Welcome to City-Data.com Forum!
U.S. CitiesCity-Data Forum Index
Go Back   City-Data Forum > U.S. Forums > Pennsylvania > Philadelphia
 [Register]
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
View detailed profile (Advanced) or search
site with Google Custom Search

Search Forums  (Advanced)
Reply Start New Thread
 
Old 03-05-2015, 12:50 PM
 
8,975 posts, read 21,061,280 times
Reputation: 3783

Advertisements

In any event, let's return to more constructive suggestions for the OP.
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message

 
Old 03-05-2015, 01:06 PM
 
10,787 posts, read 8,672,443 times
Reputation: 3983
Quote:
Originally Posted by ab1980 View Post
Despite how tense this discussion has become, I do appreciate it. It proves people are passionate about their communities, suggestions and reasons. To specify, we reside in Cupertino. There is little to no sense of community, pride or belonging here. Small pockets do exist, but in general it's a very individualistic society. Minus the occasional crime of theft, it's extremely safe here. The comments about Swarthmore being undesirable have sparked discussions in our home. For all potential towns, I hadn't considered proximity to places like Chester, Camden, etc and how that may impact a quality of life.

I didn't think to specify a maximum distance to PHL. In theory, any place other than Reading feels closer to PHL. In reply to the posters listing distances to PHL, it's very helpful. West coast/international travel appears to be about once every 4-5 weeks right now. We do need to realistically consider distance/time though.
Swarthmore College, located in Swarthmore, is one of the finest liberal arts schools in the country. I seriously doubt that folks there are dreading any kind of crime wave coming from "next door".

The fellow who posted, DonnegalGuy, who actually lives near Swarthmore, is the person you should listen to along with other sensible posters.

Last edited by toobusytoday; 03-06-2015 at 07:59 AM.. Reason: Removed comments about another poster
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message
 
Old 03-05-2015, 01:11 PM
 
10,787 posts, read 8,672,443 times
Reputation: 3983
Quote:
Originally Posted by Leon2014 View Post
Please take all these recommendations here with a huge grain of salt. You can see that there are people defending their neighbourhoods and there is a clear bias and denial of basic facts, like the distance to a major airport, or distance to #1 most dangerous city in the country.
Like everything you say isn't mostly about YOUR particular biases. lol
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message
 
Old 03-05-2015, 02:09 PM
 
Location: Boston Metrowest (via the Philly area)
7,248 posts, read 10,495,621 times
Reputation: 8758
Quote:
Originally Posted by ab1980 View Post
Despite how tense this discussion has become, I do appreciate it. It proves people are passionate about their communities, suggestions and reasons. To specify, we reside in Cupertino. There is little to no sense of community, pride or belonging here. Small pockets do exist, but in general it's a very individualistic society. Minus the occasional crime of theft, it's extremely safe here. The comments about Swarthmore being undesirable have sparked discussions in our home. For all potential towns, I hadn't considered proximity to places like Chester, Camden, etc and how that may impact a quality of life.
Like every other aspect of life, I would just advise that it is important to keep perspective in mind. As sad as it is to admit, the dangerous towns/cities being referenced have been economically depressed for many decades. Meanwhile, even just a few miles away, people have long lived very safe and happy lives in quintessential upper-middle-class suburbia. When people refer to places like Chester and Swarthmore as worlds apart, that honestly is how it feels in reality.

Again, I'm not glorifying the degree of economic stratification in the area and really wish for a turnaround in places like Chester or Camden, but despite these very troubled pockets of the region, life goes on in towns like Swarthmore in a Mayberry-like fashion.
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message
 
Old 03-05-2015, 03:54 PM
 
178 posts, read 256,640 times
Reputation: 113
Quote:
Originally Posted by kyb01 View Post
Swarthmore College, located in Swarthmore, is one of the finest liberal arts schools in the country.
I'd show you my acceptance letter to Swarthmore if I could find it. It's sitting in some box for 15 years. And I am from the area, lived my whole life here. Nobody is denying that Swarthmore is a nice town, and is basically an enlarged campus of a nice college called Swarthmore. But that doesn't change the fact that Delaware county as a whole is in decline, with Chester having the dubious honour of being the most dangerous city in the country.

