Five reasons why i hate Scranton (sale, house, dorms)

[GreenRidgeGuy]

Originally Posted by westcoast30

Those lists limit to populations over 400,000. Binghamton I believe has 52 sunny days with about 212 cloudy days, which would mean many areas of NEPA are closer to Binghamton's stats. Avoca seems to count an hour of clear skies as completely sunny. Just watch the weather channel, it always appears brighter than what it really is.

Let's face it.. it's a damn cloudy place. Not as oppressive during the warmer months, but definitely in the heart of winter. Sometimes in the summer, a bad system can leave the region with a week of overcast and rain with NO sun. Travel out West and notice the daily blue skies and sunshine, even on partly cloudy days. Even a nearby place like Philly or NYC has more sun during the winter (they're still cloudy though).

Wilkes-Barre and Scranton are both the same. Cloudy. They're both mostly cloudy with maybe a chance of sun. The stats confirm it. It might not bother some people. It's really noticeable if you travel around and lived in other places. I also went to PSU in State College and it had the same constant cloudy weather. When the skies were clear or mostly clear for an entire day during high school and college, the classrooms and lecture halls were practically empty. Everyone talked about it like it was a holiday. On the flipside, you tend to appreciate the limited sunny days more than say where I live now . Hopefully when I visit, I can enjoy it with you!

I hate to admit it, but as I sit here looking about my window at the rain, it does seem like it has rained for the last month.

[Mr Yuk]

One more day of rain, and I might start building one of these....

[bloominscranton]

BRAVO, I love the pic. ty for a little bit of sunshine (laughter) on this miserable dreay and chilly day.

[westcoast30]

Originally Posted by bloominscranton

BRAVO, I love the pic. ty for a little bit of sunshine (laughter) on this miserable dreay and chilly day.

I won't comment on what it's like here . Most of our rain tends to be in the winter.

I could remember April in NEPA being a wacky month. 80 degrees one day and snowing the next. May and June tended be rainier. April was always that teaser month with a stretch of sunny, warm, dry weather. Then late spring hits, and the clouds and rain ruin Memorial Day and graduation even graduation (we lucked out when I graduated). Ahh tent season!

[bloominscranton]

Originally Posted by lilyflower7

Why is manufacturing compared to coal mining? Because it's a very apt analogy. When mining left Scranton a way of life changed and it took DECADES for the population to adjust to it and move on. Manufacturing in Scranton is pretty much the same way. Factory jobs have been getting outsourced to cheap cost of labor countries since the 1980s - a lot of people in Scranton refused to see the writing on the wall then and even as it got worse were insisting that "Manufacturing will save us all, we'll just wait for Speciality/Techniglass/whatever to rebound and all will be fine." Scranton was in economic decline long before the recession hit. Think back to the late 90s when tech was booming. It wasn't booming in Scranton. There weren't internet startups and dotcoms there, there wasn't a big push to GET this kind of industry in Scranton. Instead of going for high-tech and trying to innovate and compete globally, Scranton is stuck in the past reminiscing about its glory days when coal was king.

Frankly, to even HAVE new jobs in that sector it's going to take a very long time. The only things that will be made in this country in the near term are things that are too expensive to import. If something is small and easily shipped through customs - it won't be made here. Period. Does that suck? Sure, but it's how it works because no one can compete with stuff cheaply manufactured elsewhere.

Reality - whether you like it or not, whether you want to deal with it or not - is still reality. The only constructive option is to adjust to what's changed and look for alternative paths. If you're a blue collar manufacturing worker, sorry, but you will have to go learn a new trade. Does this mean a four year degree? Maybe, but there's always going to be a need for trades like electricians, plumbers, etc.

Regarding education in Scranton - NO, it's not valued by many of the locals nor are the educated. The University of Scranton is very maligned among the locals (particularly those without degrees), as is the med school as is Marywood, Wilkes, Kings etc. There certainly are residents that value education but there's a very strong attitude against ANYTHING considered intellectual by some people in NEPA. Read some of the posts on the threads in this forum if you don't believe me on that. I truly believe there are some people in Northeast PA that think people with college degrees are the enemy that must be destroyed at all costs.

