Briarcliff Manor

Ossining’s pretty, well-kept residential area is Briarcliff Manor, the probable subject of many a John Cheever story. Not much has changed since the 1960s, although many of the houses have grown in size. It is an affluent suburb without being insanely lavish, like many of its neighboring towns, and there are actually some affordable areas.

The Briarcliff Manor School District has one elementary school, and a combined middle and high school; it’s a small district, and has excellent facilities and high test scores, and almost all its graduates go on to college.

Westchester Community College has a campus in Ossining, Pace University has one in Briarcliff, and SUNY Purchase is a short commute.

Briarcliff Manor has an active Recreation Department, and there are a multitude of great clubs and gatherings based here: The Briarcliff Garden Club, the Choral Arts Society, Friends of Music, The Handweavers Guild of Westchester, the Ossining Arts Council, and the Westchester Ballet Company. The Calvary Baptist Church even hosts “Dynamic Sunday Sermons,” as well as jazz events.

There are two town parks in Ossining, with one located on the waterfront, and a new aquatic facility at the Community Center, which sports a competition-sized pool. In the Village of Ossining there is a yearly Village Fair, and a weekly summer Farmer’s Market on the corner of Main and Spring Streets Saturdays from 8:30 until 1.

For those in need, the Phelps Memorial Hospital Center is located in nearby Sleepy Hollow.

Briarcliff Manor is a nice choice for those who want a pretty suburb which is close to New York City – safe, clean, with good schools, but without the edgy competitiveness of some of the other areas of Westchester.