The east side of the county is sharing the same fate as a lot of other close to Philly suburbs, like Jenkintown, that are on the border of the "bad" areas that are expanding thanks to gentrification in center city Philly. Many suburbs are far from what they used to be. Bensalem and Levittown are getting pretty shady. Swarthmore is right in the path of this wave too. There is no buffer communities between it and the bad neighbourhoods. Are the Swarthmore mansions going to be divided up into section 8 apartments any time soon? Of course not. But it will become more and more of a gated community that tries to isolate itself. An island in a sense. UPENN went through exactly the same thing, and only in the last decade did it stop being a fortress with a private police force in West Philly. It survived, as will Swarthmore. These things are very nuanced and tough to grasp for someone who's not familiar with the area and its history. Hopefully the OP can gain something from it.

Last edited by toobusytoday; 03-06-2015 at 08:00 AM..
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message
 
Old 03-05-2015, 05:39 PM
 
1,140 posts, read 1,393,678 times
Reputation: 320
Hi all,
I would like to give a neutral, unbiased, third take on this Swarthmore debate. However, I will have to give my opinions as well as facts. Is Swarthmore dangerous, by most standards? No. But is Swarthmore an anomaly, a very rich village surrounded by much less privileged (and yes in the case of Chester, very crime ridden)? Absolutely yes. So this brings us to a few other questions we all perhaps should ask ourselves:

1. How can living in a rich, safe community surrounded by communities that are the opposite be an obstacle to the people in the more fortunate communities? I do have to say that while Swarthmore is much like an eastern Main Line spot in many ways, the people of Swarthmore (due to being next to Chester but also a few relatively safe, albeit depressed, communities) certainly are less inclined to commute into neighboring communities (except for Springfield, Wallingford, Media, etc) than the other way around, unlike the Swarthmore people's Main Line counterparts. This isn't necessarily due to crime fears (though in the case of Chester it certainly is) but because Swarthmore people are generally much more educated than people in nearby Ridley, Morton, Upland, etc.

2. Does Swarthmore have many amenities? I personally have to say no. It would bother me having to drive out of town (though not particularly far) to find the nearest shopping center, restaurant, cinema, maybe even gas station...

3. Are certain parts of Swarthmore less desirable than others (in terms of safety, or at least prestige)? I certainly think the exclave of Springfield with a Swarthmore address (the area with the Goodwill store, MILES outside of the rest of Springfield) is a risky area, and if anything is certainly VERY much NOT upper middle class/upper class like the real Swarthmore. So my recommendation is if moving to "Swarthmore", generally try to live east of Fairview Road when looking at Chester Road/320. I believe Fairview is the line between Swarthmore Borough and the area known as both Springfield and Swarthmore that in most people's minds is neither.

Last edited by motownewave; 03-05-2015 at 06:28 PM..
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message
 
Old 03-05-2015, 06:44 PM
 
1,140 posts, read 1,393,678 times
Reputation: 320
Chester is about as much of a threat to Swarthmore as Detroit is a threat to Windsor (which I'm sure has problems of its own but that's beside the point...)

Last edited by toobusytoday; 03-06-2015 at 08:01 AM.. Reason: Removed off topic comments
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message
 
Old 03-05-2015, 07:01 PM
 
Location: Villanova Pa.
4,927 posts, read 14,161,695 times
Reputation: 2714
Quote:
Originally Posted by motownewave View Post
Hi all,
I would like to give a neutral, unbiased, third take on this Swarthmore debate. However, I will have to give my opinions as well as facts.
You should have stuck with opinions. Facts need 100% factual truth which you dont have a lot of here.


Quote:
Originally Posted by motownwave
Is Swarthmore dangerous, by most standards? No. But is Swarthmore an anomaly, a very rich village surrounded by much less privileged (and yes in the case of Chester, very crime ridden)? Absolutely yes.
Swarthmore is a tiny speck on the map surrounded almost entirely by towns which have absolutely no violent crime whatsoever.

