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Could some one please advise me which of these cities are safe places to raise a family and if they have good schools shopping etc. Do not want to be in a rural town. Also, hubby is a nurse so having hospitals close are important. He doesn't mind a small commute to work. Never been to PA before so please help... We are looking at the following cities.
MOUNTAIN TOP
BEAR CREEK
LARKSVILLE
LAFLIN
SHAVER TOWN
PLAINS
WILKES-BARRE
please if you know anything about any of these places your opinions are much appreciated. Moving from TX and was originally looking to go back to NY but taxes and housing are crazy. Also, if you could tell me how the taxes are in those areas. Any information would be very greatful. Right now we are looking to move to upstate NY where we could afford, but we would be still six hours away from family in NYC. I know the above cities are a stone's throw away as I have been on mapquest.Thanks again for your help!
Could some one please advise me which of these cities are safe places to raise a family and if they have good schools shopping etc. Do not want to be in a rural town. Also, hubby is a nurse so having hospitals close are important. He doesn't mind a small commute to work. Never been to PA before so please help... We are looking at the following cities.
MOUNTAIN TOP
BEAR CREEK
LARKSVILLE
LAFLIN
SHAVER TOWN
PLAINS
WILKES-BARRE
please if you know anything about any of these places your opinions are much appreciated. Moving from TX and was originally looking to go back to NY but taxes and housing are crazy. Also, if you could tell me how the taxes are in those areas. Any information would be very greatful. Right now we are looking to move to upstate NY where we could afford, but we would be still six hours away from family in NYC. I know the above cities are a stone's throw away as I have been on mapquest.Thanks again for your help!
All of the aforementioned cities are indeed nice places to live, and all have their "upsides" and "downsides" to them. I'll take them all one by one right now:
MOUNTAIN TOP: Picture a blend between Desperate Housewives and the Stepford Wives, and you pretty much have Mountain Top. Now home to 16,000 residents and growing by leaps and bounds annually, including some newer growth from NY/NJ transplants, Mountain Top is your typical woodsy Northeastern suburb, with cul-de-sacs, vinyl-sided two-story homes, three-car garages, subdivisions that "bleed" into one another, and no real "downtown", as all of the businesses along Route 309 are free-standing and surrounded by a sea of asphalt (fast-food restaurants, banks, chain pharmacies, etc.) The Crestwood School District is certainly among the best in the region, and housing prices are probably also among the highest in Luzerne County---You'll generally need to fork over at least $200,000 for a typical Mountain Top home, and some of the newest developments, such as the "Ice Lakes", have a few homes valued nearer to the seven-figure range! This community is largely home to professionals who commute about 20 minutes back-and-forth to Wilkes-Barre, the county seat, for work. I find the people of Mountain Top to be very friendly, but there's always that element of "keeping up with the Jones's" occurring here. An example would be finally purchasing an Audi A6 for your wife on her 40th birthday and having your next-door neighbor run out the next day and buying an Audi A8 just to "upstage" you. It's an ultra-safe place to reside, but the winter commutes down the mountain to Wilkes-Barre via windy, hilly Route 309 can be a nightmare!
SHAVERTOWN: Part of a larger suburban area known as the "Back Mountain", which is home to approximately 30,000 people, Shavertown is very similar in nature to Mountain Top. There's no real "downtown" here either, and much of the community's homes have been built since 1972 (When a major Susquehanna River flood in the valley cities sent residents "heading for the hills"), and are located in literally dozens of subdivisions. Once again, crime is nearly non-existent, as much of the population is very literate, upper-middle-class, and in possession of home security systems, but the Memorial Highway (which bleeds into the North Cross Valley Expressway), is the only artery to funnel these 30,000 residents down into the Wilkes-Barre area for shopping, work, nightlife, etc., which can lead to massive congestion at times (try leaving Shavertown for Wilkes-Barre at 7:30 AM or returning home from Wilkes-Barre at 5:15 PM!) The Back Mountain's two school districts, Dallas and Lake-Lehman, are both above-average and are often in contention with Mountain Top's Crestwood for the distinction of being the best public school district in Luzerne County. I've never been too fond of cul-de-sacs and chain stores, but if that interests you, then by all means have at it! Housing prices here are similar in nature to Mountain Top.
