Should Crime Put Me Off COming To Philly? (Philadelphia, Girard: subletting, apartments)
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I am an Australian who is being offered a job at Uni Penn. The University and job have a great reputation, and on a career and academic level I know it is a terrific opportunity. The ONLY thing holding me back is the reports of the city being rundown and it being the highest city for violent crime. I am 30, female, small in build and would be living and commuting around the city alone, potentially after dark if I have to work late. Obviously I will have an Australian accent so I might stand out a bit. I also have Asian features curtesy of my ancestory 2 generations back.
I might be able to scrape together enough money to live in the city centre, but having come all that way I would really like to think I will not be obliged to stick to a 1 or 2 km radius to stay safe. I want to get to know the cities I live in, and its people. I won't be able to afford a car, and will need to rely on public transport. Can anyone locals, previous visitors/residents give me an opinion on whether I should turn down a great opportunity with Uni Penn over the crime issue or any other drawbacks you perceive. I would be really grateful for your insights.
I am an Australian who is being offered a job at Uni Penn. The University and job have a great reputation, and on a career and academic level I know it is a terrific opportunity. The ONLY thing holding me back is the reports of the city being rundown and it being the highest city for violent crime. I am 30, female, small in build and would be living and commuting around the city alone, potentially after dark if I have to work late. Obviously I will have an Australian accent so I might stand out a bit. I also have Asian features curtesy of my ancestory 2 generations back.
I might be able to scrape together enough money to live in the city centre, but having come all that way I would really like to think I will not be obliged to stick to a 1 or 2 km radius to stay safe. I want to get to know the cities I live in, and its people. I won't be able to afford a car, and will need to rely on public transport. Can anyone locals, previous visitors/residents give me an opinion on whether I should turn down a great opportunity with Uni Penn over the crime issue or any other drawbacks you perceive. I would be really grateful for your insights.
Absolutely do not be afraid. The high majority of the crime is being committed in areas where you will not go. You can safely live in the University City area or in center city, where you have easy public transportation access to Penn (which is how we refer to the school). Do you have any idea of how much you will be able to pay in rent? That might help with more living suggestions.
Another thing - you won't stand out either in University City or in Center City. They are both very liberal areas.
Last edited by newmarlig; 06-23-2007 at 09:41 PM..
You will not have a problem around the Univ of Penn Area, the area is safe and protected. There are plenty of apartments within walking distance of the University as well as the subway system.
The area of Philadelphia where University of Penn is, is fairly safe and one of the best urban scenes you will find in the entire usa. Yes, the hoodrats are making a mockery of the entire city with their crime but for the most part they are shooting each other over drugs in their own neighborhoods away from University City and Center City.
I know its a long way away but it might be worth taking a weekend trip to Philadephia and see it first-hand before making any life altering decisions. Parts of the city are simply amazing, other parts are dreadful. If you could afford to live in Center City or University City you would have an enjoyable experience.The summers are very quiet as it seems most of the city takes the summer off and heads for the beaches in New Jersey(1 hour away) There are plenty of outlets around that can give you info. on University/Center City about subletting or sharing rent expense with roomates who are probably in the same situation you are.(new to the city)
Good luck. There is crime not far away from University City, but overall University/Center City is a strong community of young professionals/students/families.
I am an Australian who is being offered a job at Uni Penn.
Congratulations!
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The ONLY thing holding me back is the reports of the city being rundown and it being the highest city for violent crime. I am 30, female, small in build and would be living and commuting around the city alone, potentially after dark if I have to work late. Obviously I will have an Australian accent so I might stand out a bit. I also have Asian features curtesy of my ancestory 2 generations back.
The overall crime statistics are somewhat misleading. Yes, we do have a little problem with our murder rate here, but as others have pointed out, that mostly plays out in specific neighborhoods, which you can easily avoid.
I'm not going to say that the University City area is crime free (though it's obviously not a place you read about all those murders happening), but I think it's relatively safe (especially on campus or near campus). Penn. has its own (fairly visible) campus security, in addition the Philadelphia police presence in the area. It's an expensive school, and it's bustling with students. I somehow don't see wealthy families continuing to send their children to Penn. if crime were really out of hand there.
When I was a student at Drexel (not far from Penn.), I used to routinely walk home late at night to a neighborhood just a little bit north of center city, without incident, but then again, as a male, I have fewer worries about attack.
The real quality of life issue that might come up for you is not so much crime, as the spillover of the worst aspects of ghetto culture into the rest of the city (e.g., "I can do whatever I want wherever I want and it's none of your business").
Nevertheless, center city and University City (I don't know why I am inconsistent about how I capitalize them) are both pretty amazing areas to live and work.
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I might be able to scrape together enough money to live in the city centre, but having come all that way I would really like to think I will not be obliged to stick to a 1 or 2 km radius to stay safe. I want to get to know the cities I live in, and its people. I won't be able to afford a car, and will need to rely on public transport.
I've lived in center city Philadelphia without a car since 1989, and it is definitely doable. SEPTA fares are pretty high, and people ***** and moan about the service, but it's quite possible to get all over the city (and into much of the suburbs) using SEPTA. (And for times when public transportation doesn't cut it, it's usually pretty easy to find a taxi in the center city/University city areas, even without calling for one.)
I agree with others who have suggested coming here for a brief visit (focused on the areas where you would be working, and, most likely living).
I can't do much more than reiterate everyone's views on this thread. I did live in the University City neighborhood on two different occasion, the most recent being for a two year period about two years ago. Without knowing what urban life is in Australian cities, I can say that University City and Center City are not perfect but are each as safe as any neighborhood in a large American city. There are other solid neighborhoods scattered throughout Philly, but for your commuting purposes CC and UC are best. I also agree with those that suggest that you come for a visit before making a final decision. Best of luck to you!