Nether Providence Township,Middletown Township ,Upper Providence,Rose Valley, have median home incomes of $100 K plus,thats afflue;nt by PA standards. Media,Springfield, even Ridley,Brookhaven and Aston are all incredibly solid middle class towns with HHMI in the $75K range.


Just stop with the Swarthmore is an island surrounded by danger and blighted neighbors.Unbelievable. The Swarthmore/Media is a tremendous area.
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message
 
Old 03-05-2015, 07:11 PM
 
1,140 posts, read 1,393,678 times
Reputation: 320
Quote:
Originally Posted by rainrock View Post
You should have stuck with opinions. Facts need 100% factual truth which you dont have a lot of here.




Swarthmore is a tiny speck on the map surrounded almost entirely by towns which have absolutely no violent crime whatsoever.

Nether Providence Township,Middletown Township ,Upper Providence,Rose Valley, have median home incomes of $100 K plus,thats afflue;nt by PA standards. Media,Springfield, even Ridley,Brookhaven and Aston are all incredibly solid middle class towns with HHMI in the $75K range.


Just stop with the Swarthmore is an island surrounded by danger and blighted neighbors.Unbelievable. The Swarthmore/Media is a tremendous area.
Okay but it takes <5 minutes to hit Chester once one leaves the Strath Haven condominiums on Yale Avenue and heads southwest. And look at Woodlyn, Ridley Park, Folsom, Morton... all full of nice people I'm sure, but are these areas equivalent to anywhere on the Main Line? Absolutely not, but Swarthmore absolutely is. I dare you to eat at Viman Thai Cuisine in Ridley someday and introduce yourself to another customer. Odds are very much that they will be from Swarthmore, and very much that they will NOT be from Ridley. Nope, the Ridley folks stick to their cheesesteaks and hoagies, and their experience with Asian cuisines is limited to the corner Chinese joint with no concept of quality or service. Plus neither Acme in Ridley Township (take your pick of Folsom or Holmes) or the Pathmark in Folsom have any sushi whatsoever, even though they certainly have the space, and both chains have sushi at 95% of their stores, which should tell you something.

How do I know this? Best friend is from Swarthmore and I once worked at The Fresh Stop in Ridley...
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message
 
Old 03-05-2015, 07:23 PM
 
Location: Boston Metrowest (via the Philly area)
7,248 posts, read 10,495,621 times
Reputation: 8758
Quote:
Originally Posted by Leon2014 View Post
I'd show you my acceptance letter to Swarthmore if I could find it. It's sitting in some box for 15 years. And I am from the area, lived my whole life here. Nobody is denying that Swarthmore is a nice town, and is basically an enlarged campus of a nice college called Swarthmore. But that doesn't change the fact that Delaware county as a whole is in decline, with Chester having the dubious honour of being the most dangerous city in the country.
That's simply a factually false claim with absolutely no data to substantiate it. Delaware County continues to grow economically and in terms of population. It is a slow-growth county to be sure, but despite its challenged pockets--which account for, liberally, 15% of the entire county (and even less in terms of land area)--it is doing just fine.

Honestly, I think Delco has a bright future, as it has walkable towns, proximity to major job centers, and public transportation in spades compared to outlying suburbs.

Last edited by Duderino; 03-05-2015 at 07:35 PM..
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.

Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.


Reply
Please update this thread with any new information or opinions. This open thread is still read by thousands of people, so we encourage all additional points of view.

Quick Reply
Message:


Settings
X
Data:
Loading data...
Based on 2000-2020 data
Loading data...

123
Hide US histogram


Over $104,000 in prizes was already given out to active posters on our forum and additional giveaways are planned!

Go Back   City-Data Forum > U.S. Forums > Pennsylvania > Philadelphia

All times are GMT -6.

© 2005-2024, Advameg, Inc. · Please obey Forum Rules · Terms of Use and Privacy Policy · Bug Bounty

City-Data.com - Contact Us - Archive 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28, 29, 30, 31, 32, 33, 34, 35, 36, 37 - Top