Is there any safety at all in Reading, PA (Philadelphia: crime rates, houses)

[Revenue]

Mod cut -Please note that this thread was started in 2008 and the post was the only post written by that poster. A good idea would be to start a new thread if you want to talk about Reading.

Ive seen photos of some very beautyful homes in some nice looking neighborhoods, and im not talking about attached properties either, It just seems hard to believe that all of Reading is corrupted as they say and how bad it really is. I Live in NYC i've seen crime i know bad. I wonder if Reading is worst.

I have 2 questions.
READING VS. NEW YORK CITY which is more violent ?
READING VS. SHILLINGTON which is more doable ?
1 more question is any one here trucking in Reading and hows the field out there ?

[Icy Tea]

Reading was ranked like 63 in violent crime for 2007. So yeah, it is dangerous. The county of Berks as a whole was ranked by the FBI as a 2 in violence out of 10, 3 being average, so the farther you go from Reading the more crime drops. Even past the city limits crime drops dramatically. Pittsburgh was ranked a 62, Allentown about 82, Philly a 22 crime if that gives you an idea. Camden was 2nd. Detroit 3rd, New Orleans 1st. I think NYC was 120th or so.
NYC and Philly and NJ exported ALOT of crime and lowlifes to Reading and while it isn't quite as bad as it was 10, 15 years ago its still a problem.

[toobusytoday]

Reading is not in the Lehigh Valley.....

I've heard Center City Reading is dangerous but have no first hand knowledge of it. It's out of the coverage area of the two newspapers we subscribe to - The Morning Call and the Philadelphia Inquirer.

[LaMarca]

I am from Reading originally and now live in Buffalo, NY...a city that is 4 times the population and size of Reading. HOWEVER, I would walk downtown Buffalo at night before Reading! For a city of its smaller size, Reading is very dangerous. Its a city of great history, but unsafe.

[JohnnyBiz]

It really depends where in Reading you're talking about. Plenty of places I wouldn't walk at night, and lots of senseless killings. But if you're talking single homes then you're probably in a decent area.

And Shillington wins hands down. You could live there with literally a river separating you from Reading and still never ever have a need or desire to go in Reading. Ever. The DMV is actually in Shillington.

[Wolfman89]

Reading is a place you do not want to move to.

I have lived in Reading my whole life..being 19 years..and am hightailing it out of here the second I get out of college.

Look for everything bad you hear about Reading..it is all true.

Here specifically is why you shouldn't come.

-The school district is terrible.. the high school is overcrowded and there are riots almost every year...Which of course means when school lets out almost all of the cops have to go to that one area which makes the rest of the town terrible.

-The crimes are mainly senceless. So in cities like NYC or LA or Philly you may have more crimes that are gang related..In Reading there are more just random acts of violence. You are more likely to get jumped walking home, have someone break in to your house or have arson occur.

-In the past year here is what I have experianced..ok. My windshield was smashed, my neighbors garage was graffitied several times, I was threatened with a knife, My tires had the air let out of them, my car antenna was stolen, an Obama sign I put out in like late October was stolen, at least two of my friends have been jumped and beaten and robbed. This city is worthless...and guess what I live in the outskirts.

-I have walked thrue Reading at night and I have never felt safe.
The cops do not care..and the government is more concerned with fixing up the riverfront than doing anything really helpful. Most of the streets you walk down are run down and shoddy at best. Graffiti can be found on every street and even in the rich people area near the mountains there are break ins.

-What makes it so dangerous is the lack of open places. Most of the businesses shut down years ago and now when you walk down a street what you find is abandoned factories, burned out houses that the city is to cheap to fix up, long open parking lots, bars..and not good ones and shady looking people walking by you.

-Now here is the "culture" everyone is raving about..and I do note that all of this is in one area of the city.. We have the Imax where there was a riot on like the second day of its existance.. we have RACC and the miller center which are closed before it gets to dark, The Goggle works which is pointless unless you like REAAALLLYY abstract art, Penn street..which has several dollar and thrift stores, a porn shop, a few bars,and a couple of pawn shops, and the museum that Levi Mengel(who I am actually a distant relative of)founded..which is nice but gets boring after a bit.

