Your Essex County Area Primer for Neighborhoods in Bloomfield, NJ -- Montclair, NJ - Cedar Grove, NJ - West Orange, NJ - Maplewood, NJ - South Orange, NJ -- And Clifton, NJ in Passaic County, NJ 

Here are my thumbnail sketches of some of the most popular neighborhoods in the West Essex area of Essex County, NJ. Some are more affordable than others: 

Bloomfield: The Midtown Direct rail link (two stations) boosted this 'burb' to the big time. Says New York Magazine: "No doubt you've heard of Montclair, the liberal New Jersey town often called the Upper West Side of the suburbs, famous for its diversity, its celebrated residents, and its spectacular estates that resemble small national parks. Chances are you haven't heard of Montclair's often overlooked stepchild, Bloomfield, a neighboring town that's home to Frankie's Futurmatic Car Wash and the official Joe Pesci fan club. But with affordable homes and a swell commute to midtown Bloomfield holds promise as a town termed by NJ Monthly to be 'just under the radar.'" Now (2011), after years of deliberation and legal maneuvers, Bloomfield's downtown redevelopment is actually moving forward with a mix of 220 residential units and and ground-level retail that will frame the downtown Midtown Direct station in an entirely new way.  

The Brookdale Section of Bloomfield: Just East of Montclair, Brookdale is a charming, affordable neighborhood of colonials, capes and split-levels that shares scenic Brookdale Park with Montclair. Brookdale prices are more moderate than similar homes in Montclair. Served by the well-regarded Brookdale primary school and Huck Middle School, Brookdale has become one of the most desirable home destinations in this part of New Jersey. Bus service to NYC runs right through the neighborhood, where there are many quaint shops, while trains from Montclair are a short walk or drive. Home prices generally range from $250,000 to $450,000 in 2011. 

Elsewhere in Bloomfield - You'll find Oakview adjacent to Brookdale, a neighborhood, bordering Nutley, with another superb primary school and a pleasing inventory of homes with character. Good values for first-time homebuyers can also be found near downtown Bloomfield, in the Watsessing Heights neighborhood, walking distance to NYC Direct trains downtown. The area is supported by a lively community association working to improve the local schools and to provide input into the projected rebilitation of the train station area with condos and shops. Prices range from $200,000 to $375,000 these days.  

Bloomfield's Historic District, also on the eastern edge of the downtown, home to the Bloomfield College campus, has some lovely old homes in proximity an old-fashioned village green, historic Free Public Library, downtown shops, and NYC trains and buses. The college, established as the Bloomfield College and Seminary in 1868, has more recently carved out a niche for itself in the areas of theater, music, and nursing, among others. In between Brookdale and downtown, laced along Broad St., are a half-dozen glitzy new restaurants serving Thai, Pan Asian, Italian and Japanese food. Charming, vintage single and multi-family homes run from $250,000 to $450,000. It's a short stroll from here to City-bound buses and Midtown Direct trains, travel time about 30 minutes! 

http://theURL.com/>http://www.bloomfieldtwpnj.com/ 

http://groups.yahoo.com/group/watsessingdogpark/ 

http://www.njfuture.org/smart-growth-101/stories/2009-award/bloomfield/ 

http://bloomfield.tix.com/Schedule.asp?OrganizationNumber=2145 

http://www.bloomfieldcenter.com/redev.html

http://bloomfield.patch.com/articles/demolition-marks-start-of-new-downtown-redevelopment-project 

Local online news blogs covering Bloomfield, NJ - 

http://bloomfield.patch.com 

http://baristanet.com 

Maplewood: New York Magazine calls Maplewood "a draw for those who abhor cultural blandness and ethnic homogeneity but who can't afford to raise families in Manhattan... along with South Orange, its 'sister town' next door, Maplewood is home to ...interracial and gay couples...There are several public playgrounds and parks...The pedestrian-friendly downtown district offers several good restaurants as well as a four-screen first-run movie theater." Prices in Maplewood range from the high $200's for small starter colonials to near $1M for luxury vintage inventory, with a 'sweet spot' in the $400,000s and $500,000s. 

Now a town of about 24,000, Maplewood was part of South Orange until 1922. The town has a lovely Olmstead Park adjacent to town center and the Midtown Direct train station.  