The ONLY thing holding me back is the reports of the city being rundown and it being the highest city for violent crime. I am 30, female, small in build and would be living and commuting around the city alone, potentially after dark if I have to work late. Obviously I will have an Australian accent so I might stand out a bit. I also have Asian features curtesy of my ancestory 2 generations back.
The crime in Philly is very segregated by neighborhood. The "shoot em up" attitude is found almost entirely in run down ghetto neighborhoods where the average middle, upper middle class Philadelphian would have no business stepping into. North Philadelphia is very seedy and ghettoish. Just last week there were three shootings in Kensington in North Philly.
Shootings very, very rarely enter into well-to-do neighborhoods, like Society Hill, Northern Liberties, Old City, Center City downtown, University City. You should be very safe in these areas. The part of Center City where you will find working professionals and well-to-do residents are on Chestnut, Walnut, Sansom, Pine, Spruce, Locust, Lombard, and South Streets stretching from the Schuylkill River all the way to the Delaware River.
There are nice restaurants on 2nd Street in the Northern Liberties area of Philly (bounded by 5th Street to the west, the Delaware River to the east, Girard Street on the north, and Spring Garden street on the south). I feel very safe walking in Northern Liberties and the area is mostly gentrified. Stay south of Girard Street if you ever visit Northern Liberties.
I have walked on the University of Pennsylvania campus, and it sorta feels like an Ivy League town. Nearby are antique houses on tree lined streets. At night there are campus police on bikes patrolling the streets. There are also many ethnic restaurants in the neighborhood.
Chinatown is also safe. I eat and walk there almost every night and I never encountered any sort of crime there.
Definitely visit first before relocating. Good luck with your decision and I hope you will enjoy Philly!
I spent the last four years at Penn as an undergraduate student. I came from a smaller, suburban, mostly retirement community in South Florida, so I was making a pretty drastic change to a big Northeastern US city. And I loved the four years I spent at Penn and in Philadelphia.
Philly is a very diverse, large city that also feels smaller and more manageable than nearby NYC. As said before, living in Center City or University City, where Penn is, would be most ideal for you. If you cannot afford Center City, there is much more affordable housing around Penn in University City. And the neighborhood will have many international students as Penn draws a decent number of students from many foreign countries, so don't worry about your accent or physical features. Both neighborhoods offer a wide arrary of restaurants, nightlife, and shopping.
Crime was also a major concern for me. In Naples, FL where I am from, the most serious crime we experience is the occasional robbery. Whereas, you read the Philadelphia Inquirer and almost everyday someone is shot/killed. Although that is disheartening and unnerving, I can say that I never actually felt unsafe when living around Penn or walking around Center City. There were many nights I walked home from Center City back to Penn by myself. Although that isn't the smartest idea because anything can happen anywhere, I was never afraid for my safety. Penn does an excellent job of patrolling the campus and surrounding area (it's own police force, bike cops, security guards, etc), so you will always see a strong security presence around campus.
I could keep going on, but it will get repetitive, especially with things everyone else has said. You have a right to be concerned, but in reality, the crime issues in Philadelphia are mostly isolated and won't affect you as long as you maintain street smarts, which anyone should exercise anywhere.
Can anyone locals... give me an opinion... on drawbacks you perceive.
Take the job; you will be fine! UPenn has gentrified the area immedietly around the campus and it is quite safe. A wonderful area. University City is a great community; they go out of their way to create a safe atmosphere. Campus police are all about and near. Campus police will escort women home. There's plenty of call boxes. Have no worries.
You have plenty of public transportation options. I lived in the city four years without a car, no problems.
The violence you hear about is outside of Center City and University City. Center City and University City are very different from how the media portrays Philadelphia. Both are very safe.
Wow! If the people who answered are any indication, I am definitely sold on the friendliness of the Philly people!
Thank you so much. As you can imagine being so far away we live with sometimes mythical ideas about the US in general, but also much admiration hence my keeness to work at Penn (I'm getting the local lingo right thanks to Newmarlig!). It is a long way to have come if I had found myself frightened everyday.
My apprehension about it being a decaying or dirty city was certainly put to rest by Rainrock's photos. Thank you especially.
I just found it hard to go past the stats, but nothing beats getting the real story from the locals.
It sounds like it has it's good parts and bad parts like many an Australian city. You just have to know where to go, and you have all ehlped me a lot with that, so thanks. We are FAR from perfect either. Domestic violence is appaling. Drunken violent fights are common and home invasion is rising too. As always, you try not to go looking for trouble, and hope in return it doesn't find you.
The main difference is we probably have less armed violence, and I have very little feel for living in a community with 'weapons'. Don't get me wrong, I'm not wanting to get into any political debate (I don't know enough about the topic to have an opinion), but I just know I'll arrive...inexperienced. We are a city of 3.5million. We've had 3 shootings in our central city in the 30 years that I have been alive, and lived here. One, sadly, was last week. It shut down the entire city in disbelief, had everyone do some rethinking about our values...even the Hell's Angels group publicly stated they would 'hunt the guy down'. He has since turned himself in peacefully, such was the public pressure I suspect. What I'm trying to say is we are not very used to this sort of thing, which, thankfully, means we are not immune to such violence. But we are also proabably not very savvy either, and hence why we are vulnerable to being caught out.
Thank you again...I am definitely edging towards pursuing the job. The University is something you should all be proud of. And the job I'm looking at is not only great because of the Uni's rep, but becasue you seldom hear happy reports from everyone in a department from the most junior to the most senior. Maybe that too is the Philly friendliness.
Consider yourselves having played an important part in my career development! I look forward to making friends with such welcoming people as yourselves... put one down the hatch over a ***....as we would say (I wasn't joking when I said the Australian accent might mean I would stick out a little!)
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