Living in City Center with KIDS....good idea, bad idea?

[rotodome]

I love these monolithic comparisons of "the city" vs "the suburbs", as if everyplace in the city or the suburbs is one way.

Straw man battles are pretty useless, and just tick off everyone involved. Especially when it comes to how people or their parents chose to raise their kids. There are totally wonderful, and totally crappy areas of both "the city" and "the suburbs", as well as everything in between. People are going to have a wide range of experiences and values. All of them are valid, and many of them are going to contradict with each other. Maybe it's a little bit easier to isolate oneself in the suburbs from different types of areas, which is something that appeals to a lot of people. But people live where they live for a million different reasons, and don't need others telling them that they're somehow ignorant of "the facts" or somehow misguided just because they make different choices. Let's not get so high and mighty either way.

[PennKid]

I totally agree that there is no point in reducing either the suburbs or city to monolithic areas... too many people on this forum grew up disaffected in a lonely suburb, or overwhelmed in a crime-ridden neighborhood, and after relocating to the polar opposite, decided it was a utopia, and their former residence a hellhole.

However, in the case of the Delaware Valley, as regards this thread, I have to say that there are simply too many people in the suburbs who are scared to set foot in the city under the assumption that they will be instantly shot, and that the schools are universally akin to prisons.

Having grown up in a rather crime-ridden corner of South Philly, I found my utopia not in the inaccessible suburbs, but rather in the tidy streets and vibrant corners of Center City. Even more so, I noticed that the residents of Center City were among the most enlightened and least odious of the city's residents, including the kids that I competed against in high school, and taught or worked with in college and afterwards.

There is a cluster of acclaimed public schools to send your kids to around Center City, including Greenfield, McCall, Meredith, Bache-Martin, Russell Byers, and C. Columbus (each have their own catchment zone within greater Center City) and then Penn Alexander and Powel on the other side of the river. As far as middle and high schools, Masterman and Independence Charter, Science Leadership Academy and Freire Charter are some of the highest ranked in Pennsylvania.

As far as quality of life, it is hard to beat living in a gorgeous brownstone or a tidy rowhome on a tree-lined street, right alongside plenty of foot traffic from thriving small businesses, or on a quiet alley, if that's your things. 'Flash mobs' rarely get out of hand, and 99.99% of the kids are just out to enjoy the warm night like you would if you were their age. That's not to say that Center City is perfect- of course, not all of the foot traffic is going to be pleasant. But honestly, I can't think of too many better places to raise kids.

[Tiger Beer]

Originally Posted by PennKid

Having grown up in a rather crime-ridden corner of South Philly, I found my utopia not in the inaccessible suburbs, but rather in the tidy streets and vibrant corners of Center City. Even more so, I noticed that the residents of Center City were among the most enlightened and least odious of the city's residents, including the kids that I competed against in high school, and taught or worked with in college and afterwards.

City Center is looking better and better. Originally I was thinking of Philadelelphia with South Philly. But, now I'm seeing more and more the pull of CC.

My wife is Asia, and my kids are half-Asian, so South Philly seemed to have a larger Asian representation during the 2000 census. Now it seems that City Center equally has a good representation, and just seems better in general as well.

[FindingZen]

Originally Posted by Tiger Beer

City Center is looking better and better. Originally I was thinking of Philadelelphia with South Philly. But, now I'm seeing more and more the pull of CC.

My wife is Asian, and my kids are half-Asian, so South Philly seemed to have a larger Asian representation during the 2000 census. Now it seems that City Center equally has a good representation, and just seems better in general as well.

If you find the housing costs in the more popular areas of the DC metro, per your frequent participation on those forums, to be a bit daunting, comparable options might be 20-25% less in Philadelphia. If your salary is the same or slightly less than you would have been offered down there, the odds of you finding a comfortable place to live in or near Center City are much higher. (Odds are your salary offers will be ~10% less in Philly than in DC.)

[LHM]

Originally Posted by rotodome

I love these monolithic comparisons of "the city" vs "the suburbs", as if everyplace in the city or the suburbs is one way.

You took the words right out of my mouth. It's amazing the way people generalize city vs. suburbs.