Hershey vs. Carlisle: Which is Better? (Lancaster, Harrisburg: crime rate, hotel, townhouse)

[SteelGuitar22]

Hi All,

This is similar to the other thread of mine regarding Harrisburg and Lancaster, this time with Hershey and Carlisle (this is geared more towards the borough areas and not so much their suburban parts). Which town do you think is better and why, Hershey or Carlisle? Some things to list would be: crime, shopping, entertainment, dining, traffic, scenery, cost of living, walkability, etc...I have been to both towns and I like them for different reasons. Also I have heard that Carlisle has somewhat of a higher than average crime rate, is that true? Is it safe to walk down the streets of Carlisle at night? Thanks!

[ki0eh]

Carlisle is an actual borough laid out 150 years prior to the chocolate patch. There are many more modest row homes, an urban form absent in Hershey where there are a few semi-detached (or more modern townhouse rows on the outskirts) so the buy-in cost can be considerably lower in Carlisle. I'd be spending a lot more money at Wegmans if I lived on that side, plus Carlisle has other stores (like Target) that from Hershey are longer traffic choked drives. Carlisle is also historically more diverse economically and ethnically, with a more normal sort of business community spiced by the more outward looking US Army War College and Dickinson College. Other than in the core there are limited alternatives to getting in the car and driving, but that goes double for Hershey where you can't even really walk to the more limited Kmart and the like. The Appalachian Trail and nearby fly fishing streams plus up the outdoor flavor near Carlisle. Middlesex Township's "miracle mile" likely negatively affects visitors' outlook on the community more than locals realize

Hershey has recently become more ethnically diverse, the more constricted school district (only one township, Hershey CDP is not separately incorporated from the second-class Township of Derry) usually scores better in various rankings. The Penn State medical complex is the dominant employer - though two chocolate factories remain, they are highly automated and I heard there might now be more executives than union workers. Derry Township's police budget exceeds its revenue from the amusement tax so this could be the safest town on earth. The theme park is a big difference from Carlisle, but the walking route to it from town was just made 3/4 mile longer which bespeaks the attitudes of the inscrutable but unimaginative entities that together control the town while generating a bigger pot of money than can legally be spent. Land use discussions here are still dominated by parking, and the bike path network has been essentially stalled for 15 years as the auto fumes addicted folks in charge fail to see the connection. The powers that be don't see how this outdated approach repels the next generation of workers the future of the company and medical complex, and thus the sustainability of the fortune, depends on.

[rowhomecity]

Originally Posted by ki0eh

Carlisle is an actual borough laid out 150 years prior to the chocolate patch. There are many more modest row homes, an urban form absent in Hershey where there are a few semi-detached (or more modern townhouse rows on the outskirts) so the buy-in cost can be considerably lower in Carlisle. I'd be spending a lot more money at Wegmans if I lived on that side, plus Carlisle has other stores (like Target) that from Hershey are longer traffic choked drives. Carlisle is also historically more diverse economically and ethnically, with a more normal sort of business community spiced by the more outward looking US Army War College and Dickinson College. Other than in the core there are limited alternatives to getting in the car and driving, but that goes double for Hershey where you can't even really walk to the more limited Kmart and the like. The Appalachian Trail and nearby fly fishing streams plus up the outdoor flavor near Carlisle. Middlesex Township's "miracle mile" likely negatively affects visitors' outlook on the community more than locals realize

Hershey has recently become more ethnically diverse, the more constricted school district (only one township, Hershey CDP is not separately incorporated from the second-class Township of Derry) usually scores better in various rankings. The Penn State medical complex is the dominant employer - though two chocolate factories remain, they are highly automated and I heard there might now be more executives than union workers. Derry Township's police budget exceeds its revenue from the amusement tax so this could be the safest town on earth. The theme park is a big difference from Carlisle, but the walking route to it from town was just made 3/4 mile longer which bespeaks the attitudes of the inscrutable but unimaginative entities that together control the town while generating a bigger pot of money than can legally be spent. Land use discussions here are still dominated by parking, and the bike path network has been essentially stalled for 15 years as the auto fumes addicted folks in charge fail to see the connection. The powers that be don't see how this outdated approach repels the next generation of workers the future of the company and medical complex, and thus the sustainability of the fortune, depends on.

Great analysis of both towns. May I ask if you live in the area? I have lived in Lower Paxton TWP. (CD Grad). New Cumberland, Camp Hill and Carlisle. (Carlisle being my least favorite of all 3 areas).


With that this is pretty spot on. Carlisle has far more history, some really truly great architectural detail and variety dating from the colonial era, and as the county seat, a nice spade of professional vibrancy, ranging from the courthouse, and both Dickinson College and PSU acquired Dickinson School of Law (completely different entities btw) and U.S Army War College.


I am very fond of the borough of Carlisle, more so than the borough of Hershey. But what has deteriorated Carlisle over the past 15 years, and even more so over the past 5, is the logistics industry and the proliferation of warehouses.

Cumberland County has chosen to cut itself out of any Harrisburg Regional Planning, and has gone on a catastrophic spree, building logistics centers, with very little vision, forward planning or infrastructure mitigation which IMO has drastically reduced the quality of life in Carlisle and truly cut into the character of the once absolutely charming borough.

