Alas, poor Carbondale. Ye be unloved by all, it would seem.
I tend to lump Carbondale together with Pittston, Nanticoke, and Plymouth, all of which are in Luzerne County, because they are all archaic former mining communities that have never truly "rebounded" but are just
oozing with potential from every nook and cranny. I wouldn't call it a "dump," and if I were a resident of Carbondale, I think being dubbed "Garbagedale" would be a bit offensive.
Yes, Carbondale's housing stock is mostly dirty and run-down, largely because these dwellings are owned by senior citizens, single mothers, and those on "fixed incomes" who refuse to sell their homes to anyone willing to rehabilitate them; they'd rather hold onto some shred of hope that they can someday fix them up themselves while they are totally ignorant of just how
awful the town's aesthetics are as a result. In some towns, (including Scranton), a lot of lower-income people take pride in their properties to foster at least a "hollow" sense of vibrancy in their neighborhoods. I don't know why Carbondalians can't do the same.
Its downtown is largely boarded-up, a sign of the times as urban sprawl rears its ugly head in nearby Archbald. I like the fact that there is a YMCA in the downtown though; Scranton should have done that in its downtown as well instead of allowing its YMCA to locate in the suburb of Dunmore. A YMCA can serve as a great anchor to draw families back to the city. Another thing that provides me with hope is developer Daniel Siniawa's plans to convert a once-crumbling downtown block into some sort of mixed-use project with a hotel, restaurants, and retail stores. However, he's promised similar success in the form of 100+ new penthouse waterfront condos here in Downtown Pittston, yet the site has been sitting untouched
forever now. An inquiry I sent to his company regarding the project went unanswered; rather I received a reply from one of his employees thanking me for my interest in the company and that he would "pass along the encouragement to Mr. Siniawa." I'd be
more impressed if he'd finish one project before promising ten more to other areas; he certainly didn't "drag his feet" like this when it came to raping Dickson City of its open space for chain retail stores, did he?
I guess he saw more "urgency" in promoting urban sprawl in Dickson City as opposed to helping to reinvest in these same urban cores that he helped to destroy in the first place. As such, this project leaves me quite skeptical when there are already so many others on his "drawing board" that have yet to see the first shovel dig in.
I thought the "white-trash" comment was a bit unfair as well. I was at the city council meeting in Scranton today. Trust me, Scranton has its fair share of "trash" as well, one of whom even wore a
beer-promoting t-shirt to the podium to address council.
The "white-trash" image is a
regional problem, not one localized to specific cities or towns. Trust me, as a gay guy I cringe whenever some of these people speak, but I also realize you can't generalize an
entire city as being that bad.
In my opinion, Carbondale, Pittston, Nanticoke, and Plymouth all have wonderful potential. They're just years away from fully-realizing it. I'm guessing your brother-in-law has a "fixation" upon Carbondale because the housing is so cheap. You know why? Residents have to commute all the way to Scranton for suitable employment options, and much of the housing stock, overall, is
run-down. Would I pay more than $70,000 for most of those homes in town? Nope. You can only sell a home for as much as a buyer is willing to compensate you for it. When 75% of the town's housing stock has dingy aluminum siding, unkempt front lawns, peeling paint, etc., then it's hard to remain optimistic about its future.
I know there are some Carbondalians lurking around this forum. May I respectfully ask why so few of your townspeople take pride in their properties? Many of your homes are advertised by realtors as being "Handyman's Specials" or "Fixer-Uppers." Why didn't you all take care to properly-maintain them in the first place to prevent them from falling into such shambles?
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Carbondale????
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