Countdown to April 29 to PERMANENTLY close M. R. Reiter. Ask the board to see the 6 point plan.

Wednesday, March 26, 2008

Dear Abby

I received this email today and I thought I would leave it to the audience to answer the question posed.

Hello,

I was reading your blog and found it very interesting. My fiancé' and I are contemplating buying a house in Morrisville. I don't know much about Morrisville other than it's close to Princeton, where I work. Your blog makes it seem like Morrisville is, well simply, a mess. The taxes are high and the school system, which is not on par with others in the region show's no sign of improvement. So, would you recommend that a young couple with a 8 month of child move to Morrisville?

Thanks.

Dear Reader,

I can understand why this blog would appear to make Morrisville appear to be a mess. There's some validity to that statement. I would compare Morrisville to a maturing teenager where the process is somewhat messy and painful, but will ultimately be successful. Right now is the messy and painful part.

This is a great place to raise a family. I've been here for quite a while now and I'm glad I made the choice to live here for my family's sake. My children are receiving a good grounding and education at the high school. They received a very good education at the elementary schools. The town seems ready to move forward (hopefully) with a downtown revitalization program that will ultimately lead to a much more prosperous Morrisville.

Williamson Park is a great place to take the children to play. Check out Imagination Island. It was built by the hard work and dedication of community volunteers, damaged by fire, and rebuilt better than before. There are many, many other opportunities available. Yes. Come. Explore Morrisville and see the opportunities and join the team making Morrisville better. Do not let the actions of a few unhappy people stop you.
Posted by Save The School at 9:46 AM

6 comments:

Anonymous said...

Recommend? Hell yeah, I am on my chair, shouting! We need more parents. Sooner or later the happy people will be louder then the unhappy ones!

March 26, 2008 at 10:28 AM
Anonymous said...

I too would recommend this community. If we had more people who were interested in growing our community than the voices of thos ewho want stagnation would not be as successful as they are now. In regards to taxes, if you currently live in NJ, our taxes are probably less than half of what you pay now. Our 'millage rate" is higher than area communities, but that is because our ouses are less expensive. Other communities who have lower millage rates have the same taxes we do because they have to pay a millage dollar for ever dollar value of their house. Our taxes arelly aren't that high.

March 26, 2008 at 11:15 AM
Anonymous said...

To be realistic, recommending Morrisville all depends on your priorities. If you want a new McMansion, look elsewhere. We don't have any. What we do have is a lot of very charming neighborhoods with extremely interesting architecture. If you want to see your property value increase dramatically, look elsewhere. Property values in the borough never increased at the rate of much of the rest of the county. On the other hand, they haven't dropped at the same precipitous rate either with the current downturn in the market, and there are many affordable homes that are beautiful properties. The schools are fantastic for the younger kids, K-5. We have great programs and are doing VERY well in comparison to other districts and overall. However, our MS/HS is problematic, with poor performance on the PSSAs. This continues to be a focus, and if the success with the younger kids is maintained, expect to see this turn around in the next few years as they grow up. We are located just the span of the Delaware from Trenton, still one of the 10 most dangerous cities, so crime is a concern. Like many communities, we have growing concerns over gangs. On the bright side, I've never felt threatened by crime in the entire time I've lived here. Most crimes seem to be property crimes, and our police blotter is miniscule compared to just about every other jurisdiction in the county. We have a world famous little league, great community events, a thriving historical society and a wonderous history. I think we have nowhere to go but up, so yeah, I think overall moving here is a great idea. You have access to two major markets in Phila. and NYC, plus you're less than an hour from the shore and the mountains. The community is full of really great people. It's just that the a-holes yell louder and by doing so, get more attention. The SB Prez may not think the Ville is a good investment, but many of us do, and we'll still be here when he is long gone.

March 26, 2008 at 2:30 PM
Peter said...

People have pretty well summed up my thoughts but I wanted to chime in as another that would definitely recommend the town, even though I am sometimes critical of how things are being run.

It's a nice, small-town community. Nice kids, nice neighbors. My kids love their school and they are doing well. I love the fact that the principals know all the kids by name, as do most teachers, even if they've never had that kid in their class. Is there room for improvement? Of course. But test scores don't tell the whole story, though. In such a small school district, each kid can sway the average by over 1%.

March 26, 2008 at 11:54 PM
Anonymous said...

I think that Morrisville is a wonderful place to buy your 1st home. We were lucky to find the home here that we did, make the friends that we have, and be able to make use of such a tight knit community within the elementary schools.

I will admit though, that it is very frustrating to have the generational families not want anything to change, but if new families keep moving in, it will have to. That's what I keep hoping for, because I love my neighborhood, and want to see a vibrant downtown.

I most definitely hope to see the education at the higher levels improve, but honestly, with such small housing stock, we will probably leave before the kids get to 6th grade anyway.

March 27, 2008 at 9:19 AM
Anonymous said...

There wouldn't be so many of us fighting, knowing the odds against us, if we didn't have a glimmer of hope. I think we inspire one another to keep going and welcome anyone else willing to put in some work to make this town the best it can be.

March 28, 2008 at 3:30 PM

Post a Comment

Subscribe to: Post Comments (Atom)