Nuts and Bolts About The State of Delaware (Wilmington, Dover: buy, property tax rates)

[Thruway]

Just curious, similar to the other thread, but for those familiar with DE, I was wondering.

1) Do you consider yourselves to be a Northern State, part of the PHI tri state area
-A southern state and loyalist to the south or Redskins/Orioles
-A middle atlantic state
-Or mixed depending on Wilmington, Dover, Rehoboth

2) I have been though your state many times but mostly through that 15 mile stretch of I-95 and I-295 connecting MD to NJ via NY.
I was wondering if northern DE or how far into DE is considered the greater PHI area.
In other words is DE to PHI like CT is to NY, a commuting place for PHI folks?
Or is it considered to far?
Where is the line between where the state goes from suburban PHI, tri state PHI to rural?
Is it a common commute into Northern DE?

Thanks.

[RDCofDE]

Originally Posted by tberg224

Just curious, similar to the other thread, but for those familiar with DE, I was wondering.

1) Do you consider yourselves to be a Northern State, part of the PHI tri state area
-A southern state and loyalist to the south or Redskins/Orioles
-A middle atlantic state
-Or mixed depending on Wilmington, Dover, Rehoboth

2) I have been though your state many times but mostly through that 15 mile stretch of I-95 and I-295 connecting MD to NJ via NY.
I was wondering if northern DE or how far into DE is considered the greater PHI area.
In other words is DE to PHI like CT is to NY, a commuting place for PHI folks?
Or is it considered to far?
Where is the line between where the state goes from suburban PHI, tri state PHI to rural?
Is it a common commute into Northern DE?

Thanks.

1) The northern part of the state is loyal mostly to Philadelphia. The southern part is more of DC area (the southernmost reaches of the state get Baltimore and Washington TV stations).

2) The lionshare of the Philadelphia suburbs lie north of the C&D Canal (basically Northern New Castle County). There are some Baltimore and Washington commuters west of Wilmington, and some New York City commuters in this same area. North of Wilmington tends to be mostly Philadelphia. Wilmington's suburbs stretch as far south as Milford, more spaced out south of the canal. Bridgeville is becoming a long distance DC exurb as it is the closest point to DC in DE.

SEPTA's rail system extends all the way to the Maryland border (but does not yet enter MD). MARC's trains from Washington come into Cecil County and are an easy drive from Northwest Delaware. Eventually the two will meet in either Elkton or Newark.

[Thruway]

Originally Posted by RDCofDE

1) The northern part of the state is loyal mostly to Philadelphia. The southern part is more of DC area (the southernmost reaches of the state get Baltimore and Washington TV stations).

2) The lionshare of the Philadelphia suburbs lie north of the C&D Canal (basically Northern New Castle County). There are some Baltimore and Washington commuters west of Wilmington, and some New York City commuters in this same area. North of Wilmington tends to be mostly Philadelphia. Wilmington's suburbs stretch as far south as Milford, more spaced out south of the canal. Bridgeville is becoming a long distance DC exurb as it is the closest point to DC in DE.

SEPTA's rail system extends all the way to the Maryland border (but does not yet enter MD). MARC's trains from Washington come into Cecil County and are an easy drive from Northwest Delaware. Eventually the two will meet in either Elkton or Newark.

1) Wait, so in southern DE they get DC and Balt stations over PHI? I find it hard to believe a northern state would do this.

2) I thought New Castle County and Dover north would be ALL PHI, you're saying PHI is limited to just northern DE and that points below are mixed?

3) People actually commute to Balt/DC from northern DE and southern DE, and to NYC? Thats 135 miles there!!! No way.
From what you are saying soon, DE is going to be a major melting pot, which sould make it interesting for sports.
I guess we can expect a lot more NY and DC Balt fans at PHI games soon.

4) Is DE PHI (Eagles, Flyers, Phillies) or DC (Skins, Nats, Caps) or Balt (Ravens, Orioles) or were is the line?

[RDCofDE]

Originally Posted by tberg224

1) Wait, so in southern DE they get DC and Balt stations over PHI? I find it hard to believe a northern state would do this.

2) I thought New Castle County and Dover north would be ALL PHI, you're saying PHI is limited to just northern DE and that points below are mixed?

3) People actually commute to Balt/DC from northern DE and southern DE, and to NYC? Thats 135 miles there!!! No way.
From what you are saying soon, DE is going to be a major melting pot, which sould make it interesting for sports.
I guess we can expect a lot more NY and DC Balt fans at PHI games soon.

4) Is DE PHI (Eagles, Flyers, Phillies) or DC (Skins, Nats, Caps) or Balt (Ravens, Orioles) or were is the line?