I am a college graduate, and education is highly valued by myself, husband and family. My issue with U of S and others is that, they specifically the U, goobles up entire neighborhoods, removes building from the tax roles, while dependent on city services ( yes folks college kids do use a great deal of city services) and gives a small amout of PILOT pay.

While the U is one of the few that even provide any PILOT payments, its annual amount is $140,000.00; a tad more then they get for 2 students to attend for 4 years.

I can appreciate education till the cows come home, but if a instituation is a burden (think frat parties, Od's, fire, theft etc) to it surrounding community in one hand, and creates a mini town on the other, it negates the value of education (one that serves non-residents more than residents) when it comes to dollar and cents.

[Magritte25]

Is anyone else standing in line to buy those buildings though? Wilkes and Kings does the same thing. If they didn't buy those homes, they would be decrepit structures marring the cityscape.

[bloominscranton]

Standing in line? These homes are usually sold before anyone knows they are up for sale. They are not empty factories of storefronts, they are family homes, usually still occupied when they are sold and then many get demolished. BTw many of these homes are 50 plus years old, and some of the nicest homes from the Baron days of Scranton. So a double insult, no tax money and another piece of history rolled over for a parking lot or other such nonsense.

[Mr Yuk]

If anybody bought those houses, they would be bought by slumlords looking to turn them into cheap college housing....those houses are usually blighted and substandard.

While the U could probably pay some more to the city, I'm not sure why Da U is always the target of all of the venom, yet nobody mentions Marywood and Lackawanna College, which both pay NOTHING to the city. At least Da U makes a contribution. And Lackawanna College is probably importing more inner-city criminals than Sister Adrian these days.

[Lehigh Valley Native]

Originally Posted by go phillies

If anybody bought those houses, they would be bought by slumlords looking to turn them into cheap college housing....those houses are usually blighted and substandard.

While the U could probably pay some more to the city, I'm not sure why Da U is always the target of all of the venom, yet nobody mentions Marywood and Lackawanna College, which both pay NOTHING to the city. At least Da U makes a contribution. And Lackawanna College is probably importing more inner-city criminals than Sister Adrian these days.

Must be something in the air today. I agree with this.^^^

It always appears that Scranton Univ. keeps a very beautiful and well maintained campus, why wouldn't you want them to keep expanding by buying properties?

Although they may not pay what residents think they should in taxes, don't they provide revenue for the city in other areas? Doesn't Scranton have a wage tax?
The bigger the school = more employees = more taxes. Not to mention all of the money the school, the students, and employees spend in the city. I can't see how people could complain about this.

[GreenRidgeGuy]

Originally Posted by bloominscranton

I am a college graduate, and education is highly valued by myself, husband and family. My issue with U of S and others is that, they specifically the U, goobles up entire neighborhoods, removes building from the tax roles, while dependent on city services ( yes folks college kids do use a great deal of city services) and gives a small amout of PILOT pay.

While the U is one of the few that even provide any PILOT payments, its annual amount is $140,000.00; a tad more then they get for 2 students to attend for 4 years.

I can appreciate education till the cows come home, but if a institution is a burden (think frat parties, Od's, fire, theft etc) to it surrounding community in one hand, and creates a mini town on the other, it negates the value of education (one that serves non-residents more than residents) when it comes to dollar and cents.

Believe it or not the U is a non-profit institution thus making it exempt from taxes by law. It doesn't matter if their PILOT payment is $1 or $1 million, they are not required to make it and the city should be grateful.

This argument that the U is depriving the city of tax dollars by purchasing property and removing it from the tax rolls is short sighted at best and ignorant at worst. The taxes generated by the University employees (through payroll tax) and it students (through sales tax) greatly outweighs the taxes that would be earned earned by these properties. Not to mention the increase in value of the properties adjacent to the University. Imagine the hill section without the U.

Saying that the U "gobbles up entire neighborhoods" is a ridiculous overstatement. While they have expanded their footprint in the hill section, the neighborhood still survives and is far from being gobbled up. I would argue that their investment in the hill (the mulberry st improvements, increased lighting, university police patrols) has greatly enhanced the neighborhood.

It is my opinion that the benefits the city reaps from our institutions of higher education (cultural, financial, etc) greatly outweigh the "burden."