relocating to harrisburg for law school-concerned about crime (Progress: city hall, rental)

[DmitriyEM]

I'm moving to harrisburg in mid august
and was wondering about what neighborhoods are safe.

[DowntownHarrisburg]

"Safe" will really depend on your personal level of comfort. Some people who were born and raised in (and rarely left) rural communities would consider any city to be exactly like Detroit. Someone who was raised in Philly will find Harrisburg harmless.

As a general rule of thumb, you should probably avoid the areas between Cameron St and Progress Ave, bordered by Herr St and I-83. It's not that this entire area is bad, it's just that you really need to be cognizant of the individual neighborhoods in this area.

The two worst areas of the city (crime-wise) are Allison Hill (roughly the area from State & Cameron to 19th & I-83) and uptown Harrisburg (roughly the area north of Maclay St). You should avoid these areas.

The rest of the city, including the suburbs, require common sense and situational awareness -- just like every other city / suburb on the planet.

Downtown (from Front & Forster to Paxton St, west of the railroad tracks) is Harrisburg's entertainment & professional district. IMHO, it's very safe. There are several major rental communities here -- Executive House, The Grayco, Old City Hall, PA Place, and a few others. The area along Chestnut seems to be especially safe, perhaps due to the near-constant pedestrian traffic from the hospital and the train station.

Midtown is Harrisburg's arts & cultural district. Midtown is a little more difficult to precisely define, but us locals generally regard the entire area between Forster and Maclay to be "midtown". There are actually a dozen or so defined neighborhoods within there, but nobody ever says they're from the "northern gateway development area". Most of the action happens along Third St between Forster & Reily. Generally speaking, you should stay south of Reily until you're more familiar with the individual neighborhoods. Again, it's not that the entire area north of Reily is bad, it's just that there are a few problem locations up there that can cause problems for someone unfamiliar with the details.

What specifically are you looking for? Hirise? Garden-style? Suburban? Pool? Walkability? Views?

[DmitriyEM]

well actually i was planning to move into River Plaza(i believe it's on north front and seneca)
the area looks respectable more or less

[DowntownHarrisburg]

River Plaza is in a "safe" location. Generally speaking, the entire length of Front St is safe. However, I would suggest avoiding the areas east of Second. If you want to walk downtown / midtown for anything, I would suggest sticking to Front until you get to Reily. Again, both of these suggestions are only until you learn the finer details of the area, as they steer you past a lot of good areas as well.

I looked into River Plaza earlier this year. I was really impressed with the building overall. My only gripe was its distance to the downtown / midtown gathering spots.