Lewisburg or Scranton area? (Wilkes-Barre, Selinsgrove: cul-de-sac, transplants, new home)

[familymom]

OK, Pa is a very beautiful place and there are many options. We are a family of 6 with young children looking for a new place to call home. We have been all over Bucks (too expensive) and Lehigh (great, but just not IT!). We keep hearing good things about Scranton (maybe Clarks Summit area) and Lewisburg. We want a walkable downtown with lots of community spirit. Having kids, its the little thing like parades and festivals that help bond a child to the community. Which area would you look to make your new home if you had a choice?

[ScranBarre]

You really can't go wrong with either area. Lewisburg is a quaint postcard-like town with a traditional Main Street, historic architecture, and the ambiance of Bucknell University, but it is also relatively isolated from a lot of big-box shopping, fine dining, and other "city" amenities. Clarks Summit has a small and somewhat useless downtown (a lot of yuppie stores/bistros/galleries), but it sits very near to a lot of the "action" in Scranton and Wilkes-Barre (minor league sports, Philharmonic, concerts, nightlife, etc.) I've enjoyed doing photo tours of both communities. Clarks Summit has a more white-collar "suburban" feel to it whereas Lewisburg has a more Gilded-age yet still down-to-earth atmosphere. It would be hard for me to recommend one community over the other unless you could give us more to consider.

[FightinPhils]

Clarks Summit.....blah. Pardon me for being rude, but I'm just so sick of people wanting to move to the sterile Abingtons.

Personally my recommendation would be Lewisburg over Clarks Summit. Lewisburg seems to be a nice established town with some character.....the Abingtons (Clarks Summit) is suburban McMansions and cul-de-sac subdivisions and rampant keep-up-with-the Joneses materialism. The epitomy of senseless sprawl.

Why not look into the city of Scranton proper? Lots of good walkable neighborhoods with churches, banks, stores, delis, pharmacies, libraries, restaurants, etc etc in walking distance, neighborhood schools, summer festivals and block parties. Clarks Summit and the Abingtons is more of the "load up the luxury SUV and drive everywhere" kind of place...not much walkability in the Abingtons, and most likely no sidewalks on most streets.

[familymom]

I really want a newer home. We have done the fixing up of older homes and it was great. Now with 4 children we can't even brush our teeth for 2 minutes, never mind updating electrical boxes and plumbing. Also I would like a larger yard and most city homes are very small lots, at least that is what I have seen. Also I like a cul-de-sac, I at least know my kids can ride their bikes int the street safely without cars flying by.

[familymom]

Also being an outsider, many relocating families prefer newer developments because the neighbors more than likely will also be recent transplants and maybe more willing to give us a chance than a local who may resent us coming into their town.

[FightinPhils]

Well, then you probably won't get the walkability you desire. Most developments around here are sprawled away from established town centers, and are a drive from everything...and usually do not even have sidewalks.

The only part of the Clarks Summit area I would recommend is the borough of Clarks Summit itself, which has a little downtown with shops and a nice town center, but even that is mostly older, but nice, homes. A lot of nice cape cods, etc. When most people are interested in the Abingtons, they're looking for the sprawl subdivisions surrounding Clarks Summit in South Abington Twp.

[Dawne]

Lewisburg would fit your requirements, and they have many parades and festivals throughout the year. There are many quaint and usefuls shops downtown as well as a theater and a park with a nice playground. There are several other parks scattered throughout the borough, including the main park with play area, swimming pool, skate park and picnic facilities.

You will find developments with large yards outside the borough but still within the school district. If you want walkability, one place I'd suggest would be Linntown, located off Route 45 behind the middle school. It's a large area with quiet streets, not necessarily cul de sacs, but the people who drive through there live there. They're not on their way to anywhere else and thus being careless as they drive through. It's not within walking distance of the downtown unless you REALLY like to walk - and have to cross busy Route 15, but it is a nice neighborhood unto itself and within walking distance of the middle school.

As for "big box" shopping, there are more and more stores and restaurants coming to this area all the time. Bucknell and Susquehanna (in nearby Selinsgrove) offer cultural activities galore, and there are many opportunities to get involved in the community.