BEAR CREEK: I can foresee Bear Creek becoming a mirror image of Mountain Top and the Back Mountain in the upcoming years, as the community's first real housing development, Laurel Brook Estates, quickly sold out after it was offered to the public, indicating a strong demand for housing in Bear Creek. Perhaps the one biting factor for Bear Creek is that it's part of the Wilkes-Barre Area School District, which pales in comparison to Crestwood and Dallas in Mountain Top and the Back Mountain respectively. The community is situated along Route 115, which is the main thoroughfare between Wilkes-Barre and the Pocono Mountains. As nearby Monroe County continues to swell in growth from sprawl pressures from NJ/NYC, I fear that this growth may someday very well spread into Bear Creek as well (Many of the lots sold in Laurel Brook Estates were sold to people from NY or NJ anyways, and a surprisingly large number were from people moving from Monroe County to Luzerne County!) The community itself is only a 15-minute to 20-minute drive or so from Wilkes-Barre, making it convenient, but just like Mountain Top's Route 309, Route 115 in Bear Creek can be heinous in winter! Housing prices in Bear Creek, in general, are quite steep due to the limited supply of available housing.
LAFLIN: I actually live just five minutes north of Laflin via Route 315, and this community is almost entirely residential. Home to just 1,500 residents, I'd estimate that 80% of this town's housing stock was built after 1970. Laflin has been designated a "Tree City USA" for its leafyness, and the community's teenagers attend Coughlin High School in the Wilkes-Barre Area School District, which is probably the best out of the city's three urban high schools. (As probably 70% of the student body comes from either the suburban Bear Creek, Plains, or Laflin areas, limiting their exposure to some of the inner-city problems). Some of the residents tactfully make their addresses appear to be in Jenkins Township so that they can send their children to school at Pittston Area, which is a decidedly-better public school district than Wilkes-Barre Area. Laflin is located about five minutes north of the new Mohegan Sun Casino in neighboring Plains, which may bring more business to the town in the future.
LARKSVILLE: This town is pretty non-descript. It sits between Edwardsville and Plymouth, two economically-depressed former mining towns, and is home to a blend of older homes and middle-aged housing developments. It is located on the "West Side" of the Wyoming Valley, and it is located about ten minutes or so from Downtown Wilkes-Barre. There's not much crime in Larksville, but I never really considered the town to be very "attractive." The town is located in the "average" Wyoming Valley West School District. If the West Side appeals to you, check out either Forty Fort or Kingston instead, as both of these towns have many tree-lined streets and have architecture with more historic "character."
WILKES-BARRE: The "Diamond City", Wilkes-Barre is currently "transitioning" from being a crime-infested dump into being a showplace again. The city has a new downtown "entertainment district" with a new nightclub, billiards hall, cinema, Barnes & Noble, Starbucks, and upcoming eateries, and the downtown is anchored on the North End by King's College and on the South End by Wilkes University. However, the city is still battling crime issues; Scranton would be the better alternative of the two major cities in our area if urban living beckons to you. The safest, most liveable parts of the city, in my opinion, include Parsons, Miners Mills, and the neighborhood around Wilkes University. The neighborhood surrounding King's College, especially along Bennett, Jackson, North, and North Washington Streets, is terribly run-down, and parts of South Wilkes-Barre, especially near Hazle, Hutson, Academy, Park, and Sambourne Streets have had some issues with crime in recent years. I foresee the rebirth of the downtown expanding outward in a radius and gentrifying the residential neighborhoods nearby, which has already been occuring in Scranton's "Hill Section" as an indirect result of that city's downtown renaissance, which is roughly five years ahead of Wilkes-Barre's comeback.
PLAINS: There's not much to say about Plains. The township is extremely spread out and diverse in character, with housing styles and price ranges to suit everyone. The new Mohegan Sun Casino is located here, which is now pumping a lot of tax dollars into the township's coffers (which could result in better municipal services in upcoming years). Crime here is on the low side, but Plains is a mediocre community overall, at best. There aren't any historic neighborhoods here with tree-lined streets, something I feel that a historic community with nearly 12,000 residents should have at least ONE of. Homes here are largely of the "little white houses on top of each other" variety that I hear all too often to describe much of our outdated urban housing stock (something that has caused the Back Mountain and Mountain Top to truly flourish in growth as the newer generations seek alternatives).
Hope this helps a little bit! Let me know if I can be of any further help! I've lived in Luzerne County my entire life, in a community midway between Wilkes-Barre and Scranton, so I know the Wyoming Valley like the back of my hand!
I live in Laurelbrook estates. My wife has lived in Bear Creek Twp, most of her life. With all due respect to the other posters... Bear Creek is more rural than Mountaintop, Back Mountain and Shavertown.
My wife and I used to work in Wilkes-Barre. Her parents are from Wilkes-Barre, my mother and grandmother are from Shavertown...
OK with all that, I know this whole area pretty well (trying to establish some cred here). Laurelbrook estates, is a unique development for Bear Creek. Bear Creek village was a 70s failure of an association, which is literally right next door.
