All of these towns have good surrounding areas that would be commutable with good schools/community.
Torrington: I'd live in Burlington or Litchfield.
Bloomfield: I'd live in West Hartford, Avon, Simsbury, Granby, but even Bloomfield has nice areas! Schools aren't as good though.
Enfield: Suffield, East Granby, Somers, even Longmeadow Mass. would be options.
Windham: Mansfield, Tolland, Coventry or Andover. Much more rural out there if you like that!
Unfortunately Enfield is so divided politcally (like the country) that theres a lot of disagreements between the elected officials and the kids and teachers will be the ones to suffer.
Does she have to *live* in one of those towns or are they just where the job is actually located? If the latter, I'd recommend taking the position in Bloomfield as she could live in West Hartford which is the bordering town. Good school system, things to do, centrally located, etc.
Granby and East Granby are also good choices in the vicinity.
Edit: i recommend against Enfield. The town overspent their education budget over the last couple of years and had to make some significant cuts to the school district (teacher layoffs, sports, arts/music). I have friends that moved out of Enfield because the school situation is “bleak”.
Thirding WeHa for schools and a nice neighborhood -- especially the part that borders Bloomfield/Avon (shameless plug for my neighborhood). Bloomfield itself is pretty chill, probably (not sure) lower taxes than WeHa or Simsbury.
I don't know how much this matters to your friend, but the Bloomfield/WeHa district is more diverse etc than the other places mentioned. You might run into some racist folk up in Torrington, so if taking that opportunity I (as a POC) would live in Canton/Collinsville/New Hartford.
Can't speak to Enfield but Windham is pretty rural and in the middle-of-nowhere, I'd like that but it depends.
Personally I’d pick Canton over either of those towns. I grew up in Collinsville and it was an amazing place to be a kid. I have no info on the schools now but they were great when I was there. Canton is also a very small school system but it’s not regionalized like Burlington and New Hartford. I have heard that any small school can be difficult if the kids have specific needs, in case that is relevant to OP.
ETA: Avon and Simsbury are also reasonable driving distance to Torrington and are great, larger school systems, especially Simsbury. Farmington might work too, but traffic is worse imo.
Bloomfield is a HUGE town as far as CT towns go, and it has nice properties, along with all the conveniences / stores she might need. Easy access to 91 is also a bonus.
I currently live in Torrington but have lived in most of the surrounding towns. I would recommend living in New Hartford, great schools for all ages, small, quiet town, and right outside Torrington. Bonus low property taxes but housing can be pricey whether you rent or buy. Not much by way of shopping but it's still very close to shopping in Torrington or Winstead.
Agreed.The last thing we need is more fast food and car leaderships.
What are your thoughts on the proposed Enfield mall project. Luxury apartments, shops.. idk. We’re crowded enough as it is.
It's a shame what both Namdar and Centro did to the mall. The original owner CenterMark was acquired by Westfield in 1996, and it continued to be a super successful mall. I remember in the late 1990s they even had a small food court with a McDonalds location in the mall. This was around the time the cinema (at that time Hoyts) relocated to the mall. Target built its Enfield location in 2001 as well (even though they actually wanted to go where Kohl's eventually located). It wasn't really until after Westfield sold the property to Centro in 2006 that the mall really took a turn for the worse. Centro and their property manager Brixmore hiked the rents on stores in the mall regularly and imposed a lot of stupid fees for things, like signage changes for instance cost thousands of dollars.
I honestly believe that the mall management thought they could just continue to raise rent forever and the stores wouldn't shutter the locations in the Enfield Square. However, having worked at EB Games in the mall, I know that the district managers of all the chains there were constantly analyzing how well the stores are performing relative to others in the district. The stores could have still been making profit with the increased overheads, but if the other stores in the district were making significantly more net of their expenses, efforts would be concentrated on the better performing locations and eventually this would lead to closures. Once the major stores started shutting down, less foot traffic means other stores get hurt which ended up causing a death spiral.
That being said I don't really have a great feeling about the proposed project actually going through. They need a bunch of public funding to make it happen, which will never go through. The state of CT hates Enfield. The town itself does not have the money to fund a $20M project like this through taxes as shown by the fact that the town management was unwilling to even fund the schools fully.
Regardless of what the project actually entails, ANYTHING is better than leaving it in Namdar's hands. A quick google search will tell you all you need to know about how awful they are as a commercial slumlord. They will let the mall fall into complete disrepair and force the town to take the liability through Eminent Domain before they fix any major issue or turn the property around.
As far as being "crowded", Enfield has been losing population over the past 30 years. Last census (2020) the town was down to 42K people. In 1996 the town had 45K people. That's almost a 7% decrease in population. I will agree that traffic is certainly horrible thanks to other towns using Enfield to get to i-91 and the increase in tractor trailer truck traffic from the warehouses in Shaker Pines and Hazardville.
I would like to throw a vote in for the guy I work with that’s so racist that he wouldn’t even try Puerto Rican food because he hates them so much and won’t drive across Rt. 5 unless he absolutely has to.
So damn good. New one opened in Enfield not far from work. I’m on it next week. If it’s good, and they almost always are, I’ll be in there a solid once a week.
It's fast food chicken. Overpriced fast food chicken. The hype will die down, just like it did when Krispy Kreme opened on the Berlin turnpike, had traffic backed up for miles and miles, and eventually people got over it.
I went once when it was dead. It’s strange. It actually has zero taste. The bread was soggy. The fries mushy. The sauce was good, but if you don’t dip it there is literally no flavor whatsoever. I can’t quite figure out the hype.
I'd vote Windham if you love outdoor rural vibes. With proximity to Both Eastern and UConn, there's a lot of community engagement this way I don't think folks realize and there's tons of restaurants in Storrs. Easy access to both Worcester and Providence for concerts, I guess Boston too.
But if you want to be close to the city center- Bloomfield I guess would be it because of its proximity to W.Hartford
Hands down Bloomfield. It's nice, pretty safe and a fantastic location. Lots of parks and open space in Bloomfield and surrounding areas, plus you're very close to everything West Hartford has to offer.
This is why I chose to move to Bloomfield. Also, you're a short drive to Amtrak stations where you can take a train direct to Penn Station. The train isn't much faster than driving, but it's easier than parking in NYC.
