ROCKLAND /Beal St. and Beal St. extension
Cozy neighborhoods boasts generations of families

By ANDREW LIGHTMAN
For The Patriot Ledger Area: 10.1 sq. mi.

POPULATION
2000: 17,670
2007: 18,188

Density: 1,801 res./square mile
Median age: 38
Median household income: $57,661

FINANCES
Tax rate: $9.78
Town budget: $46 million
Average water bill: $300/family of 4

HOUSING
Median home price (sales)
2007: $340,000 (11)
2008: $295,625 (4)
Median condo price
2007: $247,450 (4)
2008: 0

SCHOOLS
Number of students: 2,524
Number of teachers: 161
H.S grads to 4-year college: 56%
H.S grads to 2-year college: 26%
Median SAT score (2006): 1460

Steve Hall grew up on Beal Street Extension and never wanted to leave. On his street, as well as Beal Street and the adjacent Phillips Street, Hall’s story is a familiar one.

In the cozy Rockland neighborhood just off Route 123, the capes and colonials tend to stay in families.

Dan DiRenzo, a real estate broker and owner of Realty Choice in Rockland, said owners bought their houses from their parents throughout the neighborhood.

“It’s impressive. People stay in the neighborhood that long,” DiRenzo said. “It’s good for the town to have people stay like that.”

Hall, 52, bought his home from his parents. He wanted to stay on the quiet street he has known since he was 10.

Hall bought his family home 18 years ago to raise his own family on the quiet cul-de-sac.

“It’s a quiet neighborhood. There’s never any trouble,” Hall said. “It’s been very stable, that’s for sure.”

The neighborhood was built in the 1950s. The shape of the streets make them safe for kids to play and easy for parents to keep an eye on things from their windows. Tall trees surround the houses, and most homes have large, well-maintained backyards.

The streets are less than two miles from Route 3 and about 20 miles from downtown Boston. The area is not within walking distance to any of the town’s elementary schools, but it is only about 3 miles from the nearest supermarket in Norwell and 2 miles from the Park & Ride on Route 228.

Three sales have been recorded on Beal Street Extension in the last three years, DiRenzo said, while there has only been one on Beal Street.

The last home to sell on Beal Street Extension sold for $394,000, DiRenzo said.

The Hall family bought their house on Beal Street Extension 42 years ago from the Sciarappa family. They now lives around the corner.

Barbara Sciarappa said she and her husband loved the neighborhood so much that they built a house on Phillips Street.

Sciarappa said she has enjoyed living on the street, watching the houses go up around hers, and seeing the young people grow up and stay as homeowners.