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Normie, Scranton's violent crime rate barely registers a blip on the radar. I've walked around the city countless times after dark and have never felt unsafe. There have only been two homicides over the past several years in the city and its adjacent county, and both of those were NOT random (one was a man abusing his baby, and one was two homeless men getting into a disagreement). I'm sorry to hear of your negative experiences in the city, but this is NOT the case in MOST American cities. I even walk around Wilkes-Barre, PA at night, and this city has a horrific reputation for violent crime. Never once have I been the victim of a criminal act. I'll stand by my convictions that too many in this nation have a "Chicken Little" mentality when it comes to urban living. You might have lived in a bad urban neighborhood, but what about the thousands of other safe, attractive urban neighborhoods that exist in our cities today? What's their excuse for declining? Scranton's decline hasn't come from high crime or a poor quality-of-life, it has come due to lax zoning policies in the suburbs that have paved the way for McMansion communities to spring up like hemorrhoids, luring people out of the city with the promise of larger lot size and larger homes. As evidenced yesterday while I watched HGTV and saw one childless couple complaining that a 3,000 square-foot suburban home was "too small," Americans by and large are becoming materialistic gluttons. Our family of four grew up in a 1,500 square foot home, and we got by just fine with only three bedrooms and one bathroom. Why today's childless couples NEED three bathrooms, five bedrooms, media rooms, etc. is beyond my realm of comprehension, but that is the exact reason why the suburbs of Scranton have become so popular---the city's housing stock is very old and can't afford these people those sorts of amenities.
Last edited by SteelCityRising; 11-12-2007 at 07:54 AM..
Reason: Typo
Car-centered, suburban nightmare - to me, that description screams Cary, NC! [Raleigh area] Whenever I see it on one of those best-places-to-live lists I practically choke.
Once again though you don't realize that newer suburbs near Louisville, CO can be a HELL of a lot different than many newer East Coast suburbs. Your community sounds like it has some sort of cohesion and sense of community. In the suburbs in my area everyone just gets the sense that everything was plopped down haphazardly, almost as if you let a three-year-old play SimCity. Residential and commercial areas are intentionally spaced so far apart that they can only be accessed by a vehicle. This was to address the NIMBY concerns of the yuppie residents in my area who even fight BANKS and CONVENIENCE STORES that try to establish themselves near enough to their subdivisions so that people could, gasp, WALK to them! Sidewalks are non-existent around here, and the narrow shoulders along busier roadways are often impassable to pedestrians due to rude homeowners who park there, forcing people like me to run in the street and snarl traffic in the process. I would go runnning at a local park, but alas our suburbs lack THOSE as well.
I'm happy for you Pittnurse that you live in a dream suburb. Things are much different here on the exurban fringe of the BosWash Corridor, where developers and township officials see nothing but $$$ in their decision-making and then worry about the consequences afterwards. You know what I miss most? That sense of neighborliness that has gone down the toilet over the years. People in my subdivision don't want to get to know one another and keep to themselves. There are no longer front porches to gather on, backyards are separated by hedges and solid fencing for additional privacy, people don't wave back when you drive by, etc. People in the city of Scranton still hold block parties, have neighborhood associations, neighborhood watch groups, and even band together to throw fund-raisers when their neighbors are in need. You don't see such things in our local 'burbs, which is why I too am moving to the city. If your suburb has all of these characteristics, then more power to you, but don't try to silence those of us who are not priviledged enough to live in better-planned and better-managed suburbs.
I grew up in a suburb of Beaver Falls, PA (yes, there is such a thing) called Patterson Heights. It was founded in 1891. The school was built in 1900 (now closed). The Volunteer Fire Dept was formed in 1903. When I lived there, there was a great sense of community. The VFD was always having some sort of fund-raising dinner, where you would see many of your neighbors. The school PTA was very active. There was a rec dept that sponsored bus trips to Pirates' games, a summer playground program, etc. There was a little conveniece store one could walk to (no sidewalks there, though, that seems to be an eastern thing). There was bus service to Beaver Falls, and from there one could get a bus to many places in the local area including Pittsburgh. All this in a town of 800 people!
Perhaps you should become active in your community organizations. I'm not talking about the Elks' Club, I'm talking about the VFD, if there is one, the rec board, etc. Most suburbs have these things.
If you want to live in Scranton, that's fine, but you might find that the suburbs aren't as bad as you think if you got involved in the community life there.
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