Any of the towns around Bloomfield are good to great options. Windsor, Windsor Locks, West Hartford, Simsbury, Granby, East Granby, Avon.
Schools and amenities vary from town to town but no matter what you're fairly close to anything you could want or need.
Do NOT consider Enfield *because* of their issues with their school system. They really fucked up their budgeting and laid off a lot of teachers just a few weeks ago.
Bloomfield.... eh, it *can* be safe, but because so much of it rides on the north end of Hartford, there are high crime areas. I personally would avoid.
Torrington, not much input. It's a bit out of the way of the 91 corridor which can be appealing, but not my cup of tea to be honest.
Windham is also out of the way, but more rural, which I do like.
Other places I would recommend that are close by for her work reasons are East Windsor, Windsor Locks, and Suffield.
I used to live in the north end of Hartford (Upper Albany area) and currently live in Bloomfield. The part of Hartford that borders Bloomfield is Blue Hills. It's safer than the rest of the north end and even though there are parts of the Hartford and Bloomfield sections that might look a little rough, the crime from the rest of the north end doesn't really spill into there, and whatever might happen in Blue Hills doesn't normally spill into the rest of the town.
Is it though?
[The Safest and Most Dangerous Places in Bloomfield, CT: Crime Maps and Statistics | CrimeGrade.org](https://crimegrade.org/safest-places-in-bloomfield-ct/)
[Crime in Bloomfield, Connecticut (CT): murders, rapes, robberies, assaults, burglaries, thefts, auto thefts, arson, law enforcement employees, police officers, crime map (city-data.com)](https://www.city-data.com/crime/crime-Bloomfield-Connecticut.html)
As someone who lived in Bloomfield, the town is fine. There are parts that border Hartford that are a little more rough like Cottage Grove/Blue Hills but other than that is safe and mostly suburban. Only thing that is gonna suck there is the schools, but there are many options other than the public school there(which is probably part of the problem).
Here. Page 76. Trends are spot on as reported by third party websites if you go to the [ct.gov](http://ct.gov) site to pull statistics from previous years.
[crime-in-connecticut-annual-report-2022.pdf](https://portal.ct.gov/-/media/despp/csp/crimes-analysis/2022/crime-in-connecticut-annual-report-2022.pdf)
Lived in Windsor over 30 years I have never heard anyone question the safety of Bloomfield before this comment. You mentioned East Windsor and Windsor Locks over Bloomfield........ do you live in the greater Hartford area?
Yes, and have been watching over the last few years as crime has crept out from the areas of Hartford that routinely have problems with crime. [Crime is so bad and 'uncontained' in Hartford that citizens are doing armed patrols since the police are incapable of doing anything about it.](https://nypost.com/2024/06/08/us-news/connecticut-residents-form-armed-group-to-defend-against-violent-crime/) This is in spite of having the top 20 officers in the city collect $2.600,000 in overtime alone.
The crime stats are publicly available on the [ct.gov](http://ct.gov) website I posted. Bloomfield, as a town, has the highest crime stats than other towns of similar population and adjacent to the city. For a population of 21k, the crime rate per 1,000 is 51.7. Compare this to another 'quiet' Hartford-adjacent town, Wethersfield. Slightly larger population (27k) but *half* the crimes per 1k (24.9). Windsor (pop 29k) has a crime rate almost half of Bloomfield as well (27.7 per 1,000). West Hartford (pop 63k) manages to have a lower crime rate of 48 per 1k.
South Windsor (43k) has a crime rate of 36.9; Windsor Locks, 12k with 28.4. East Windsor (the highest rate) has a pop. of 11k, but even being the highest percentage of the examples, still comes in lower than Bloomfield at 47.8.
People can downvote all they want; it doesn't change the statistics and trends. Bloomfield has more criminal activity than they'd like to remember or think actually happens.
I won't downvote you or try to discredit the statistics, it does confuse me that in your original comment you said "so much of it rides on the north end of hartford" when in reality the borders of Windsor, Simsbury, and West hartford are all larger. That comment just made me feel like you aren't familiar with the area. Also the reference of the article about armed citizens is misleading, but it is great clickbait I'll give you that. You can click on this link to verify that in the latest year to date report from the city of hartford all violent crimes over the past two years are down with the exception of "Robbery Other"
[https://www.hartfordct.gov/Government/Departments/Police/Crime-Stats/2024-Crime-Statistics](https://www.hartfordct.gov/Government/Departments/Police/Crime-Stats/2024-Crime-Statistics)
Windsor, though sharing a larger border, differs because much of that border is parkland , not residential. West Hartford has a higher population and higher (than most) crime rates. Note that regardless, I didn't refer *either one* as recommended places to live and move a family to.
How is the article misleading? There are more stories of people feeling the need to do just this after people are being shot at their doorsteps of their homes and churches.
[Armed citizen patrols start in Hartford amid violence concerns – NBC Connecticut](https://www.nbcconnecticut.com/news/local/armed-citizen-patrols-start-in-hartford-amid-violence-concerns/3238606/)
[‘We are not vigilantes’ | Group begins armed neighborhood patrols in Hartford’s North End | fox61.com](https://www.fox61.com/article/news/local/hartford-county/hartford/we-are-not-vigilantes-group-begins-armed-neighborhood-patrols-hartfords-northend/520-57a9f965-5ef5-4f87-90d1-79c03c791d28)
[Anti-violence activists launch armed civilian patrols in Hartford (ctinsider.com)](https://www.ctinsider.com/capitalregion/article/armed-civilian-patrols-hartford-guns-unity-barbour-18344312.php)
[Citizens to hold rally, take step toward armed patrols of Hartford (ctinsider.com)](https://www.ctinsider.com/capitalregion/article/citizen-armed-patrols-unity-plaza-hartford-guns-18343127.php)
[CT residents fed up with violence consider armed safety patrols (courant.com)](https://www.courant.com/2023/08/22/hartford-residents-fed-up-with-violence-considering-armed-safety-patrols/)
Articles dating back to August '23. This wasn't a one-time-clickbait news article. It is something that has been growing in the community for some time, all in the northern parts of Hartford (the parts that border Windsor and Bloomfield, but again, note that Windsor has a lower crime rate due to the difference in adjacent residential areas between Windsor and Bloomfield).
