Page 54 - The Business Council of Westchester - 2018 Relocation Guide

CLASH OF THE TITANS
Westchester vs. NYC
S o, you’ve finally made that all-important decision: You packed up everything that matters to you and headed north, out of the Big Apple and into that “great unknown” called Westchester. We’re here to tell you that you made the right call. Sure, there’s no denying that New York City has everything and is one of the most exciting cities in world. But at what cost? Between the noise, congestion, aging infrastructure, declining services, upward-spiraling
cost-of-living and enervating pace, it can be difficult to even hear yourself think, much less relax and enjoy.
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LIVING IN WESTCHESTER AND THE HUDSON VALLEY | RELOCATION & MOVING GUIDE
Top: Blue Hill at Stone Barns has been rated America’s best restaurant. Above: the amazing sculpture garden at PepsiCo headquarters in Purchase.
M oving to Westchester alleviates nearly all of those issues yet keeps you a stone’s throw from all the things you love about the the City. The truth is, commuting to Manhattan by car or the Metro-North rail system can often deposit you in Manhat- tan in less time than it takes to commute from the other NYC boroughs. From White Plains, in the heart of the county, Man- hattan is about 30 minutes away by car under favorable conditions — and many parts of Westchester are even closer than that. If you prefer to avoid the hassle of driving, an express Metro-North train from White Plains chauffeurs you to Grand Central Station in a brisk 33 minutes. From Yonkers, the express train ride is less than
half an hour.
But the truth is, you don’t really have
to leave Westchester at all. And you may not want to, because within its 500 beau- tiful square miles, the county of 975,000 residents, much like its southern urban sibling, has all anyone could want. What follows are some interesting aspects of
Westchester County that might have you telling yourself: There’s no place like my NEW home!
HOUSING COSTS
When it comes to the cost of housing, there’s simply no comparison. According to the most recent Douglas Elliman Real Estate report, the median cost per square foot to purchase residential real estate in Westches- ter is $313, whereas Manhattan is an astro- nomical $1,773. Also, houses in Westches- ter average 1.3 more rooms for that price than their Manhattan counterparts.
DINING
New York City may be considered the Res- taurant Capital of the World, but Westches- ter’s food scene will easily seduce the most discriminating gourmand. In fact, Pocantico Hills is home to America’s best restaurant, according to The World’s 50 Best Restau- rants, in the form of Blue Hill at Stone Barns, and Yonkers is where James Beard Award winner/celebrity chef Peter Kelly has his flagship restaurant, Xaviar’s X2O, right off the Hudson River. There’s also former Windows on the World GM Glenn Vogt’s RiverMarket, as well as Port Chester’s Tarry Lodge, the brainchild of Mario Batali and Joe Bastianich. Other foodie hotspots include Winston, Morton’s, Crabtree’s Kit- tle House (with its 65,000-plus-bottle wine cellar), Aquario, KEE Oyster House, BLT, Benjamin Steak House, Gaucho Grill, The Riverview and the Inn at Pound Ridge by Jean-Georges, among countless others.
HOTELS
We all know that Manhattan has Ritz- Carltons in Central Park and Battery Park, but did you know that Westchester has its