Relocate to North of Harrisburg Region (York: rent, motel, living in)

[Dequindre]

Originally Posted by SteelGuitar22

Thank you, ki0eh and Dequindre! Those were helpful responses. The 23 bus route looks promising if I live in upper Dauphin (beautiful area up there around Halifax, am strongly considering trying to find a place up there someday). My only issue would be trying to find an apartment around that area, it seems like most apartments are in the city or nearby suburbs. Anyone know of apartments around the Upper Dauphin and Perry County areas? I also have a question about crime in the Harrisburg area. I've read articles that Harrisburg has a worse crime rate than Philadelphia. Is the crime rate in Harrisburg really that bad? How far outside of the city does the crime extend?

Crime in Harrisburg is pretty bad, but a lot of that is contained to the city of Harrisburg and older suburbs in the immediate area. There are many very nice suburbs of Harrisburg (Camp Hill, Mechanicsburg, Enola, Linglestown, etc.) where crime isn't a major issue.

[Dequindre]

Originally Posted by ki0eh

Due to relative isolation (safest to plan on a full hour drive each way if your work site is center city Harrisburg, comparable to Thompsontown or Gratz), Shippensburg is still a bit cheaper and less sprawly than a couple of exits either way on I-81. With a large new intermodal terminal, the monster warehouses are likely coming faster than they have been. I don't quite understand the level of residential development in Chambersburg (supposedly DC spillover? really??) but that's getting closer as well. So if the OP wants a location that continues to stay ahead of the sprawl machine, Shippensburg might not be it.

Shippensburg is getting quite a bit of warehouse spillover (likely due to space constraints in Carlisle), but most of that in directly adjacent to I-81. Driving West or East in either direction of Shippensburg will lead to rural farmland and forested mountains.

Chambersburg is starting to become a bedroom community of D.C. more or less. It's amazing how many expensive homes are being erected in the Chambersburg area right now. There has also been somewhat of a land rush with builders buying every decent lot they can get their hands on (and some new developments in the planning stages as well).

[ki0eh]

Originally Posted by SteelGuitar22

My only issue would be trying to find an apartment around that area, it seems like most apartments are in the city or nearby suburbs. Anyone know of apartments around the Upper Dauphin and Perry County areas?

It may be that craigslist hasn't penetrated rural landlords' consciousness.

See also ink-stained sources such as Sentinelnow.com - The Upper Dauphin Sentinel Online

[SteelGuitar22]

Thank you for the input, guys! You said that crime is bad in the city, is it bad around the state government buildings? PHEAA building? Just want to know what I would be up against if I got a job in those areas of the city.

[Dequindre]

The downtown core should be OK, but I wouldn't venture too far off the beaten path.

[BBC99]

Originally Posted by Dequindre

The downtown core should be OK, but I wouldn't venture too far off the beaten path.

Harrisburg is a hell hole!

[SteelGuitar22]

Thank you, Dequindre! BBC99, could you elaborate on your point so that I can have your point of view on the subject?

[SteelGuitar22]

After doing more research, I am actually more interested now in the West Shore areas of Cumberland and York counties (and some of Perry). I'm basically looking anywhere from North York up to the Duncannon area. I loved what I saw of rural York and Cumberland counties, and it seems as though the cost of renting apartments in those areas are a lot cheaper than rent near Philly. I would probably want to commute via bus, either CAT or Rabbittransit. It seems as though parking in the city is VERY expensive, so I want to bus in from a park and ride or from an apartment I live in. Any thoughts?

[g500]

In general, West Shore is more expensive than East Shore. New Cumberland, Lemoyne, and Carlisle are very affordable. Parking downtown can get expensive, yes.

[Keltic1]

I work in one of the State govt buildings, right near the Capitol. I pay 100/month for a rundown lot and walk a bit to work every day. You have to be very very awake in the morning and when walking back- we've had some pedestrians hit at the crossings... very bad attention to crosswalks. I'm sure the 100/month will be going up soon.
If you park closer to where I work, it's 185/month. The LST tax tripled for anybody working IN Harrisburg- whether you live there or not (yes, it's a commuter tax aimed at the state workers to try and use their wallets to fix the city's mess).
There has been a couple shootings near the Capitol area- usually after hours (we all clear out of the city fast- most don't want to put more money into a city that's got us by the short hairs). Nearly all of the crime is minority young/middle age men, presumably (and often proven afterwards) drug crimes/drug disputes. If you stay away from the seedy areas and the seedy types, you should be ok - BUT- don't be strolling around alone in the wrong area. Problem is, lots of places CAN be the wrong area, depending on who's hanging around or notices you.
We lived downtown, off 2nd Street, and there were always sirens. One of us worked at the Pinnacle Hospital- it was like a small Philly hospital, especially on wkends. Lots of fights, alcohol and drug involved situations. Seriously, we are banging away at a record for shootings and killings, but it's usually the thugs thinning the herd. Once we moved to a suburb area, we have found there's some trouble out in those areas also - due to the Section 8 rental vouchers and the trouble that can infest a nice neighborhood. Yes, I said infest... and I also said "can" since I know you can't say 100%.
If you get a State job, be aware that if you're union, you should be okay for the most part. However, if you are management-classed- you serve at the discretion of the Governor. They do not get raises, sometimes for several years at a time, even though costs of living go up.. and you're trying to pay for your MPH or your MS. If you get hired at a 7-1... then you STAY at that 7-1, you don't climb to 7-2 the next year, etc. Not at all. You can only get a raise once the Governor signs off on one, so it will not be every year like you see with union not ever. Many mgmt. people are trying to take lower-classed jobs in the union, just so they can start climbing up and get ahead of where they have been stuck.... so choose carefully.