Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
Good afternoon everyone, and Happy Thanksgiving! Today I was blessed with both some free time, as well as a rare, beautiful, sunny day here in Northeastern Pennsylvania, so I utilized this opportunity to snap some more photos of Scranton's historic "Hill Section", a neighborhood that formerly housed drug houses and weekly homicides as recently as the mid-1990s and is now home to a growing population of young professional families, many of whom are being lured back into the Hill Section from suburban areas such as the Abingtons to trade in lengthy commutes for quick walks to Center City offices and nightlife.
I've snapped 22 photos today for your perusal; they are all in a tightly-constrained area of the Hill Section bounded by Myrtle Avenue to the north, Olive Street to the south, North Taylor Avenue to the east (uphill towards Nay Aug Park), and North Webster Avenue to the west (downhill towards Center City and the university neighborhoods). The homes pictured here are along Olive, Pine, Gibson, and Myrtle Avenues (East-West or Uphill-Downhill) and North Webster and North Taylor Avenues. (Check MapQuest if you want to see the exact rectangle I'm talking about). I'm personally so intrigued by the architecture of the Hill Section, so pleased by the relatively-affordable housing prices, and so in love with the idea of being only a ten-minute walk from downtown vs. my current nearly 20-minute drive that I hope to relocate here at some point in the future to raise my family, and I feel honored to have been asked to snap these photos!
I specifically took these pictures for one member in particular who asked me about this part of the Hill Section, but if any other members (or people just lurking around) want to see more of Scranton's neighborhoods or want me to photograph areas located near to homes they are interested in buying, then by all means let me know either in a reply or in a personal message! Believe me, I love snapping photos and walking around unique neighborhoods, so don't be afraid to ask!
Starting Out at the Corner of North Webster and Olive and Headed North to Myrtle
Note: The home here in the middle with the shutters is currently on the market, and was photographed on my other thread that compared housing prices in the Hill Section to the overinflated ones in Clarks Summit.
One of my favorite homes along North Webster Avenue
Note: This home is also currently on the market; once again see my other thread for more specifics.
Note: Another home currently on the market near the corner of North Webster Avenue and Myrtle Avenue.
A pair of homes along Myrtle Avenue between North Webster Avenue and North Taylor Avenue.
A scene from along North Taylor Avenue
Another home near the intersection of North Webster Avenue and Olive Street
Looking down (West) Olive Street towards Center City, with a luxury condo high-rise set behind another historic mansion, providing a wonderful contrast in architectural eras!
Some newer townhomes along North Webster Avenue between Olive and Vine that are currently on the market. There were a few cars with New Jersey plates parked nearby, possibly indicating even more out-of-state interest in the Hill Section? Just around the corner on Olive Street is another new development of luxury townhomes as well that conform rather well to the historic flair of the neighborhood. P.S. Note my car in the foreground! Am I a GRANDMA or what? LOL!
I believe this home in particular is what drew the attention of another forum member who e-mailed me saying he had fallen in love with the address. The home is located near to the end of North Webster Avenue, and is in the northernmost part of the photo thread, near the intersection of North Webster & Myrtle Avenues. From here, you're literally only a few blocks from Moses-Taylor Hospital, Mercy Hospital, Prescott Elementary School, and within easy walking distance to the University of Scranton and Downtown. Crime in this area is on the low side, but an occasional case of vandalism or car break-in or two does occur, so be sure to keep your car doors locked and valuables out-of-sight of potential nighttime thieves. (A good tip no matter WHERE you live I suppose, as crime does happen in the poshest of our suburbs as well).
As you can tell from the photo, the home on the left has peeling paint, and the home on the right was undergoing a massive renovation when I snapped the photo today, and this particular home seemed to be renovated recently, indicating that the revival of the Hill Section is starting to span outward even further in all directions towards the Dunmore town line. (I suspect that home on the left will likewise be getting a new coat of paint soon as the owners start to take pride in their neighboorhood again after the horrific conditions here of the mid-1990s).
