Wayne, PA (town, marble, good)

[MoorestownResident]

Originally Posted by cosmopolitan

I am an ultimate implant who has lived in, and traveled to, many different parts of the U.S. and the world and has lived in Wayne for the last two years.
"Moorestown"'s negative posts on Wayne appear to me gravely biased and one-sided. So much so, that I wondered if "Moorestown" had actually walked only the two or three straight blocks of the stretch between Wayne Train Station and the AT&T cell tower and had written the posts based on that tour along the train tracks.
I have never visited Moorestown, but love Morristown, NJ. If the first is a smaller version of the latter, I am sure that Moorestown would be as pretty and nice as "Moorestown" has asserted.
My point is not to compare Moorestown, N.J with Wayne, P.A. Rather, I would like to point out that Wayne, P.A. stands as its own beautiful and unique entity, albeit different from what "Moorestown" sees in his or her town. One would be able to appreciate the true unique beauty of neither New York City landscapes nor modern Paris if one wishes to compare them against the aestheticism of the 17th Century French Court.
One of the things that I, as an implant, still marble about Wayne is this; while successfully adapting to the needs for modernization and demographic changes over the last century, Wayne, at least within its core historic area, has retained relatively well the charms of the late 19th century specific to the Main Line country-home town that has been a suburb of Philadelphia (not Trenton, N.J.).
The core historic downtown area of Wayne is indeed small but still has the quaint atmosphere of a well-maintained old American village. There are no big and glitzy shopping malls common to many farmland-turned-MacMansion-filled suburban town centers around the country. There are many small and unassuming independent boutique-style shops. Not cheap, but I have also noticed that there is an old-fashioned Woman's Exchange Shop run by woman volunteers right across from a thrift store run by a church. As for a more serious shopping, people go to Spread Eagle Village Shopping Center (in Wayne near the farmer's market but not what I would call historic pedestrian Wayne), Gateway Shopping Mall (I think this one has Wayne address but is very near Valley Forge, or the other way around), King of Prussia Mall or Ardmore Mall--all of them within a short driving distance from downtown Wayne.
There are a good number of downtown restaurants to choose from depending on your mood. Among some of my favorites are: Restaurant Taquet (very acceptable French cuisine), Christopher's Restaurant, Teresa's cafe, Gryphon Cafe (an environmentally friendly, all day hang-out for all ages), Margaret Kuo's (Chinese) and Joe's (an old-timer's breakfast joint).
Also within a walking distance are: an old-fashioned movie theater, an independent book-store, a few antique stores, a middle school, a post office, the historic Fire House, a fabled gentle-women's club house called the Saturday Club and Radnor Memorial library (yes, we do have a good public library with a long history, well-trained and helpful librarians at the very center of downtown and the university libraries at Villanova University and Bryn Mawr University are open to Radnor Township residents for a small fee). School kids as well as young and old adults hang out at the center of the town on weekends.
There also is a farmer's market a little way off the historic downtown along with a small strip mall, a few chain restaurants, a car wash, garage and chain stores among others. I am actually wondering if "Moorestown" has mistakenly thought this area was the downtown Wayne because the farmer's market is right next to AT&T Complex.
Downtown Wayne is very safe, pleasant and pedestrian friendly. Thanks to the train, many people walk or drive to the station for commuting to various other suburban towns and Philadelphia. Teen-age kids can ride trains on their own, meet up with friends next town and may come home by train after an after-school activity or lessons in nearby town. On Fridays, some kids drop their bags off at the nearest friend's home and take off for a Friday afternoon stroll of Wayne (just a few days ago, Coldstone Creamery held free ice cream social for these kids) I can't think of many American suburbs, or cities for that matter, where I would feel comfortable with letting kids do the same. Philadelphia is also easily accessable with a short train or car ride.
The town also has excellent schools. Wayne belongs to Radnor Township School District--one of the best public school districts in the country. I have three children and have seen the school system's elementary through high schools and compared them with other places that I have lived in or visited in connection with our relocations. I have had children in both private and public schools at various times and places. Radnor school system has lived up to my parental expections for a world-class public education for the next generations of American leaders as well as average citizens (and incidentally for many promising foreign youngsters, too).
The historic residential areas, known as the historic North Wayne and South Wayne, are all within the walking distance to the town-center. Both parts of Wayne are filled with beautiful tree-lined homes and estates (of the 19th century Philadelphia riches) with the period's architectural charms. They are simply gorgeous and most of them feel very welcoming--unlike many urban or suburban historic town homes and estates, most of these homes don't have imposing metal fences. Nonetheless, it appears to me the "Moorestown" "messenger" have largely failed either to notice or to venture into these parts of Wayne.
About the train tracks. Most of people who have ever lived in any old city with old train stations would agree that the immediate vicinity of train tracks/stations are usually not the best part of the town unless there has been a systematic sprucing up and comeback efforts through a government intervention (like Washington. D.C.'s Union Station or New York's Grand Central). Whether "Moorestown" liked it or not, the very identity of Wayne as a Main-line town was very much linked to the Main Line trains and the fact that the vicinity of the train station has been maintained at the level Wayne currently has (people actually ride the commuter train and pedestrians--young and old--hang out at the shops and restaurants near the station without having to worry about the safety at nightfall) tells me much about the safety and vitality of Wayne. In my opinion, the benefit of having the train station with four rail-lines downtown outweighs whatever ugliness "Moorestown" saw in it. Furthermore, I feel that "Moorestown" would probably say the same or worse things about the fabled train and subway stations of London and Paris.
As for the brick cell tower, I agree with "Moorestown" that it is not pretty, but at the same time it is not much worse than the cell towers disguised as tall trees that one sees in NJ landscapes. Besides, the tower was probably once the town's trade-off for attracting the much needed jobs and tax bases of AT&T before Wayne became a hot Main-line town in recent years.