Unfortunately the powers at large, have no interest in curtailing or trying to plan these industrial sites in a better fashion and I only see this sprawling industrial development escalating.


With that my preference is with Hershey, while it lacks the same historic core as Carlisle, its professional class is even more sizable, which does add some great institutional assets, such as the Hershey Theater.


Now wrap your head around this fact.

The Milton Hershey School has a larger endowment than Penn State University!! All coming from the Milton Hershey Foundation.

I think as the above poster noted, the power to positively shape the region really rests in the laurels of this amazing foundation and asset, but the leaders of the foundation have little vision, and overall really lack a philanthropic attitude on a regional basis and given the size of the endowment I think the scale of the work they do in terms of regional projects is severely underserved.

With that, IMO the quality of life is far superior in Hershey, (much to do that Dauphin County has slightly better Land Use Planning and has not let the logistics industry run rampant in the county), and because of this major detail, I would choose Hershey to live any day over Carlisle.

[SteelGuitar22]

Thanks guys! To answer rowhomecity's question, yes I live on the east shore in Lower Paxton township. I like both towns but I love Hershey more overall. The only things that bother me about Hershey are that it doesn't really have a "downtown" lined with shops and restaurants like Carlisle does (the ones that are there are more spread out), and it is very expensive to live in Hershey while Carlisle's prices are more modest. Though I suppose the other side of the coin is that in Hershey the crime rate is very low and the school district is the best in the county, so in those respects you get your money's worth. I did see that Hershey is getting more stores and restaurants this year along Chocolate Ave, which I like to hear because it might be the start of the creation of an actual downtown for Hershey: Primanti Bros., Jersey Mike's and Starbucks to open at town center in Hershey | PennLive.com. I love the amount of walkability Hershey has with Chocolate Ave, the Jonathan Eshenour trail, and Penn State Hershey's campus. I pose a question though about Milton Hershey School's campus: is anyone allowed to casually walk on the Milton Hershey School's grounds and enjoy the scenery on that campus, or is that strictly private property and not for the public? I drive by it on 322 sometimes and it looks beautiful.

[Dequindre]

If you enjoy the more traditional small-town kind of life, Carlisle would fit your preferences. Hershey is more of a suburban, commuter type town.

[ki0eh]

Originally Posted by SteelGuitar22

I pose a question though about Milton Hershey School's campus: is anyone allowed to casually walk on the Milton Hershey School's grounds and enjoy the scenery on that campus, or is that strictly private property and not for the public? I drive by it on 322 sometimes and it looks beautiful.

The https://www.meetup.com/Walk-Central-...g-Group-Meetup group walks all the time on the paved paths around the MHS buildings. Although not specifically posted, I sure wouldn't be walking up the student houses' driveways or using their basketball or tennis courts.

Additionally, the Horse-Shoe Trail (mostly dirt, sometimes muddy or rocky) traverses the School Trust's outlying properties on its path from Valley Forge to the Appalachian Trail.

Actually, there is also a dirt trail circuit behind the Hotel Hershey that hosts a public weekly walk.

Walking around Hummelstown Borough can be interesting as well, there are three path areas on the edge of town or just outside (across the Swatara Creek in Swatara Twp area with a Hummelstown postal address) too. A couple of the locally owned stores in downtown Hummelstown moved there from Derry Twp.

[mufc1878]

Hershey is a lot better if you have kids. It isn't even close.

[Dequindre]

Originally Posted by mufc1878

Hershey is a lot better if you have kids. It isn't even close.

In what regards? People won't always be at the theme park.

[mufc1878]

Originally Posted by Dequindre

In what regards? People won't always be at the theme park.

I wasn't even considering the theme park. In fact, that's a negative for me when it comes to considering hershey. My comment was based on pretty much the singular criteria of schools.

Derry Township Schools are a lot better and proximity to the med center allows for kids to have awesome internships/work experiences at the med center (even if they don't want to be pre med in undergrad, internships/work experiences like that are a bigger plus point when kids apply to competitive universities than what kids typically do in high school).

[jate88]

Originally Posted by rowhomecity

Great analysis of both towns. May I ask if you live in the area? I have lived in Lower Paxton TWP. (CD Grad). New Cumberland, Camp Hill and Carlisle. (Carlisle being my least favorite of all 3 areas).


I am very fond of the borough of Carlisle, more so than the borough of Hershey. But what has deteriorated Carlisle over the past 15 years, and even more so over the past 5, is the logistics industry and the proliferation of warehouses.

Cumberland County has chosen to cut itself out of any Harrisburg Regional Planning, and has gone on a catastrophic spree, building logistics centers, with very little vision, forward planning or infrastructure mitigation which IMO has drastically reduced the quality of life in Carlisle and truly cut into the character of the once absolutely charming borough.

Unfortunately the powers at large, have no interest in curtailing or trying to plan these industrial sites in a better fashion and I only see this sprawling industrial development escalating.


With that my preference is with Hershey, while it lacks the same historic core as Carlisle, its professional class is even more sizable, which does add some great institutional assets, such as the Hershey Theater.

Low class, uneducated people have to live somewhere. I was under the impression all these warehouses were good for the Cumberland Valley.