Simran and Vikas, both 37 years old, had been paying Livingston Shopping rent in Jersey City for 10 years and were now looking for their own place and more space. When they moved to Livingston, N.J. last year, they received a bonus. Their 7-year old son also received taekwondo and piano lessons, as well as tennis lessons.
Simran Sekhri, a New York accountant, stated that “there is close proximity to many activities” as compared with Jersey City. A 2-year-old daughter is also theirs.
Livingston is a 30,000-strong Essex County community. It boasts the Livingston Mall, a massive shopping center, and two busy streets lined with shops. Chris Christie, a former class president, offers many conveniences.
It also has more space. The Sekhris Livingston Shopping bought a Forest Park house with six bedrooms and a half bathrooms in 1986 for $935,000. They then renovated the house. Ms. Sekhri stated, “Even though we didn’t do that,” she could have lived there.
To commute to Manhattan, they drive about 10 miles along Interstate 280 to Harrison’s PATH station and then take the train to Manhattan. Livingston’s highly-rated public schools were the “big driving force” she stated.
She said, “It was an excellent school district and a not so bad commute.”
Robin and Andrew Pack, parents of their two daughters, aged 4 and 1 years, have lived in Livingston for the past nine years. They loved it so much, they bought a 1958 split-level four-bedroom, two-and-a half bath 1958 home on a third acre for $600,000. The lot is partially wooded and there will be no development of open space. Pack stated.
Ms. Ms. Pack, 40, considers himself to be a “bitt of a handyman” and thought Livingston reminded him of Chapel Hill, N.C. The couple now reside near Burnet Hill Elementary School. Mr. Pack travels by township jitney from Burnet Hill Elementary School to South Orange where he boards a New Jersey Transit Midtown Direct train for his New York job as program director.
He said that taxes were high, but that Livingston Shopping we are better off than other cities because of them.
Jerry Jacob, Coldwell Banker Residential Brokerage’s branch vice president for the Livingston office, stated that homeowners have lower taxes than other Essex County municipalities due to all the ratables.
Livingston shopping center sold for PS224m
In a deal worth PS224 million, a shopping center and retail park were sold.
HSBC Alternative Investments has purchased the Centre and Almondvale West Retail Parks in Livingston, West Lothian.
The Centre is Scotland’s second largest covered shopping center. It houses 160 retailers including Primark, Debenhams and M&S. The Centre covers over one million square feet.
Almondvale West Retail Park consists of six units measuring 116,000 sq ft. It is let to retailers like Matalan and TK Maxx.
Land Securities sold the properties for PS224.1 Million
Scott Parsons, Land Securities’ managing director of retail, stated: “The sale at The Centre and Almondvale East Retail Park follows a series of transactions that demonstrate our clear commitment towards reshaping the Livingston Shopping centre portfolio in order to concentrate on strong regional and Greater London assets.”
Land Securities is a commercial property company that owns and manages over 25 million square feet of property. This includes shopping centres, offices, and other buildings. Its total value is more than PS13.2billion.
Livingston Avenue runs through the township, and is the main street of the town. Mount Pleasant Avenue (or State Route 10) intersects Livingston Avenue. It is a busy commercial strip.
Livingston Town Center is located at Mount Pleasant Avenues and is a 10-year old development that offers single-family homes, townhouses and condominiums. It also has 65,000 square feet retail space.
Alfred M. Anthony is a Livingston Livingston Shopping lawyer and was elected part-time mayor in January. He said that the township saw its lowest tax rate increase in 12 years while sharing services with nearby communities.
Anthony, a married father of four children who has lived in Livingston 15 years, said that “it’s an ideal spot to raise a family.”
Recently, opposition was voiced to a Marriott hotel proposal near the Livingston Mall. This is partly because it would increase the hub’s traffic. The mayor stated that “We have a great city, and we don’t want to ruin it with traffic.”
What you’ll pay?
On April 6, the Garden State Multiple Listing Service website listed 120 Livingston homes. They range from a three-bedroom, one-bath colonial built in 1977 for $240,000 to an 16,000-square foot 2002 home with seven bedrooms and six bathrooms on 1.73 acres for $4.95million.
- Memorial Oval is a park that houses shuffleboard, tennis courts, and playing fields. It is located in front of Livingston High School.
- Livingston Public Library offers lectures, movies, and book clubs for children, teens and adults.
- There are many chain restaurants and stores, but there are also independent places like Sweet Basil’s Cafe and Grill and Eppes Essen.
The Essex County South Mountain Reservation Complex is located just minutes east of Livingston off Northfield Avenue, West Orange. It includes Turtle Back Zoo as well as the Codey Arena for ice-skating. The 2,110-acre reserve is itself a county park.
The Schools or Livingston Shopping
Livingston Public Schools has six elementary schools, ranging in grade from kindergarten to Grade 5. Burnet Hill Elementary offers preschool. Mount Pleasant Middle School has approximately 450 students in Grade 6, Heritage Middle School has about 900, and Livingston High School has about 1,800 students in Grades 9-12. The average SAT score at the high school was 572 in reading and 610 in math, according to the most recent data. This compares with the state averages of 496 and 521, 497, and 497.
The Commute Livingston Shopping
Each mass-transit option to New York takes approximately an hour. These include a jitney from Livingston Mall to New Jersey Transit rail station, Harrison, and the PATH to Lower Manhattan (or with a transfer to 33rd Street); driving to Harrison, taking the PATH to Lower Manhattan, or taking the PATH to Lower Manhattan; or taking the Community Coach USA Route 77 bus between Livingston Center and the Port Authority Bus Terminal. A monthly rail pass to South Orange costs $210 and the jitney is $70 per month. Monthly parking in Harrison costs $215, and a monthly fare for PATH is $89. $86.35 for a 10-trip bus pass