The difference is the cell towers in NJ are not located directly in the heart of town. Gets back to my point about Moxy. PA towns were developed with a very pedestrian, down to earth character that leaves you wanting for something.

[cosmopolitan]

I think that "Moorestown" is missing the point of this thread, again; I think that you are either generalizing your prejudice against anything Pennsylvania or simply trying to be a provocateur. The 19th century Wayne was a "get-away" & "country-home" town for the rich people of Philadelphia who had every luxury in their lives including stately homes & mansions in Philadelphia. Yet, neither can I call Wayne a "down to earth" town, nor there is anything I want more out of the historic infrastructure of Wayne, a Main-Line Town. I have the feeling that "Moorestown" really has not seen all the hidden little architectural treasures of the town called Wayne, P.A. As for me, I take its beauty as it is, including what "Moorestown" has called an "eyesore." I somehow noticed it only twice in my two years here--once when I got lost right after I moved and right after I read the negative posts by "Moorestown" just a day or two ago--and this is an artist talking. With or without the tower, the quality of life in Wayne is quite high in my opinion. Therefore, let the future buyers of Wayne homes be the judge on the tower's demerit. As for me, I bought a house in Wayne because I needed a house in a suburb of Philadelphia, not of Morristown, N.J. Some others, I am sure, will prefer Moorestown, N.J. to Wayne, P.A. for the same reason.
About the cost of housing and living, it is definitely higher than Phoenixville, particularly if you want to be in or closer to the historic Wayne. Houses in the historic Wayne don't come on the market as often as other areas even compared with Lower Merion. The few that show up get snatched up fairly quickly. I also hear that, if the house is in any reasonable shape, multiple offers in short time after the initial listing is not uncommon even in this down market.
As for the snobs, you may need a little more than a courage to face them--ability to take a deep breath, forgive and try to reach out again a least once, or to say "forget about them" and find someone else who is agreeable. I am no WASP, Italian or Catholic and have had my share of shearing treatments here and elsewhere. I would generally agree with "Pilot1"'s notion that "a few snobs, you find in any affluent area," except in my case, I always end up asking myself if their treatments also have an element of latent racism. However, I would like to point out that I also have found an equal number of very nice neighbors, and feel that the town comes out as an average on snobbism/racism/neighborly love(?)--or whatever else you call it--measurements when I compare this town with some other American ones that I have lived in. I also want to point out that the school system, both school administers and teachers, appears to go extra lengths to make it sure that the cultural/ethnic diversity, equality, fairness, and all the civility and propriety in human relations are properly observed and maintained.

