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I got a job offer in Williamsport, PA and am looking to move there in two months.
I have r
ead articles talking about the rising crime rates in Williamsport so I am hesitant about living in there.Is there any small town around Williamsport a better place to live, preferable one that is between Williamsport and State College.
Also I have a 4 year old so I am much concerned about school districts.
We are Asians and would like a school with diversity (although I know there is not much diversity to be expected up there)
Really - there is hundreds of people every day moving into the Williamsport area for the Marcellus Shale Natural Gas industry and just as many people leaving.
I highly doubt if you are going to find any diversity anywhere in central Pennsylvania - unless you move to State College proper and send your child to school there.
As you bring in a new wave of out of state workers - that has grown exponentially over the last 24 months, the people moving into the area brings the crime with them, until they force the level of crime to escalate to the point of where it was at the place where they came from.
Things such as fights and stabbings and shootings and drugs and crime has been on the rise ever since the Natural Gas people have moved into there.
There was 5 stabbings in State College last weekend, just in one weekend - over homecoming weekend.
this statement is ignorant!
1. in order to work for the gas industry, you CAN NOT have any felonies, DUI's, etc.
2. the people moving to work for the gas companies are striving to make a living as you and everyone else is, being our economy isn't doing well, and since the locals don't want the job they will hire elsewhere.
3. I am coming from a town that has a 95% majority of oil feild workers, and we have nearly no crime at all, just a couple teenagers being dumb here and there, I feel safe to let my kids walk around downtown, i keep my keys in my truck, and my home is never really locked up.
So please don't look down on us who work hard to make a living and happen to be moving where there IS work for us. we are good people, not junkies, not felons, just honest hard working people!
Thanks
this statement is ignorant!
1. in order to work for the gas industry, you CAN NOT have any felonies, DUI's, etc.
2. the people moving to work for the gas companies are striving to make a living as you and everyone else is, being our economy isn't doing well, and since the locals don't want the job they will hire elsewhere.
3. I am coming from a town that has a 95% majority of oil feild workers, and we have nearly no crime at all, just a couple teenagers being dumb here and there, I feel safe to let my kids walk around downtown, i keep my keys in my truck, and my home is never really locked up.
So please don't look down on us who work hard to make a living and happen to be moving where there IS work for us. we are good people, not junkies, not felons, just honest hard working people!
Thanks
Well I have to call BS on point one as the state police up here in Tioga County have arrested quite a few gas well workers that had active felony warrants from other states like Texas. I also remember a few cases in Coudersport as well. As I recall the gas well worker that murdered a local Wellsboro man last month had an active warrant out of Texas.
Sure most of the gas well guys are hard working and just trying to earn a living, but lets not be fooled there aren't any bad apples in the bunch.
I'm offended by the people who says that local people do not want to work and so they have to import workers from other areas to do the job.
Delta Drilling drilled all the Gas Wells around my mom's house back in the early 60's.
We went from a model town with good drinking water to a town with no drinking water to a town with city water and a bill to a town of city water and a sewage bill that costs twice as much to flush the commode as it does to buy the water to put in it.
In 1978 the natural gas boom picked back up and they brought in workers from New York to punch a bunch of holes around my house.
Those people were making $18.00 a hour as deck hands and $24.00 a hour as drillers - and that was 1978.
Now most people who are hired makes around $10 - $12 a hour.
They know how to exploit the common man and how to get them to work for next to nothing and to entice them to work more hours by paying them less money.
A man can't even live - with a family of 4 in Williamsport on $12 a hour unless he works 20 hours of over time.
The truth is that they can make more money by hiring outside people and having them travel from state to state then hiring the local people and paying them a livable wage.
Those drillers should be making about $40.00 a hour and the rig hands should be making at least $30.00
Out of curiosity OP: where did you end up moving? It looks like there are several places in Williamsport where you can have access to high "rated" schools (greatschools.org) and where housing is quite cheap compared to other places in the country. Though I suppose part of that is the median household income is 25k (perhaps due in no small part to how little gas people are apparently being paid)
My personal concern about PA in general is the drinking (and bathing as you absorb a lot of water through your skin) water quality that increased gas drilling might bring (ala gasland). But I suppose if you have the option you can always get a whole house reverse osmosis filter system (though at 10-15,000 these systems aren't cheap)
Some highlights of fun things to do in the Williamsport Area:
- Faxon Bowling Lanes
- Bavarian Barbarian Brewing Company
- Hiawatha Paddlewheeler
- Taber Museum / Lycoming County Historical Society
- Treasure Castle Playland ( SIMILAR TO CHUCK-E-CHEESE or bounceU)
- Little League & Williamsport Crosscutters
Good places to Eat/visit: Joy Thai, Lang's Chocolate, Eagle Rock Winery, Bullfrog Brewery, Grace Buffet
Cant really speak for diversity, Ive visited often, but didnt live there, but it's true about Gas wells being built and lots of out of state workers coming in (mainly texas & oklahoma) but that's mainly in nearby Sullivan County, as well as Jersey Shore area.
wow, I looked at this thread because I am also looking for a good place to live in this area, and I just felt completely unwelcomed (we are a "gas worker" family). So far, it sounds like everyone is just looking for something to complain about. We came from Arkansas, and at first, many people didn't like us there either (it is also a small town)...until more business started popping up. New houses were built, we got a bigger theater, and many new restaurants. I don't understand why everyone hates us.
