Need some info about West Chester, PA (King of Prussia, Collegeville: relocate, job)

[toobusytoday]

West Chester is the county seat of Chester County so many of the people that work in the court system live there, same thing for the hospital and college. I daresay that many people commute to King of Prussia or Wilmington or Philadelphia but, you can do whatever you want!

[rainrock]

Originally Posted by orrmobl

Here you go again. As someone who worked in the city for 8 years and has walked a good part of downtown, it IS dirty and smelly. The sewer smell coming from steam grates is overwhelming in the winter. The smell of urine in the train stations and L tunnels is also. And how about rotting garbage as you pass each alley? Give me a break.

Your nasty habit of overgeneralization surfaces yet again. For every alley that may have an odor of garbage there are a hundred tony narrow streets that people live fabulously on. Is Center City perfect? No. Is the whole of Center City "Dirty + Smelly"? Abslolutely not. As far as Center City is concerned the positives far outweigh the negatives.

Originally Posted by oormobl

And isn't walkability and livability also determined by safety? If you can't walk the streets alone at night, doesn't that significantly curtail your options?

Lets try and keep it real here.Thousands of people walk the streets in Center City on a nightly basis. I'll bet you can count the people walking the streets of Wallingford at night on one hand. Why is that? Because there is virtually nowhere to walk to.

Originally Posted by oormobl

And, sorry, for me a town has to have sidewalks to be walkable, and Wallingford and Swarthmore do. I can walk from my house to the train. I can walk to the neighbors. My kids can ride bikes without being in the street or on a highway. This is what I mean by walkable.

What you mean by walkable and the criteria of what most people mean by walkable are two different things.

Walking around a cul-de-sac isn't most peoples idea of walkablity. Walkable towns are usually associated with vibrancy,shops,architecture,culture, places to see and visit. I know Wallingford fairly well and there is absolutely nowhere to walk to. Great place to raise afamily but its not walkable in the true sense of the word. Op was looking for a vibrant town. Wallingford is not vibrant and any sane person in this area will tell you Center City is the most vibrant neighborhood in this region, hands down.

Originally Posted by oormobl

And Media is totally walkable and has some cool shops, bars and restaurants, Trader Joe's, Iron Hill Brewing.

Media is a great little town but you can only walk up and down State Street so many times before it begins to get tedious. In Media your choices to eat/drink are Iron Hill,Jocelyns or a half dozen other small restaurants. Center City has hundreds of restaurants/bars/byob's.

Originally Posted by oormobl

I don't understand your posts - when I poke fun at Delco, you defend it to the hilt, now you're doing the same thing about the city. Contrarian is the word that comes to mind. But keep in mind, this isn't about winning arguments, it's about informing people as accurately as possible.

Poking fun at Delco is one thing misstating facts is another. You constantly harp on Delco's urbanity yet Delaware County is probably 80% suburban/rural area wise.If I'm not mistaken you once called Brookhaven urban ghetto like when in fact Brookhavens poverty level is almost non existent and there isn't a single row home in the entire town.Its a solid middle class suburban town. You tend to verbally attack places that you really know nothing about- or worse yet-that hear about through a third party. You seem to be an expert on the human qualities of the Main Line populace because of information you gathered through a third party.

As far as defending the city? If disputing that Center City on the whole is not Dirty + Smelly then you got me.Guilty as charged.

You are a good poster and bring alot of help to the board but you tend to get carried away on certain issues, especially as far as the Main Line is concerned. You have issues there.

[kelb]

I would agree that Media does not measure up to West Chester in terms of things to do. In Media you just get a couple or three blocks with cool shops and restaurants. West Chester is bigger and better, but very charming.

[orrmobl]

Originally Posted by kelb

I would agree that Media does not measure up to West Chester in terms of things to do. In Media you just get a couple or three blocks with cool shops and restaurants. West Chester is bigger and better, but very charming.

And I would say that Media is an old fashioned Norman Rockwell type town. West Chester is a bigger college town with Rockwell-esqe features which are slowly being replaced with chichi restaurants, yuppies and people who flock to popular areas just because they are popular.

I've been to food festivals in both towns and West Chester's was so crowded you could barely move or navigate a stroller and people also were walking around with all these dogs, some of them really big and, I felt, threatening to small children. I can tolerate crowding to a point but this was my limit. I just wanted to go home. Media's, on the other hand, is a casual nice stroll down the streets with enough people to make the event successful without it being overwhelmingly chaotic.

[ScottyG]

I have lived in West Chester for the last 2.5 years and it has many positives, but my wife and I are relocating to Media in October. West Chester Borough and "West Chester" are two very different places; the "Boro" has a pseudo-urban feel to it; this is due to a large student population (WCU), the many small shops, restaurants, and cafes. The Boro is pretty safe, except for small pockets, South Adams and East Miner Streets area and North Darlington and West Washington Streets area, primarily the houses are very well cared for and beautiful, but again there are a few pockets that are not and you would not want to live there. West Chester, not the Boro, is made up of McMansions, soccer-moms, laid back suburbs, and it is very safe but rather boring.

For my money, Media has much more to offer, it is more consistent than the Boro of West Chester, the nice houses aren't quite as nice, but the run down houses are not quite as run down either. Media does not have the large student population like the Boro of WC, which can be a problem with crime (vandalism, fights, typical drunk college behavior), it is much more laid back, which is good or bad, depending on what you are looking for, rent and housing is comparable, you pay more for auto/home insurance in Media, but you have very convenient access to the city of Philadelphia, Blue route, I-95, the R3, the shore, and Delaware, for me, this makes Media one of the best places to live in the Philadelphia Metro area overall. Good Luck.

[Mimifio]

Thanks for everyone's responses. I too am moving to the area and looking for somewhere to live. My husband is getting relocated to King of Prussia and bringing me and my 19 month old boy along. I landed a job in Plymouth Meeting. So, we are looking for somewhere to live!! How do you all like Blue Bell, Wayne, Flourtown, Ambler, etc..

Those places seems to be closer than West Chester, although I've heard so many good things about West Chester. What about collegeville? Are the schools good here? I'm looking for a safe, family oriended place to live and a Trader Joe's would be GREAT!

Thanks!

[orrmobl]

Collegeville schools are supposedly the best bang for the buck in the burbs. But my buddy saw public school high schoolers at a funeral and said they and their parents were pretty low class. So he's staying but enrolling his kids in Catholic school.

The other three areas you mentioned, along with KOP and Plymouth Meeting are all good. It just depends how far you want to drive, what amenities/features you can't live without, what values you want your neighbors to have and how much money you have to spend...

Maybe look on the Trader Joe's website and find a town with one...I know Media has one as does Ardmore or one of the towns bordering it...

[NomadGirl27]

I've been searching for rentals and browsing the homes for sale in the West Chester "boro". I'm looking to rent first and then eventually a possible fixer upper as an investment. I've seen two places around E Miner St and Poplar St. Our realtor says that the east side of West Chester borough gets into more of an industrial area. Does anyone have an opinion on that area? I know that here in Austin, our industrial area has become a disired location for young, hipster types. They are buying places up and turning them into modern urban homes.

So I guess my question is this: Is this side of town a nice place to live in the West Chester borough? Or does it make up one of those not so nice "pockets" that people speak of?

[orrmobl]

I would say its not somewhere you want to live:

Originally Posted by ScottyG

The Boro is pretty safe, except for small pockets, South Adams and East Miner Streets area and North Darlington and West Washington Streets area, primarily the houses are very well cared for and beautiful, but again there are a few pockets that are not and you would not want to live there.

[tylerryan]

Is there a walmart or target anywhere near WC??