-The suburbs are falling apart as fast..the banks in Muhlenburg get robbed constantly and its just a matter of time before one of the county schools turns in to Columbine.




If I can't persuade you against it than I offer you advice. In the city avoid 7th street, Franklin, Front, Skukyll(yeah I still cant spell it) avenue, Glenside in general, anywhere on the west side, anywhere south of Penn, anywhere near city park, anything between city park and Union street..which is actually a huge part..but where all those in "the game" end up living. Anywhere around the school in West Reading.

Dont go in to gas stations in the city, don't walk in groups of less than 4 or 5 people at night, don't look at someone the wrong way, don't venture towards any of the back or side streets. Don't look scared when walking, Don't be near the woods at night(where the crackheads go), watch yourself in the park..any time of the day, Don't rely on the cops, If your walkign and get lost..head north..it's fairly dangerous either way but it at least lets up when you get to the rich homes..as the cops are there more.

Don't go to the pagoda at night. Do not associate with your neighbors..I learned all to well from this. Don't move in to a row home..for any reason.

If you go to the Soveirgn center..make sure you don't hang around late.

The highways are terrible, Muehlenburg is highly over rated and Wyomissing/West Reading close at night.

This is a starter city for the most part..people are born here..the only ones that move here are the ones who coulrn't make it somewhere better and were forced here.

I have lived here 19 years..I have been robbed at gunpoint in my own back alley..I can not wait to get the hell out.

[solja823]

hey wolfman, it sux having to live like that i have coussins in reading and i chill over there sometimes, its not thattt bad atleast for me..HOW ABOUT NORTH 10TH ST between douglass abnd oley st how is that area?

[EmmausRocks]

Reading per capita has one of the highest crime rates in the country for all statistics.

[SteelCityRising]

Sheesh, EmmausRocks! If you're so negative about Reading and the Lehigh Valley, I DREAD to see what you must think about Scranton?!

[EmmausRocks]

Originally Posted by ScranBarre

Sheesh, EmmausRocks! If you're so negative about Reading and the Lehigh Valley, I DREAD to see what you must think about Scranton?!

I don't think negatively about the Lehigh Valley as a whole, just Allentown. I wouldn't own a home and live in this area if it was that bad. I like Emmaus and only have single digit year wise until the house in completely paid for.

You talk about Scranton, I love Scranton/Wilkes-Barre. In fact I lived in Kingston for a few years before moving back down here. That was a great little town. The only problem I have with the NE is the Pocono's and if you even try bragging up the drug infested crime riden school districts you need to seek immediate medical attention. However I did have a problem with the pizza shops around Scranton & Wilkes Barre because they all sucked big time! Even the pizza capitol Old Forge sucked for pizza. There might have been a huge selection but it's not good in my opinion. I would actually move back there in a heartbeat! The housing bubble barely hit there and prices are already almost back to pre 2000 levels. Even with the housing bubble you could still buy a house in a great neighborhood for under $75,000 and that would buy you a huge home with nothing left to do but move in. The school are good and Scranton itself has a real good school district. I used to play cards with the principal actually! Great little bars/restaurants are everywhere and the ethnic food is world class! Nothing like getting some pigs/pierogi's and everything else around that area. I miss the 5 for 5 fridays down at that resort of 309 across from the new casino what's the name of it? It was a 3 story place with cabins and a cool tiki bar on the deck with bands and a river in the back? That was awesome! I remember leaving there and not being able to ride the springer back down the road to Kingston. What a blast! Have you ever had Pizzle's wings in Kingston? I still crave those!!! We still drive up there from time to time just for those wings. Pizzle only opens after 6PM but if you've never went there your missing the best wings I've ever had anywhere!!!! So there you have it, my complete opinion on Scranton/Wilkes Barre!