Discussion:
Jewish towns in the West
(too old to reply)
paul
2003-12-30 13:47:46 UTC
Permalink
My wife and I currently live in New York. We moved here from San
Francisco so that she could complete a medical fellowship. We're
considering relocating back to California in exactly one year and
we're researching locations to purchase a home and put down roots. We
realize no place will be ideal, but since we have some freedom to
select our new spot, we'd like to choose something that meets a few,
if not all of our ideal qualities. We're looking for suggestions on as
many towns as possible to consider that meet as many of the criteria
below as possible.

Any suggestions of towns in the West that might be a fit? Up and
coming towns are best. We're not necessary looking for a super
expensive place to live -- quality of life is much more important to
us. Below is a list of
the criteria that the ideal spot will meet:

A little more background on us. My wife is a doctor specializing in
geriatrics and I am a non-profit executive specializing in economic
development and marketing. We have a baby girl.

1. VALUES: we're not looking for LA glitter and fake Hollywood values,
although if there is a suburb of LA that's got a small town feel,
could be fine.
2. TRAFFIC: the less the better -- half hour commutes to and from
work.
3. OCEAN: we love the sea and would prefer to be as close as possible
to it.
4. LAND: our dream would be to buy something with 15+ acres so we can
someday have horses and a little farm.
5. HOUSE: we're not looking for the fanciest house on the block --
rather, something comfortable for a family of four and an occasional
visitor. I'm handy and would be able to renovate myself.
6. CLIMATE: moderate is great. the only thing we don't love is extreme
heat.
7. CULTURE: we like 'quaintness' and a small downtown area with a
couple places to eat is ideal -- we don't need to be really close to
major theaters and museums. we enjoy arts and crafts, so a gallery or
two, or a lively local arts program would be terrific.
8. NEIGHBORS: we're friendly and we're looking for a place where the
people are too. guess we're looking for midwestern values in
california.
9. RELIGION: we're jewish and we'd like to find a place that has at
least one synagogue nearby or in town. lots of small california towns
have only churches and although we have many friends that aren't
jewish, our preference is to meet some other jewish families.
10. JOBS: ideally we'd like to be within a half hour of a research
university hospital, or a medical research institute. proximity to
some kind of growing industry, besides tourism, -- manufacturing,
biotechnology, software, is also ideal.
11. OUTDOORS: we love hiking and wide open california spaces.
12. LOCATION: although being near the sea is a preference, the other
preference is to be within 2-3 hours of los angeles. we will
definitely consider locations outside of this perimeter, but being
close to los angeles --specifically manhattan beach, is ideal.
13. PRICE and LIFESTYLE: my wife and I earn a decent combined salary,
but work and having material things is DEFINITELY NOT our top
priority. we're looking for a location that hopefully will allow us to
afford a decent home and lifestyle at a reasonable price. We're
looking for purchase a home for 450-550k.
14. INVESTMENT: of course we'd like to buy something where the value
will likely increase over the next ten years.
15. TOWN SIZE: not really an issue if we're able to purchase a large
size of land -- however, ideally town would have at least 15,000
individuals.
16. ARCHITECTURE: we love the old victorians of san francisco but we
don't have our hearts set on a specific type of home. however, as for
the downtown of the actual city, we would like something that has some
character and few or no chain stores and 'big boxes' like walmart and
home depot.
17. EDUCATION: a decent public k-12 system is ideal. Best case
scenario will be within one hour drive of teaching hospital, or
geriatric research institute.

Thank you so much for any suggestions!

