What do you think about Elmira, Binghamton, Ithaca, and Jamestown? (New York: real estate, to rent)

[Tioga]

I thought...well..time to speak up for the southern tier (Binghamton west to Elmira)...once again. But on 2nd thought, let's look at a common thread on almost any state on this forum. The thread usually goes like this: Convince me why myself(and/or family) should move to your area. Then the list of wants/no-wants follows. After seeing this same "line" on any state's forums....maybe locals from that proposed relocation area should reply, "Tell us why we would want you in our community?". " Will you be buying/fixing up a place to add to our tax base." Do you have job skills that are in demand in our area?" "Will you get involved..VOLUNTEER.. in our community..or just take from it?" It's almost as if the locals from everywhere/wherever around the U.S. are in competition to give the best sale pitch about where they live. I like where I live (Owego, NY area) and don't feel I have to try to convince others why I choose to stay here. And yes, I have seen and been around much of the country(school, work, military, travel). NOTHING WRONG in asking for info about an area....I just feel if you have to almost beg people to relocate to your are....they probably won't be there for the "duration"...

[Derrick8]

I think Elmira is a nice place to live.

[aka_mouse]

Originally Posted by Tioga

I thought...well..time to speak up for the southern tier (Binghamton west to Elmira)...once again. But on 2nd thought, let's look at a common thread on almost any state on this forum. The thread usually goes like this: Convince me why myself(and/or family) should move to your area. Then the list of wants/no-wants follows. After seeing this same "line" on any state's forums....maybe locals from that proposed relocation area should reply, "Tell us why we would want you in our community?". " Will you be buying/fixing up a place to add to our tax base." Do you have job skills that are in demand in our area?" "Will you get involved..VOLUNTEER.. in our community..or just take from it?" It's almost as if the locals from everywhere/wherever around the U.S. are in competition to give the best sale pitch about where they live. I like where I live (Owego, NY area) and don't feel I have to try to convince others why I choose to stay here. And yes, I have seen and been around much of the country(school, work, military, travel). NOTHING WRONG in asking for info about an area....I just feel if you have to almost beg people to relocate to your are....they probably won't be there for the "duration"...

This is an old post, but since this thread got bumped back up again - I just want to respond and say you are a totally right. I think this is why all these cities in the NE that have had problems and are rougher places to live wind up being better for it. There is a lot of the whole 'begging people' to move there going on, BUT it typically doesn't work. But either way, you have lots of people in these communities working together to try and find good things about the areas, and people working together to fix things.

And honestly, Id rather have that than places people just flock to in huge numbers and thus , ruin. Cause no one cares. They are pretty much there for selfish reasons.

I stay in Buffalo , and I plan on staying here.. cause we arn't growing out of control (tho we are still sprawling) but I think people are nicer here and work together. Even though its a city, I think an individual can make a difference here.

[Mar1lyn27]

Ithaca rules!! I've gotten to know this upstate gem of a city because I have 2 daughters who attended school there. There are in fact 2 colleges; Cornell U, and Ithaca college. They supply an abundance of culture to this small city.

If it wasn't so brutal in the winter, weatherwise, I'd move there in a flash. There is always stuff going on in Ithaca. It's an extremely progressive, tolerant, liberal place. Anything and everything goes, and no one passes judgment.

Cornell U is a major employer there; as is Cayuga Medical Center.

I am currently a LI'er, looking to relocate someplace warm. I'm thiniking FL but I wish I could find a community there with a fraction of the appeal of Ithaca. Any place in FL wiht a little hippie sensibility would thrill me.

That being said, the economy in that part of NY state is depressed. Housing in Ithaca is not inexpensive, and I'm sure heating one's home isnt cheap.
Employment is not good either; but I guess that depends on what it is you do for a living.

Go visit the place on a warm weekend and feel the vibe. Ithaca rocks.

As a matter of fact, one daughter is still living there because she can't tear herself away from the place.

Binghamton is boring; its a small town with little besides Bing. U.

I don't know anything about the other places you mentioned.