Another fine Scranton neighborhood to call home is "Green Ridge", located to the northwest of the Hill Section in a historic, leafy area near Marywood University. (Dunmore's popular "Hollywood" neighborhood is also nearby). I hope to snap some more photos of our urban neighborhoods in the upcoming weeks, maybe even one of the impressive nighttime holiday light display at Nay Aug Park!
I must admit, the houses in the area are beautiful. Some houses in Dunmore in particular I find to be very nice. They are similar to these, large old mansions that have a lot of character to them. I did live in Dunmore for a couple of years. If you want to avoid that 3% wage tax Scranton has, Dunmore is great. Many beautiful houses, nice neighborhood. It is unfortunate though, Scranton itself has many nice sections to it, but it also has some not so nice sections. What I have noticed is that you can travel through one "nice" street in Scranton, and then, two minutes later down another street you see all the run down houses. Those are the areas that I would be afraid of walking through late at night. These bad sections of the city are in very close proximity to the nice sections.
I must admit, the houses in the area are beautiful. Some houses in Dunmore in particular I find to be very nice. They are similar to these, large old mansions that have a lot of character to them. I did live in Dunmore for a couple of years. If you want to avoid that 3% wage tax Scranton has, Dunmore is great. Many beautiful houses, nice neighborhood. It is unfortunate though, Scranton itself has many nice sections to it, but it also has some not so nice sections. What I have noticed is that you can travel through one "nice" street in Scranton, and then, two minutes later down another street you see all the run down houses. Those are the areas that I would be afraid of walking through late at night. These bad sections of the city are in very close proximity to the nice sections.
I agree wholeheartedly. In fact, it was almost a bit disheartening to see block after block of well-kept homes with neatly-manicured lawns within this radius of the home in question, and then a few blocks outside of the radius, closer to the university, there was an entire block of seedy-looking homes. Dunmore's wage tax, I believe, is only 1% or so, which makes it a more financially-attractive alternative to the Hill Section and Green Ridge. However, I notice that a lot of the housing prices in the "Hollywood" area of Dunmore seem to slightly edge out Scranton's housing prices, so the benefit you reap from saving on that 3.4% annual city wage tax may be counterbalanced by paying an extra $20,000 for a Dunmore home.
Scranton is just like any mid-sized city; avoid the areas that look "seedy", and certainly do NOT go jogging alone at night alone with an iPod and Rolex on you! LOL! What I did find a bit depressing was the sheer lack of PEOPLE mulling around the neighborhood on one of the most beautiful November days I can ever remember having! Perhaps everyone was just at work? (Or perhaps everyone in the Hill is glued to City-Data, as I am? LOL!)
True, Scranton does have some "not so nice areas", generally much of SouthSide and a few spots in West Side (not all, but a few pockets of seediness do exist). Areas such as Minooka, East Mountain, Green Ridge, the Upper Hill, Downtown, and probably 75% of West Side are safe, stable areas to call home (At a fraction of the price you'd pay for a similar home in Clarks Summit). Dunmore may indeed be an even better alternative to Scranton, but be wary that the for-sale housing stock is somewhat limited, so you may need to sit around and wait for a home in Dunmore meeting your requirements comes onto the market. Meanwhile, I counted at least six properties for sale in the radius of the Hill Section I scouted out today!
Why do you think that so many houses in the Hill Section are up for sale? For anyone who is looking for their first home here, or just looking maybe for rental property, there are a TON of duplexes and doubles in the Scranton area. When I lived in Dunmore on Electric street, most of the houses on that street alone were doubles.
Why do you think that so many houses in the Hill Section are up for sale? For anyone who is looking for their first home here, or just looking maybe for rental property, there are a TON of duplexes and doubles in the Scranton area. When I lived in Dunmore on Electric street, most of the houses on that street alone were doubles.
