REDDING
Small town charm. Open pastures. Wooded hiking trails. Privacy when you want it yet just minutes to the bustle of Danbury, Fairfield, Westport or Ridgefield. Such is the beauty of Redding, long considered by Connecticut Magazine to be Connecticut’s #1 small town.
Nestled on the northeastern side of Fairfield County, Redding captures a bucolic lifestyle more commonly found in towns much further removed from metropolitan areas. Stone walls abound, many of them built by the town’s early settlers. Antique homes, some dating back to the 18th century, can be seen just off the road while elsewhere long driveways allude to a more private lifestyle. Golfers at the Redding Country Club, the town’s only private country club, gaze at a hillside that includes an organic vegetable farm and a private arboretum.
Though the town is located only 65 miles from downtown Manhattan (as the crow flies), more than half of Redding is forested. Within its 31.5 square miles there are 1,600 acres of open space and easements held in trust by the Redding Land Trust. The Redding Book of Trails lists 20 parks and open spaces available for hiking. Huntington State Park, which allows horseback riding as well as hiking and mountain biking is a popular recreation area as is Putnam Memorial State Park. The entrances to both parks are marked by the work of Redding sculptress Anna Hyatt Huntington. Topstone Park, created from land deeded by the photographer and one time Redding resident, Edward Steichen, is a local swimming hole that even has a designated area for dogs to swim.
31.5 square miles*
- Population 8,675
- Median household income: $115,682*
- Median age: 39*
- Tax rate 2007-2008: 22.74 mills
*Connecticut Economic Resource Center, Inc. 2006 data
Education
- Top-rated public school system
- 1 elementary school
- 1 middle schools
- 1 regional high school (shared with Easton)
Housing
- Predominately single family but also offering town houses
Work
- 45 minutes or less to major employment centers in Stamford and White Plains
- 30 minutes or less to Norwalk and Danbury
- Trains to New York City from Branchville station or Katonah
- 45 minutes to Westchester County Airport (HPN); 75 minutes to JFK or LaGuardia
Recreation/sports
· Hiking trails
· Redding Community Center
· Public tennis courts
· Topstone Park town-owned swimming area
· Private country club
· Boys and Girls Club of Redding
- Fishing with state license
- 30 minutes to Long Island Sound or Candlewood Lake