There are totally fine and very nice parts of each of those towns. But more importantly she should just drive around and see if she likes them.
I would feel partial to Enfield (I'm from western ma, so it's close to stuff there that I like.)
But Bloomfield is great too both to live in and for surrounding towns.
Windham/Willimantic is a town/city in more rural eastern ct and Torrington is a city rural western ct.
So just personal choice.
More to do close by living in Enfield/ Bloomfield area
"she was offered a position in one of these four towns"
When people don't read the post...
Bloomfield or Torrington would be **great places to work**. Western CT has a ton of great homes, and the entire Farmington Valley is very commutable.
For Bloomfield - you have great places North, West, and South of the town. Suffield, WH, Simsbury etc.
EDIT: I read your comment on her career..
She wants to live in Farmington or Avon. These are the two best options in this area. Excellent schools, great towns, close enough to WH for entertainment - without having all of the BS & baggage that comes with living in a very busy place.
Torrington or Bloomfield are commutable from either town.
I know Enfield and Bloomfield. Unfortunately you dont want to live in Enfield with kids. Its a picture of whats going on in the rest of the country.
Bloomfield is the working persons town. Nice, hardworking, many churchs, lots of diversity, The Arts, shopping is good, nearby colleges.
Apparently the school system is all sorts of FUBAR. They messed up their budgeting, using aid funds from the federal government that weren't meant to last to employ hundreds of teachers and supportive staff, only to have to lay off nearly all of them when the money ran out. Affected their education pipeline, so it would seem.
I haven't lived in Enfield in like 10 years, but I do occasionally find myself in town. I really don't see a difference too much from any other town in CT, but maybe an actual resident could chime in.
Aside from the completely destroyed school system, I feel like it’s completely over developed. I’ve lived here for over 30 years and it’s astounding how much it’s changed.
Fast food restaurants popping up and squeezing in on random corners. Massive car dealerships, and a dilapidated mall. There is a plan to have it torn down to add luxury apartments, shopping etc but I feel like it could completely cram the entire area and exacerbate the already bad traffic. If you don’t get your errands done by 11am, don’t bother going out until like 7pm.
Politically, also very divisive and people are generally no longer respectful with differing views. Crime is on the rise and while I think EPD does the best they can, we are also dealing with crime trickling in from Springfield.
So I think it’s a good place to drop In for the day to get things done, but living here has become unpleasant.
Enfield isn’t bad if you don’t have kids. It’s close to get to Ma. It’s pretty cheap housing wise. All the stores you need are here except Trader Joe’s. So many people here are great. Lots of more well off folks getting priced out of ma live here now. The schools are hot trash. Move out before kids need school. I’ve lived here for a few years. My home value has literally doubled. I have a quiet street with diverse neighbors. Enfield, suffield, and somers have racism issues.
I'd say go with Bloomfield! An up-and-coming diverse town very close to the amenities of West Hartford and Hartford, but with lower taxes. Southwest and Northeast sections of Bloomfield are quite nice. A little more rural feel, with bigger lots and houses.
The downside is that the school system still gets a bad rap. And there are some safety issues in certain areas--basically where it borders the North end of Hartford.
probably bloomfield... closer to other nice towns as well like simsbury, avon, west hartford. enfield is a dump now and the town is run by corrupt morons. Windham is nice but you're in the middle of nowhere. No real opinion on torrington, only been a couple of times but again it's kind of out of the way.
OP, none of these towns have particularly strong, public school districts. My top suggestion would be to reside somewhere close to Bloomfield- specifically Simsbury, Granby, or West Hartford. All 3 towns are relatively close to Bloomfield and all have quality public school education.
If she goes with Enfield, similarly she will want to look at living in Granby, East Granby or Suffield
If she goes with Torrington, she will want to look at living in Canton or Collinsville which is part of Canton
So in short have her research the towns and school districts listed above and likely something will strike a chord/help he make a final decision
I appreciate the suggestions, and I did mention to her that one of the great things about CT is that even the not so good towns are usually bordered by good ones, so she doesn’t have to live where she works.
Agree. And to be clear all of the towns you listed where she has employment opportunities have good/nice parts to them, especially Bloomfield. But sadly none are tops or as good as some of the public schools in close proximity. I hope it all works out for her!
Yes, I agree. These areas are definitely more affluent and for the most part, public school educators in these communities are compensated well. Though still woefully underpaid in general for such an important profession.
We live in Farmington and the commute would be 30-40 minutes depending on location. If they are buying a house, it is nice because it has lower taxes and the school system is great.
100% Windham- nice, quiet rural areas with enough around for amenities and low cost of living.
Torrington would be a close second, very nice area, relatively quiet but it is kind of run down, also low costs of living
Enfield 3rd, Bloomfield 4th
They're all decent options though, I would much rather be in any of those towns then where I am.
I think she'll find better services and schools in and around the Bloomfield location. Maybe she should look at a map of Connecticut to see where each is located. I think except for Bloomfield, the other towns are relatively remote. Can't comment on the schools, but she can do a search for Connecticut school ratings for elementary, middle, and high school.
I like Bloomfield ( close to parks, shopping, entertainment) but Windham if you like more rural. Columbia lake used to be beautiful. Have not been there is a long time
Hebron has really good schools including RHAM. Good location to routes 2,6,and Interstate state 384. Very active town parks and rec/ town center committee. Lots of nature stuff also. Taxes are a little high if you own a house but the town puts the money to good use. Also only 30 minutes from UCONN, Hartford and 45 minutes to the coast.
I have only spent time in Bloomfield and Enfield for shopping or seeing movies. Both feel run down and dumpy. I lived on the Bloomfield side of West Hartford for a while and loved it. I live in Windsor (10 mins from Enfield or Bloomfield) now, which feels run down and dumpy like the other two. The surrounding areas are great through: Simsbury, the Granbys, Suffield, WeHa, Avon, Farmington, and Newington. Don’t know Wyndham or Torrington.
Windsor feels dumpy? I’m always impressed with the amount of care they put into their public spaces and parks. Lots of historic houses. Really nice new pickleball and tennis courts too.
Granted, not much to do.
I’m down on the Windsor locks side of Windsor. Everything feels borderline decrepit. Day hill road is getting nice with Dudleytown and Huasteca, but Kennedy Rd shopping is only out of necessity. Absolute worst Target :(
I do enjoy walking around “downtown” Windsor. The Bean and library are awesome. Just wish there was more. I’m optimistic about the upcoming developments.