1) All Philadelphia stations are carried in all parts of Kent and New Castle Counties. However, you get Channel 10 from Philadelphia as far south as Rehoboth Beach. Beyond that it feeds off the Ocean City cable system which carries Baltimore, Salisbury, and the DC Fox station. Baltimore stations are carried throughout Sussex County, and also in the Middletown area as the cable system there covers Chesapeake City MD as well (some smaller company other than Comcast). Rather than split that system, they carry all local stations in both cities in both states.

2) There are commuters to Philadelphia as far south as Milford (one hour south of I-95 along Route 1). However, the largest majority of them live in the Brandywine Hundred area, which is the northeast corner of the state. This area looks like a continuation of Delaware County PA, but more upscale, and cheaper.

3) People who commute to NYC generally either drive to NJ Transit's train station in Hamilton NJ (near Trenton) or, if they make a lot of money, buy monthly Amtrak passes at $1,100 a pop. MARC trains from Washington end in Perryville MD, about a 15 minute drive from the DE border near Newark and Glasgow. Bridgeville DE is about a 1 hour drive to Annapolis, 1 1/2 hours to the DC Metro at New Carrollton (which allows for commuters going to Arlington VA as well as its on the same line). Commuter bus service is available from the east end of the Bay Bridge to the DC Metro and the US Capitol.

4) In northern Delaware, the line between Philly and Baltimore teams is the state line. MD goes with Baltimore and DE goes with Philadelphia. There is less support for Baltimore teams as most Delawareans complain about "stupid" Maryland. However, the beach areas are quickly being bought out by wealthy Washingtonians who are changing that area from Eagles to Redskins. The majority of Delawareans, however, will support the Eagles.

[Thruway]

You got to be kidding me, I can't fathom people in DE would drive 60 miles to a train station to go to NY, that can't be true.

I also find it hard to believe that DE would serve commuters for BAL or DC, I thought DE served PHI commuters and the beach was the only place were BAL or DC had an influence?

Let me ask is DE undergoing a lot of development or is it still rural, and what about Sussex County?

Is DE a northern state, mid, or southern, and in Sussex do they get both DC, BAL, and PHI stations?
Is it still PHI loyal or more BAL and DC in Seaford, the coast?
Thanks.

[RDCofDE]

Originally Posted by tberg224

You got to be kidding me, I can't fathom people in DE would drive 60 miles to a train station to go to NY, that can't be true.

I also find it hard to believe that DE would serve commuters for BAL or DC, I thought DE served PHI commuters and the beach was the only place were BAL or DC had an influence?

Let me ask is DE undergoing a lot of development or is it still rural, and what about Sussex County?

Is DE a northern state, mid, or southern, and in Sussex do they get both DC, BAL, and PHI stations?
Is it still PHI loyal or more BAL and DC in Seaford, the coast?
Thanks.

It is true. There aren't as many going to New York and Washington, but they are. The New York commuters live predominantly in Northern New Castle County. Washington commuters live in that area, as well as some select areas in southwest Kent and northwest Sussex Counties where the Bay Bridge isn't far away.

I have met Philadelphia commuters who live in Annapolis and use Amtrak from BWI Airport. There are New York commuters who live in the Aberdeen MD area (Amtrak again services this station). Most move to Delaware to avoid the high costs of living in the suburbs of New York and Washington. Delaware is the cheap deal in the Northeast Corridor.

As for development, the key word is sprawl. Northern New Castle County and Middletown in Southern New Castle County are pratically paved over. Central Delaware (Kent County) is developing as both a long distance suburb of Wilmington and as a retirement community (Kent County might have the lowest property tax rates in the country). Sussex County is growing primarily in the beach areas, going as far back as Milton. Milford is a spillover of Central Delaware (with the Route 1 corridor between slowly filling in). Some of the western Sussex towns, such as Bridgeville, have grown considerably with long distance commuters to Wilmington, Annapolis, Baltimore, and Washington (having the convenience of only a 30 minute drive to the beach).

That said, there are still a lot of open areas in the state with some amazing scenic areas particularly in the Brandywine Valley and along the Delaware River. The landscape is widely varied. The landscape looks similar to the Midwest. The typical small town heritage resembles Colonial New England coastal towns. The mentality is more Southern than Northern (some will argue that). It is a surprisingly packed state for such a small area.

[JKF]

I have heard of commuters in Delaware, going to Harrisburg, PA. The traffic is only bad at the 9-5 rush and on Fridays in the summer. I grew up between Baltimore and Washington... Annapolis area and this traffic in Delaware is really not that bad.