Need to be near Philly for daughters care, and very interested in Bethlehem (Philadelphia: 2013, renter)

[Tyryztoll]

Hi, I'm a married father of 4. Our youngest child, a 2 year old girl, is being treated by a renowned physician at Children's Hospital of Philadelphia, and we're considering moving up there next spring to eliminate the constant travel. Only need to be within a couple hours of the city, and have become very interested in Bethlehem, mostly because it looks beautiful and the housing seems to be reasonable there. The property taxes especially seem to be a lot lower than elsewhere in eastern PA based on what I looked at - is there a reason for this I wonder? Does that effect the schools, roads, etc.? How is Bethlehem for families? How are the local hospitals (I'm an x-ray tech and would likely wind up working at one of them)?
We're originally from Michigan, so cold weather is no problem for us, and my dad's family is from Western PA, so am somewhat familiar with the state. Thanks for any info or advice.

[toobusytoday]

Bethlehem is a nice small city. Schools are not very good. Housing prices are reasonable, but if you are seeing real bargains those are probably in places you don't want to live. I think the hospitals are the largest employers in the Lehigh Valley so you would have a good chance of employment.

[Tyryztoll]

So what constitutes schools being "not very good" there? Are there gangs, graffiti and all out chaos, or is it more of a "this district isn't that district, so it must automatically suck" thing? No trying to be a smart aleck, but if you follow the DFW forums at all you'll see quickly that many people instantly dismiss any schools that aren't in Plano, Allen, etc., which I find just ridiculous. Do you have to live in an area where property taxes are 6 to 10k a year to have decent schools up there?

[N.Y.C.H]

Schools aren't bad, but god forbid you have minorities in your schools and people think its "bad". Some of them are not the best but, everyone who goes to the public high schools in Bethlehem etc, has no real issue. You may have some "gang" members, and i'd use that term lightly, but so does every school. Graffiti can be found in any city, and there really isn't much of it in bethlehem, maybe a few spots here and there. Housing is pretty affordable, and anywhere you live in the city is safe. If you prefer urban, the southside is the urban part of the city, row homes, homes to the sidewalk etc, and a little more action, (more crime, fights etc) than the northside of the city. The northside is basically suburban style of housing, with a mix of ranchers, etc. Bethlehem Township is where youll find the more 2 story colonial types of houses.

[PacoMartin]

Originally Posted by Time for Texas!

So what constitutes schools being "not very good" there?

I think the urban school districts of Allentown Bethlehem and Easton rank near the bottom of the state in testing. Allentown in particular because it is entirely urban. Bethlehem Area School District includes the boroughs of Fountain Hill and Freemansburg, as well as Hanover Township and Bethlehem Township, so it covers a broader spectrum of incomes.

//www.city-data.com/school/Beth...lvania.html#EL

[toobusytoday]

Originally Posted by N.Y.C.H

Schools aren't bad, but god forbid you have minorities in your schools and people think its "bad". Some of them are not the best but, everyone who goes to the public high schools in Bethlehem etc, has no real issue. You may have some "gang" members, and i'd use that term lightly, but so does every school. Graffiti can be found in any city, and there really isn't much of it in Bethlehem, maybe a few spots here and there. Housing is pretty affordable, and anywhere you live in the city is safe. If you prefer urban, the southside is the urban part of the city, row homes, homes to the sidewalk etc, and a little more action, (more crime, fights etc) than the northside of the city. The northside is basically suburban style of housing, with a mix of ranchers, etc. Bethlehem Township is where youll find the more 2 story colonial types of houses.

Hey, I am not a racist and would prefer some diversity in my schools - that's NOT what I'm talking about when I say the schools in Bethlehem are not the best. I'm referring to expectations of parents/teachers, funding problems, in school violence and test scores. You can compare schools here: Welcome to PA School Performance Profile

[Tyryztoll]

So after reading some of this stuff and seeing that Allentown/Bethlehem are actually bigger metros than I had initially thought, I need to be clearer about our preferences. We're basically looking for a Rockwellesque smaller town......population say between 5,000 and 15,000, but hopefully still in or near the Lehigh Valley. Need to be within a couple hours of Philly for CHOP, but love the Valley for its beauty and also the proximity to NYC. As I previously stated, I'm in healthcare and can basically work anywhere there are facilities related to that.

I am certainly not looking to put my family anywhere that gangs and school violence are an issue. I saw a whole page on Bethlehem's city web site devoted to gangs, and that makes me nervous.

[toobusytoday]

Originally Posted by Time for Texas!

