moving to Harrisburg pa (York, Hershey: apartment, rentals, homes)

[MBurg]

where have YOU been? Harrisburg's downtown is the hottest place in Pa right now..new restaurants, bars..

[go phillies]

Harrisburg's downtown is nice, but the rest of the city looks like the Bronx or West Philly. I'm usually a proponent of people living in the cities rather than contributing to urban sprawl by living in the suburbs....but I would opt for the 'burbs if I lived in the Harrisburg area. If I lived down that way, I would find Carlisle a nice town to live in, from what I have seen.

[danwxman]

Originally Posted by go phillies

Harrisburg's downtown is nice, but the rest of the city looks like the Bronx or West Philly. I'm usually a proponent of people living in the cities rather than contributing to urban sprawl by living in the suburbs....but I would opt for the 'burbs if I lived in the Harrisburg area. If I lived down that way, I would find Carlisle a nice town to live in, from what I have seen.

You've never seen Midtown, Shipoke, Bellevue Heights, the mansions on North 2nd..all wonderful neighborhoods and part of the city of Harrisburg.

[nativePAgirl]

The Riverside Area and Bellevue Park are AWESOME! The school district leaves a lot to be desired, though.

[ScranBarre]

I live two hours north of the city in the Scranton 'burbs, but from what I have seen I'd probably give Camp Hill the highest rating for you. Parts of Harrisburg are really bouncing back with a lot of nightlife, cafes, boutiques, etc. to the point where I now think Harrisburg has the third-nicest downtown in PA for a medium-sized Rust Belt city (behind Bethlehem and Scranton, both of which were total dumps until recent years when they've rebounded quite nicely). Being the young professional type myself I'd probably be inclined to live somewhere near to Second Street or Front Street within walking distance to just about any convenience I could ever possibly need. However, most inner-city school districts are lousy, and from what I've heard Harrisburg is no different in that respect. The only way I could recommend Downtown Harrisburg to your family over Camp Hill would be if you had the financial resources at your disposal to send your child to a private school.

Like Go Phillies and the rest of the City-Data members who frequent the NEPA sub-forum, I too am opposed to urban sprawl, as I have seen firsthand how it has totally ruined our landscape here in Greater Scranton with its endless big-box stores, traffic congestion, overpriced tract-housing, etc. Those of you recommending that this new family consider a "booming" area should be careful what you're steering them into. What might seem like a "quiet" suburban area now could become the next overcrowded, congested hellhole in 5-10 years once residential growth outpaces urban planning (think Stroudsburg, PA). I'd pick a nice established inner suburb like Camp Hill ANYDAY over one of the developing "fringe" ones where you'll be taking a gamble that you won't be building a new house that will have all the trees around it torn down in another five years for Wal-Marts, industrial parks, and four-lane commuter belts (as is currently happening here in Pittston, PA).

[angeleye]

I too am possibly relocating to Harrisburg PA. We do not drive as yet... coming from NYC. My spouse would need to get to from Harrisburg to Hershey for work. Can anyone suggest an area in harrisburg that is great for children 7 & 13 year (girl, boy) very sports minded and [SIZE=2]accessible by public transportation to hershey and grocery store. We plan on geting a car within a month or so but until then....
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[danwxman]

Originally Posted by angeleye

I too am possibly relocating to Harrisburg PA. We do not drive as yet... coming from NYC. My spouse would need to get to from Harrisburg to Hershey for work. Can anyone suggest an area in harrisburg that is great for children 7 & 13 year (girl, boy) very sports minded and [SIZE=2]accessible by public transportation to hershey and grocery store. We plan on geting a car within a month or so but until then....
[/SIZE]

Hummelstown or Lower Paxton township are both pretty good options...near Hershey but not as expensive (though some parts are). Decent schools. You could choose to live in Hershey itself (Derry township) but the housing prices are very high there. Then again, coming from NY everything will be much cheaper.

Public transportation isn't very good in Hershey. In about 5-10 years there will be commuter rail that runs between Harrisburg-Hummelstown-Hershey, but that's obviously a long way off for you. I would go to CAT - Capital Area Transit to look at routes. The only one that I can see that even stops in Hershey only runs from downtown Harrisburg then straight to Hershey, so you'd need to connect through there.

[openless]

the area that is on rt 39 just south of rt 22, by rothford lane, bretz drive and brookridge court (around the Troop H state police barracks) sold for 2.6 million in 1999, it was 175 acres i believe, the land straddled rt 39. you cant touch any acreage in east or west hanover for under 40K an acre. many of the new townhomes they have been building in that area start at 170k for the tiny ones and 300k for a big decent one. it's quite scary, unless you have a relative that is going to give it to you you better fork over some cash. all the way out to the gap people are buying up everything. i thought it was a crime when they put in the gateway office complex on rt22 & i81 in linglestown. then later it was luxury homes and offices back on chelton and wenrich... i used to love to go on that road and go over that one hill so your heart would fly waaay up in the air..... but now all kinds of people in SUVs are busy speeding past you, so it kind of ruins the moment.

[PUB]

Originally Posted by openless

but now all kinds of people in SUVs are busy speeding past you, so it kind of ruins the moment.

Yep, Harrisburg suburbs really screwed up all the great things they had. It is now any town USA. This is one of the reasons I moved away.

[robhsarch]

There are a lot of houses around Second, Third and Penn Streets, although finding parking for two cars would be tough as most places in downtown are street parking.

Rob