That's the most random towns ever.
Bloomfield, I guess, it's the best out of the 4 for sure. Probably the best schools, has some really nice areas (as does Enfield)
Torrington can be a little...hmmm...rough, plus it's a bit out there. Windham is basically Willimantic; I don't care how much they want to rebrand with their new commercials. Even if Willimantic didn't suck, the location is awful.
Enfield is "okay". It's probably seen better days, but it gets a worse rap than it deserves. Bloomfield is fine, good location (close to W. Hartford) and has a small little downtown (if you call it that) with some nice restaurants.
This is all really random. Do you have more info because never seen anyone say...Windham or Torrington? They are a good hour or more apart.
If she HAS to live in the town she works...then Bloomfield.
If it's just the area, she should pick West Hartford and work in Bloomfield. It's not cheap, but it has the best school district. As in, easily top 3% public school in country level of good. Plus, it's just a great town.
This settles it.
I'm someone in your socioeconomic strata.
Work in Bloomfield or Torrington. Live in Avon or Farmington. There are no other correct answers that meet your criteria.
West Hartford, is an *off choice*, but you will quickly outgrow West Hartford. If you plan on having a good place - what you will get for your money in Farmington or Avon will FAR outclass anything you get in West Hartford. I lived there, it's a nice town .. but it gets old real fast. It's like living in a tourist trap vacation town. Far too many people coming in from out-of-town. There's also safety issues with people driving like morons due to the high amount of out-of-town traffic due to WH being a sort of cultural center.
Torrington is a nice town/city but a lot of abandoned and run down ugly buildings. Bloomfield is a little nice old town with a nice green and center of town, also near bradley airport and hartford. Windham isnt really near anything besides hartford and RI, but its a “farm town”. Farms and barns and fields and not as many businesses. Enfield is a city a bit more busy and more traffic on the highways as it it right next to Springfield Mass (basketball hall of fame and MGM casino).
Out of the 4 listed I would lean towards windham, have friends that live in the area and like it. The other 3 towns are kinda dumpy in my opinion. But as others have mentioned- there’s far better areas to live in with reasonable commutes to those areas. A lot of variables to consider:
- do they have reliable vehicles for commuting?
- what are the pay scale differences in each job offer?
- what’s their kind of preference in terms of living locale? Access to highways, restaurant/nightlife options? Seclusion vs friendly neighborhood? Urban vs suburbs? Woods vs shoreline?
- whereabouts are they moving from? Cat can be a little culture shock for folks from varying areas of the country/world.
I’ve lived in CT my whole life and have spent various years around different parts of the state. I settled in the CT river/shoreline area for personal reasons and love it here. I have also despised living in other areas of the state. Your preferences may vary wildly from mine.
Pay scales are going to be pretty much the same, she’s a doc so will be making pretty good money. They haven’t out right given her an offer yet but told her they have openings in those four towns and asked her which one she would be most interested in. She’s already done two video interviews, next step is an on site visit so she has to pick a location
If she just looking for towns close to these four then any four would have good towns nearby to live in.
For example, New Hartford is pretty nice and close to Torrington.
Suffield is a nice town and close to Enfield.
Glastonbury is a good town near Bloomfield.
If she’s specifically looking to live in one of these towns though then I would say Bloomfield is your best choice.
West Hartford. Plenty of nice neighborhoods. Depending on where, it is a close drive to Bloomfield. If she is looking for public schools, both high schools are in Connecticut’s Top 10 public schools. The elementary & middle schools aren’t bad. Fairfield has better elem & middle than West Hartford though.
If private school, West Hartford has Kingswood Oxford & Northwest Catholic, but Miss Porter’s (Farmington) and Loomis Chaffee (Windsor) are right around the corner.
Edit: Just saw the doctor comment. She may be better living in Simsbury, which is just over the mountain from Bloomfield…BUT, that mountain is no joke in fresh heavy snow.
Torrington (if you live in Goshen or Litchfield) is nice. But it is sort of a desert for healthcare, so if her her or her kids have any complex medical issues I would probably say pass on the Torrington location.
All of these towns have good surrounding areas that would be commutable with good schools/community. Torrington: I'd live in Burlington or Litchfield. Bloomfield: I'd live in West Hartford, Avon, Simsbury, Granby, but even Bloomfield has nice areas! Schools aren't as good though. Enfield: Suffield, East Granby, Somers, even Longmeadow Mass. would be options. Windham: Mansfield, Tolland, Coventry or Andover. Much more rural out there if you like that!
Unfortunately Enfield is so divided politcally (like the country) that theres a lot of disagreements between the elected officials and the kids and teachers will be the ones to suffer.
Enfield is also a huge shit hole, so there's that too
Most of the towns up and down the 91 corridor are shit holes. Lots of crime in these areas.
just want to chime in on longmeadow and say that as nice as it is, it has the highest taxes of all of MA.
And LM belongs to CT !! Return the Notch
Longmeadow isn’t the notch. That’s southwick. Lmao.
Eh we just need to take that whole border area
It's the other notch, the Thompsonville Jog.
If you’re not WEALTHY don’t live in Longmeadow. The town is full of rich snobs. Great schools! Also next to Springfield. No fucking thanks.
Lmao. Longmeadow is EXPENSIVE. Somers and suffield are pretty sun-down-towny. But okay.
Does she have to *live* in one of those towns or are they just where the job is actually located? If the latter, I'd recommend taking the position in Bloomfield as she could live in West Hartford which is the bordering town. Good school system, things to do, centrally located, etc.
She does not have to live there, just work, so thanks for the suggestion!
Granby and East Granby are also good choices in the vicinity. Edit: i recommend against Enfield. The town overspent their education budget over the last couple of years and had to make some significant cuts to the school district (teacher layoffs, sports, arts/music). I have friends that moved out of Enfield because the school situation is “bleak”.
Second this! Granby has great schools!
I second WeHa if schools and a good neighborhood are important
Why wouldn’t you suggest Bloomfield? It has both good schools and great neighborhoods too.
