28 Columbia Ave

With large apartment complexes and mid-century, single-family Victorian and colonial-style homes for rent, Lower Vailsburg has a sense of retro charm that extends to the many small businesses lining the commercial streets. Residents here take so much pride in their community that many blocks have their own neighborhood associations.

You can run into many of your neighbors hanging out at Vailsburg Park, a 30-acre green space originally designed by noted landscape architect Frederick Olmsted. Soccer fields, baseball diamonds, and bocce ball courts attract locals, with a playground and a concert area for special events. Downtown Newark sits only three miles to the east, but you can meet up with your neighbors closer to home at casual spots like Bones Kitchen or Kayla & Dewitts.