Shops with Tudor iconography run in a charming daisy chain along narrow, winding Maplewood Ave. Lots of eateries, a movie theater, Kings Super Market, pub, and gift shops make this one of the sweetest downtowns in NJ. 

Maplewood schools are part of the joint South Orange-Maplewood School District. Six elementary schools serving grades K-5 — Seth Boyden Elementary School (grades K-5), Clinton Elementary School (K-5), Jefferson Elementary School (3–5), Marshall Elementary School (K-2), South Mountain Elementary School and Annex (K-5)and Tuscan Elementary School (K-5); Maplewood Middle School and South Orange Middle School for grades 6–8; Columbia High School for grades 9–12 (with nearly 2,000 students.) 

South Orange: Of the 'four Oranges in Essex County, NJ, South Orange offers the highest concentration of luxury homes in exclusive neighborhoods such as the Montrose Historic Section, Wyoming, and Newstead. The inventory of elegant, older homes is impressive. They are arranged in a ring around the Midtown Direct station, shops, and restaurants, with South Orange Ave providing the central focus for activities adjacent to beautiful Cameron Park, with a tranquil lake and community center. SOPAC, the South Orange Performing Arts Center, is now home to multiple movie screens and live performances by well-known international performers. A new resident theater group, Midtown Direct Repertory Company, Seton Hall students, and others with community-based interests, also use SOPAC's space. A series of jazz conversations hosted by Grammy-winning basist Christian McBride has been a perennial favorite at the theater. Prices in South Orange range from the $300,000s to above $1M, with a particularly wide range of grand homes right now in the sixes and sevens.  

South Orange is part of the joint South Orange-Maplewood School District. Six elementary schools serving grades K-5: Seth Boyden Elementary School (grades K-5), Clinton Elementary School (K-5), Jefferson Elementary School (3–5), Marshall Elementary School (K-2), South Mountain Elementary School/Annex (K-5) and Tuscan Elementary School (K-5); Maplewood Middle School and South Orange Middle School for grades 6–8; Columbia High School for grades 9–12 (with nearly 2,000 students.) 

Like the other "train towns," South offers a terrific Manhattan commute from two stations -- the central station that is the hub of downtown life; and the Mountain Station that provides transportation to both Hoboken and Manhattan.  

West Orange: Located about 4 miles from Montclair, the Gregory Section offers an appealing stock of colonials and Tudors situated on tree-lined, winding roads near South Orange Village, and is one of the prettiest and most affordable neighborhoods in the area. The Gregory School (primary) is well-regarded, as is the Roosevelt Middle School. The primary division of Golda Och Academy, formerly Solomon Schechter, the highly regarded Jewish day school, is also located in this neighborhood. Prices have adjusted in Gregory so that you'll find terrific homes from $250,000 to $450,000 right now. There are numerous shopping opportunities in West Orange, including the lively Essex Green mall just a mile away, with stores that include Macy's and Panera Bread, always packed at lunchtime, plus a multi-screen movie theater. Nearby is a Whole Foods superstore with great takeout and organic options.  

While the town does not have its own train station, it offers the widest array of jitney service from the Gregory and St. Cloud Sections for commuters wishing to take New York Direct trains from nearby stations in South Orange or Orange. There is ample express bus service, as well, provided by the DeCamp and Community lines and NJ Transit. West Orange is also home to the Edison National Historic Park, with the great inventory's research lab now again open to the public. Edison's home, in Llewellyn Park, is also available to be viewed, but by appointment only. 

Located slightly North and West of Gregory is the very pretty St. Cloud neighborhood (also a top local school), an interesting mix of older and Seventies' splits, ranches and bi-levels, is well worth checking out. Home prices in the St. Cloud Section, located near county parks and family-themed entertainments, range from approximately $300,000 to $600,000. The express bus to Manhattan is right there, as well as a large, covered Park and Ride facility. 

At the 36-acre South Mountain Recreation Complex renovation, West Orange recently opened the lavish 19-hole Safari miniature golf course replete with waterfalls, sand dunes and a two-story replica of snow-capped Mount Kilimanjaro. Next door you'll find the Codey Arena, a professional-level ice rink open to the public; and the Turtle Back Zoo with a new animal-themed carousel and the "lost city" habitat housing Gibbons apes, an endangered species native to the rain forests of Southeast Asia. Adjacent is a new restaurant and boathouse overlooking a scenic old reservoir.  