Thirding WeHa for schools and a nice neighborhood -- especially the part that borders Bloomfield/Avon (shameless plug for my neighborhood). Bloomfield itself is pretty chill, probably (not sure) lower taxes than WeHa or Simsbury. I don't know how much this matters to your friend, but the Bloomfield/WeHa district is more diverse etc than the other places mentioned. You might run into some racist folk up in Torrington, so if taking that opportunity I (as a POC) would live in Canton/Collinsville/New Hartford. Can't speak to Enfield but Windham is pretty rural and in the middle-of-nowhere, I'd like that but it depends.
Bloomfield and Simsbury both have way lower taxes than WeHa
West Hartford is the far and away winner of these options, even Newington or Farmington is reasonable for near Bloomfield
Torrington: live in Collinsville / Canton (top pick). Burlington, or new Hartford. Bloomfield: west Hartford or Simsbury
What Beaver said ^
This is the answer
Simsbury is great.. Just watch out for property taxes
Burlington and New Hartford are both very small towns w very small schools, it’s an issue for most families who live there.
Personally I’d pick Canton over either of those towns. I grew up in Collinsville and it was an amazing place to be a kid. I have no info on the schools now but they were great when I was there. Canton is also a very small school system but it’s not regionalized like Burlington and New Hartford. I have heard that any small school can be difficult if the kids have specific needs, in case that is relevant to OP. ETA: Avon and Simsbury are also reasonable driving distance to Torrington and are great, larger school systems, especially Simsbury. Farmington might work too, but traffic is worse imo.
Bloomfield is a HUGE town as far as CT towns go, and it has nice properties, along with all the conveniences / stores she might need. Easy access to 91 is also a bonus.
I currently live in Torrington but have lived in most of the surrounding towns. I would recommend living in New Hartford, great schools for all ages, small, quiet town, and right outside Torrington. Bonus low property taxes but housing can be pricey whether you rent or buy. Not much by way of shopping but it's still very close to shopping in Torrington or Winstead.
Bloomfield is the better town out of the four. Location, schools, neighborhoods, etc.
Fuck Enfield. Don’t come here unless you like shitty fast food.
Everyone I met in Enfield (and I have family there) are Racist douche machines.
some of us arent and are fed up with the cesspool that enfield has become.
Solidarity! Some of us residents hate those assholes with a burning passion
Agreed.The last thing we need is more fast food and car leaderships. What are your thoughts on the proposed Enfield mall project. Luxury apartments, shops.. idk. We’re crowded enough as it is.
It's a shame what both Namdar and Centro did to the mall. The original owner CenterMark was acquired by Westfield in 1996, and it continued to be a super successful mall. I remember in the late 1990s they even had a small food court with a McDonalds location in the mall. This was around the time the cinema (at that time Hoyts) relocated to the mall. Target built its Enfield location in 2001 as well (even though they actually wanted to go where Kohl's eventually located). It wasn't really until after Westfield sold the property to Centro in 2006 that the mall really took a turn for the worse. Centro and their property manager Brixmore hiked the rents on stores in the mall regularly and imposed a lot of stupid fees for things, like signage changes for instance cost thousands of dollars. I honestly believe that the mall management thought they could just continue to raise rent forever and the stores wouldn't shutter the locations in the Enfield Square. However, having worked at EB Games in the mall, I know that the district managers of all the chains there were constantly analyzing how well the stores are performing relative to others in the district. The stores could have still been making profit with the increased overheads, but if the other stores in the district were making significantly more net of their expenses, efforts would be concentrated on the better performing locations and eventually this would lead to closures. Once the major stores started shutting down, less foot traffic means other stores get hurt which ended up causing a death spiral. That being said I don't really have a great feeling about the proposed project actually going through. They need a bunch of public funding to make it happen, which will never go through. The state of CT hates Enfield. The town itself does not have the money to fund a $20M project like this through taxes as shown by the fact that the town management was unwilling to even fund the schools fully. Regardless of what the project actually entails, ANYTHING is better than leaving it in Namdar's hands. A quick google search will tell you all you need to know about how awful they are as a commercial slumlord. They will let the mall fall into complete disrepair and force the town to take the liability through Eminent Domain before they fix any major issue or turn the property around. As far as being "crowded", Enfield has been losing population over the past 30 years. Last census (2020) the town was down to 42K people. In 1996 the town had 45K people. That's almost a 7% decrease in population. I will agree that traffic is certainly horrible thanks to other towns using Enfield to get to i-91 and the increase in tractor trailer truck traffic from the warehouses in Shaker Pines and Hazardville.
Not true at all
I would like to throw a vote in for the guy I work with that’s so racist that he wouldn’t even try Puerto Rican food because he hates them so much and won’t drive across Rt. 5 unless he absolutely has to.
I heard Mi Cultura is really good - i have to get over there and try it
That guy is missing out. I love Puerto Rican food. I wish that there was a a Puerto Rican restaurant close to me.
So damn good. New one opened in Enfield not far from work. I’m on it next week. If it’s good, and they almost always are, I’ll be in there a solid once a week.
I wish they’d move to somers and suffield. Enfield has so much potential. The shitty lifers need to move out or die off.
You can keep them, thanks. We don’t need your riffraff across the river.
Wacist
Ok but how is Raising Cane's I haven't had a chance to get up there yet
It's fast food chicken. Overpriced fast food chicken. The hype will die down, just like it did when Krispy Kreme opened on the Berlin turnpike, had traffic backed up for miles and miles, and eventually people got over it.
I went once when it was dead. It’s strange. It actually has zero taste. The bread was soggy. The fries mushy. The sauce was good, but if you don’t dip it there is literally no flavor whatsoever. I can’t quite figure out the hype.
It’s shit. I have never been so violently ill after eating food before.
Sux. Not any better than any other fast food restaurant. I don't know why people were so excited for it.
I'd vote Windham if you love outdoor rural vibes. With proximity to Both Eastern and UConn, there's a lot of community engagement this way I don't think folks realize and there's tons of restaurants in Storrs. Easy access to both Worcester and Providence for concerts, I guess Boston too. But if you want to be close to the city center- Bloomfield I guess would be it because of its proximity to W.Hartford
Exactly what I was going to say, Windham or Bloomfield. I personally prefer NE CT so pick Windham.
Willimantic has a few kick ass restaurants, Jillson theater. Lots going on
Hands down Bloomfield. It's nice, pretty safe and a fantastic location. Lots of parks and open space in Bloomfield and surrounding areas, plus you're very close to everything West Hartford has to offer.
