Pleasant Valley

In the run around of busy everyday lives, it is easy to believe that community-centered living is a thing of the past. Pleasant Valley is one of the towns that would challenge such assumptions. Seated in the heart of Dutchess County, defined by three distinct hamlets, Pleasant Valley offers an intriguing blend of rural and suburban. There are all the conveniences of a proximity to amenities and good schools that you would expect in any well-planned suburb; but there is also the additional bonus of a community that prides itself on its long history and seeks to use it to forge a strong sense of collective identity.

Washington Hollow, Pleasant Valley and Salt Point are the three hamlets that make up the Town of Pleasant Valley. Built around churches built in the early half of the 19th century, there are sections of Pleasant Valley where you can still feel the reality of the long-ago farming and milling history of this town. Those who appreciate a place with plentiful open spaces and hope to have a whiff of old-world Americana are bound to be charmed by Pleasant Valley.

The fact that the schools here are part of the large Arlington Central School District is seen as a big positive by many who live in the area. The diverse student body has helped the schools establish their strength in varied fields from academics to sports. It can be a competitive environment. Between the extra curricular activities in the schools and the good programs of the Park and Rec department, youngsters interested in pursuing different athletics are more than likely to find a good match.

Pleasant Valley has houses to fit different budgets. If you want a secluded and sprawling estate or a small fixer-upper, the chances are you'll find one here. It is a community that is growing increasingly popular as people have come to appreciate all that it offers at relatively lower prices. Its location works well for getting to various points in Dutchess County and I know of a few folks who actually drive to train stations further down south and commute biweekly to NYC. While I wouldnt see it as an easy commute to Manhattan, technically it is possible!

Pleasant Valley draws many inevitable comments about is pleasantness - and this is one of those rare instances where it does deserve those compliments!

According to its town website, Pleasant Valley is a “rural-suburban” community with a population of 10,000. Located in the central part of Dutchess County, it stretches out over a 33 square mile area. The town was settled in 1735. Early residents came to the area to take advantage of water power provided by Wappinger Creek.

The Pleasant Valley Free Library serves the town, with books, DVDs and other materials available for borrowing. The library is part of the Mid-Hudson Library System, which gives patrons access to materials from other libraries.

The Pleasant Valley Department Store is one of the last of its kind. Established in 1946 by two soldiers returning from war, it’s one of the few independently owned department stores in the country. It sells clothes for men, women and children, as well as toys, accessories, shoes and sporting goods.

Most of the students who live in Pleasant Valley attend school in the Arlington Central School District, which covers 114 square miles. There are 10,100 students attending from several different towns. There are eight elementary schools and three middle schools. Arlington High School has 3,400 students; last year’s graduating class has 750 students. However, the district’s large size does not preclude it from successfully educating its students. Ninety percent of its graduates go on to college, with the remaining students entering the military or the workforce.

Pleasant Valley’s recreation department operates 5 town parks. Three public schools also have recreational facilities for public use. The most historic property, Mill Site Museum and Memorial Park, is located on the site of Lott’s Mill, which was built in 1757. The Taconic-Hereford Multiple Use Area is a state property with equestrian and hiking trails on 909 acres; hunting is permitted during the season. Innisfree Garden is a 150 acre public garden whose borders stretch across two towns, Pleasant Valley and Washington. Forty acres of the land is covered by a lake, with walking trails crisscrossing the property.

People looking in Pleasant Valley will find inventory at several price points. There are large homes on several acres of property, as well as smaller single family homes.

Pleasant Valley, Dutchess County is home to James Baird State Park, 590 acres of park that includes an 18 hole golf course, trails throughout the wooded areas, picnic tables and pavilions, a nature center that hosts nature programs for all ages, and plenty of land for hiking in the summer and snowshoeing in the winter. The James Baird Golf Course is a unique spot in of itself, as not only does it have a sprawling 18 hole golf course, but also a clubhouse, a driving range, and a snack bar---including its very own restaurant, Eagles Nest Catering, which is right on the golf course, so you can watch the golfers while you eat great food in the stunningly beautiful, enchantingly pleasant Hudson Valley!

Arlington School District serves Pleasant Valley students. The District’s High School is the “Home of the Admirals”, proud of its great sports teams. The school offers its students a Marist College “Bridge Program”, where students can choose from either Math or History courses. AHS also proudly contains an award-winning marching band and a student-run cafe, the Admiral Cafe. You can bet that all schools have lots of great clubs and activities and really try to reach out to their community. As a student once at Arlington High School, in 9th grade, Mr. Clark inspired me to become an English teacher, of which I am currently in school to be.

It’s very affordable to live in Pleasant Valley (median cost for a home here is $306,400%). While the cost for living is a bit higher than the national average, it’s a very safe place to live so your choice to live here is worth it. There’s lots of Italian restaurants with great pizza (like Madison’s Pizza Cafe or Four Brother’s Pizza), as well as unique restaurants like Comx Cyber Cafe, which is an internet gaming cafe that lets newcomers earn a free hour of fun gaming on their many computers. There’s also a Subway and the family-friendly Village Restaurant. Shops include Dunkin’ Donuts, Past N’ Present (a unique thrift store and recycled clothes consignment shop), a Dollar General, the PV Bicycle Shop, the Family Dollar Store and the Pleasant Valley Department Store (among others). Nearby Poughkeepsie has great transportation such as their Amtrack train station, and both highly regarded Vassar Brothers and St. Francis Hospital. Pleasant Valley is like its name: safe and wonderful and full of great things.