[MoorestownResident]

I think you are making some of my points. 19th century Wayne might have been stately with character but it degraded over time, just like the rest of the Main Line. For comparison purposes, the character of Moorestown is very similar to the character that existed in the 19th century. The oldest homes in town date from the 1710-15, right on Main Street and they are still lived in today. Moorestown Friends is the 2nd oldest private school in NJ dating from 1785, it looks the same today as it did then with expansion over the years. They decided against liquor in town multiple times (including this year), against a commuter rail line and are in the process of revitalizing certain areas of town. The community house looks exactly the same as it did when it was built, no difference. Nobody decided to put a cell tower in close proximity:

http://www.thecommunityhouse.com/

Hey, you like Wayne, I'm happy for you. I have nothing against it per se, just that it kinda personifies the cultural moxy differences PA versus NJ. It is what it is. Moorestown's in a different league. Don't hate on the messenger.

[JHG722]

Originally Posted by MoorestownResident

I think you are making some of my points. 19th century Wayne might have been stately with character but it degraded over time, just like the rest of the Main Line. For comparison purposes, the character of Moorestown is very similar to the character that existed in the 19th century. The oldest homes in town date from the 1710-15, right on Main Street and they are still lived in today. Moorestown Friends is the 2nd oldest private school in NJ dating from 1785, it looks the same today as it did then with expansion over the years. They decided against liquor in town multiple times (including this year), against a commuter rail line and are in the process of revitalizing certain areas of town. The community house looks exactly the same as it did when it was built, no difference. Nobody decided to put a cell tower in close proximity:

Moorestown Community House > Default

Hey, you like Wayne, I'm happy for you. I have nothing against it per se, just that it kinda personifies the cultural moxy differences PA versus NJ. It is what it is. Moorestown's in a different league. Don't hate on the messenger.

I just don't understand this crap. We're aware you like where you live. We like where we live. We dont give a damn how great you think Moorestown is. Leave that junk in the Jersey threads, because this is about Wayne--NOT Moorestown. It's getting old.

[MoorestownResident]

Then stop replying. I let the thread go. I was just responding. I'm here as a NJ rep for Philly metro.

[nickels]

As an implant, I, too, marble about many things....

[BPP1999]

Originally Posted by MoorestownResident

Hey, you like Wayne, I'm happy for you. I have nothing against it per se, just that it kinda personifies the cultural moxy differences PA versus NJ. It is what it is. Moorestown's in a different league. Don't hate on the messenger.

You want us to reply, buddy. That's your whole point. You demean the Main Line, then laugh at everyone's response.

Are you even remotely aware of what state you live in? I wonder how much "moxy" the people in Cherry Hill, Camden, Voorhees, Woodbridge, Edison, and on and on and on, had when their elected officials and the Federal government interstated the crap out of NJ? We all know that NJ's plentiful highways have done so much for the culture and ambiance of the Garden State.

If I could offer a compliment to you, I would suggest that you go work for a NJ tourism bureau, because you can sure talk the talk. You belong on a chamber of commerce or business development committee, if you're not already on one.

[Pilot1]

If Jersey is so great, why do all the tourists come to PA and gawk at Amish and marvel at "the country" we have? Then they complain about the roads and getting lost. Stay in Jersey! Morrestown is a cute little town surrounded by..........Jersey. Yuck!

[nickels]

Stop fighting, and acknowledge my joke, dammit!

[Tone509]

Originally Posted by nickels

Stop fighting, and acknowledge my joke, dammit!

I can't find the post that you're satirizing...

...but this is the second request made to get back to discussing the original topic, Wayne PA. Respecting this request will lengthen the life of this thread.