Thinking of Lancaster County Area- Any advice and will I be welcome (Lebanon: vacation home, unemployment)

[Marodi]

Originally Posted by Lehigh Valley Native

Lancaster county is a very conservative and religious area. If you join a church, you will be able to fit into the community much better.

Welcome to south central PA. Generally that's the entire region. Also conservative.

[merrisweel]

Okay, I have to say that the comments on this post are useful, but not entirely true. I was born and raised in Lancaster County and have since been out and seen the what else this country has to offer.

First off: with the exception of our mennonite and amish neighbors, Lancaster County is in no way more religious than any other city or town in the state, or any other state for that matter. Also on that note - the Amish and Mennonite people of this county are not at all unfriendly, in fact they are quite the contrary. They are some of the nicest, most generous and friendly people out there. I have Amish neighbors and every summer they bring over fresh fruit and vegetables from their gardens - and have not once refused me help. Once, when my dog slipped it's leash and they even helped me for almost an hour trying to wrangle her as she ran thru their feilds... There are a lot of churches in the county, but there are a lot of churches in a lot of counties - no more per capita here than anywhere else-So joining a church is not going to make your friendship find harder, but it's not necessary for your survival, or even to make friends at all.

Lancaster is like every other city. And its suburbs are like every other suburb. There are lots of good, wealthy school districts with excellent sports team and academics. There are plenty of activities for your family or children to be a part of, and there are tons and TONS of housing developments, so if you're looking to live in rolling hills and not have neighbors for miles, this might not be the place you're envisioning. We have strip malls - by the thousands, we've got targets and wal-marts and every other thing under the sun.

Granted, there are parts of Lancaster County (mostly southern) that are very rural and farmish, most of Lancaster County could be passed for the suburbs of any other city. And it would probably depend on where you live, in what kind of neighborhood and where, as to how friendly your neighbors are. I'd say stay away from the downtown Lancaster City area, and you'll do just fine!

[danwxman]

Originally Posted by merrisweel

I'd say stay away from the downtown Lancaster City area, and you'll do just fine!

Here is where you lost me. Once again, hysteria about staying away from anything that resembles urbanity.

[merrisweel]

Bacause Lancaster City is junk, and anyone who lives in the area or near it will tell you that. They're trying to clean it up - which is nice - but personally, I wouldn't want to live there, and I wouldn't recommend to anyone to live there based on my recommendation - which is why I typed it.

Also, I forgot to mention yesterday, that Lancaster county is in fact, NOT a dry county, we've got bars and distributers everywhere.

[jonny_quest]

Felt compelled to reply to this on, and offer a bit of a different perspective, so here it is...

Lancaster is not a dry county; PA's liquor laws are just FUBAR. If you want to drink (which apparently you don't) you will have to go to one store for wine and liquor, another store for a case of beer, and yet another store or maybe a bar for a 6-pack, and you won't be able to pick up any of them at a supermarket or gas station. This may be why you heard Lancaster is dry.

Along the drinking & dining lines, there's very few bars in the entire county which could be considered a class above holes in the wall, and your "fine dining" experience will be mostly contained to chain restaurants. A new nice bar/restaurant did open a few months ago, however, and if you're a restaurateur you will be happy to hear that Friday night they were running 2.5 hrs behind on their reservations, and at 6pm were reserved out until 11pm, so there's obviously high demand for nicer establishments.

As far as offering beauty and outdoors... well Lancaster simply isn't what you remember from when you were a child or any rumblings you may hear about vast wide open plots of land and rolling hills. Just like a previous poster said, it's becoming more and more of one large suburb/retirement home with various strip malls scattered about. Luckily, planners and developers are attempting to move toward "Smart Growth" developments that mix commercial and residential, but don't expect fast changes. The county does have preserved farmland that will never be developed, but don't expect your daily commute to work to be trafficless on backroads watching horses plow fields. You're more likely to be stuck on a congested 2-lane arterial behind one of the many cotton-top retirees who forgot about the skinny peddle on the right or thinks going 15-mph under the speed limit on a sunny dry day safe, with no opportunity to pass.

On that note, something outsiders seem to forget is that farming operations smell like ****- literally. Live here long enough and you'll be able to brag to your New York friends how you can distinguish if its cow, pig, chicken, or human.

Shopping- you will probably be very happy with Lancaster's shopping scene, as the outlets are one of the county's largest tourist draws. However, you said "big city shopping." I assume you mean higher class stuff - for this you will have to travel 1.5 hrs to King of Prussia Mall. Most of Lancaster county's citizens are blue collar (or like to think they are) and you'll notice complaining about the cost of things is part of the local culture, no matter if the item is affordable or the complainer can afford it. For this reason, you won't find higher end stores like Tiffany's or Armani in Lancaster.

Lancaster citizen's generally aren't very outgoing, so don't expect locals jumping at the opportunity to make new friends, or being outgoing at all. You'll definitely need to make an effort to make new friends, as a majority of people who live here already have their life set for them and don't like much of anything resembling change. However, since you have a family and kids it will definitely be easier. Several previous posters mentioned how going to church can help in this area. This is very true - remember that Lancaster is part of the Bible Belt. It's also ultra-conservative as a previous poster mentioned.

meandb mentioned wanting to be around college-level+ educated individuals. There's a well known "brain-drain" in all of Pennsylvania, and Lancaster is no exception to the rule. Lancaster's reputation, the very one that attracts families and retirees, makes it a huge turn-off any college grads. As a young professional living in Lancaster, I can't wait to get out. Most other 20-somethings in the area seam to have associates degrees at best, went to nearby colleges/technical schools, and never left the area. Many of them act like they never left high school. Young professionals do not want to be here.