-- Paul

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Kevin Karplus
2003-12-31 13:33:18 UTC
Permalink
Your description of what you were looking for sounded a lot like Santa
Post by paul
13. PRICE and LIFESTYLE: my wife and I earn a decent combined salary,
but work and having material things is DEFINITELY NOT our top
priority. we're looking for a location that hopefully will allow us to
afford a decent home and lifestyle at a reasonable price. We're
looking for purchase a home for 450-550k.
Umm, what are you thinking of? Think 600-700k for what you were
looking for, more if you really want 15 acres within driving distance
of the sea.
Post by paul
17. EDUCATION: a decent public k-12 system is ideal. Best case
scenario will be within one hour drive of teaching hospital, or
geriatric research institute.
Umm, which decade did you have in mind? California had great public
schools in the 60s. Prop. 13 has pretty much wiped that out. You can
find barely adequate public schools still, though even those are being
squeezed out of existence by the latest in senseless tax breaks for
the rich and budget cutting at the State level. Local communities
have to provide the school services, but aren't allowed to collect
taxes to do it. Our local school district gets only $4,400 per
student for 4th and 5th graders (slightly larger for K-3, if they keep
the class size 20 or below). It takes a 2/3 majority vote to create a
parcel tax, and the vote has to be redone about every 5 years.

California has great universities still, but the K-12 education is
sinking fast.
--
Kevin Karplus ***@soe.ucsc.edu http://www.soe.ucsc.edu/~karplus
Professor of Computer Engineering, University of California, Santa Cruz
Undergraduate and Graduate Director, Bioinformatics
Affiliations for identification only.


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Yael Resnick
2003-12-31 14:10:34 UTC
Permalink
Hi Paul,

I'm assuming you have personal reasons for wanting to be on the West
Coast, but I just wanted to let you know that Sharon, Massachusetts
meets pretty much every single one of your criteria (quite possibly
all of them) -- except that the nearest ocean is the Atlantic instead
of the Pacific...

Small town (pop. about 17,000), half-hour train ride to Boston, close
to lots of major universities & hospitals, a bunch of synagogues
right in town (all kinds), quaint downtown, no chain stores (except
Starbucks), varied community arts programs, good schools (public &
private), friendly neighbors, safe & quiet streets, reasonable &
increasing house prices (but taxes increasing too), state park right
in town, Audubon preserve in town, farms, beautiful lake with
beaches, short drive to the (wrong) ocean! And there are people here
who keep horses, etc. on lots of land. Climate is typical New England
(take it or leave it). No parking meters. Quality of life is
beautiful.

Let me know if you want more info. Good luck with your search!

Yael

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Andrew Maddox
2003-12-31 16:49:21 UTC
Permalink
Also sprach paul:
: Any suggestions of towns in the West that might be a fit? Up and
: coming towns are best. We're not necessary looking for a super
: expensive place to live -- quality of life is much more important to
: us. Below is a list of
: the criteria that the ideal spot will meet:

Paul - if you get some good suggestions in reply to this, would you mind
posting a summary to the group? I know my wife and I would be interested
in what you find (although we have no immediate plans to move, it's one
of those "maybe someday" things for us), and I'll bet there are others
reading this who would also like to have the info.

Thanks!

Andy
--
Andrew Maddox, madsox2k squiggle yahoo point com
The weather is here, wish you were beautiful!


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a***@crdge.com
2003-12-31 16:54:38 UTC
Permalink
Hi Paul,

No one place has everything, obviously, but you might consider
the Yolo County/Sacramento County area. Yolo has some smaller
towns where you can have land and still be in commute distance
to hospitals in Davis, Woodland, and Sacramento.

Only synagogue in Yolo County that I know of is in Davis (Reform).
Sacto has a variety. Davis has a great downtown. Summers will
definitely have runs of weather exceeding 100 degrees.

Half Moon Bay is on the ocean, definitely up and coming, has
a small Jewish congregation (I think it's independent). You're likely
to be commuting to Silicon Valley environs over the mountains for
work, which I would not envy you, but it might be worth checking out.

Of course I assume you have looked at Santa Cruz and Santa Barbara,
but beware astronomical housing costs (true in CA in general, as
I'm sure you know, but more so there).

Would be faintly curious to hear what you decide, when you decide;
that's quite a list of preferences you have there!
Good luck!