Also, in West Orange: Historic Llewellyn Park. Lovely, private, just 20 miles from Manhattan, this historic enclave of 175 homes sits behind a stone wall on 425 rolling acres. Since the 1850s, changes in Llewellyn Park's acreage, lot sizes, and architectural taste all influenced the park's architecture, but the highly private, residential nature of the community has withstood the test of time. The official LP website describes a place that caters "to those looking for a home where neighbors know and socialize with each other, children play together, and families stroll on parklike streets among rambling lawns and parks. In Llewellyn Park a desire for privacy is respected while still offering shared amenities. From understated contemporary elegant to prestigious estates, Llewellyn Park residences provide an exceptional variety of lifestyles." LP homeowners pay a yearly association fee toward maintenance of the Park and for the periodic social events. Today, Llewellyn Park - just 2 miles from neighboring Montclair and South Orange, has, indeed, come to be regarded as a prime destination for those who value clean air and space to grow and enjoy country life within a stone's throw of New York City. While the park has many luxury homes, those on a budget who fall in love with the gorgeous ambiance of this community may find a cute carriage house to call home. 

Some links of interest for West Orange: 

http://www.westorange.org/ 

http://schools.woboe.org/Pages/Default.aspx 

http://www.turtlebackzoo.org/tbzoo/index.jsp 

http://www.essex-countynj.org/p/index.php?section=parks/sites/so 

http://www.nps.gov/edis/index.htm 

http://westorange.patch.com/ 

Cedar Grove: This appealing sliver of a town just West of Montclair boasts the lowest taxes in the West Essex area. Housing prices start in the low $300's for cape cods and small ranches, while high end developments such as Park Ridge Estates offer luxury living options. Cedar Grove also has high-end homes at exclusive Park Ridge, a very private development of $1M+ homes built over the last 20 years. 

Verona: Just west of Montclair, with bus transportation to the City, Verona, like Cedar Grove and Nutley, offers the semblance of a simpler life in the suburbs with a housing inventory spanning starters and some larger homes near Verona Park and in the Afterglow section on the Montclair border. Verona prices range from about $320,000 to luxury levels. 

Neighboring Clifton - Located in Passaic County, just Northeast of Montclair, Clifton's sprawling geography, is home to a huge inventory of starter houses in the $250's and up, including The Montclair Heights Section of Clifton - the town's most desirable neighborhood, located on Montclair, NJ's northern border. Homes in Montclair Heights run the gamut from smaller 1930s colonials to 1960's splits and recently-built colonials. Prices range from the low $300s to the $600s, occasionally higher. Residents of Montclair Heights cannot send their children to the Montclair schools! 

Other Neighborhoods of Note: Ask me about stately and picturesque Ridgewood Ave. in Glen Ridge; Montclair's neighborhoods like The Fairway, Erwin Park and Estate Section; Nutley Park in Nutley; The Cedars in Caldwell; Verona's Afterglow and Wayland sections; and Montrose, South Orange's elegant, gaslit historic section and its mountainside Newstead and Wyoming sections; the winding roads in Roseland's beautiful Holmehill section and the adjoining delights of leafy Essex Fells. 

Last but not least, Essex County's beautiful historic neighborhoods include Forest Hills in Newark and Seven Oaks in Orange. Both exhibit the finest classic architecture in elegant homes from the turn-of-the-century through the 1930s, more and more of them recently renovated. Where similar homes in neighboring towns sell for much more, homes in Forest Hills -- with a train station with service to NYC -- and Seven Oaks (also with its own Highland Ave. train service) sell from the $200's and up. While prices are quite modest in Seven Oaks, note that taxes are pretty steep!! 

If you'd like to personally discuss the towns and neighborhoods I've discussed, please feel free to contact me for an area tour. 

Email Roberta Baldwin to set up an appointment for an area tour: RobertaBaldwinTeam@gmail.com 

Visit the Baldwin Dream Team's super search site, www.FindBestNJHomes.com to get started in your towns of choice.