However, I still think Lancaster County (not the City of Lancaster) is a fine place to settle down and raise family, at least until your kids hit high school.

[Marodi]

Originally Posted by jonny_quest

On that note, something outsiders seem to forget is that farming operations smell like ****- literally. Live here long enough and you'll be able to brag to your New York friends how you can distinguish if its cow, pig, chicken, or human.

Or even horse.

[solancogirl]

Well now I live in the Southern End of the county which is the more rural part and I beg to differ. Are my neighbors wonderful? Yes they are. Are they kind and loving. Yes they are. If you move here from Philadelphia, New York or New Jersey or anyplace that isn't the Southern End will they just love you up? No they will not. In fact in this part of the county they will more than likely be polite, but distant. That is because in general they do not want incomers. It has to do with their way of life and privacy. As more people come more houses get built and that is not welcome. Lancaster County is, in parts, an incredibly closed community.

It is not impossible to make friends and become part of the community but for people used to making friends in weeks or months it is sometimes hard to accept that years is more the standard for parts of Lancaster.

Also, It is the most Republican County in Pennsylvania and Republican politics is huge here. It is VERY different than other states or even Pennsylvania Counties.

This is an area where you seriously need to think hard about moving to. We had people who moved in across from us and after 8 months moved out, they just hated it. They had been visiting here for 25 years and were not prepared for the isolation newbies sometimes feel, how different a rural environment is compared to a suburban area (they came from suburban Philly), how far away everything can feel and how the entire way of life is different. They went nuts that here in the Southern End many businesses close at 6pm on Saturday and don't reopen until Sunday for instance. I'm like--I just go to someplace open--but they were annoyed that what was closest to them wasn't open.

I would say if you are moving here from a suburban area definitely stick to the more populated areas, the chances for acceptance and convenience are much higher.

[gypsiechavi]

Have you considered Denver, PA? It's right near the Lancaster/Berks County line. Quick to the turnpike and Cocalico High School is a good school district. You have a nice mix of new homes (eating up the farms) and older homes on quiet streets. You would be 20 mins from Lancaster outlets and about 20 mins from Reading outlets. Lancaster traffic is crazy anymore and people there do not like outsiders much. It is a very well knit deep rooted community where people say hi to you if they know you. If not, don't expect a hello or a wave. I believe Denver has more transplants because of the turnpike access. If you do move to PA, be ready for horse and buggy's stopping traffic, tractors crossing the roads, the smell of cow manure, judgmental behavior, etc. But if you can stick it out for a few years.......chances are good you'd fit right in. Joining a church helps a lot in Lancaster county but just because they smile in your face does not mean they are going to invite you to dinner! People from PA do not like New Yorkers coming to their area. It's just a plain truth. You will be blamed for any increase in crime or litter, etc should your accent be heard.

Sorry if this offends but I have lived in PA, Berks, Lancaster, Lehigh, and Monroe counties for 36 yrs. Berks is a little more accepting than any of the others. Monroe county (or the Poconos) residents are extremely heated and frustrated with New Yorkers. Unfortunately, without the New York migration their home values would still be in the dumps.

[solancogirl]

Originally Posted by cincur63

I am also from long island NY , and as soon as i sell my house, i'm moving to lancaster. I have a friend in ephrata, and one in lancaster city. Both moved from NY also, both love it. I visit the lancaster city area often. Yes, there are some areas to watch out for as in any area, but for the most part very nice. People always tell my friend she's in a bad neighborhood, but she feels very safe, no one has bars on the windows like in queens ny. Her main complaint is bad italian food, as you know in NY the italians have so many restaurants and she misses that. I love the rowhomes, but there are nice neighborhoods outside of the city also. The city has a large spanish population. There are nearby areas that are also nice, ephrata, lititz, lebanon, stroudsburg, willow street, hershey, so many to name. You really have to drive around alot to get a feel for which is right for you. I am visiting again in 10 days. I am not an expert, but if you have any questions, i can have my friends look into it.

It all depends on where you move in the county how you will be accepted etc. The city is not bad at all as compared to other cities. It actually is very historic and has some beautiful areas. That said the school taxes are through the roof there. Also so many point out Rockvale but to people who live here Rockvale isn't even visited (unless you move here from somewhere else). Because of that you will get a high concentration of incomers coming into the Rockvale area while locals will generally as far away from that commercialism as possible.

[Artie See]

I live in Lancaster City, in fact I grew up here. Over the last few years I've become more and more involved in local issues, and believe me it isn't pretty.

Lancaster Newspapers, Inc. owns all three local newspapers: the morning Intelligencer Journal, the evening Lancaster New Era, and the Sunday News. Lancaster Newspapers is privately owned by the Steinman family; there are no shareholders. All three newspapers are well-known for extremely biased reporting, slanted toward the political and economic agenda of its owners.

Lancaster Newspapers does sponsor a wide-open public forum at Moderator cut: linking to other forums is not allowed Unfortunately, LancasterOnline has already announced that TalkBack will soon be replaced with a different kind of software, which will change the way readers can participate. But for now, TalkBack is alive and well.

Recently, a thread about "sex on the Internet" turned into a heated discussion about people who move into Lancaster County from other places. I strongly recommend to ANYONE who is even remotely thinking about Lancaster County to read this thread, where local residents spell out in detail exactly how they feel about newcomers.

The thread is located at this address:
Moderator cut: linking to other forums is not allowed