I personally don't know why Scranton has such a huge available supply of for-sale housing. There are a few ideas swirling around in my mind though:
1.) Out-of-state investors: While walking around the small area of the Hill Section that I did today, I noticed a pick-up truck with NJ plates parked in front of a home that looked as if it was being gutted. This may potentially indicate that out-of-state investors from NY/NJ are buying up properties in Scranton, rehabbing them, and then "flipping" them for a profit. I'm considering doing the same myself in the future, so I hope housing prices in Scranton don't appreciate too drastically over the next several years to make this impossible for me!
2.) Lure of suburbia: Let's face it. While young professionals or newlywed couples may enjoy living in a nice, historic home near downtown, there are still many others who feel as if pumping out that first child automatically means a move to suburbia for more elbow room. As shown by the one brick home along North Webster Avenue with a childrens' play area in the front yard, you can still adapt to make the Hill Section a very desirable area for children. I don't think you'll ever be able to tell people with young children that urban living is better than having a half-acre in a suburban housing development in the Abingtons though, no matter what the cost!
3.) Job transfers: Judging by the plethora of Jaguars, Mercedes-Benzes, Audis, Volvos, etc. I saw in this neighborhood, I'd assume that the Hill Section is mostly home to a large white-collar professional community. As such, their jobs may be more transient in nature, transferring them to other locations, as opposed to the more blue-collar neighborhoods in the city. This creates a large supply of available homes in the Hill.
4.) Financial fears: Now that Scranton recently announced that there would be a "small" tax increase to offset current debts, some people may be looking to sell just in case this "small" increase turns out to be a whopper! (Which I highly-doubt, especially since the mayor's primary goal during his latest term is to attract new residents into the city).
Last edited by SteelCityRising; 11-21-2006 at 01:30 PM..
Reason: Typo
Again, thanks for the wonderful pics from the "Hill" section...looks like a great
neighborhood....I'm not that familiar with Scranton...I only remember going
to the Lackawanna Hotel that they made out of the old train station and
seeing the campus of the University of Scranton...where is this neighborhood
in regards to what I mentioned? Definitely want to check out this neighborhood when I'm up in Pa. next summer..thanks again...Have a great
Thanksgiving.
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
Today I was blessed with both some free time, as well as a rare, beautiful, sunny day here in Northeastern Pennsylvania, so I utilized this opportunity to snap some more photos of Scranton's historic "Hill Section", a neighborhood that formerly housed drug houses and weekly homicides as recently as the mid-1990s and is now home to a growing population of young professional families, many of whom are being lured back into the Hill Section from suburban areas such as the Abingtons to trade in lengthy commutes for quick walks to Center City offices and nightlife. 
Believe me, I love snapping photos and walking around unique neighborhoods, so don't be afraid to ask! 
Starting Out at the Corner of North Webster and Olive and Headed North to Myrtle
Dunmore's wage tax, I believe, is only 1% or so, which makes it a more financially-attractive alternative to the Hill Section and Green Ridge. However, I notice that a lot of the housing prices in the "Hollywood" area of Dunmore seem to slightly edge out Scranton's housing prices, so the benefit you reap from saving on that 3.4% annual city wage tax may be counterbalanced by paying an extra $20,000 for a Dunmore home. 
Perhaps everyone was just at work? (Or perhaps everyone in the Hill is glued to City-Data, as I am? LOL!) 
Dunmore may indeed be an even better alternative to Scranton, but be wary that the for-sale housing stock is somewhat limited, so you may need to sit around and wait for a home in Dunmore meeting your requirements comes onto the market. 
As shown by the one brick home along North Webster Avenue with a childrens' play area in the front yard, you can still adapt to make the Hill Section a very desirable area for children. I don't think you'll ever be able to tell people with young children that urban living is better than having a half-acre in a suburban housing development in the Abingtons though, no matter what the cost! 
