley and while there are many wonderful places, for value, beauty, culture and just plain wonderfulness Ulster County has it. I'd be happy to help you look in the area - e-mail me at janineb200@aol.com and I can tell you more.
Best Regards, Janine
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New Paltz
I can see how people with kids could be turned off by the actual town. The townies, as we stsudents tend to call them range from average families to ex-hippies still stuck in the 60s. Everyone is really cool though, but I wouldn't recommend a house right on main street. (there are about 5 bars which are open all week and it tends to turn into a party town come Thursday, but what college town doesn't!) The town is adorable, lots of cute shops (which are a bit on the expensive side) but it is down the road from the Thurway, which is very convenient, and there is an Eckerd, Stop and Shop, Shop Rite, etc all on the way to the Thruway. 
