Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
Looking for a smallish town on the east coast close to (within an hour) a bigger city, with a good airport nearby (within an hour), good healthcare a must, and a place with a "personality".
Weather is pretty important. Doesn't appear these places get a lot of snow, but ice storms/sleet can be worse and that's hard to gauge. Would like a fairly mild climate without a lot of extremes - tornadoes, hurricanes, etc. Which would have the best weather?
Have been to Williamsburg, not the other two. Like Williamsburg a lot but not sure how good healthcare is @ there and it feels a bit isolated. Don't care much for Newport News and Norfolk, but there is Richmond not too far.
Want a place that welcome transplants, safe, things to do and other towns close by to go to to visit for fun.
Any other suggestions appreciated. We are also considering Charlottesville, VA, Chapel Hill, NC and possibly Frederick, MD.
I don't know much about the other two areas, but I am from Media Pa, so I can throw in my two cents there.
To start, Media's slogan (and posted on the welcome signs) is "Welcome to Media, everybody's hometown".
'll address your main points below:
1. Access to city/airport - Media is about 30 minutes from Center City/downtown Philadelphia. The airport is 20 minutes from the Media area. Very easy access to the city and surrounding areas via highways, regional rail lines (SEPTA), bus routes and trolleys (there is a trolley that runs down State Street in downtown Media).
2. Weather - You will experience all 4 seasons in Southeastern PA. Extreme weather is rare (thankfully). Winters are chilly/cold with some snow, but not much the last few years, hot summers, pleasant springs, beautiful autumns.
3. Healthcare - Philadelphia is a leading healthcare city and that extends to the suburbs. Not sure of your exact needs, but Children's Hospital of Philadelphia is nearby, Main Line Health is a huge health group, Crozer-Keystone Medical, Dupont, etc. There is a hospital (Riddle Hospital) part of the Main Line health group in the next town over from Media (Middletown). I would safely say the Philadelphia area will leave you with no shortage of proper medical care.
4. Things to do - Media is a very walk-able borough, tons of restaurants, bars, little shops, Trader Joes, banks, churches, even an elementary school, all downtown. The downtown even closes streets to traffic once a week for outdoor dining (a thing before Covid). The surrounding communities are more suburban in nature, generally lush and green.
A lot of amenities nearby: shopping, groceries, Ridley Creek State Park, Tyler Arboretum, Linvilla Orchards, bike trails, swim clubs, a big park with an amphitheater for summer concerts. The Media area is chuck full of recreation and family type activities.
The Philadelphia metro region is one of the best in the nation and certainly offers the most amenities out of this group, without even factoring in the nearby major city (Philadelphia). There are plenty of other very nice communities near Media - The Main Line towns, West Chester, etc.
King of Prussia Mall is also 20ish minutes away, the largest shopping mall in the nation by retail square footage.
And Philadelphia is a quick drive or train ride away, which is one the best cities to live near as far as amenity options and enjoying a trip to the city.
3. Vibe - Very safe community, family oriented, generally liberal. Diversity is lacking a little bit, many Philadelphia burbs are overwhelmingly white. But, Media is generally a very welcoming friendly crowd, I have never heard any issues of different types of people living in and around the borough. Also, the town gives off a "small-town" appeal, but you are located in a very large metro region.
I will add a few more points...
3. Housing - Huge variety. Media Borough is generally townhomes, apartments and older singles. Some new construction mixed in, with an uptick in new infill projects and apartment style living lately. Homes in the borough go under contract quickly, and on the expensive side. Expect prices to range from $300k+ for a small rowhome to $800k+ for a single family homes.
The surrounding communities - Middletown, Edgemont, Newtown Square, Glen Mills, etc. offer a huge variety of housing options. Anything from cape cods to huge estates. Prices generally range from $300k - $2M+ so again, huge range in options.
Schools - Media Borough is a part of the Rose Tree Media School District, excellent school system, ranking highly from a state and national perspective. Neighboring districts include Marple Newtown, Wallingford Swarthmore and Garnet Valley, all excellent as well.
Lastly, Media Borough zip-code is 19063 and several surrounding towns fall under the same zip-code - Middletown, Upper Providence and parts of Aston. Other nearby zipcodes 19073 - Newtown Square. 19342 - Glen Mills. Edgemont - 19028.
Never lived in Media, but stopped by for a meal and some wandering about town. I thought it was really quaint and bustling for its size with a lot of beautiful historic architecture. There's even a streetcar of sorts.
Wow, thank you cpomp!! That's an amazing run-down of Media. Makes me want to visit now.
Thank you march2 and citidata18 for chiming in on Franklin.
Citidata18, what specifically do you like about Franklin?
I did forget to mention that we are in our 60s, so no kids, and I work virtually, so work commute is not an issue.
Franklin has a better sense of place, more like a satellite city than a generic suburb. It also feels more upscale and has better access to the city (Nashville) than Exton does to Philadelphia.
I also prefer the rolling hills in Franklin compared to Williamsburg.
Thanks for the explanation. Do you know anything about Charlottesville? Other than size, it seems it might be similar in topography and personality to Franklin. Richmond is an hour away, DC 2 hours. (Love DC, one of my favorite cities).
As to our other choice, Chapel Hill, we haven't been there for years so I don't know if that falls into the "generic suburb" or not. The closest "city" Raleigh I've heard described as a "suburban city" whatever that means, so I don't know.
Does anyone know how the health care compares in Nashville (Vanderbilt) vs Durham (Duke Univ Hospital) vs Charlottesville (UVA Hospital)? Also access to specialists? Duke Univ Hospital (and UNC Hospital) are both excellent.
Media and that area is definitely worth checking out, so keeping it on the list. Philly has excellent medical care. PA also doesn't tax pensions. TN we know has no income tax. VA has partial tax on pensions. NC taxes pensions in full, so is the most expensive of the three.
I don't think Williamsburg offers as much of what we want/need so we'll probably take that off the list.
Quote:
Originally Posted by citidata18
Franklin has a better sense of place, more like a satellite city than a generic suburb. It also feels more upscale and has better access to the city (Nashville) than Exton does to Philadelphia.
I also prefer the rolling hills in Franklin compared to Williamsburg.
Franklin has a better sense of place, more like a satellite city than a generic suburb. It also feels more upscale and has better access to the city (Nashville) than Exton does to Philadelphia.
I also prefer the rolling hills in Franklin compared to Williamsburg.
Curious, where was the mention of Exton?
I saw mention of Media, which is not a generic burb, very close to Philadelphia and a generally well-kept affluent area.
Exton is indeed more generic suburb, but still nice. (I visited Franklin, TN once, it was a nice area as well).
I saw mention of Media, which is not a generic burb, very close to Philadelphia and a generally well-kept affluent area.
Exton is indeed more generic suburb, but still nice. (I visited Franklin, TN once, it was a nice area as well).
Indeed. Media is also roughly the same distance (~10 miles) from Philadelphia as Franklin is from Nashville.
One difference is that Media also offers both trolley (as was noted) and commuter rail to Philly.
And as you noted, both the Media and Exton areas are certainly on the affluent/upper middle-class side, as well.
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
