Who was born and bred in the Lehigh Valley? (relocate, work)

[atownresident]

Native here. Born and raised in South Allentown. Yes I do still live in Allentown and feel the City does have potential, but it will take strong leaders in government that are not afraid to take a stand against the nonsense to make any substantial change occur. For those who left Allentown and have a disdain for it I feel sorry for you.
Do not make the mistake though of lumping all of Allentown as a slum because I can tell you it is not. With the City accepting section 8 and low income housing and the advent of I-78 that brought with it a diversification of the city many "old" residents felt uncomfortable with the change and rather then welcome new residents the "old" residents felt threatened and moved to the "suburbs". I do feel the hand outs need to stop.Yes I know city living is not for everybody. Allentown is not all tight congested alley row homes. There are still many nice areas within the City limits.
For those looking to move into the Lehigh Valley give Allentown a look and you will not be disappointed. I can relate with those who harken for the days of glory of Allentown. I can remember going to the Hess's patio restaurant with my parents to get strawberry ice cream. Oh the memories. But we cannot relive the past. That is why I feel we should look to the future. Anyway everybody have a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year.

[toobusytoday]

I don't think of Allentown as a slum, indeed, even the worst sections of Allentown look much nicer then the bad sections of Philadelphia. However, for people that are looking in terms of school districts, all of Allentown funnels into the two high schools, neither of which have good reps. I don't know the answer to curing the problems there but I can't in good conscience recommend people that have children move to Allentown.

[atownresident]

There in lies the problem with Allentown. The school district is not entirely stellar due in part to the large transient population that comes through the schools. I remember coming up through the Allentown school district and getting satisfaction out of my educational experience. This was the time when students were placed into sections ie. gifted, honors, and on down. I understand that this is no longer the case and the schools tend to lump all students together regardless of their academic ability. The emphasis on the PSSA test in the schools is ridiculous. No longer are classrooms an outlet for critical thinking and true learning , but an arena to see which school can perform the best on assessment tests.
It pains me to see what the school district has become, but that is why there are parochial schools. My children will not go through the Allentown School District not because of where the schools are located, but I feel an education based in religion is more important in my particular circumstances. That being said I do see a benefit to attending the Allentown School District one can obtain an appreciation for diversity in the modern world and also how to deal with various cultures. Oh, and part of western Allentown does funnel into the Parkland School District as arranged by the then Mayor Heydt.
I still feel Allentown is a viable option for those looking to find an affordable area that does have positive benefits. I wish I had the tools to resolve Allentown's shortcomings, but being a republican in a democratic city is kind of an up hill battle.

[born a breed in allentown]

Originally Posted by KristyLiz

We just moved here in October, and so far I can count on one hand the number of people I've met that are natives to the lehigh valley.

We were at a neighbor's last night for a party, and everyone who was there was from somewhere else. I have no problem with that since we too are transplants, I just didn't realize the lehigh valley was home to so many transplants.

The native people like myself have been forced by certain poeple[if you know what meen] to relocate father away from allentown,or move away totally because of the steady flow of trash moving here from NY,NJ.It's a shame,if you folk's could experience the pleasant,safe,wholesome life it used be around here.Both my grand parents were pa dutch and spoke it offten,Ohow nice it was back then,NOW REPLACED WITH SPANISH.

[ScranBarre]

Originally Posted by born a breed in allentown

The native people like myself have been forced by certain poeple[if you know what meen] to relocate father away from allentown,or move away totally because of the steady flow of trash moving here from NY,NJ.It's a shame,if you folk's could experience the pleasant,safe,wholesome life it used be around here.Both my grand parents were pa dutch and spoke it offten,Ohow nice it was back then,NOW REPLACED WITH SPANISH.

Hey, if you don't want them overrunning Allentown, we here in Scranton will take any NY/NJ transplants we can get with open arms to help rebuild our tax base! It p*sses me off that they won't move here! RAWR!! LOL!

[weluvpa]

[quote=SWB;2970758]Hey, if you don't want them overrunning Allentown, we here in Scranton will take any NY/NJ transplants we can get with open arms to help rebuild our tax base! It p*sses me off that they won't move here! RAWR!! LOL! [/QUOTE

Scranton doesn't want them! If you want them then let them all move to Pittston.

