Best, So-So and Worst Towns in PA (Pittsburgh, Allentown: best city, construction)

[Katiana]

According to this website, most of the Pittsburgh area is 25-50 % Catholic. My hometown of Beaver Falls was at least 50% Catholic. When I was a kid, there was a fair amount of anti-Catholic sentiment among the Protestants, who were in the minority.

http://www.valpo.edu/geomet/pics/geo...n/catholic.gif

[zinger5]

move to state college! it is one of the fastest growing and safest cities in th US. It has repeatedly been named one of the top ten safest places in the us...top ten places to raise a family...and top ten places to become a millionaire. no joke.

[Mrspeanut]

Does anyone have info as to Pottsville's availability of alternative therapies.
We are considering this town or its surrounding area. I am a Reiki Master Teacher and would like to pursue employment at a medical facility. Many hospitals, oncology, burn units, obstectrics, etc are now incorporating such therapies. Does Pottsville?
I am also in the process of becoming a bee keeper on a small level.
My husband is Cree First Nation and does leatherwork. Is there a native representation in the community?
We are both musicians; he is a fiddler and mandolin player and I sing and play guitar. We presently have a cd available, The Crimson Cord, at cdbaby.com/cd/carlislelinda where you can hear samplings of our work. We want to know if there are local music jams and places to perform. The cd is only a sampling of the variety we play which includes Celtic, bluegrass, old time, standards, blues and pretty much whatever trips our triggers.
What are some local apt or small house prices (rent)?
Information about our interests in the area would be very helpful.
Lots of questions but this is where we begin. We have driven through the area and find it appealing visually.
Thanks,
Mrspeanut

[Catie]

Ohiogirl,

Lisa Scattoline mentions Centralia PA in one of her novels...I can't remember which one off hand...Centralia sure Sounds spooky...its frightening what happened there.

[judd2401]

If you want a large city, Pittsburgh would be your city. If you want a mid-sized city, Harrisburg would be your city, reasonable home prices, good access to NYC, Phila, Beaches, Baltimore, DC and 4 hours from Pittsburgh. If you want suburbia, your choice would depend on the school district as most suburbs including smaller cities are similar. If you want rural/suburbia, there are many counties that offer beautiful settings, cheaper land and housing, but watch out for the school districts. You may also want to consider access to shopping, and entertainment. The last developing counties that have access to civilization and not near major cities like Phila, Pittsburgh and Erie, are Perry, Juniata, Snyder and Northumberland counties, otherwise you're getting further out away from civilization. You would probably want to locate near a main route such as 11/15, 322 or other routes that would get you to shopping, dining and entertainment. University towns have their own charm and offerings such as Bloomsburg, Lewisburg and Selinsgrove near the counties stated above. Good luck with your relocation. Personally, I would steer clear from Phila and the surrrounding counties, crime is high, taxes are high, home prices are high, and having lived there for 10 years, I would never return to live but it's fun to visit.

[nocturnal rooster]

Stay outta York, Harrisburg, Reading, Allentown, Pottstown, Scranton, and Lancaster

[dwntwnradar]

I am giving some thought to PA, what would you say to a gay couple and the best place to live in PA?

[danwxman]

Originally Posted by dwntwnradar

I am giving some thought to PA, what would you say to a gay couple and the best place to live in PA?

Philadelphia and its suburbs and the cities of Harrisburg and Pittsburgh are all very gay-friendly. The Lehigh Valley is getting there too.

[vwscottie]

Originally Posted by TLA

stay away from the Lake Erie (NW Pennsylvania) area. Horrible winters and usually summers and the job market here is horrible. We are actually relocating to the south due to these and other issues. There is also been a lot of trouble up here with Meth labs. Hope this helps.

Lets be a bit more specific about this. The meth labs are prevelant in Crawford, Venango, and Mercer Counties.

I lived in Erie for most of my life and the winters aren't that big of a deal. Its not like Erie County isn't equipped to handle it.

[FightinPhils]

Originally Posted by ker8

I'm not sure about Pittsburgh, I suppose it could be anti-Catholic, but if you just go north a little ways, most of PA is Catholic. For example, Erie Co is at least 85% Catholic. Also, in Cambria Co, it's mostly Catholic. Those are really the only two counties I know much about, however.

Scranton/Wilkes-Barre and Northeast PA is overwhelmingly Catholic...mainly Irish, Italian, and Polish. You won't find much anti-Catholicism here. I think most of the anti-Catholic pockets of PA would be found in south central PA (Lancaster, York, etc) which are mostly conservative Protestant. But even there, I don't think its anything really bad...just that most of those residents probably hold the sterotypical Bible-belt anti-Catholic sentiments....no protests or violence or anything like that.