Looking @ Altoona area. Anyone got any info?

[Chug70]

I havent checked this in a while. Thanks for the good info, we have been back to the area and still moving toward living there. Thanks

[Joshua911]

Altoona had some hard times, but things are changing. For one thing, they now have the land value tax, which reduces the tax rates on buildings and construction. Almost all homes got a tax cut, and almost all businesses. Vacant lots are now on the market, rather than being held for speculation, because the tax on land values is high.

The tax rate on buildings is now 19.4 mills, which is lower than most boroughs in the County (Hollidaysburg, Tyrone and Duncansville are around 30. The school tax in the City is much lower than the surrounding county school districts, so Altoona would be a great place to get in on the great old downtown buildings.

[fattyrunner]

I was born and raised in Altoona and left only to go to college. I have lived here since I graduated and am now almost thirty, am married and have a daughter. We are very seriously considering moving.

Whether you would like living here depends to a large degree -- I guess somewhat obviously -- on what type of person you are. If you like hunting and fishing, there's probably a lot here that would appeal to you. Altoona is surrounded by rural areas with many state game lands. We have a nice Rails to Trails system for biking and running about twenty minutes away. The summers are hot and humid and the winters are cold and can be snowy (although the last few have not been the latter). Violent crime is relatively low (although this is changing) and housing is fairly cheap (but that's partly due to our many problems).

Those are the positive aspects.

Here are some negatives: drug use is rampant. There are frequent drug busts here during which a dozen or more people are rounded up, yet it seems like there are always dozens more to catch. My wife works in health care and tells me nearly every day about the many people they treat who are heroin, meth, and crack addicts. Granted, this is not everyone, but this problem has exploded in the last ten or fifteen years. We've had a substantial influx of people coming in from out of town and selling drugs. Shootings, which were once fairly unheard of, are becoming more common. Every month there seems to be a cluster of shootings where someone fires off a few rounds at a house or passing car, which are almost undoubtedly drug related.

The economy sucks. We used to have more manufacturing-type industry jobs, most of which are gone now. Sounds like you're retiring, so that may not be a huge concern, but it contributes to the other problems we have. Your wife should be able to find a nursing job with no trouble. I believe the Altoona Hospital (where my wife works) is now the largest employer in Altoona.

Many residential areas of the city are in serious decline and there are many I would simply not live in. There are nice areas, but real estate is not surprisingly much more pricey in these areas. The Duncansville-Hollidaysburg area is much nicer (though more expensive) than much of the city of Altoona proper.

Downtown is dead. There is little reason to go downtown. We do have a nice little theater, called the Mishler, but I'm not sure how frequent their performances are and I wouldn't emphasize this too heavily as contributing to a great quality of life; how many local plays can one attend?

If you like chain restaraunts and chain stores, then you may think Altoona is the garden of Eden. We have a mall, several shopping centers and places to eat out the wazoo. In fact, if you like to do something other than shop and eat out, you may find your opportunities limited. Many of these places are in surrounding Logan Township, which I think has contributed to some of the city's problems in terms of its tax base (but I'm no expert on such matters).

I don't mean to sound completely negative. Altoona has some very nice places and many good, hardworking people, and I have some wonderful memories of growing up here, but it seems to be an area in decline. Without something to turn the local economy around and stop the influx of the drug trade, I only see its problems growing in coming years.

[warriorjp2006]

chug 70 where you moving from? i live 30 mins from altoona and im a contractor i do work in altoona huntingdon state college and surrending areas. i personally would not recommend altoona to any one. i would consider state college cleaner town but more money,but better enviroment

[hvacguy67]

I would strongly recommend you look at someplace else to move. Drugs are out of control in the city, crime is up, shootings are becoming commonplace. Also the city is not the best place to run a small business. Liscensing has created a monopoly when it comes to electrical and plumbing and the city takes a percentage of your gross sales whether you make a profit or not. The manner in which the city is being run attracts too much section eight low income housing, durg pushers and drug attics come along with that. I myself regret ever moving back to Altona and plan to get out as soon as possible. This is not the city I grew up in anymore! I hate to be so negative but I am so disgusted with the cesspoole the city is becoming. We have scum from all over coming here for the chaep housing and easy access to welfare benifits and it just isn't very safe here anymore.

[irishlassie]

I have to agree with most of what FattyRunner says. I grew up in Altoona and it was ok back then, many years ago, though a bit on the poor side in many areas because it was an old railroad town. Many of the older areas started getting run down, although some of them are starting to improve by knocking down old houses. The problem is, Altoona is a services economy. So people just seem to pass money back and forth, especially to restaurants and stores. While there aren't many other places to work, other than a few factories that are still left, there is an abundance of restaurants and they always seem to be building more. They are building a new school that will replace 2 jr high schools, which means a commute for the kids who used to go to the one on the other side of town. There is not a lot to do there except eat and shop. It's inexpensive, but not worth it, in my opinion.