So after reading some of this stuff and seeing that Allentown/Bethlehem are actually bigger metros than I had initially thought, I need to be clearer about our preferences. We're basically looking for a Rockwellesque smaller town......population say between 5,000 and 15,000, but hopefully still in or near the Lehigh Valley. Need to be within a couple hours of Philly for CHOP, but love the Valley for its beauty and also the proximity to NYC. As I previously stated, I'm in healthcare and can basically work anywhere there are facilities related to that.

I am certainly not looking to put my family anywhere that gangs and school violence are an issue. I saw a whole page on Bethlehem's city web site devoted to gangs, and that makes me nervous.

Your price point then might be your determining factor. Most of the areas surrounding Allentown and Bethlehem are actually small towns that were founded hundreds of years ago and most have pretty good schools. I love where we live on the Southern end of the county and it would be an easy access point to Philly. My husband goes down there fairly often. Check out Coopersburg and Center Valley.

[PacoMartin]

Bethlehem has one of the lowest crime rates in Pennsylvania for a city. But all cities have higher crime than townships.

Some of the boroughs in Bucks County get closer to your Rockwell image, but they are much more expensive than the Lehigh Valley. You haven't given us a price range so I am assuming $200K-$250K or $1000-$1200 in rent to be conservative. If I am way off you should say something.

Originally Posted by Time for Texas!

As I previously stated, I'm in healthcare and can basically work anywhere there are facilities related to that.

There are a total of 3 cities, 27 boroughs and 32 townships in Lehigh and Northampton County. The boroughs are very popular. Most are from the 19th century, and are less expensive than the townships. One of the largest is Emmaus which is very close to Lehigh Valley Hospital. Children attend East Penn school district.

I will lay out some descriptions of Emmaus and Allentown City to compare.

Emmaus Area 1,854.7 acres
2010 census 11,211
Total housing units 5,192
Renter occupied 1,822
Vacant housing units 261
Median value-owner occupied (2009-2013) $182,400
Median monthly contract rent (2009-2013) $840

Selected Race & Hispanic Origin Characteristics 2010
White 10,472 (93.4%)
Black or African American 175 (1.5%)
American Indian, Alaska Native 20 (0.2%)
Asian 164 (1.5%)
All Others 380 (3.4%)
Hispanic or Latino (origin any race) 529 (4.7%)

Income & Poverty Status 2009-2013
Median household income $55,829
Median family income $68,626
Per capita income $28,185
Persons below poverty level 849 (7.5%)
================================================== ==
Allentown 11,535.2 acres
Population 2010 census 118,032
Total housing units 46,921
Renter occupied 22,074
Vacant housing units 4,117

Median value-owner occupied (2009-2013) $132,200
Median monthly contract rent (2009-2013) $739

Selected Race & Hispanic Origin Characteristics 2010
White 69,061 (58.5%)
Black or African American 14,812 (12.5%)
American Indian, Alaska Native 893 (0.8%)
Asian 2,542 (2.2%)
All Others 30,724 (26.0%)
Hispanic or Latino (origin any race) 50,461 (42.8%)

Income & Poverty Status 2009-2013
Median household income $35,560
Median family income $39,938
Per capita income $17,235
Persons below poverty level 31,479 (27.8%)

[PacoMartin]

Upper Saucon Township is a well off township in the southern Portion of the county so easy access to Philly. It borders Bucks County. A lot of new housing is going in there. It's not really a town, but encircles the borough of Coopersburg.

--------------------------------
Upper Saucon Township
School District: Southern Lehigh
Total Acres 15,784.1 (100.0%)
Population 2010 census 14,808
Total housing units 5,262
Renter occupied 530
Vacant housing units 223

Median value-owner occupied (2009-2013) $293,500
Median monthly contract rent (2009-2013) $1,000

Selected Race & Hispanic Origin Characteristics 2010
White 13,853 (93.4%)
Black or African American 182 (1.2%)
American Indian, Alaska Native 15 (0.1%)
Asian 494 (3.3%)
All Others 264 (1.8%)
Hispanic or Latino (origin any race) 466 (3.2%)

Income & Poverty Status 2009-2013
Median household income $91,579
Median family income $104,521
Per capita income $43,426
Persons below poverty level 581

==============
Borough Coopersburg
School District: Southern Lehigh
Total Acres 598.7 (100.0%)
Population 2010 census 2,386
Housing Characteristics 2010
Total housing units 985
Owner occupied 637
Renter occupied 317
Vacant housing units 31

Median value-owner occupied (2009-2013) $228,600
Median monthly contract rent (2009-2013) $620