Laurelbrook estates may have been sold-out, but most of that was speculation buyers... there are still lots for sale by owner (at least 5 or 6 right now). But they are expensive, for the area too... $94,500 for example is a listing for 2.5 flat acres.
The people of the development are nice.
Taxes are lower than Monroe County (two highschools in 5 years)... Did I mention I lived in Monroe County for 5 years?
Wilkes-Barre school districts are good, but as they said not as good as Crestwood (Mountaintop) or Dallas (shavertown). They are light years ahead of Monroe County
Bear Creek WILL develop, no doubt. It will pick up those people who can afford to travel to yet another county... but most in Monroe, Pike and Wayne counties are travelling to eastern NJ, and NY... Luzerne county, and specificallly Bear Creek is not out of the question but highly difficult... I know I drive to Flanders, NJ every weekday (80 miles).
Please feel free to email me with questions of the development, or anything around.
I currently live in North Vernon Indiana and will be relocating to the Pittston PA area due to my husbands job. I work for the school district here and have 2 young children. I want to make sure we have a home that is in a great school district, but also something that I can rent as we relocated quite a bit. Please advise me on the best places to live in that area with in a 30 mile radius of Pittston. Schools are my number one priority with housing being the next. I like to know if anyone knows who I could contact about rental houses or how I can go about that. I am not against buying but there is always a possibility that we will have to move at least one more time.
I currently live in North Vernon Indiana and will be relocating to the Pittston PA area due to my husbands job. I work for the school district here and have 2 young children. I want to make sure we have a home that is in a great school district, but also something that I can rent as we relocated quite a bit. Please advise me on the best places to live in that area with in a 30 mile radius of Pittston. Schools are my number one priority with housing being the next. I like to know if anyone knows who I could contact about rental houses or how I can go about that. I am not against buying but there is always a possibility that we will have to move at least one more time.
Thank you for any advice you have.
Christad5
Pittston is equidistant from both Scranton (pop. 70,000) and Wilkes-Barre (pop. 40,000), being only 10-15 minutes from each via I-81. Pittston itself is a declining old industrial town along the Susquehanna River where I'm shocked tumbleweed doesn't roll through its downtown. The town's population has decreased from a peak of 21,000 in its heyday to now being only at an estimated 7,500 (the town is becoming a "ghost town.") I'm assuming your husband's job is actually located just outside of town in one of the industrial parks, nearer to Highway 315. That particular area (Jenkins Township and Pittston Township) is exploding in growth. Newer housing developments are springing up everywhere on the outskirts of town. Traffic along the Highway 315 corridor has continued to worsen with each passing year as this growth continues. Upcoming projects also include a new Wal-Mart Supercenter and its accompanying Pittston Crossings Mall, Home Depot, and the CenterPoint Commerce Park. The town of Pittston itself has seen much brighter days while the surroundings are truly blossoming.
As a product of Pittston Area schools, I personally would not recommend them. The Dallas and Crestwood School Districts are the two highest-ranked public school districts in Luzerne County, and your husband would have a 25-minute or so commute to work from either of those areas. Just across the river from Pittston is West Pittston, a charming town I featured in a photo tour: //www.city-data.com/forum/north...hoto-tour.html This town is part of the Wyoming Area School District, which is much better than the Pittston Area School District, in my humble opinion, but slightly lower-rated than both Crestwood and Dallas. Housing prices will be loftiest in those two school districts, where you'll mostly find newer constructions in housing developments.
Do you know of a good realtor I can get in contact with? This is a big move for us and I have a 4 year old and 11 year old who are not very happy with me, so I want to find a nice place to live in an area with kids so they have something to look forward to (know we live in a small area with no kids) to do. If you think West Pittston is the place then a think that a 20 or 30 min drive would be okay with my husband. Please give me any information that you think would be helpful. The company my husband is working for has not even started building the facility yet so it will be at least 6 mo, but I want to start getting things in order so that when we come out to check the area I know right were I want to look.
Do you know of a good realtor I can get in contact with? This is a big move for us and I have a 4 year old and 11 year old who are not very happy with me, so I want to find a nice place to live in an area with kids so they have something to look forward to (know we live in a small area with no kids) to do. If you think West Pittston is the place then a think that a 20 or 30 min drive would be okay with my husband. Please give me any information that you think would be helpful. The company my husband is working for has not even started building the facility yet so it will be at least 6 mo, but I want to start getting things in order so that when we come out to check the area I know right were I want to look.
Thanks for your help.
Good morning!
Actually, West Pittston, (and all of the Wyoming Area School District for that matter), is located just across the Susquehanna River from Pittston. It would be about a 15-minute drive from your husband's employer (which I'm assuming is Men's Wearhouse, Lowe's, or one of the other major companies being built in the massive Center Point Commerce & Trade Park).