Just take your loved ones for a picnic or a stroll in lovely Baird Park any season of the year and you’ll know why people love to stay in Pleasant Valley, NY all their lives: it’s beautiful and peaceful and---well---pleasant and fun for everyone, just about any old time of the year!

Pleasant Valley is a picturesque town within close range of well known Poughkeepsie that has wide open spaces, a few large scale dwellings and many small to mid scale single family homes.

Restaurants in the valley include The Purple House Italian Restaurant which is indeed a vibrant plum purple and serves really good “home-cooked” Italian fare. Many folks just rave about the pizza there. Other establishments include Village Restaurant, Subway, Four Brothers Pizza, Amore Pizzeria & Café, Madison’s Pizza Café, Comx Cyber Café, Beijing Chef and McDonalds.

The popular Publick House Bar and Camaraderie has a full menu of great American food including award-winning wings, and has been touted as one of the best restaurants in the Hudson Valley. But perhaps even more importantly, it offers some nice nightlife and was ranked as one of the top five hotspots in/around Poughkeepsie. They have Wi-Fi access, big screen HDTVs for sports enthusiasts, a pool table, beer pong, darts, a DJ and dancing, live entertainment, cool cocktails and great happy hours.

Shopping in the area includes the likes of PV Bike Shop, Past n’ Perfect which has fashions for the whole family and cool consignment items, gifts and jewelry, etc., Valley Hardware, Family Dollar, Dollar General, The Barn Thrift Shop, Pleasant Valley Frame Shop, Party-Rific, Glitz, The Jewelry Store, Cotter’s Wine and Liquor Store, Tomorrow’s Treasures, redboxes and some gas stations. And never fret, for the Poughkeepsie Galleria Mall and many other shopping and entertainment resources are only twenty minutes away.

For your local grocery shopping needs, you can head over to the A & P on North Avenue which also has an associated Valley Wines & Spirits. There is also the lovely family-owned Quattro Farm Store and the Branch Health Food Center.

Local Bower Park will give you access to the beautiful Bower Quarry Trails that are open for walking, biking and cross-country skiing. James Beard State Park harbors the wonderful James Beard State Park Golf Course whose 13th hole is known as one of the most challenging in the entire Hudson Valley! The golf course also has a driving range, a pro golf shop, a clubhouse and a snack bar. The park itself has wooded picnic areas, picnic pavilions, a playground, a nature center and a sports complex where you can enjoy basketball, softball, tennis and volleyball. The park also has seven miles of scenic wooded trails for walking, snowshoeing and cross country skiing.

The parks and rec department holds some fabulous summer camps for kids in grades one through nine. The Pleasant Valley/La Grange Senior Drop-in Center is located in the town hall and they host classes, games and luncheons as well as informational programs concerning health, transportation, medicine, nutrition and music.

Students are part of the Arlington School District which is pretty good.

Pleasant Valley is pretty safe and the crime rate is quite low.

The median household income is about $54,578.

The population of Pleasant Valley is approximately 9,672.

Pleasant Valley is a town to Poughkeepsie's northeast and is a popular "suburb" of that city, if one wants to call it that. At one point or another in my life, I've always known at least one person living in Pleasant Valley, and few have expressed disappointment about their surroundings.

This town is close enough to Poughkeepsie to have the nearby conveniences of hospitals, stores, supermarkets, gyms, restaurants, bars, and all other establishments/local businesses along those general lines, but without the higher population and inevitable traffic that comes with it. Don't get me wrong, there are usually plenty of cars coming through on US Route 44 (some residential, some not), but I have never witnessed it as the kind of congestion that makes you want to gouge your eyes out and give up driving altogether.

Public transportation is available here, but only in the form of the county bus system (the "Loop Bus"). Based on the current routes as of spring 2012, this bus comes to Pleasant Valley at least seven times a day; consult the Dutchess Loop Bus website for more details. The trains to New York City or elsewhere, however, do not pass through here; to catch the Amtrak or Metro North, you'd have to go to the City of Poughkeepsie, which isn't a terrible drive from Pleasant Valley, but a drive nonetheless -- and one commuters here do occasionally make.

The center of town does have some civilization in the traditional sense, with restaurants, gas stations, churches, a supermarket and so forth. Again, residents are also close enough to the built-up Poughkeepsie area that everything else that one might need is not terribly far away.

Pleasant Valley, despite having some population and enough local businesses to make a difference, also features some wide-open spaces. Some side streets feature larger houses and carefully-manicured properties that are clearly owned by the well-to-do -- perhaps not extremely wealthy, but some here do have money. There are plenty of other residents, however, that seem to be of a more average income. Nevertheless, the area is fairly green and in some places picturesque, also taking into account that the Wappinger Creek passes through.

It may not be the most exciting place to live or visit, but there is a reason it does have appeal to people around here. Many find it a nice place to settle down and raise a family, and more than a few have chosen to retire here as well. The schools in Pleasant Valley have always appeared to be of good quality and the setting is relatively peaceful.