Why Does Everyone Dislike Elmira,ny? (New York, Rochester: sex offenders, violent crime, homes)
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You don't need to live in a city for a long time to become an expert on it. And based on what I have read and heard about the city, it hasn't changed much since I last lived in it 10+ years ago.
heh - but you do need to actually be able to experience a city - pay rent, buy a meal, deal with finances, look at it through adult eyes - something that you've never done
While in Elmira I never paid rent, dealt with finances, etc, I am doing that here. And the rent, groceries, everything but taxes was and still is cheap in Elmira... for a reason.
Last edited by needalife; 11-16-2008 at 06:19 PM..
so you didn't like living there up until your preteens - that's cool - but don't pretend you have the experience with an area to give adults advice on adult issues that you never experienced
Have you ever been to Elmira? If you have, you would know it's cheap not because it's small, but because it's a low quality city. While I haven't lived there for over a decade, I can find out what the cost of rent, living, etc. is in Elmira as with any other city and the cost of living is still far cheaper than what I am paying in Connecticut.
of course - connecticut is a bedroom community for NYC and the more prominent NE metros
btw - i've spent a lot of time in elmira - of the neighboring communities, it's not the one I'd choose to live in - but it's not as bad as you're making it out to be
i laugh everytime you post how dangerous it is - i should give you my old apartment in philadelphia (which was relatively safe for that section of the city) and see how much the danger effect impacts your rent
i was paying a lot more to live in that dingy rowhouse than about anything you could find in elmira, i also had the fun to waking up to homeless people and drug vials on my steps
elmiras cost of living being low has zero to do with crime and everything to do with the commercial environment it's located within
Well, in regards to posts since I last visited, I am no longer moving to Elmira. My husband went to work in the Elmira post office after two weeks of training in Batavia. He was fine after the training, but after experiencing the post office there, he said he finally understands what they mean with the term "going postal". There is bad back stabbing going on, as people talk about others behing their backs. He witnessed several verbal fights between supervisors. And people seem to have no problem there with changing barcodes on the mail to save their own asses. He said he would not feel comfortable working in such a place. We still hope to move back East. I would still like to be closer to my in-laws in Connecticut and Pennsylvania, but the property taxes are still a major setback. The houses I wanted to buy cost between $150,000 and $200,000, but the property taxes were around $5000. My house in Wyoming is valued at $255,000, but my property taxes are only $1600. Want to move back East, it just may be a little longer in happening. Thanks to all who gave me input and made it easier to take when my husband decided to come back to Wyoming.
Hmmm... This is an interesting thread. It is also relevant, as I am considering this small city to relocate to. From what I understand, and correct me if I'm wrong, the following is a list of things to do in Elmira I've compiled from the posts indicating "there is nothing to do in Elmira":
Amusement park, 2 minor sports teams, a river, biking, hiking, motorcycling, snowmobiling, several cinemas, a theater, restaurants, bars, easy access to the finger lakes and other local cities
Tell me, what is it exactly in other cities that you're all doing now that you couldn't do in Elmira? As for me, in addition to the above, I garden, ride a harley from April 1 to December 1 and then change over to sleds when the snow comes. I also shoot guns, preferably targets but, an intruder will do nicely. New York has a "castle doctrine" that allows the killing of an intruder without criminal OR civil repercussion... maybe I'll just leave that front door unlocked at night. God, I love the castle doctrine. If you're bored, usually its because you're boring.
As for employment, let see... there's a hospital, medical offices, two prisons, standard municipal and government jobs, financing, Elmira College, a highschool, elementary schools, retail management, food service and apparently a wealth of oppurtunity for entrepenuers and small businesses. This is by no means an all inclusive list of employers but, no one else mentioned any of them except the prisons. And for those of you spouting that you need an education to get a decent job... um... what's the suprise there? Here's an idea: next time you get your welfare check, file a DBA (cost $10) and buy a lawnmower ($150.00) and start a business. Or sit around spending tax payer money and complain why you're not getting rich off welfare. I don't know, its your choice.
The cost of living in Elmira is cheap any way you slice it. Even property taxes are relatively cheap. Yes, I said CHEAP. Property taxes are a function of town spending divided by the total assessed value of property in a town. Though Elmira's mill rate is high, the total dollar figure is PROPORTIONAAL other towns in New York. You want high taxes, go to Yonkers. There you can pay a city income tax as well! Go to any real estate website and see what bang you can get for your buck in Elmira. The one thing I WILL grant the property tax complainers is that NY State medicaid is funded through property tax. I don't understand why NY lawmakers think that it is ok to steal money to fund healthcare for indigents. Free healthcare is NOT a universal right.
As for crime, it is safer than is being reported by others on this forum. Crime can be calculated by a function of race. The blacker the population, the higher the crime. And before anyone starts calling me racist, this is statistical FACT. It is calcuated by an algorythm which uses two statistics which are universal among FBI and INTERPOL crime reporting agencies as well as the National Crime Victimization Survery. First, whites are more prone to victimization by both black and white criminals and second, blacks are 64 times more likely to commit an assault on a white person than vice versa. Elmira is 13% black which is well within the range of acceptable crime levels. The threshold being 40% at which point a cascade effect will ensue whereby whites will flee the area. And to boot, there is little to no hispanic population which has a similare but much less noticeable effect. And as my data suggests, Elmira scores 1 out of 10 (low being best) in both property and violent crime rates; the US average is 3. This data is from an online city rating source.
Anyone considering a job offer in Elmira should take it. Get in while its cheap and stay for the long haul. Its safe, with a small town feel. And for the complainers here's three things you can do to improve your life in Elmira. Go to college, get a hobby, and buy a shotgun. You'll solve all your problems.
When a city thinks Pudgies is good pizza it makes me worry about their sanity.
Seriously I live about an hour Rochester and about an hour from Elmira when it comes to going to the mall I have to choose the Eastview Mall in Victor (Rochester) over the Arnot Mall in Horseheads (Elmira)... I haven't been to the Arnot Mall in ages everry time I go it seems emptier and emptier. i have never walked in a mall before that had so many empty stores, and every time I go it seems like more stores close. The opposite is happening in the Eastview Mall and the Vitcor/FArmington/Canandaigua area in general, new businesses just keep on popping up.
I have only really been in Elmira itself a handfull of times, simply because there is is nothing to bring me there. I had a friend who owned a business in Elmira and got an apartment there, I would go in to meet him and either visit him at his apartment or meet him there and go out of Elmira to do something.
As far as Elmira having the cheapest housing, who cares if you are making little money, if you can even find a job. Then when you are off, there would be nothing to do...
If I got a job in Elmira I would probably rather live in Corning and make make the drive in on 17...
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