POLL: Should We Keep the Lehigh Valley Sub-Forum? (Philadelphia, Pittsburgh: appointed, schools)

[SteelCityRising]

I hate to say I make mistakes, but I'm man enough to admit to them when they occur. I pushed tooth-and-nail to get a sub-forum added for NEPA, and as we can all see that was indeed a VERY smart decision due to all of the new members we've been seeing there as of late. More recently I likewise fought and pleaded to have a Lehigh Valley sub-forum added, but I must admit I'm quite disappointed and underwhelmed by the participation on there by perhaps just four regular members or so.

I initially thought this sub-forum was necessary for two reasons:

1.) To clear up confusion that was arising from folks inquiring about the Allentown/Bethlehem/Easton area on the General PA forum, NEPA sub-forum, and Philadelphia sub-forum. I thought that by giving this metropolitan area, which was "stuck in the middle", its own sub-forum, this confusion would be cleared up. It appears it has been.

2.) With 800,000 residents I assumed that the Lehigh Valley would have more than enough interest and activity to sustain itself. I know it took the NEPA sub-forum a week or so to get onto its feet, but the Lehigh Valley sub-forum has been around much, much longer than that now, and its thread counts seem to have increased very marginally. I thought that with the high volume of people moving to the Lehigh Valley from NJ and NY that this new sub-forum would be lighting up with activity. I suppose I was wrong though.

For what it's worth I feel as if the logic behind my pushing for the creation of that sub-forum was sound at the time, but it just doesn't appear to be taking flight the way I had hoped.

What do you all think? Should the sub-forum be kept in hopes of activity picking up in the future, or should things go back to the way they were when we only had sub-forums for Philadelphia, Pittsburgh, and Northeastern Pennsylvania? Please give me your reasons below as well. I'm not a moderator (and probably never will be because I fly off the handle a bit too much at times), but hopefully after about a week or so the powers-that-be will use this poll as a useful measure to decide whether or not this sub-forum should remain. Thanks!

[toobusytoday]

Jeez -louise SWB, just give us a chance! So what if we're not a high hit board. It's a place for us to gather. Just think of us as the kick-back forum..... You young kids are soo impatient

[Icy Tea]

Just expand it beyond the Lehigh valley to include Berks, Lancaster, Montgomery, Bucks, Schuylkill, Chester , Lebanon, etc. Maybe call it SE Pa. Reading/ Berks is getting alot of hits and so is Lancaster. Allentown and Reading are about equal in interest and one sub forum covering both is justified.
Maybe Montgomery county and Bucks fall into the Philly region although Pottstown is effectively the edge. Likewise northern Bucks is getting pretty removed from the Philly region. Western Chester County is practically Lancaster County.

[KristyLiz]

I agree, you haven't given it enough time.

[toobusytoday]

I don't agree that the forums themselves should be changed. Montgomery, Bucks, Chester and Delaware County are the greater Philadelphia metropolitan area. Only the very westernmost tip of Chester county seems like it is outside that definition. I am just five minutes from Northern Bucks but except for shopping I don't feel very "close" to that area. Our schools don't play each other. If you go by newspaper coverage you'll see that the Philadelphia Inquirer covers the city of Phil, Bucks, Chester, Delaware and Montgomery counties.

The people that are moving up from Hagerstown are not interested in the same things that people in the Lehigh Valley are interested in- I don't know the areas or the roads down that way and I would guess that is vice versa. While I can understand some different groupings, I like the way the sub-forums are right now. More can be added, but I would not like the sub-forums changed.

[SteelCityRising]

Originally Posted by toobusytoday

Jeez -louise SWB, just give us a chance! So what if we're not a high hit board. It's a place for us to gather. Just think of us as the kick-back forum..... You young kids are soo impatient

Originally Posted by KristyLiz

I agree, you haven't given it enough time.

Points well taken. I suppose I was spoiled because the NEPA sub-forum took off in popularity rather quickly whereas the Lehigh Valley forum has been edging up seemingly by just a thread or two per day.

