Comments on: Ye Ole Transit Village: Montclair & South Orange

By: anne

anne — Thu, 20 Dec 2007 23:52:45 +0000

it’s better than most. at least the houses are old and beautiful and different from each other; there is also some local culture and progressive politics. but hey… it ain’t Brooklyn! and for those who think that’s a good thing, be sure to pay your parking tickets on the way out!

By: RH

RH — Thu, 20 Dec 2007 23:01:15 +0000

Montclair sounds like the type of suburb I dread.

By: anne

anne — Thu, 20 Dec 2007 22:35:10 +0000

definitely not. i lived in an apartment building in montclair and the on-street parking in front of our building was 2-hour or something like that… the township sells parking permits (with an allocated spot) for their municipal lots, but the closest one to me was several blocks away, a dark and lonely walk at night. and not all the houses have driveways either, so they’re in the same boat, competing with shoppers and visitors for a spot in front of their house.

if the train service were better it would actually be possible to live in some parts of montclair without a car (i did a lot of errands and shopping trips on my bike), but as you mention the town seems reluctant to get with the program. all part of this very mid-20th century thinking that anyone who doesn’t own a car couldn’t possibly be the “right” type of person to live there.

planning one’s life around that decamp bus schedule was just too tragic for me, moving back to brooklyn and ditching the car was a huge relief!

By: RH

RH — Thu, 20 Dec 2007 22:01:57 +0000

I’ve always assumed everyone has a driveway outside of the boros.

By: anne

anne — Thu, 20 Dec 2007 18:03:36 +0000

RH, I’m a lover, not a hater! I know what you’re talking about with the late night gear schleps. And having lived in Montclair, I can attest to the fact that parking is a huge issue there as well. Unless these Slopers can afford a house with its own driveway or a condo with a parking lot, they may find themselves in the same boat, except that their property taxes are now tripled.

By: RH

RH — Thu, 20 Dec 2007 17:29:12 +0000

I say “Let ’em go.” Would you really miss these people in Brooklyn anyway? I must say though, one of the (many) reasons I left Park Slope years ago was parking. As a photographer I needed to schlepp heavy equipment as far as NJ or upstate. I got tired of coming home from a wedding at 1am, dropping my equipment, then circling for parking for another 20 minutes. This was pre Zipcar, Anne, so don’t hate me. 😉

By: anne

anne — Thu, 20 Dec 2007 17:03:56 +0000

What’s insane is that people would uproot their lives and move to another state because of PARKING!! A car in Park Slope is a luxury, not a necessity, plus there are several Zipcar locations.

By: Anonymous

Anonymous — Thu, 20 Dec 2007 16:05:08 +0000

That’s insane! Friggen NIMBYs.