. . .Alexandra

Reply to: aschmidt at crd dot ge dot com


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Dina Stein
2004-04-16 16:19:52 UTC
Permalink
Paul,
My husband and I were reading this and kept thinking that you don't have to
go to California for all of your requirements.
Brighton NY is a suburb of Rochester. It is 35-40% jewish. Has a great
public school system. The schools were recently ranked 25th in the Nation by
U.S. New and World Report. It is a 5 minute drive to University of
Rochester, which has a teaching hospital (Strong Memorial Hospital).
Rochester is on Lake Ontario and, atlhough that is not the Ocean, there are
plenty of waterfornt activities. Not to metnion the Finger Lakes within an
hour's drive. There are homes in your price range, and you would get far
more for your dollar in Rochester than in Los Angeles. No, we do not work
for the Chamber of Commerce. We just happened across your posting and the
more we read, the more we thought you were describing Brighton and the
Rochester area.
Post by paul
My wife and I currently live in New York. We moved here from San
Francisco so that she could complete a medical fellowship. We're
considering relocating back to California in exactly one year and
we're researching locations to purchase a home and put down roots. We
realize no place will be ideal, but since we have some freedom to
select our new spot, we'd like to choose something that meets a few,
if not all of our ideal qualities. We're looking for suggestions on as
many towns as possible to consider that meet as many of the criteria
below as possible.
Any suggestions of towns in the West that might be a fit? Up and
coming towns are best. We're not necessary looking for a super
expensive place to live -- quality of life is much more important to
us. Below is a list of
A little more background on us. My wife is a doctor specializing in
geriatrics and I am a non-profit executive specializing in economic
development and marketing. We have a baby girl.
1. VALUES: we're not looking for LA glitter and fake Hollywood values,
although if there is a suburb of LA that's got a small town feel,
could be fine.
2. TRAFFIC: the less the better -- half hour commutes to and from
work.
3. OCEAN: we love the sea and would prefer to be as close as possible
to it.
4. LAND: our dream would be to buy something with 15+ acres so we can
someday have horses and a little farm.
5. HOUSE: we're not looking for the fanciest house on the block --
rather, something comfortable for a family of four and an occasional
visitor. I'm handy and would be able to renovate myself.
6. CLIMATE: moderate is great. the only thing we don't love is extreme
heat.
7. CULTURE: we like 'quaintness' and a small downtown area with a
couple places to eat is ideal -- we don't need to be really close to
major theaters and museums. we enjoy arts and crafts, so a gallery or
two, or a lively local arts program would be terrific.
8. NEIGHBORS: we're friendly and we're looking for a place where the
people are too. guess we're looking for midwestern values in
california.
9. RELIGION: we're jewish and we'd like to find a place that has at
least one synagogue nearby or in town. lots of small california towns
have only churches and although we have many friends that aren't
jewish, our preference is to meet some other jewish families.
10. JOBS: ideally we'd like to be within a half hour of a research
university hospital, or a medical research institute. proximity to
some kind of growing industry, besides tourism, -- manufacturing,
biotechnology, software, is also ideal.
11. OUTDOORS: we love hiking and wide open california spaces.
12. LOCATION: although being near the sea is a preference, the other
preference is to be within 2-3 hours of los angeles. we will
definitely consider locations outside of this perimeter, but being
close to los angeles --specifically manhattan beach, is ideal.
13. PRICE and LIFESTYLE: my wife and I earn a decent combined salary,
but work and having material things is DEFINITELY NOT our top
priority. we're looking for a location that hopefully will allow us to
afford a decent home and lifestyle at a reasonable price. We're
looking for purchase a home for 450-550k.
14. INVESTMENT: of course we'd like to buy something where the value
will likely increase over the next ten years.
15. TOWN SIZE: not really an issue if we're able to purchase a large
size of land -- however, ideally town would have at least 15,000
individuals.
16. ARCHITECTURE: we love the old victorians of san francisco but we
don't have our hearts set on a specific type of home. however, as for
the downtown of the actual city, we would like something that has some
character and few or no chain stores and 'big boxes' like walmart and
home depot.
17. EDUCATION: a decent public k-12 system is ideal. Best case
scenario will be within one hour drive of teaching hospital, or
geriatric research institute.
Thank you so much for any suggestions!
-- Paul
--------------------------------------------------------------------------
------