One thing to be weary of though with West Pittston is the fact that the "prettiest" parts of town are flood-prone, as there is no levee protecting the town from the river. Pretty much all of Susquehanna Avenue, which parallels the river, and a block inland on the nearby side streets are fair game for some sort of water damage during floods. Some streets lie lower than others. My aunt and uncle live in the first block of Montgomery Avenue off of Susquehanna Avenue, and their home was untouched by the 2006 Flood. However, I believe one of the streets further south (either Delaware Avenue or Philadelphia Avenue) had pretty much the whole first block enduring basement flooding.
The Wyoming Area School District goes on to cover the nearby small towns of Exeter, Wyoming, and West Wyoming, and the rural Township of Exeter (home to the villages of Harding, Mount Zion, and Falls). Exeter Township, as I said, has a more rural flair to it, with a lot of country-style homes with some acreage. The township is mostly immune to flooding, but I wouldn't recommend moving here, as Route 92, the main artery, is very windy and can be treacherous during snow storms. Wyoming and West Wyoming are each well-established older towns with mostly well-kept homes, even though they don't quite have the same curb appeal, in my opinion, as West Pittston does. Finally, Exeter is a blend of older neighborhoods and newer housing developments. However, be advised that Hick's Creek routinely floods the western portions of the town, especially in Wildflower Estates, Ida Acres, and the surrounding areas.
As far as realtors are concerned, I'd recommend anyone from Atlas Realty if you are interested exclusively in the Wyoming Area School District, as Atlas pretty much only employs agents who are natives to either the West Pittston/Pittston area or who are very well-experienced with it. We dealt with an agent from them who was very helpful, even though he has since passed away since selling us our own home back in 1996. The main broker for that firm is Charlie Adonizio, and he can be reached at (570)829-6200. He can probably direct you to one of his agents that he'd deem to be appropriate.
I personally wouldn't move to either the Crestwood or Dallas School Districts and commute to Center Point unless you couldn't find something to your liking in the Wyoming Area School District. My cousin was a 2005 graduate of Wyoming Area and is now a successful triple-science major at the University of Scranton, and she says she feels as if she was prepared quite well from her alma mater. It's also no secret that Wyoming Area often outperforms its cross-river rival of Pittston Area in just about everything academically (even though we had the better football team and fitness center to brag about).
It all comes down to what type of setting you're looking for I suppose. I'm currently vacationing in Cincinnati, but if you give me some ideas of what you're looking for in a home (price range, square footage, age, number of bedrooms/bathrooms, type of neighborhood, etc.), then I could most certainly reply with some listings, as I'm a budding realtor myself.
In the mean time, check out this link: Ourhomesite.com , and do a property search by school district for Wyoming Area, Crestwood, and Dallas. Alternatively, you could even search for Pittston Area and send your children to a nearby private or Roman Catholic school. Also be sure to give Charlie a call; we met him when our family was purchasing our own home, and he seemed like an experienced broker.
Best of luck, and I hope to get back to you by Monday (depending on how things go here in Cincy).
-Paul
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Now home to 16,000 residents and growing by leaps and bounds annually, including some newer growth from NY/NJ transplants, Mountain Top is your typical woodsy Northeastern suburb, with cul-de-sacs, vinyl-sided two-story homes, three-car garages, subdivisions that "bleed" into one another, and no real "downtown", as all of the businesses along Route 309 are free-standing and surrounded by a sea of asphalt (fast-food restaurants, banks, chain pharmacies, etc.) The Crestwood School District is certainly among the best in the region, and housing prices are probably also among the highest in Luzerne County---You'll generally need to fork over at least $200,000 for a typical Mountain Top home, and some of the newest developments, such as the "Ice Lakes", have a few homes valued nearer to the seven-figure range! This community is largely home to professionals who commute about 20 minutes back-and-forth to Wilkes-Barre, the county seat, for work. I find the people of Mountain Top to be very friendly, but there's always that element of "keeping up with the Jones's" occurring here. An example would be finally purchasing an Audi A6 for your wife on her 40th birthday and having your next-door neighbor run out the next day and buying an Audi A8 just to "upstage" you. 
I've never been too fond of cul-de-sacs and chain stores, but if that interests you, then by all means have at it! Housing prices here are similar in nature to Mountain Top. 
A Few Photo Links
Sorry I know you posted this October 2006
Moving to Pittston
The main broker for that firm is Charlie Adonizio, and he can be reached at (570)829-6200. He can probably direct you to one of his agents that he'd deem to be appropriate. 
