By Rabbi Yair Hoffman for 5tjt.com It is considered one of the best neighborhoods in Long Island and personifies suburbia itself.  And almost overnight, it popped up.  There is a shul, an eiruv, and, yes, affordable housing. The Rav of the shul is Rabbi Moshe Winter, a great grandson of Rabbi Irving Bunim, one of the pioneers of Torah Judaism in the United States and a close confidant of Rav Aharon Kotler zt”l.  As far as schooling goes, it is a three mile drive to the Hebrew Academy of Nassau County, and eleven miles to Yeshiva of South Shore. The Eruv was built and is overseen by Rabbi Isaac Kresch, one of the leading Eruv experts in the country and a former member of Rav Leibel Rand’s Kollel in Far Rockaway/Five Towns.  The Far Rockaway Eruv is also under his direction and he also consulted with Rav Shlomo Teitelbaum zt”l on the Kew Gardens Eruv. East Meadow is now the location of the Jewish Heritage Center as well, and is a hub of Kiruv and Torah classes.  There is also something called the Jewish Family Initiative which provides classes for children and adults.  There is daycare too called the Children’s Learning Center. There are family events, social events, Yom Tov events.  These programs and activities are run by Rabbi Gruenstein, Rabbi Portnoy and Rabbi Turk. The latter two are the next generation of the founders of the Jewish Heritage Center in Kew Gardens Hills, New York – a well-known and successful Kiruv program. There is a strong sense of community in East Meadow too, with paint nights, trips to Eretz Yisroel, and constant activities. The pricing of houses is in the high 400,000’s – but you do get a lot of bang for your buck.  These are four-bedroom houses with land.   The lot sizes range from 6000 to 12,000 square feet. There is convenient shopping (think the Roosevelt Field Mall), it is not far from two Gourmet Glatt and Central Avenue of the Five Towns. The crime rate is almost non-existent as well. There is also a lot to do.  There is Eisenhower Park with a lake, Senator Speno Memorial Park with sports courts, the Eisenhower Blue Golf Course, and also an I.Fly Trapeze. There are plenty of recreational activities too. The 5 largest ethnic groups in East Meadow, NY are White  67.5%, Asian 10.8%, Hispanic 6.5% and African American 4.83%. There are families that are also retiring there too.  “I can sell my home for one million plus, and put away over a half million dollars in the bank and live next to a shul with a good eruv.  What could be better?” remarked one person looking into housing in East Meadow. A significant number of East Meadow residents work in Manhattan and commute.  It is about one hour and twenty minutes. If one drives or takes a cab it is 37 minutes. It is an ideal place for frum families looking for affordability, and an opportunity to raise a family in a Torah Kehillah. The author can be reached at yairhoffman2@gmail.com    

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