Neighborhoods, in Summary

I am often asked by friends who are new to the area or visiting what the difference is between Darien, Noroton, Noroton Heights and Tokeneke. And, even though I grew up here, I still have trouble answering that question.

That is honestly what inspired the Neighborhoods portion of this blog: I’m hoping that if we try to paint a picture of what each neighborhood is like to live in, from the perspectives of the people who actually live there, the differences between the areas will be even more clear.

While we wait for the insights and information on each neighborhood to build a little (please take the Insider Survey if you haven’t yet), I’ll take a shot at some very high level observations about the areas: and I invite anyone who has something constructive to add to each observation to please jump in.

Overall, I would say that Tokeneke and Noroton are on the “water” side of town and/or the Post Road, and in these sections of town you are more likely to find houses with water access, water views, windy and hilly roads, and landscapes with lots of rocks and neat rock formations. I’d venture to say that the average lot sizes in these areas of town are still pretty large compared to houses nearer to downtown Darien and in Noroton Heights.  I found a terrific article by NY Times author Eleanor Charles that, although written in 1996, is every bit as true of Tokeneke today as it was then — a great description of this area of town.

In contrast, Noroton Heights and downtown Darien areas feel more like little matchbox neighborhoods: houses are on smaller lots and therefore tend to be closer together, which also lends itself to more of a “neighborhood” feeling. I feel like you’re more likely to see parents chatting with each other at the end of their driveways while small children ride around on bikes in the street: the streets are much less winding here so a little more safe for playing. They are commuter areas, walking distance to the Darien or Noroton Heights business districts as well as the Darien or Noroton Heights train stations … and it kind of seems like the farther away you get from the train station, the larger the lots once again become.

Eleanor Charles also did an article on Noroton and Noroton Heights in 1993, which offers great insight into the neighbrohoods’ history but is definitely dated in terms of pricing, growth trends, and school information.

The neat thing about Darien is that you’ve got all of the desirable living elements represented: we’ve covered the water and downtown areas, but Darien also has a “back country” area to boot. I like to refer to it as the “Ox Ridge” area of town, and for some reason it is not “named” like Noroton Heights or Tokeneke — but it is a gorgeous area of town as well. Farm-like properties, many with horses (including the Ox Ridge Hunt Club), lots of wooded areas, sprawling properties, and street names like “Bridle Trail”: very beautiful.

So in a nutshell, that is how I would differentiate the key areas of town … anyone else have any thoughts or comments on the topic?

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