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Living in Winthrop

Matt Karolian asks:

What's the deal with Winthrop? Decent place to buy a joint?

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Comments

People are nice , no supermarkets , maybe nice bake shop in center , only two ways in or out , airport stuff used to mess with cell phone reception,

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The center has a little grocery store. One of those old school neighborhood stores with 5 or 6 aisles.

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Used to be a Liberty Market , where the CVS is , if my memory is working......

Plus , Winthrop has a giant King size golf ball....
http://coldwar-ma.com/B-21DC_Ft.html

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you're right, the old Liberty Market (owned by the Lombardo's function hall family) is now closed and that building is the new CVS. the former manager of Liberty Market opened the Winthrop Marketplace on Revere Street, in a different commercial area, known as Magee's Corner. It's only about 4 or 5 aisles, but there are supermarkets nearby in Revere and Eastie, including the new Market Basket in Beachmont, where Cerretani's supermarket used to be if you're really old school!

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Cerretani's became a Shaw's for a while , didn't it ? Right across from the entrance to the horses. Previte's little market gone from Beachmont I hear.

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supposedly John Jr's son ran it into the ground. Too bad, I really enjoyed the old man's hand written signs. Nothing like a good sale on chicken cuttles.

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He'd make a nice sangwich for you too !

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I got some friends who live there. It seems to be a nice quiet place, except for when the planes are flying over. They sometimes have a little difficulty in storms with high tide when trying to get out in winter. Or maybe that's just an excuse but they don't want to go out.
Another friend keeps a boat over there. He does complain about how oily his boat gets above deck compared to when he used to dock his boat much further outside the city. He claims it's from the aircraft. I've no clue if that's true or not but it does make you stop and think about the air you might be breathing. But then again Data is not the plural of anecdote.

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Joints are generally better in Cambridge

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There will be times that Winthrop is an island. Can you deal with that? Also, some areas are floodier than others ... you might want to check before you buy.

My boss was amused that a friend of his, a big climate change scientist, moved to the area and moved to Winthrop just in time to be flooded out by Sandy and a couple of nor'easters.

Check the maps.
http://www.town.winthrop.ma.us/pages/WinthropMA_Inspect/fema

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In the nearly 4 years I've lived in Winthrop, there has never been a time where the entire town is an island. Point Shirley does have flooding issues during big storms and there was one instance where Winthrop Ave just inside the Revere side was closed down. But the Boston-Winthrop access has never been closed since I've lived here.

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I'm actually considering a move when my kids get out of school, and Winthrop will do better than, say, Nahant. But it still flooded out in some of our larger incidents.

Also consider that Deer Island was an island once. Until 1938.

With sea level rise and stronger storms in our future, best to find out where the high ground is before you move to a coastal area - any coastal area. Not just for a property you are considering, but with regard to potential flooding of arterial roadways.

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Swirls , Orient Heigts , down by the yacht club , right up your alley. Just on the periphery of Winthrop by the sea , but not trapped by Belle Isle high waters.

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But I think it has already gotten pretty expensive.

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It's a nice enough town to bike around, but getting out to any other non-urban areas is pretty unpleasant. I'd stay in Medford if I were you.

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This is true although it's only about 3 miles to Revere Beach. My wife and I have made that ride a few times on summer Saturday afternoons for lunch and fantastic people watching.

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Haven't lived there in over a decade, but born and raised there, like my parents, which is pretty common. Great spot and often overlooked.

Obviously the planes can be a nuisance if you aren't used to them. Some areas, such as the Highlands area, by Crest Ave and Grover's Ave, aren't impacted by planes. It's very dense, with almost 20k people crammed into its 1.5 sq miles, but that's what most people like about it because you can walk everywhere and know your neighbors.

There are only two ways in/out, one through Orient Heights in East Boston and the other through Beachkmont in Revere. Both of those neighborhoods have Blue Line stops though and you'll be at State Street station in 15 minutes. That said, the Beachmont neighborhood is right next to Suffolk downs, so if a casino ends up there, getting in and out of winthrop would be pretty awful.

Storms and flooding are an issue almost everywhere in town, but if you accept that and don't finish your basement, you'll be fine. If you'd heard about it at all, it's probably from storm coverage since it is the Scituate of the north shore when it comes to storms.

Lots of good, low key restaurants and delis/sandwich shops, mostly Italian food since this is still a heavily Italian-American neighborhood.

It's still more affordable than most greater boston places, likely because it's slightly off the beaten path and the planes and storms put off some people. I'd suggest checking it out and seeing if you like the feel.

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Actually in the 1800s Winthrop use to be a getaway resort town, similar to nantucket back in those days, It was a place to visit only by Boston's elite.

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Flooding is definitely not an issue in all parts of town. The Highlands, for example, as well as most of the Center and Cottage Park neighborhoods, do not have flooding issues.

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Moved here from Cambridge 4 years ago. Kayaking, birding, nicest people I've ever known and 20 minutes to get downtown. I will never move.

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Winthrop has a nice local bus system, run by Paul Revere bus company, connecting to the Blue Line at Orient Heights in East Boston.

BUT, the Paul Revere buses are not really part of the MBTA system, so your Charlie Card won't work on them, and you won't get free transfers to or from the Blue Line.

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If you get a monthly LinkPass or a Commuter Rail 1A pass (same price and effect) you can use it on the Paul Revere buses no problem

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not on a Charlie Card, unless they've made recent changes.

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My husband and I moved here in 2012 and we couldn't be happier with our decision. We bought a renovated condo conversion in a beautiful 1920 house less than a mile into town from the Orient Heights side. The planes are around, but they don't go directly over our home and truthfully, we hardly notice them. To a man, all of our nearby neighbors have been extremely warm and welcoming to us. Despite being the first gay couple on the block, we have both been made to feel like part of the neighborhood.

And for a town of Winthrop's size, it actually has quite a bit to offer on its own, despite being so close to downtown. The two elementary schools are less than 10 years old and there's a new middle/high school under construction, the beach is being restored, great parks, and pretty big selection of nice restaurants. There's an amazing Mexican restaurant in the town center run by a great family and a friendly staff. Also, The Antique Table of Lynn/Swampscott recently opened a second location in Winthrop, and we have really enjoyed going there.

And for what it's worth, there is a fair amount high ground in Winthrop that's minimally affected by weather. Despite being able to see the Belle Isle Marsh from my house, I am not in ether the old or revised FEMA flood maps and do not have serious water issues in my basement. My downstairs neighbor in fact, has a finished basement.

All in all, we feel like we found one of the region's best kept secrets when we moved here!

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When I was growing up in Beachmont, we always referred to Winthrop as the town time forgot.

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You may have seen that there is a plan in progress to help with that "land that time forgot" feeling within Winthrop. The idea is that, eventually, the Winthrop Beach area would have some sort of amenities like food, etc. The plan is basically an effort to create more jobs in Winthrop and to convince more youngish people to move in. Right now, Winthrop skews very old.

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Blackstrap

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Blackstrap!

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