Yes, I am rather impatient at times (hence my two speeding tickets in 2006!)

[SteelCityRising]

Here's the existing format for Eastern PA:

PHILADELPHIA:
Bucks County---Pop. 623,205
Chester County---Pop. 482,112
Delaware County---Pop. 555,996
Montgomery County---Pop. 775,688
Philadelphia County---Pop. 1,448,394
Total---(5 Counties---Pop. 3,885,395 or 31.2% of PA Population)

LEHIGH VALLEY:
Lehigh County---Pop. 335,544
Northampton County---Pop. 291,306
(The moderators threw in Carbon County for some odd reason, but that is officially still part of NEPA, so I won't include it here).
Total---(2 Counties---Pop. 626,850 or 5.0% of PA Population)

NORTHEASTERN PENNSYLVANIA:
Bradford County---Pop. 62,471
Carbon County---Pop. 62,567
Columbia County---Pop. 65,014
Lackawanna County---Pop. 209,728
Luzerne County---Pop. 313,020
Monroe County---Pop. 165,685
Pike County---Pop. 58,195
Schuylkill County---Pop. 147,405
Sullivan County---Pop. 6,277
Susquehanna County---Pop. 41,889
Wayne County---Pop. 50,929
Wyoming County---Pop. 28,093
Total---(12 Counties---Pop. 1,211,273 or 9.7% of PA Population)

As we can see though, population isn't a good way to gauge interest in an area. For example, Philadelphia's sub-forum serves three times the population as Northeastern PA, yet the NEPA sub-forum is much more active than the Philadelphia sub-forum. Apparently forum activity levels are dictated by the number of City-Data members who reside in each area---we seem to have a scarcity in the Lehigh Valley and a plethora in NEPA. Also bear in mind that if it weren't for my big mouth, then I'm sure the Pittsburgh sub-forum would be more active than the NEPA sub-forum.

If a point in time ever came, perhaps in mid-2008, when a fifth sub-forum was deemed to be necessary (or fourth if the Lehigh Valley one is discontinued), I'd propose the following:

SOUTH CENTRAL PENNSYLVANIA:
Adams County---Pop. 101,105
Berks County---Pop. 401,149
Cumberland County---Pop. 226,117
Dauphin County---Pop. 254,176
Lancaster County---Pop. 494,486
Lebanon County---Pop. 126,883
York County---Pop. 416,322
Total---(7 Counties---Pop. 2,020,238 or 16.2% of PA Population)

Even in this proposed future sub-forum (when activity level warrants its creation), the only "controversial" county might be Berks County, as it is in the Bermuda Triangle of sorts. The Lehigh Valley is just to its northeast. Greater Philadelphia is just to its southeast. This South Central forum would be just to its west and southwest. Growth pressure is attacking Berks County from all three of these angles. However, I do NOT ever see any rationale behind creating solely one sub-forum just for Berks County, even though it has over 400,000 people.

[Duderino]

Originally Posted by Icy Tea

Just expand it beyond the Lehigh valley to include Berks, Lancaster, Montgomery, Bucks, Schuylkill, Chester , Lebanon, etc. Maybe call it SE Pa. Reading/ Berks is getting alot of hits and so is Lancaster. Allentown and Reading are about equal in interest and one sub forum covering both is justified.
Maybe Montgomery county and Bucks fall into the Philly region although Pottstown is effectively the edge. Likewise northern Bucks is getting pretty removed from the Philly region. Western Chester County is practically Lancaster County.

I don't think I agree with a "SEPA" sub-forum, because the areas you mentioned are still inside the Philadelphia sphere of influence, even if it is upward of 50 or more miles away from the city. People's commutes seem to be getting farther and farther away, and people interested in jobs in and around Philly will continue to be interested in housing in Berks, Lancaster, and Lehigh counties -- not to mention all of SEPA's suburbs just seem to meld together nowadays. There's hardly a discernible difference.

[nocturnal rooster]

I say no...

[Lehigh Valley Native]

I don't even think this forum has been here for a month yet, give it some time.
I really don't think this poll was needed.