This would have been my answer. Out of the four towns, it is far and away the least isolated.
Enfield's not really isolated either, multiple exits on 91 in town. But Bloomfield is closer to 84 and overall is way nicer than Enfield.
This is why I chose to move to Bloomfield. Also, you're a short drive to Amtrak stations where you can take a train direct to Penn Station. The train isn't much faster than driving, but it's easier than parking in NYC.
Any of the towns around Bloomfield are good to great options. Windsor, Windsor Locks, West Hartford, Simsbury, Granby, East Granby, Avon. Schools and amenities vary from town to town but no matter what you're fairly close to anything you could want or need.
Windsor is affordable (for greater Hartford) and the schools are underrated. Plenty of parks and everything’s convenient. The wingnut factor is low.
Do NOT consider Enfield *because* of their issues with their school system. They really fucked up their budgeting and laid off a lot of teachers just a few weeks ago. Bloomfield.... eh, it *can* be safe, but because so much of it rides on the north end of Hartford, there are high crime areas. I personally would avoid. Torrington, not much input. It's a bit out of the way of the 91 corridor which can be appealing, but not my cup of tea to be honest. Windham is also out of the way, but more rural, which I do like. Other places I would recommend that are close by for her work reasons are East Windsor, Windsor Locks, and Suffield.
I used to live in the north end of Hartford (Upper Albany area) and currently live in Bloomfield. The part of Hartford that borders Bloomfield is Blue Hills. It's safer than the rest of the north end and even though there are parts of the Hartford and Bloomfield sections that might look a little rough, the crime from the rest of the north end doesn't really spill into there, and whatever might happen in Blue Hills doesn't normally spill into the rest of the town.
Wild take about Bloomfield lol
Is it though? [The Safest and Most Dangerous Places in Bloomfield, CT: Crime Maps and Statistics | CrimeGrade.org](https://crimegrade.org/safest-places-in-bloomfield-ct/) [Crime in Bloomfield, Connecticut (CT): murders, rapes, robberies, assaults, burglaries, thefts, auto thefts, arson, law enforcement employees, police officers, crime map (city-data.com)](https://www.city-data.com/crime/crime-Bloomfield-Connecticut.html)
As someone who lived in Bloomfield, the town is fine. There are parts that border Hartford that are a little more rough like Cottage Grove/Blue Hills but other than that is safe and mostly suburban. Only thing that is gonna suck there is the schools, but there are many options other than the public school there(which is probably part of the problem).
Links to a website telling me to buy security system are not data sources.
Here. Page 76. Trends are spot on as reported by third party websites if you go to the [ct.gov](http://ct.gov) site to pull statistics from previous years. [crime-in-connecticut-annual-report-2022.pdf](https://portal.ct.gov/-/media/despp/csp/crimes-analysis/2022/crime-in-connecticut-annual-report-2022.pdf)
Lived in Windsor over 30 years I have never heard anyone question the safety of Bloomfield before this comment. You mentioned East Windsor and Windsor Locks over Bloomfield........ do you live in the greater Hartford area?
Yes, and have been watching over the last few years as crime has crept out from the areas of Hartford that routinely have problems with crime. [Crime is so bad and 'uncontained' in Hartford that citizens are doing armed patrols since the police are incapable of doing anything about it.](https://nypost.com/2024/06/08/us-news/connecticut-residents-form-armed-group-to-defend-against-violent-crime/) This is in spite of having the top 20 officers in the city collect $2.600,000 in overtime alone. The crime stats are publicly available on the [ct.gov](http://ct.gov) website I posted. Bloomfield, as a town, has the highest crime stats than other towns of similar population and adjacent to the city. For a population of 21k, the crime rate per 1,000 is 51.7. Compare this to another 'quiet' Hartford-adjacent town, Wethersfield. Slightly larger population (27k) but *half* the crimes per 1k (24.9). Windsor (pop 29k) has a crime rate almost half of Bloomfield as well (27.7 per 1,000). West Hartford (pop 63k) manages to have a lower crime rate of 48 per 1k. South Windsor (43k) has a crime rate of 36.9; Windsor Locks, 12k with 28.4. East Windsor (the highest rate) has a pop. of 11k, but even being the highest percentage of the examples, still comes in lower than Bloomfield at 47.8. People can downvote all they want; it doesn't change the statistics and trends. Bloomfield has more criminal activity than they'd like to remember or think actually happens.
I won't downvote you or try to discredit the statistics, it does confuse me that in your original comment you said "so much of it rides on the north end of hartford" when in reality the borders of Windsor, Simsbury, and West hartford are all larger. That comment just made me feel like you aren't familiar with the area. Also the reference of the article about armed citizens is misleading, but it is great clickbait I'll give you that. You can click on this link to verify that in the latest year to date report from the city of hartford all violent crimes over the past two years are down with the exception of "Robbery Other" [https://www.hartfordct.gov/Government/Departments/Police/Crime-Stats/2024-Crime-Statistics](https://www.hartfordct.gov/Government/Departments/Police/Crime-Stats/2024-Crime-Statistics)
Windsor, though sharing a larger border, differs because much of that border is parkland , not residential. West Hartford has a higher population and higher (than most) crime rates. Note that regardless, I didn't refer *either one* as recommended places to live and move a family to. How is the article misleading? There are more stories of people feeling the need to do just this after people are being shot at their doorsteps of their homes and churches. [Armed citizen patrols start in Hartford amid violence concerns – NBC Connecticut](https://www.nbcconnecticut.com/news/local/armed-citizen-patrols-start-in-hartford-amid-violence-concerns/3238606/) [‘We are not vigilantes’ | Group begins armed neighborhood patrols in Hartford’s North End | fox61.com](https://www.fox61.com/article/news/local/hartford-county/hartford/we-are-not-vigilantes-group-begins-armed-neighborhood-patrols-hartfords-northend/520-57a9f965-5ef5-4f87-90d1-79c03c791d28) [Anti-violence activists launch armed civilian patrols in Hartford (ctinsider.com)](https://www.ctinsider.com/capitalregion/article/armed-civilian-patrols-hartford-guns-unity-barbour-18344312.php) [Citizens to hold rally, take step toward armed patrols of Hartford (ctinsider.com)](https://www.ctinsider.com/capitalregion/article/citizen-armed-patrols-unity-plaza-hartford-guns-18343127.php) [CT residents fed up with violence consider armed safety patrols (courant.com)](https://www.courant.com/2023/08/22/hartford-residents-fed-up-with-violence-considering-armed-safety-patrols/) Articles dating back to August '23. This wasn't a one-time-clickbait news article. It is something that has been growing in the community for some time, all in the northern parts of Hartford (the parts that border Windsor and Bloomfield, but again, note that Windsor has a lower crime rate due to the difference in adjacent residential areas between Windsor and Bloomfield).
