Krissy Ventura, Author at Newburyport Area

Kids off to College, Is It Time To Downsize?

By Krissy Ventura, Newburyport.Com Correspondent
Residential Sales Specialist for the BENTLEY'S Real Estate Team, Krissy works as a buyer’s agent, tirelessly to find her clients the perfect home, as she understands the importance of getting it right the first time. As a listing agent, Krissy will work her hardest to sell your home at the highest price, in the shortest amount of time, and with the most favorable terms. Krissy has outstanding communication skills developed over many years working in the business world, and she makes it a top priority to stay in touch with her clients at all times with updates on their particular situation. She is a happily married native of Newburyport with three children. Contact Krissy to schedule an appointment!
Krissy Ventura

Is It Time To Downsize? My kids are off to college, is it time to downsize? This is a very exciting time of year, for our area’s hundreds of high school’s seniors. They are wrapping up their final semester of high school and planning lots of exciting events ahead, including senior class trips, senior week festivities, proms and finally culminating with their high school graduation.

Lots of seniors are going to be heading off to college next fall…some might even know where they are going already, having applied for early action/decision in the fall. The rest were busy over winter break filling out those last few supplements, writing that last essay and preparing for their interviews at their favorite schools. Whatever the stage your child may be in, the process of applying to college can be a stressful, albeit exciting one. Some of you may even be thinking, now that the kids are off to college…should we be thinking of downsizing /relocating. Now what?

Having recently sent two kids off to college, I understand that thinking. Your large family home is becoming high maintenance, and now less space and the desire to live simpler is your new motto. Maybe you’re retiring or just want a low-maintenance lifestyle. Sometimes the need to downsize isn’t always by choice, life events sometimes force the issue. Maybe you’d like to buy a home closer to downtown, with a small yard, or perhaps no yard at all, and walk to restaurants and the waterfront? Just like applying to colleges, the buying and selling process can be extremely stressful. It’s your largest investment after all! Keep in mind that it is a sellers’ market right now and rates are still very low, so making the move and locking into a nice, low interest rate, while pocketing your built-up equity in your home, might just be one of your goals for 2017. If you determine it is, I’m available to work with you to make the process as stress free and fun as possible!

https://www.newburyport.com/agent/krissy-ventura/

NHS Senior Week….The Tradition Lives On

Newburyport High School Graduation, Newburyport MA

Its that time of year again…another class has wrapped up its four years at Newburyport High School and is preparing to graduate. A proud Newburyport tradition for all graduating seniors of NHS is the week before graduation. It is referred to as “Senior Week” and includes various fun activities. Activities include a senior banquet, a Sox game, a trip to Giggles Comedy club, the senior prom and traditional activities like Vespers, Ivy Day and the Senior Sing out. It’s a great week of final bonding with classmates and last hurrahs with lifelong friends. The last day of senior week is graduation, happening this year on June 7^th at 1pm at NHS’s Stadium. The graduation itself is very traditional, starting with the procession of graduates entering under the “arch of roses” and wrapping up with the singing of the Alma Mater. Growing up here makes the whole senior week so special; being able to celebrate the same NHS traditions with my children. This is my second one to graduate from NHS and it sure is special watching them participate in these age-old traditions.

I sometimes wonder about living someplace else and not being able to send my children to a school that has such a long history (my grandmother went to NHS, as did both of my parents!). Newburyport itself dates back to 1635, but became an official city in 1851, prospering in fishing, shipbuilding and silverware manufacturing. Many of the large clipper ships were built right here in Newburyport (hence the mascot of NHS being the “Clippers”). We have many historical homes for sale highlighting amazing architecture and historical features from a bygone era. Our entire downtown area was restored with the utmost care to preserve the beauty and elegance, while still being functional and liveable, with numerous retail shops, restaurants, bakeries and even our own theater. Its no wonder most people who hear I live in Newburyport tell me how lucky I am…and I get it. It’s a beautiful city with a deep history and we ARE lucky to call it home.

Newburyport Life On The Water

Newburyport on the Water, Newburyport MA

The weather has finally started to brighten and spring is in the air…and nowhere is that more apparent than in Downtown Newburyport on the water. The marina workers are busy getting all of the docks into the water. They pulled them out last October/November and they have been sitting in the boatyards all winter, under ten feet of snow, as was the case this year. Well the snow has melted and the docks are being painstakingly moved from their winter storage and into position all along the banks of the Merrimack River. Its hard work and takes some time, but this group of guys have been doing it for over 25 years, so they know their stuff!

The largest marina in the area is called Newburyport Marinas and it includes the docks at Newburyport Harbor Marina, Hilton’s Marina, Windward Yacht Yard and the Newburyport Boat Basin. They are all located along the Merrimack River in historic Newburyport, with more than 500 slips for seasonal/transient dockage and accommodations for boats ranging in size up to 125′. We happen to have a small 22’ Sea Ray and moor it at Hilton’s Marina, right next to the Black Cow restaurant. HILTON’S MARINA is just 3 miles from the mouth of the Merrimack River with 65 slips. Hilton’s Marina can accommodate boats ranging in size up to 100’ feet and is a short walk to shopping, dining and activities in the downtown area. It’s a wonderful place to keep your boat, as it is a short ride up river or even out through the mouth of the river to enjoy the ocean on your way to places like Cranes Beach, the Isles of Shoals, fishing at Jeffries Ledge or other local harbors.

Along with personal boating, the City offers many other options to enjoy the water. We have a whale watching company, kayak and paddle board rental company, the Ninth Wave catamaran for rentals and a small river cruise trip from the main docks on the waterfront. Enjoy the water and then head up town to enjoy some great shopping or have a delicious meal in one of our many restaurants. Newburyport has a lot to offer the frequent visitor but really makes life feel like a permanent vacation when you live here!!! ENJOY!

HISTORY IN THE MAKING ON THANKSGIVING DAY!

This Thanksgiving the Newburyport High School football team will have the opportunity to play its traditional rivalry game against Amesbury High School on the newly renovated turf field atop of Mt Rural. Mt Rural, as the hill was called where the magnificent NHS now sits, is home to one of the grandest high school stadiums in the entire state, World War Memorial Stadium. Built in 1930, during FDR’s administration, the stadium took three years to build and employed many men during the Great Depression.

My grandmother was a member of the first freshman class at NHS and was able to enjoy this amazing stadium from the very beginning. The building of this stadium gave the community a newfound sense of pride and the entire community would come out each weekend for the games, seating as many as 8,000 fans in the stadium! Over the years, the stadium has been home to concerts, various sporting events, numerous NHS graduations, as well as community events.

The stadium was built for longevity, however, after over 60 years, in 1999, the visitor side of the stands were deemed unsafe and the wear and tear of the years of usage started to show. A group of concerned alumni, parents and community members decided to form a group called RESTORE and set off on a long journey to raise the necessary funds to renovate the stands and provide todays students with a state of the art turf field.

It took over 10 years, but this Thanksgiving we can all join together to celebrate the efforts of the RESTORE group and watch the historic game vs Amesbury on our new field. The new field will be dedicated to legendary football coach and long time Athletic Director, Jim Stehlin, who was around when I was at NHS. The history behind NHS and the entire City of Newburyport continues on for all to remember and enjoy! Happy Thanksgiving!