Ithaca, NY

[Tony]

What would be some pros and cons of living in Ithaca, NY?

:beer:

[zelatore]

It's close to Watkin's Glen.

After that, I'm out....never been there.

Actually, I have heard it's a nice area but I have no real knowledge of the place.

[Ghost]

Ithacating (ITH-eh-KAY-ting) v - Spitting, pissing, or pouring an indistinct gray and slushy combination of rain, snow, and sleet from the sky.

[CHACHI]

Finger Lakes Region of NY, lots of wineries.

Who's thinking of moving?

Ken

[jl1962]

College town!
Always a good thing IMO......

[Just Say N20]

Lots of good, already mentioned.

But, it is New York State. I grew up there. Still have family in Rochester. Crazy high property taxes (my brother's current home value is about 2/3 of my current home value, but his property taxes are 2.5X mine). Crazy income taxes. 8+% sales tax. Looks like only 13 of the 62 counties did NOT have a major population decrease, and one that did grow was Albany, the state capital.

It is a very pretty place, but I don't think I could move back. Too "user unfriendly" in the government department.

[Ghost]

The lakes are beautiful, as is the landscape. The wineries are fun and a some are producing very good stuff. College towns are what they are. I tend to like them but some don't. The suicide lore of Ithaca appears to be myth and statistical nonsense, but it looks like Cornell recently had one very bad year and their idiotic reaction has taken on a contraversial life of its own. (http://www.ithacaisfences.org/pictures-of-stickers-expressing-diverse-opinions-about-the-fences.html) Economically, I would expect that the more a town relies on colleges for its industry, the more susceptibility it has to near-term decline. So, I would be very cautious about buying, and would look at renting for a few years.

[Marlin275]

One of the most beautiful places in the country.
More waterfalls than anyplace I remember.

[Greg Guimond]

I'm not 100% sure on this but doesn't Ithaca sit right up against the LARGEST of the Finger Lakes?

[Tony]

Yep, Lake Cayuga...about 40 miles long and between 1 and 3 miles wide.

My son-in-law is contemplating opening a pizza franchise, and may need some help to protect the territory and expand his store count.

If it works out for him, it means his wife (and our granddaughter!) moves out there too...and we may be close behind.

We may or may not be there full time, and the whole thing may or may not work out for the son-in-law. If it does, though...it gives us something to do in retirement, and a new locale to explore.

I'm fine with the college town atmosphere, being used to E. Lansing and Marquette, MI, and the topography looks great. Of course I'm not too thrilled with the taxes, but I suppose we'll cross that bridge when we get to it.

Thanks for the replies...

:beer:

[silverghost]

[ QUOTE=$originalposter]{$pagetext}[/QUOTE]

Pizza Franchise ?
TONY~
I don't know about Ithaca NY~
But In Philly & New Jersey you canot open ANY Pizza franchise without expressed permission, and a "Tribute Donation" each week to the Philly area "Wise Guys" for a "Protected Territory".

You have to also buy ALL your food & paper supplies, pizza boxes, menues, etc. directly from them also.

They also offer " Special Fire Insurance".
Don't pay them your weekly premiums~~~
And your business suddenly burns down one night .

I once saw a small local pizza shop owner filling a small pizza box full of cash and handing it over to some very tough looking strong arm guy.

Think I am kidding ?
Guess again.
I am totally serious about this !

[Marlin275]

Seneca Lake is the largest of the glacial Finger Lakes (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Finger_Lakes) of the U.S. state (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/U.S._state) of New York (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/New_York),
and the deepest lake entirely within the state. It is promoted as being the lake trout (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lake_trout) capital of the world,
and is host of the National Lake Trout Derby. Because of its depth, Seneca Lake has been a testing site for submarines.

[Tony]

silverghost, nobody messes with Mike Illitch...he's the biggest "wiseguy" of them all.

[Tony]

Submarines...cool.

I think that Cayuga has the most surface ares, and Seneca the most water. They're both impressively deep, though.

Edit:
Cayuga averages 180', with a deepest point of 435'.

Seneca averages 291', and has a deepest point of 618'. That's a hellava lot of water!

[jl1962]

I dunno Tony, do college kids really eat much pizza?
;)

If you made the move, you would have NO excuse not to come to Lake George!

[Tony]

The Lake George events are definitely in my "pros" column. As is The Thousand Islands, Muskoga, Clayton...a whole new horizon opening up.

Jay, the franchise being considered expands only in areas thoroughly researched, demographically. College locations, along with "urban", are usually considered hotbeds for this product. From some very reliable sources, one store provides an income allowing my daughter to stay home with the young one, working from home on the books and payroll. Two stores (or more) raises your financial comfort level exponentially.

[boxy]

Good College Hockey in a great College town.......

Has to be a plus.67943



http://www.cornellbigred.com/index.aspx?tab=icehockey&path=mhockey

[Tony]

Yes...good hockey is definitely a plus!
Is the city big enough for a 50+ league or would I have to go to Syracuse?

[Marlin275]

My daughter went to Cornell and knows it well.

College Town Bagels or CTB is the hottest hangout happening place for these kids.
Everyone goes there.

You should study their success and location first.

College Town Bagels http://maps.gstatic.com/intl/en_us/mapfiles/transparent.png
415 College Avenue, Ithaca, NY 14850-4625(607) 273-0982 ‎collegetownbagels.com (http://maps.google.com/local_url?q=http://www.collegetownbagels.com/pages/home/home.php&dq=college+town+bagels+ithaca+ny&cid=17339515957834671626&gl=us&ppsci=A&followup=http://maps.google.com/maps%3Fclient%3Dsafari%26oe%3DUTF-8%26ie%3DUTF8%26q%3Dcollege%2Btown%2Bbagels%2Bitha ca%2Bny%26fb%3D1%26gl%3Dus%26hq%3Dcollege%2Btown%2 Bbagels%26hnear%3DIthaca,%2BTompkins,%2BNew%2BYork %26ll%3D42.443126,-76.482224%26spn%3D0.006271,0.012413%26t%3Dm%26z%3D 17%26vpsrc%3D6%26iwloc%3DA&vps=1&output=js&jsv=368b&sll=42.458752,-76.482903&sspn=0.050641,0.045546&ved=0CDUQ5AQ&sa=X&ei=liN6Ttn4DYmgowSXr_XBDg&s=ANYYN7nfIDCyPNpCFx0Ky_J5Eyrd3vHgPg)

[boxy]

[ QUOTE]Yes...good hockey is definitely a plus!
Is the city big enough for a 50+ league or would I have to go to Syracuse?[/QUOTE]

You could start here .... http://www.eteamz.com/iaha/