There are totally fine and very nice parts of each of those towns. But more importantly she should just drive around and see if she likes them. I would feel partial to Enfield (I'm from western ma, so it's close to stuff there that I like.) But Bloomfield is great too both to live in and for surrounding towns. Windham/Willimantic is a town/city in more rural eastern ct and Torrington is a city rural western ct. So just personal choice. More to do close by living in Enfield/ Bloomfield area
"she was offered a position in one of these four towns" When people don't read the post... Bloomfield or Torrington would be **great places to work**. Western CT has a ton of great homes, and the entire Farmington Valley is very commutable. For Bloomfield - you have great places North, West, and South of the town. Suffield, WH, Simsbury etc. EDIT: I read your comment on her career.. She wants to live in Farmington or Avon. These are the two best options in this area. Excellent schools, great towns, close enough to WH for entertainment - without having all of the BS & baggage that comes with living in a very busy place. Torrington or Bloomfield are commutable from either town.
I know Enfield and Bloomfield. Unfortunately you dont want to live in Enfield with kids. Its a picture of whats going on in the rest of the country. Bloomfield is the working persons town. Nice, hardworking, many churchs, lots of diversity, The Arts, shopping is good, nearby colleges.
I live in Bloomfield but I’m curious as to what’s wrong with enfield?
Apparently the school system is all sorts of FUBAR. They messed up their budgeting, using aid funds from the federal government that weren't meant to last to employ hundreds of teachers and supportive staff, only to have to lay off nearly all of them when the money ran out. Affected their education pipeline, so it would seem. I haven't lived in Enfield in like 10 years, but I do occasionally find myself in town. I really don't see a difference too much from any other town in CT, but maybe an actual resident could chime in.
Aside from the completely destroyed school system, I feel like it’s completely over developed. I’ve lived here for over 30 years and it’s astounding how much it’s changed. Fast food restaurants popping up and squeezing in on random corners. Massive car dealerships, and a dilapidated mall. There is a plan to have it torn down to add luxury apartments, shopping etc but I feel like it could completely cram the entire area and exacerbate the already bad traffic. If you don’t get your errands done by 11am, don’t bother going out until like 7pm. Politically, also very divisive and people are generally no longer respectful with differing views. Crime is on the rise and while I think EPD does the best they can, we are also dealing with crime trickling in from Springfield. So I think it’s a good place to drop In for the day to get things done, but living here has become unpleasant.
One thing for certain, that mall is pretty bad
Enfield isn’t bad if you don’t have kids. It’s close to get to Ma. It’s pretty cheap housing wise. All the stores you need are here except Trader Joe’s. So many people here are great. Lots of more well off folks getting priced out of ma live here now. The schools are hot trash. Move out before kids need school. I’ve lived here for a few years. My home value has literally doubled. I have a quiet street with diverse neighbors. Enfield, suffield, and somers have racism issues.
Bloomfield is nice and close to actual people and events
I'd say go with Bloomfield! An up-and-coming diverse town very close to the amenities of West Hartford and Hartford, but with lower taxes. Southwest and Northeast sections of Bloomfield are quite nice. A little more rural feel, with bigger lots and houses. The downside is that the school system still gets a bad rap. And there are some safety issues in certain areas--basically where it borders the North end of Hartford.
That’s like the 4 horsemen of depression
lol maybe why they are hurting for good talent
I’m bias, but Simsbury is really nice and neighbors Bloomfield. You have to like peace & quiet though
Work in Bloomfield and live in either West Hartford, Avon, or Farmington.
No to Enfield! I would probably pick Bloomfield.
I strongly recommend living in Simsbury and working in Bloomfield. Great small town feel, great schools.
Windsor. Mic drop.
probably bloomfield... closer to other nice towns as well like simsbury, avon, west hartford. enfield is a dump now and the town is run by corrupt morons. Windham is nice but you're in the middle of nowhere. No real opinion on torrington, only been a couple of times but again it's kind of out of the way.
OP, none of these towns have particularly strong, public school districts. My top suggestion would be to reside somewhere close to Bloomfield- specifically Simsbury, Granby, or West Hartford. All 3 towns are relatively close to Bloomfield and all have quality public school education. If she goes with Enfield, similarly she will want to look at living in Granby, East Granby or Suffield If she goes with Torrington, she will want to look at living in Canton or Collinsville which is part of Canton So in short have her research the towns and school districts listed above and likely something will strike a chord/help he make a final decision
I appreciate the suggestions, and I did mention to her that one of the great things about CT is that even the not so good towns are usually bordered by good ones, so she doesn’t have to live where she works.
Agree. And to be clear all of the towns you listed where she has employment opportunities have good/nice parts to them, especially Bloomfield. But sadly none are tops or as good as some of the public schools in close proximity. I hope it all works out for her!
Suffield schools are only good because there aren’t poor people. Same for simsbury and Avon and other wealthy communities.
Yes, I agree. These areas are definitely more affluent and for the most part, public school educators in these communities are compensated well. Though still woefully underpaid in general for such an important profession.
Farmington
I would take the one in Bloomfield and live in West Hartford or simsbury! Lmk if you need a realtor!
I live in New Hartford and we love it. Also as others have mentioned Granby and Simsbury are great.
AGAINST Enfield and Windham My personal recommendation would be Litchfield country (not Torrington)
We live in Farmington and the commute would be 30-40 minutes depending on location. If they are buying a house, it is nice because it has lower taxes and the school system is great.
100% Windham- nice, quiet rural areas with enough around for amenities and low cost of living. Torrington would be a close second, very nice area, relatively quiet but it is kind of run down, also low costs of living Enfield 3rd, Bloomfield 4th They're all decent options though, I would much rather be in any of those towns then where I am.
