Canandaigua, NY

[kittywitty]

Can anyone tell me about this area? Dh is job hunting and it came up as a possibility.

I'm particularly looking at these things, but anything would help!

1. Crime issues?
2. Cost of living-can you find a good 3+ bedroom house in a good part of town/country with decent yard for under $100k.
3. Is it birth and breastfeeding friendly. I may someday in the distant future want a #5.
4. Homeschool friendly?
5. Kids activities. Close proximity or possibility of Museums, kids programs, homeschool groups...
6. A UU, Liberal Episcopal, Reform Judaism, or pagan group nearby?
7. Is the snow that bad? I used to live in Northern IL and we got 7' of snow, but dh hates it, so...the truth?

[paquerette]

I'm a little bit familiar from passing through a few times. It seems very very rural, and pretty low COL. But Ithaca, Buffalo, and Rochester are reasonable day trips from the area. And maybe Erie? So there are some big metro areas around.

We're actually looking at land in that neck of the woods. A bit south, between Cuba and Elmira, Corning and Horseheads, etc. We're looking at a long-term buying land and building later kind of idea, though.

[kittywitty]

That means I could be by you?

Thanks!

[paquerette]

Yessss! I actually went and looked at the map and it seems like it's closer to Rochester than I had thought, actually.

To try to answer some other questions...

I know someone who used to live in Rochester who was UU, also pretty liberal and crunchy and all that. I think it's not very common but also not unheard of?

Things are a bit in flux as far as birth issues go. There are groups working on legislation.

I think homeschooling is about like PA. A bunch of paperwork to do with the school district. I think vax exemptions are rough if you utilise schools but I'm not sure how it works w/ hsing.

I know the lake effect snow in Buffalo is epic, but I don't know if it gets out there as much.

Hm, maybe someone who actually lives there will speak up soon.

If we do seriously decide to look at that land, we'll be taking a trip out in a couple weeks I think. We wouldn't be going that far north though. But I'll take pics and grab newspapers and stuff.

[kittywitty]

Well, no Canandaigua. There is another NY one we are apply for. I can't remember the town...I have to look it up.

[mrsjtc]

I'm north of Canandaigua but can get you info if you still need it. A MOMS club friend moved there a few years ago.

[dsaucone]

Originally Posted by kittywitty

Well, no Canandaigua. There is another NY one we are apply for. I can't remember the town...I have to look it up.

Where did you end up?

[~Charlie's~Angel~]

KITTY! My long LOST LOST friend! You were looking at a town about 45 minutes from me! I know how hard things have been for you lately, and I would have LOVED to have been able to get together with you. Where did you end up?

[kittywitty]

Well, dh was the only one able to keep his job here for this year. So we turned down a few interviews. So we're stuck here for one more year. There will be more cuts next year and they're making dh work an hour away for either half the day or 2 days a week which is a huge load of horsepoo. So we're job searching next year!

[ent_mom]

I live in Canandaigua!

I know this is an old post, but just in case any one wants info in the future about Canandaigua, please let me know. I love it here, and have lived here for 9 years. I feel very, very fortunate to live here, I love it that much.

I'll subscribe to this post, but just in case I don't see a future request for info, please email me directly at kim AT slavis DOT com

KittyWitty - good luck to your family wherever you go next!

Snow is not heavy here (unfortunately IMHO!), it almost seems like there is a snow line at the I-90. North of it is heavier than South of it, and Canandaigua is South of it. Buffalo gets a lot because of Lake Erie, even then it's the South Towns that usually get hit so hard. (I grew up in Williamsville, which is an Eastern suburb of Buffalo).

[Kim919]

Born & raised in Canandaigua NY. Now live in a neighboring town but still work in Canandaigua.

Crime is really low. Very very very safe area.

Cost of living - medium. You will be able to find a safe 3 bedroom house for around $100K in the city of Canandaigua, but you aren't going to get anything spectacular for that. I wouldn't be too optimistic about a nice house with a one acre lot for that price. Maybe an older decent house with quarter acre, or a handyman special with a few acres. You may be able to get something nicer in that price range if you were willing to stretch out into neighboring towns.

Birth & breastfeeding - I've never lived anywhere else so I don't have a comparison. We have one team of midwives that I am aware of that attends home births for this area, and they are beyond wonderful. I would challenge anyone to show me a more wonderful pair of midwives anywhere in the country. I breastfed and never had any issues. I am fairly discreet, like in I cover up with a blanket, but would never go to a bathroom or anything.

Homeschool - My daughter is 2, so I haven't really encountered this yet, but I have looked into it some, and I believe we have a fairly good network available if you include the Rochester area.

Activities - We have a great library in town, they are expanding right now so they are in a temporary location at the moment. This is a beautiful place if you like outdoor activities. We have plenty of parks, the lake, a YMCA (that has homeschool enrichment also.) For culture, Rochester is about 30-40 minutes away and they have plenty of it.

Churches - I'm not a church-going person, so I don't really know. There are a lot of churches around here though so I would have to believe you could find one you like.

Snow - Yup, we get plenty of snow. Figure on a few good storms a year and fairly constant ground cover from December to Early March plus potentially a month on either side in a bad year.

[tiqa]

This is an older thread, but I thought I'd ask - any Canandaigua mamas still around these boards?  We are brand new to the area - and I do mean *brand* new, we arrived here on Friday, found a house we liked on Saturday, put in an offer on Sunday, sat down with the mortgage people on Monday, and now (Tues as of the time of posting) we're just playing the waiting game to see if everything goes through smoothly!   We don't know anyone at all from hereabouts and would love to meet some friendly folk!  We have two preschoolers, a boy and a girl.

[ent_mom]

Hi Tiqa,

Yes, I'm still here!  Welcome!  We love Canandaigua.  I hope you enjoy it as much as we do.   :)  I have two kids - 8 and 5.75 years old.  One of the easiest ways to meet other families with kids the same ages as yours is to go to the story times at Wood Library.  (www.woodlibrary.org)  Please feel free to PM me.  :)

Cheers,

Kim

p.s.  You can also try emailing me (though my email has been wonky lately - so PM me if I don't respond right away) at:

kim AT slavis DOT com