One Thing to Change About Scranton (Clarks Summit, Wall: credit card, neighborhoods, to buy)

[CHS89]

Originally Posted by NYRangers 2008

It's not really needed and the city doesn't have the money to do it.

It's a done deal, though. Already built and paid for. Get over it already.

Back on topic, a walking/jogging/biking trail along the river, with a playground, similar to what they have behind the middle school in Clarks Summit, would be really nice.

[NEPA-x-pat]

Originally Posted by weluvpa

It hasn't been to warm and the river is just over 3ft. They are calling for 1inch of rain tonight. I hope that the current weather pattern will stay in place and just start to warm up so that the river will stay up. I think we'll be pulling out the boats and do some cleaning and repairs and hit it in the next week or so if I have the time.

The water is still chilly so I'll be in a wetsuit I'm sure.

The water is still chilly so I'll be in a wetsuit I'm sure.[/quote]

I saw that it was over three feet. That is a great level. Def. a wetsuit or drysuit if you have the bucks. I have to get my new boat soon. I will go to Appomatox River Canoes to get my new boat. They had a used remix listed for $795 on their Ebay store site, think they would let it go for say $675.

As I mentioned the really nice thing about Mellow Park for a takeout is they have heated restrooms with hand dryers for changing out of the wetsuits and for cleaning river grunge off your body. Hey they even have soap bars on the sinks!

[weluvpa]

I just paddle to the bank near the house and walk over. Change at the house and run up and get the other truck. But for those that can't do that I can imagine that the heated restrooms would be nice. I never knew that they were in Mellow and I have put in and pulled out from there probably 50 times.

Honestly you should the looks I get when I tell people that I paddle the Lackawanna on a regular basis. "That river, isn't it dirty" or "I would never go in that water", its really hard to convince people that the river is awesome from a canoe or kayak. There are some really beautiful sections. There are spots to pull out and eat Like the old powder mill dam and just above Archbald were the river valley narrows before Jermyn. Nice whitewater and plenty of wildlife. There are beavers, muskrats, wood ducks, mallards and fish in most holes.

I talked to some people from the LRVHA at the last flood meeting and they do intend to tie the levees paths together so that you will be able to go from the downtown up stream thru Lower Greenridge and the Plot and up towards 81 after that I have no idea what they are going to do.

A whitewater feature in the downtown canyon would attract people to the city for sure. Kayakers will spend money and they will also travel a good distance to do some good paddling on a consistant basis.

[skijmpr]

Originally Posted by SWB

Where I live now in the yuppie suburban hell they call Pittston Township there aren't even any shoulders along the roads, let alone sidewalks or shade trees. When you look up "sprawl" in the dictionary you find a picture of my municipality. I just got back in from a run today, and it was a hair-raising experience as I came within inches of vehicles on many stretches along the 315 and other arteries. Forget about trying to ride a bike. I don't want to raise my own future adopted children in such an awful environment as the suburbs, which is why I can't for the life of me understand why everyone in Scranton does nothing but bash it into the ground. You should be GRATEFUL that you have things that most other local communities don't have, like sidewalks, shade trees, curbs, street lights, parks/playgrounds, block parties, corner stores, etc. instead of b*tching incessantly about what you do NOT have. I'd kill to have even a freakin' SHOULDER along the roads so I wouldn't have to cringe as soccer moms in SUVs swerved around me. There's always worse places, Scrantonians. Stop playing the roles of the victims all the time.

Wow, you really got rolling there!

Hmm, I looked up "sprawl" and saw a picture of SWB looking terrified along the side of some 6-lane road while some soccer mom talking on her cellphone while driving her minivan comes inches from turning him into a pierogi.

I agree with just about everything there, but do keep in mind that some people want that type of environment. Just as I wouldn't want to force someone to live in the city who wants a McMansion in a gated community with no sidewalks and nothing within walking distance, I wouldn't want someone to tell me I had to live in the latter. That being said, I don't think a lot of the folks in the suburbs would make good city dwellers anyway, so it's probably for the best that they have their "place" (down here my friends in the city refer to the 'burbs as "dragon land") and we can have [a much better place that is] ours.

