Anyone live in downtown Clinton?

[MikeStaten]

Was hoping to get some inside info on the pros and cons of the area, people etc..

Thanks,
Mike

[Kype]

con is you have to drive route 78. clinton is a nice town with the south branch river near you, and spruce run and round valley. 

[Jerzguy2]

CON, Why would anyone want to live in one of the heaviest visited tourist towns in NJ. Weekends will experience the city sight seeing tourist, that have to see the most photographed mill in NJ.  Otherwise, quaint, nice town, but many better places in 10 mile radius to live.

[Tarhunt]

I lived outside of Clinton for over 16 years. It's a nice town but, Jerzguy2 is right. The traffic on weekends sucks. 

[MikeStaten]

1 hour ago, Jerzguy2 said:

CON, Why would anyone want to live in one of the heaviest visited tourist towns in NJ. Weekends will experience the city sight seeing tourist, that have to see the most photographed mill in NJ.  Otherwise, quaint, nice town, but many better places in 10 mile radius to live.

Great point.  We always wanted a big yard and somewhat secluded but my kids are getting near school age so my wife is leaning towards living in a town.   What other towns do you recommend in the area?  An ideal situation would be within walking distance to a town center but be on the edge of the town or on a culdesac so we could back up to woods but still have neighbors for the kids to play with etc..

[Jerzguy2]

Depends on how Deep your pockets are, if I had the desire and funds, I would look at Califon waaay before Clinton. Their are so many beautiful places, but trade offs for each. 

[Bucksnbows]

Not too many western NJ towns have "town centers".  You have to go east or northeast for more of that type of living.  

[hunterbob1]

Mike,I live on the borderline of Clinton Clinton Twp.,half a mile from main Street . Great schools and busing but expensive. Check out High Bridge and Califon.Any question's,pm me.Bob

[Tuck]

To have a town center it would be like said earlier, Califon or High Bridge.  Califon more rural for sure but also more pricey and school is very small.   Last years graduating class was 7 girls!!  You could look in Lebanon and get some property,  again more expensive and probably 5-7 min drive to both town centers.   PM me for more info, I teach at the High School.

[njhunter24]

I live in Glen Gardner, which borders Clinton. As others have said, you may want to check out the Glen Gardner/Califon/High Bridge area. High Bridge has a great down-town with a few restaurants, brewery, pizzeria, coffee shop, and direct access to the Columbia Trail which is one of my favorite spots to run and cycle. The Ken Lockwood Gorge, Spruce Run, Clinton WMA, and tons of other public lands/trails/rivers/streams are all just a few minutes away. Although depending on how far north of Clinton you end up going, route 31 can be a real pain with rush hour congestion and traffic. 

[not on the rug]

I grew up in High Bridge and my mom still lives there.  Taxes in Hunterdon are ridiculous.  It's becoming a tourist trap and a place for only the wealthy.  All of the great things about Hunterdon like the cute River towns, the reservoirs, the trails, the Gorge, etc are over-run with tourists on nearly every weekend of the year.  If that's your thing, have at it.  You can find some quieter towns/more rural areas to live in, but the taxes are still nuts and unless you're willing to pay for privacy, you won't like it.  Much of Warren County is where Hunterdon was 30-40 years ago, but the town areas like P'Burg, Washington and Hackettstown are still pretty dumpy.  It's easier to find more acreage and more privacy in Warren though and taxes are way cheaper.  I guess it all depends on where you commute for work 

[Farmshine]

I grew up in High Bridge and my mom still lives there.  Taxes in Hunterdon are ridiculous.  It's becoming a tourist trap and a place for only the wealthy.  All of the great things about Hunterdon like the cute River towns, the reservoirs, the trails, the Gorge, etc are over-run with tourists on nearly every weekend of the year.  If that's your thing, have at it.  You can find some quieter towns/more rural areas to live in, but the taxes are still nuts and unless you're willing to pay for privacy, you won't like it.  Much of Warren County is where Hunterdon was 30-40 years ago, but the town areas like P'Burg, Washington and Hackettstown are still pretty dumpy.  It's easier to find more acreage and more privacy in Warren though and taxes are way cheaper.  I guess it all depends on where you commute for work 

I was going to offer my opinion, but you pretty much summed it up. The only way to survive Hunterdon county taxes are through farmland assessment or move to Holland Twp.


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[Swamp_Yankee]

The assessments of Clinton, High Bridge and Califon are all spot on (we actually lived in High Bridge for about ten years before moving to Bethlehem)-if you're dead set on living where there are cul-de-sacs and where kids can ride bikes/walk to each other's houses, etc...those are the only places you're going to find that in this part of Hunterdon County.  We loved the small town atmosphere and close-knit community of High Bridge but ultimately we wanted more property and privacy more.  That said, we tried to stay as close as we possibly could to High Bridge and only ended up less than seven miles away, but Bethlehem, with 10 times the land area and roughly the same amount of people has a much different feel.  Once in a while my kids complain about not being able to walk to a friends house, or ride their bikes out front (we live on a gravel road), but that's outweighed by the fact that they have acres and acres of woods and fields to explore, a pond, the ability to have whatever animals they want, etc...  We go to Clinton and High Bridge for the restaurants, the Columbia Trail, the ice cream, and church, etc...but its always nice to come back home to the woods.  In the end its going to be all about what ultimately (neighborhood/town atmosphere vs. seclusion and privacy) makes you and the wife happy.  

Edited August 31, 2020 by Swamp_Yankee

[Jerzguy2]

Pro, for that area, two of the best soft ice cream places I've found in NJ  are in Hunterdon county and if Chinese food is your thing, the best I've found is in High Bridge. 

[Tarhunt]

I loved living in Bethlehem Twsp.