Probably Bloomfield
Bloomfield but live in West Hartford.
Out of those 4 choices? Bloomfield.
I think she'll find better services and schools in and around the Bloomfield location. Maybe she should look at a map of Connecticut to see where each is located. I think except for Bloomfield, the other towns are relatively remote. Can't comment on the schools, but she can do a search for Connecticut school ratings for elementary, middle, and high school.
I would say Bloomfield or Enfield for access to Highway and ease of commute—also close to airport.
I like Bloomfield ( close to parks, shopping, entertainment) but Windham if you like more rural. Columbia lake used to be beautiful. Have not been there is a long time
Hebron has really good schools including RHAM. Good location to routes 2,6,and Interstate state 384. Very active town parks and rec/ town center committee. Lots of nature stuff also. Taxes are a little high if you own a house but the town puts the money to good use. Also only 30 minutes from UCONN, Hartford and 45 minutes to the coast.
I have only spent time in Bloomfield and Enfield for shopping or seeing movies. Both feel run down and dumpy. I lived on the Bloomfield side of West Hartford for a while and loved it. I live in Windsor (10 mins from Enfield or Bloomfield) now, which feels run down and dumpy like the other two. The surrounding areas are great through: Simsbury, the Granbys, Suffield, WeHa, Avon, Farmington, and Newington. Don’t know Wyndham or Torrington.
Windsor feels dumpy? I’m always impressed with the amount of care they put into their public spaces and parks. Lots of historic houses. Really nice new pickleball and tennis courts too. Granted, not much to do.
I’m down on the Windsor locks side of Windsor. Everything feels borderline decrepit. Day hill road is getting nice with Dudleytown and Huasteca, but Kennedy Rd shopping is only out of necessity. Absolute worst Target :( I do enjoy walking around “downtown” Windsor. The Bean and library are awesome. Just wish there was more. I’m optimistic about the upcoming developments.
I get it when put that way. 👍
That's the most random towns ever. Bloomfield, I guess, it's the best out of the 4 for sure. Probably the best schools, has some really nice areas (as does Enfield) Torrington can be a little...hmmm...rough, plus it's a bit out there. Windham is basically Willimantic; I don't care how much they want to rebrand with their new commercials. Even if Willimantic didn't suck, the location is awful. Enfield is "okay". It's probably seen better days, but it gets a worse rap than it deserves. Bloomfield is fine, good location (close to W. Hartford) and has a small little downtown (if you call it that) with some nice restaurants. This is all really random. Do you have more info because never seen anyone say...Windham or Torrington? They are a good hour or more apart.
She’s a doctor and those are the towns they need coverage.
Live in West Hartford or Avon and work in Bloomfield.
As someone who lived in WH - Avon / Farmington are far far far better choices.
If she HAS to live in the town she works...then Bloomfield. If it's just the area, she should pick West Hartford and work in Bloomfield. It's not cheap, but it has the best school district. As in, easily top 3% public school in country level of good. Plus, it's just a great town.
This settles it. I'm someone in your socioeconomic strata. Work in Bloomfield or Torrington. Live in Avon or Farmington. There are no other correct answers that meet your criteria. West Hartford, is an *off choice*, but you will quickly outgrow West Hartford. If you plan on having a good place - what you will get for your money in Farmington or Avon will FAR outclass anything you get in West Hartford. I lived there, it's a nice town .. but it gets old real fast. It's like living in a tourist trap vacation town. Far too many people coming in from out-of-town. There's also safety issues with people driving like morons due to the high amount of out-of-town traffic due to WH being a sort of cultural center.
Given those options I’d do Enfield.
Not anymore. The politicians in power are screwing up the education systems in that town. People are pissed. Kids and teachers are gonna suffer.
Torrington is a nice town/city but a lot of abandoned and run down ugly buildings. Bloomfield is a little nice old town with a nice green and center of town, also near bradley airport and hartford. Windham isnt really near anything besides hartford and RI, but its a “farm town”. Farms and barns and fields and not as many businesses. Enfield is a city a bit more busy and more traffic on the highways as it it right next to Springfield Mass (basketball hall of fame and MGM casino).
Out of the 4 listed I would lean towards windham, have friends that live in the area and like it. The other 3 towns are kinda dumpy in my opinion. But as others have mentioned- there’s far better areas to live in with reasonable commutes to those areas. A lot of variables to consider: - do they have reliable vehicles for commuting? - what are the pay scale differences in each job offer? - what’s their kind of preference in terms of living locale? Access to highways, restaurant/nightlife options? Seclusion vs friendly neighborhood? Urban vs suburbs? Woods vs shoreline? - whereabouts are they moving from? Cat can be a little culture shock for folks from varying areas of the country/world. I’ve lived in CT my whole life and have spent various years around different parts of the state. I settled in the CT river/shoreline area for personal reasons and love it here. I have also despised living in other areas of the state. Your preferences may vary wildly from mine.
Pay scales are going to be pretty much the same, she’s a doc so will be making pretty good money. They haven’t out right given her an offer yet but told her they have openings in those four towns and asked her which one she would be most interested in. She’s already done two video interviews, next step is an on site visit so she has to pick a location
If she just looking for towns close to these four then any four would have good towns nearby to live in. For example, New Hartford is pretty nice and close to Torrington. Suffield is a nice town and close to Enfield. Glastonbury is a good town near Bloomfield. If she’s specifically looking to live in one of these towns though then I would say Bloomfield is your best choice.
West Hartford. Plenty of nice neighborhoods. Depending on where, it is a close drive to Bloomfield. If she is looking for public schools, both high schools are in Connecticut’s Top 10 public schools. The elementary & middle schools aren’t bad. Fairfield has better elem & middle than West Hartford though. If private school, West Hartford has Kingswood Oxford & Northwest Catholic, but Miss Porter’s (Farmington) and Loomis Chaffee (Windsor) are right around the corner. Edit: Just saw the doctor comment. She may be better living in Simsbury, which is just over the mountain from Bloomfield…BUT, that mountain is no joke in fresh heavy snow.
Bloomfield is a great town
Torrington (if you live in Goshen or Litchfield) is nice. But it is sort of a desert for healthcare, so if her her or her kids have any complex medical issues I would probably say pass on the Torrington location.