West Chester Pa I don't see the downtown charm (Scranton: appointed, rent)

[rcovph]

Please I really need help. My husband is suddenly being tranferred to Frazer . Upon the recommendation of SEVERAL people they said to look at Malvern and West Chester since we said we wanted a down town area. However, I was so very dissappointed when we visited these"downtowns" they seemed so run down and dirty. Did we miss something? Can anybody tell me what is a nice area near Frazer with good schools. We have one child in middle and high school this is going to be so hard for them and we are trying our best to find the right place for them.

[rainrock]

Small towns in Pa. havent faired too well over the years. This is a state where suburbia is king. Mcmansions, strip malls, soccer moms rule with an iron fist. That being said I'm surprised at your disdain concerning West Chester as it is one of the better small towns in the entire state.

You may have a different take on West Chester and SE PA. in the Spring/Summer when the trees are in bloom, its 70 degrees and sunny. Nothing is going to look enticing in the northeast in the dead of winter. Try to keep that in mind. Its very hard not to like the small downtown area of West Chester , in the spring its vibrant with people walking the streets and dining alfresco.

Its a diverse small town and admittedly there are a couple of sections in West Chester that aren't so hot, but there are also some very nice sections over by the University and the big mansions are towards Paoli. The surrounding area where most people live in their mcmansions is the spectactular Brandywine Valley to the west and Ridley State park to the East, thats a hard area not to like. Not to be smart but if you don't like the West Chester area you will not like living in SE Pa. Its as simple as that.

Also I'm not sure where you are coming from but West Chester is 250 years old , this isn't a sunbelt area where everything built is brand new. This an old old area, as old and historic as it gets in the usa. Towns are going to show their age, if you want brand new you need to live out amidst the mcmansions. By the way the town of West Chester last year was named one of the usa's distinctive dozen must see towns in the usa by Travel Magazine. Also on the list were towns such as Carmel, Cape Cod, Annapolis. I'm kind of perplexed at what you saw to be honest with you.

I wouldn't be too worried if I were you. Its a great area and it sounds like you may have seen the worst parts of west chester and maybe havent seen the better parts of the overall area.

Not sure what your price range is but Radnor is east of Frazier and is one of the best school districts in the state. Very affluent. Lower Merion is also a top notch school district within commuting range to Frazier.


Lastly, Great Valley is an outstanding school district which I believe Frazier is part of.

Look into Malvern, Chester Springs, Great Valley, Pickering Valley,Westtown, Trydffrin, Newtown Square, Lower Merion,

[PhillyPhan]

i'm gonna have to go with rainrock on this one. west chester is one of those towns you have to get used to. our town has a "downtown" that is only two blocks long. if you have a good attitude and get to know the store owners, you may think differently about your downtown. if you don't seem to like the restauraunts and the shops you could always drive to Manayunk, which i think has one of the best downtowns in pennsylvania, if not the east coast.

[rainrock]

Where exactly are you coming from, Beverly Hills or something? You have some pretty tough standards.


Heres some pics of West Chester

[rcovph]

rainrock thank you for your information and pictures. I believe your right in the dead of winter nothing looks very attractive. Those pictures were very nice actually. There was a lot of constuction trucks and work being donewhen we visited 3 weeks ago.we actually saw Great Valley high school and did get info. about it. It seems to be a great school district. Which area would you pick malvern or west chester? Or some place else all together that is close to Frazer? Any places to totally avoid? You seem well versed in this area. We are not familiar with it al all.

[rainrock]

Originally Posted by rcovph

Which area would you pick malvern or west chester? Or some place else all together that is close to Frazer? Any places to totally avoid? You seem well versed in this area. We are not familiar with it al all.

For me no question, Lower Merion Township would be the first place I would look into although its not a cheap area. Nice pre-owned single homes start around $400K but if you saw the neighborhoods you would understand why. It's about 6-7 miles east of Frazier . Incredible schools, no crime, place oozes with character, only complaint you'll hear is that the people are a little snobbish. Villanova is directly to the west of Lower Merion and this is for the ultra wealthy. Right down the line, west of Villanova is another high rent area prestigious Radnor Township, then Wayne, Trydfrin, Devon, Malvern then Frazier.

Now that you mention it I've had discussions with people asking them what in the heck is wrong with Frazier? It seems totally out of place with its surroundings.Frazier does seem a bit rundown.

There really is no area to avoid out there. The closest thing would be Norristown but thats 20 miles northeast of Frazier. As mentioned there is a relatively rough looking section of West Chester but by and large that city is harmless. There are no hardened criminals walking around. Other than that there is nothing to be concerned about

IMO if schools are the #1 criteria.

1.Lower Merion Township
2.Radnor Township
3.Great Valley
4.West Chester tie

You asked a choice between West Chester and Malvern. Id go with Malvern for schools and elbow room. West Chester if you want small hometown atmosphere.


Lower Merion Township includes the towns of Bryn Mawr, Haverford, Narberth,Ardmore,Bala Cynwd, Merion, Gladwyne.

Chester Springs, Yellow Springs and Pickering Valley which are north of Frazier are also very nice areas. Newer areas with much more elbow room.

[ScranBarre]

RainRock, is that "Kildare's Irish Pub" a large regional chain or something? Scranton is getting one next month, and I thought it would be "unique" to the city. Sigh---add this onto the list of other chains that just moved to Scranton that I thought were "originals" (Stone Cold Creamery, Molly Brannigan's Irish Pub, The Original SoupMan, etc.)

[rainrock]

SWB thats great. It's strictly a Philly area chain or at least it was. I think Scranton will be the first Kildaires outside the area. You'll love it. Replica Irish pub alot of the interior will be imported directly from Dublin.

The West Chester Kildaires was the original, they had just had a fire on the second story a week before that photo was taken, but its been fully restored since.

Theres 5 in the Philly area.

1.West Chester
2.King of Prussia
3.Manayunk
4.Media
5.Center City ( Headhouse Square)

[ScranBarre]

Thanks, Rainrock, for clearing that up! I'm looking forward to eating there when it opens! It's actually going to be just outside of the city in a new "lifestyle center." I'm just happy that it's a relatively-local chain and not some sort of "Mc"Kildare's, if you catch my drift. Sometimes when good restaurants expand themselves too much, their quality starts to suffer. Hopefully, this won't be the case with Kildare's!

[ScranBarre]

By the way, great job on the photos of West Chester! It reminds me quite a bit of Lewisburg, Union County, home to Bucknell University. PA has quite a few quaint, historic, walkable towns, and that's something we should be proud of! Then again, we also probably have the highest amount of McMansions per capita, so hats off to us for that too! WOOOO!!! LOL!