[CHIP72]

I'm originally from the Lehigh Valley, but I haven't lived there since the first half of 2000.

[ScranBarre]

[quote=weluvpa;2972016]

Originally Posted by SWB

Hey, if you don't want them overrunning Allentown, we here in Scranton will take any NY/NJ transplants we can get with open arms to help rebuild our tax base! It p*sses me off that they won't move here! RAWR!! LOL! [/QUOTE

Scranton doesn't want them! If you want them then let them all move to Pittston.

Scranton needs SOME transplants from SOMEWHERE to rebuild its tax base. The only way Scranton will ever see its tax burden ebb is if there are more taxpayers around to shoulder the burden. I don't think it matters if they arrive from NY, NJ, or Anchorage for that matter.

[Matt_PSU]

I've lived here my whole life except college. I went to Parkland and now live in Bethlehem. I was one of the few that stayed here after college, and that was just by chance when i landed a job. My whole family is around here so that keeps me around.

For years I thought the valley was a great place to live, near two great metro areas but still had all the positives of suburban/rural living. All the growth in the 90's I thought was great. It brought lots of jobs, new shops and restaurants, a better social life, and higher wages. Allentown dropped off a cliff but, no one goes there anyway, I thought.

Well in the last 2 years i've changed my mind. The growth went from local job growth like Olympus and Nestle to mostly Jersey and NYC transplants seeking cheaper housing. My coworkers say their entire neighborhood is all NY/NJ commuters. That is just ridiculous. These people hate our valley, don't support local business, and worst of all, they hate us. To them, it's like playing in the minor leagues or something. To top it off, they've driven up our cost of living at record levels, while our wages have not kept pace. It is getting to the point that a young professional cannot work in the valley AND live in the valley, and afford a decent home. This happened seemingly overnight for me. I am seriously thinking about other options.

Now if you bought a home before '02 or so and your family is established, then life is good for you. But for young people it's a different story entirely. (PS if gas hits $4.00/gal things will change quickly around here)

[3boys269]

Originally Posted by born a breed in allentown

The native people like myself have been forced by certain poeple[if you know what meen] to relocate father away from allentown,or move away totally because of the steady flow of trash moving here from NY,NJ.It's a shame,if you folk's could experience the pleasant,safe,wholesome life it used be around here.Both my grand parents were pa dutch and spoke it offten,Ohow nice it was back then,NOW REPLACED WITH SPANISH.

I take great offense. Not all people from NY are trash. I have lived in NY my whole life, I teach, my husband works very hard, and I have 3 great boys. Everyone is entitled to search out what they consider to be a better life for themselves, and this still being somewhat America, i think THAT is called freeedom...

Times change , places change. Millions of babies are born, and space is needed, unless you have a plan to stop that then unfortunately most farmland will become obsolete. Dont you think parts of Brooklyn -where I am from- used to be nicer, cleaner, less crime? You should see how much building goes on in Brooklyn EVERYDAY, those of you that think 20 kids in a class is a lot, try 30!!

You think I should send my 10 year old son to a JHS where he has the chance EVERYDAY of being beaten up, robbed or jumped, or maybe I should just put him on a bus for 30 minutes twice a day to travel. I dont know if you are a parent but as one it is my responsibility to give my child the right to a happy, comfortable safe life. Wouldn't you agree??

As for the MC mansions, come here and try to buy ANYTHING!! My husband and I work 3 jobs, and pay 1500.00 dollars a month rent for a small 3 bedroom apartment. We sometimes have no heat because my landlord is too cheap( and this is in the better part of Brooklyn). A house with 3 bedrooms, and 1 bath, no basement and needing a lot of work here costs a minimum of 650,000. And that is not a new house. We here work good city jobs and cant manage that.

People from NY are a heck of a lot more desperate in searching for a better way of life for their kids. You don't know what trash is, if you think that people coming there are trash.People who are trash do not search out a better way of life. Believe me we are not moving to the lehigh valley to ruin your lives, you should be flattered that people want to move there.

I am going to safely assume that there are some people that wont consider me and my family of "transplants" trash because we dont say "water" the way you do...... and thank you to those of you that don't.
As for Spanish do you think that is only in PA????? , try Haitian, Chinese, Hebrew , Russian, Creole, .............