Yes, most of us come from other states, but that's because we have the experience!!! PA said, "hey..you guys are doing a great job. Can you come here and get us to where you are?" Please stop repeating garbage you may hear from some else about us. We're good people who came here because this is where our kind of work is. If you can't find a job doing what you do here...then go where you can. You all have an abundant natural resource in your backyard. We're not going to suck it up and run off. You have enough to last generations.
I know, most of you see our guys...all dirty and stinky. They are definitely hard working Americans. I'm pretty proud of them. They don't have a 9-5 job. This job requires them to work crazy hours, usually in the middle of nowhere, so they have to sleep on location. You can't just stop production cuz someone isn't used to working their schedule. Most locals can't take it, so they leave. Believe me, we need a ton of help.
We have awesome new technology and annoying eggheads in our offices making sure we do everything safely. In AR we had many overpaid engineers always trying to make improvements in production and safety so I have to laugh when I read about all the horrible things we apprently do.
I'm sure I am currently overpaying on this house we're renting, but seriously...why is it our fault that LOCAL property owners are "kicking out" LOCAL renters, and overcharging oil workers??? Sounds like they're the jerks. (although, I'm sure that's just rumor, cuz I hope that is illegal)
This is our new home, and I really want to love it here. So Please, give us a try. Yes, things may change. Some may want to stay a small town and hate it, some may welcome the new growth and love it. Either way, if you see our guys in a restaurant or store after have being on a location without a shower or a descent meal in days...please don't **** on them before they come home to their families.
wow, I looked at this thread because I am also looking for a good place to live in this area, and I just felt completely unwelcomed (we are a "gas worker" family). * * * are definitely hard working Americans.
First of all, welcome to PA!
Second, understand thet rural PA is a deeply conservative locale - and that's conservative with a small "c". The gas industry has presented very rapid changes in the last two years or so. It is a factor that just operates on a much different time scale than what's been going on in the "PA wilds" for decades.
Although in most parts of northern and western PA there was limited economic opportunity, there were many longtime and seasonal residents who were happy with things the way they were. It has been many decades since industrial scale extraction was as widespread as it is now, even though PA has seen many timber, coal, oil, and even gas booms before.
Many who stayed, and those who moved in in recent decades, valued the big woods, the clear streams, no traffic, and could deal with few stores. Water trucks rolling by every 3 minute on roads that might have seen 3 cars a day represents a serious intrusion to those who specifically sought peace and quiet in their lives.
It's always the nature of an extractive economy that opportunities are open to fewer people that who bear the impacts. As gas workers working hard to feed your family the problems aren't your fault, but I fear its human nature that the new person is the target. Certainly what many feel are greedy and shortsighted responses to these new developments by our homegrown politicians aren't your fault either.
To many people, whether they have land reaping $$$ from mineral rights or not, PA has been home for many generations. Not everyone is able to just up and move somewhere else due to family and home ties. You shouldn't be the target of those resentments of folks who miss opportunities thereby, but again due to human nature you could be.
If the gas economy here is as long lasting as you say, in a few years the social and economic life of the "PA wilds" will rebalance, but not without serious strains to come in the next few months.
It sounds like you have moved with the industry more than once - what are your thoughts about these adjustments?
Well spottie, I think you have to understand the other side. Ki0eh sums it up pretty good and I'll add a few similar thoughts.
This area was stagnant for generations and a lot of the people that live here like it that way. In just 2-3 years, everything has changed dramatically.
Today I was out on Hwy 6 driving and it was like ******* with lumbering water and sand trucks everywhere coming at all angles. I was just waiting for accident to happen. And accidents have happened. 4 traffic fatalities with Tioga county residents in the past few days. That's a lot for a county of 40000 residents.
So where we once had sleepy streets, we now have noisy dusty sand and water trucks sometimes 24 hours a day streaming up county roads never designed to handle such weights. We now have tons of gas related traffic jamming up roads everywhere else.
Then you have crime, which crime has gone through the roof in the local area.
Then you have the real estate issue, which rents have spiraled out of control and cost for local people on minimum wage.
Then you have the environmental issue. 100 years ago all this land was barren of trees. They cut everything down and it's taken a long time to recover. So with all this gas fracking, when spills happen and stuff gets injected into the ground and then you'll be gone and we'll still be here, then yes we have right to worry and be concerned.
So a lot of issues there that effect the area and it's all happened very fast. I think you have to look outside of your own self interests and consider how you would feel if those things happened to your home area. When it comes to the gas folks, glad to have them here, but if they don't respect us or the local area, then I have no use for them.
I think Williamsport is an exceedingly boring town. The crime rate and the Marcellus Shale Natural Gas industry don't even concern me since I spend all my time at home. There is no reason to go out.
However, you might want to take advantage of the fact that Williamsport isn't too far from New York City. You can take a Susquehanna Trailways tour bus to New York City once a month. Unfortunately, there aren't any convenient options for traveling to Philadelphia unless you want to drive for three hours. Maybe some bored gas industry workers can demand a Megabus route.
The only sign of improvement in our social life has been the Pajama Factory, an old factory on Park Avenue converted into artists lofts. I hope that livens things up some day.
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