Anyway, since you live in Pittston, here's a question: are they ever going to build those lofts downtown? And to follow that, why exactly did they pick Pittston to build what appear to be quite fancy lofts? No offense against the place, but I have a hard time imagining why someone would want to put a building like that in Pittston over Scranton or even W-B.

[skijmpr]

Originally Posted by weluvpa

You want to change something in the city? Something physical and tangible, hmmmmmm. A downtown walking outdoor mall like Pearl st in Boulder, CO or the waterfront in Wilmington NC come to mind.

Hmm, I have to disagree with your assessment that it will never be a 24/7 city. It's all up to the people who live there to make it be whatever they want it to be. Right now it seems nobody really gives a damn, but if people started trying then they could make things happen. Also, just having more shopping does not a city make. And seeing as the most recent shopping to the area went all the way over on Montage Mountain (as if the traffic there weren't bad enough already), I can't imagine anything like that happening downtown. Now local businesses or specialty boutiques are another story, but they would need a more amenable environment downtown to survive.

What does Scranton need to become a 24/7 city? Here's a partial laundry list, IMO, in no particular order:

• More housing that is both tasteful and affordable and in mixed-use buildings
• A stronger arts scene, both in transient events and permanent fixtures
• A trail system for recreation or commuting
• A quality, classy club - in my dream, I'd replace the former Tink's location with an upscale club that has a strict dress code, serves nice cocktails, plays good hip-hop, dance, and techno on different nights, and draws some acts for the genres listed above
• A slightly-grungy, eclectic club - in my dream, this would be somewhere a little more off the beaten path (but still walkable to downtown), not have a dress code, and focus more on developing the local music scene but also draw in some good indie/alt rock/folk performers

There's certainly more, but I think that's a start. I think overall the city needs quality over quantity. Having more stores or more clubs or more of anything won't necessarily make the city any better, but having just a handful of high-quality establishments to frequent (such as the Northern Lights espresso bar that I love so dearly when I visit) really make a place.

[skijmpr]

Originally Posted by MrKrabs

I've always said the same thing. Why couldn't they have built something similar to the Shoppes at Montage in downtown Scranton, rather than an indoor 1970's suburban-style mall? That would have revitalized the downtown and encouraged people to walk around downtown rather than people just driving into the mall parking garage, going into the mall, then driving back out and ignoring the rest of downtown.

Again, I totally agree with your sentiment, but given that they just built those shops out on Monstrosity Mountain I don't think there's much point in hoping for this to happen downtown anytime soon. It would be more prudent to work on attracting local/regional businesses and specialty shops. For instance, having a really good pizza shop in downtown would be cool (like right in the downtown, not South Side or Old Forge or somewhere else). If there are any that I'm being naive about please inform me

[skijmpr]

Originally Posted by SWB

Here's some photos of a very popular downtown pedestrian plaza in Ithaca, NY, which isn't very different from Scranton in many ways:

Hey! That looks familiar...oh yeah that's where I went to college I wonder if the head shop on the Commons is still open, lol.

[skijmpr]

Originally Posted by NYRangers 2008

I don't feel like getting my car aligned every month because of the potholed streets.

Didn't PA have some kind of "Pothole Patrol" thing, or is that just for highways?

[skijmpr]

Originally Posted by CHS89

I'm sick of the term Bridge to Nowhere.

Which bridge are you all referring to?

[skijmpr]

Originally Posted by CHS89

It's a done deal, though. Already built and paid for. Get over it already.

Back on topic, a walking/jogging/biking trail along the river, with a playground, similar to what they have behind the middle school in Clarks Summit, would be really nice.

Do you happen to know how long the trail in Clarks Summit is, and where its termini are? I remember seeing it from the road in Chinchilla one time at night, and it was well lit and looked nice.