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Post by paul
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Horner, Daniel Vernon
2004-05-01 19:01:49 UTC
Permalink
Post by Dina Stein
Paul,
My husband and I were reading this and kept thinking that you don't have to
go to California for all of your requirements.
Brighton NY is a suburb of Rochester. It is 35-40% jewish. Has a great
public school system. The schools were recently ranked 25th in the Nation by
U.S. New and World Report. It is a 5 minute drive to University of
Rochester, which has a teaching hospital (Strong Memorial Hospital).
Rochester is on Lake Ontario and, atlhough that is not the Ocean, there are
plenty of waterfornt activities. Not to metnion the Finger Lakes within an
hour's drive. There are homes in your price range, and you would get far
more for your dollar in Rochester than in Los Angeles. No, we do not work
for the Chamber of Commerce. We just happened across your posting and the
more we read, the more we thought you were describing Brighton and the
Rochester area.
Post by paul
My wife and I currently live in New York. We moved here from San
Francisco so that she could complete a medical fellowship. We're
considering relocating back to California in exactly one year and
we're researching locations to purchase a home and put down roots. We
realize no place will be ideal, but since we have some freedom to
select our new spot, we'd like to choose something that meets a few,
if not all of our ideal qualities. We're looking for suggestions on as
many towns as possible to consider that meet as many of the criteria
below as possible.
Any suggestions of towns in the West that might be a fit? Up and
coming towns are best. We're not necessary looking for a super
expensive place to live -- quality of life is much more important to
us. Below is a list of
A little more background on us. My wife is a doctor specializing in
geriatrics and I am a non-profit executive specializing in economic
development and marketing. We have a baby girl.
1. VALUES: we're not looking for LA glitter and fake Hollywood values,
although if there is a suburb of LA that's got a small town feel,
could be fine.
2. TRAFFIC: the less the better -- half hour commutes to and from
work.
3. OCEAN: we love the sea and would prefer to be as close as possible
to it.
4. LAND: our dream would be to buy something with 15+ acres so we can
someday have horses and a little farm.
5. HOUSE: we're not looking for the fanciest house on the block --
rather, something comfortable for a family of four and an occasional
visitor. I'm handy and would be able to renovate myself.
6. CLIMATE: moderate is great. the only thing we don't love is extreme
heat.
7. CULTURE: we like 'quaintness' and a small downtown area with a
couple places to eat is ideal -- we don't need to be really close to
major theaters and museums. we enjoy arts and crafts, so a gallery or
two, or a lively local arts program would be terrific.
8. NEIGHBORS: we're friendly and we're looking for a place where the
people are too. guess we're looking for midwestern values in
california.
9. RELIGION: we're jewish and we'd like to find a place that has at
least one synagogue nearby or in town. lots of small california towns
have only churches and although we have many friends that aren't
jewish, our preference is to meet some other jewish families.
10. JOBS: ideally we'd like to be within a half hour of a research
university hospital, or a medical research institute. proximity to
some kind of growing industry, besides tourism, -- manufacturing,
biotechnology, software, is also ideal.
11. OUTDOORS: we love hiking and wide open california spaces.
12. LOCATION: although being near the sea is a preference, the other
preference is to be within 2-3 hours of los angeles. we will
definitely consider locations outside of this perimeter, but being
close to los angeles --specifically manhattan beach, is ideal.
13. PRICE and LIFESTYLE: my wife and I earn a decent combined salary,
but work and having material things is DEFINITELY NOT our top
priority. we're looking for a location that hopefully will allow us to
afford a decent home and lifestyle at a reasonable price. We're
looking for purchase a home for 450-550k.
14. INVESTMENT: of course we'd like to buy something where the value
will likely increase over the next ten years.
15. TOWN SIZE: not really an issue if we're able to purchase a large
size of land -- however, ideally town would have at least 15,000
individuals.
16. ARCHITECTURE: we love the old victorians of san francisco but we
don't have our hearts set on a specific type of home. however, as for
the downtown of the actual city, we would like something that has some
character and few or no chain stores and 'big boxes' like walmart and
home depot.
17. EDUCATION: a decent public k-12 system is ideal. Best case
scenario will be within one hour drive of teaching hospital, or
geriatric research institute.
Thank you so much for any suggestions!
-- Paul
<snip>
Post by Dina Stein
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