[Tioga]

Lucky we have trendy Ithaca to inject some life into our drab upstate New York lives..Obviously Mar1lyn27 hasa felt the "vibe"....sure. And how we ever suckered those half dozen or so LI/NJ families who have relocated to within a mile or 2 of our farm must have been quit a feat. Back in the stone age I dated some girls attending BU from downstate. Critiquing upstaters negatively was one common trait they all had..as I now recall.

[Summering]

High up in the mountains is Endicott. A border town of Binghamton. There are some wonderful developments there. One in particular has awesome views. Quite up to date, and gorgeous homes.
I do know some long timers of Binghamton that would not go anywhere else.
Some are attached to that town. I spent some time in the Binghamton bus station going back to Pa......so, so, old and I'd like to not be there at night, thats for sure. Most of the long timers attend culture events at the Arena.
The children love the carousels all around, the zoo, the Discovery place....trips up to Ithaca, and all those falls.
I do feel when I am in that area that I am in a fishbowl. When you are staying in Endicott..........you have just a few towns surrounding you.
Binghamton, Vestal, Endicott, Endwell, Johnson City..........
Thus the fishbowl effect.
It is an hour and 20 minutes to Syracuse from there.

[Corvia]

I've already raved about Ithaca elsewhere.

I lived in Binghamton for 3.5 years before moving to Ithaca. I found Binghamton to be the most depressing city I've ever lived in. Dirty, run down, few jobs ~> but most of all it seemed to have a high percentage of tiny brains & closed minds. In the early 20th century, it was the center of a Ku Klux Klan resurgence.

OTOH: It has a long established, now large & strong neo-Pagan community and I know that several of these folks have been involved a great deal in making Binghamton a prettier, more interesting, friendlier and generally better place. Lots of inteeligent & creative 20 somethings buying homes (affordable) and settling in helps tremendously. I can envision it coming out of the dark ages and experiencing a renaissance.

[vicarian]

Originally Posted by Corvia

I've already raved about Ithaca elsewhere.

I lived in Binghamton for 3.5 years before moving to Ithaca. I found Binghamton to be the most depressing city I've ever lived in. Dirty, run down, few jobs ~> but most of all it seemed to have a high percentage of tiny brains & closed minds. In the early 20th century, it was the center of a Ku Klux Klan resurgence.

OTOH: It has a long established, now large & strong neo-Pagan community and I know that several of these folks have been involved a great deal in making Binghamton a prettier, more interesting, friendlier and generally better place. Lots of inteeligent & creative 20 somethings buying homes (affordable) and settling in helps tremendously. I can envision it coming out of the dark ages and experiencing a renaissance.

I've heard about that. And before Ithaca becme the liberal mecca it is today (which started to develop in the late sixties), it was a local center for the KKK as well, with KKK parades downtown.

Since we're on this, let's point out that no community is "perfect" socially. Some communities are more tolerant, but there is no village, town or city in this world that is perfectly tolerant of others. We're humans, and we're prone to errors of judgment. The goal is to learn from our errors and improve.

[Tioga]

The Binghamton area so depressing?...really?...The large public housing projects in our larger citys(ex:NYC)..now that's depressing. I attended BU as a "local" some years back, and then worked on site there in the 90's. I take anything negative said on this forum(or elsewhere) by our alumni from downstate w/a healthy dose of skepticism. The attitudes of these temporary transplants was generally negative against anything that I was about...farmer(you're some rube/hic)..local(out-of-touch, not trendy)..veteran(I was a tool of our heavy handed gov't)...dating(How well off is your family $$$?).............yeah..whatever.

[untuchableface]

I grew up right outside of Binghamton, NY and it used to be a nice place. Small and quaint... with a small, but decent downtown area. It has really taken a toll since then. The Binghamton schools have bars on their windows and you hear more and more about crime and murders in the area, when that was almost non existant before. The biggest problem I see in regards to this is that many people in prisons are sent to Binghamton to live out their probation periods. Normally this would not be a huge deal if it were only a handful, however this is not the case for this particular area.

Yes, it is a depressing town. I never go into Binghamton anymore. But, BU is an amazing university.