Sacramento vs. Philadelphia (York, Avalon, California: safe area, public school, university)

[Duderino]

I think the previous two posts summed up my sentiments very well, but I just want to reiterate to the OP: take blatantly negative posts you read on these boards with a mound of salt. That is not to say Philly is a utopia without any crime, blight and other urban issues -- but there are also many wonderful (and downright gorgeous) areas in the city, and they're not insignificant pockets. Based on my years of experience on these boards, those who degrade the entire city tend to fall into one of the following categories:

1.) completely clueless

2.) bitter former residents

3.) huge exaggerators.

Essentially, nothing you read on here could ever be a stand-in for actual in person experience. Come visit, and you will see that the Philadelphia in reality is a far cry from the Baghdad that some posters make it out to be.

[Marius Pontmercy]

Originally Posted by Duderino

I think the previous two posts summed up my sentiments very well, but I just want to reiterate to the OP: take blatantly negative posts you read on these boards with a mound of salt. That is not to say Philly is a utopia without any crime, blight and other urban issues -- but there are also many wonderful (and downright gorgeous) areas in the city, and they're not insignificant pockets. Based on my years of experience on these boards, those who degrade the entire city tend to fall into one of the following categories:

1.) completely clueless

2.) bitter former residents

3.) huge exaggerators.

Essentially, nothing you read on here could ever be a stand-in for actual in person experience. Come visit, and you will see that the Philadelphia in reality is a far cry from the Baghdad that some posters make it out to be.

I'm sure Baghdad has some nice bits to it...

[bluevelo]

Thanks for the input everyone...

[Tiger Beer]

Originally Posted by bluevelo

Thinking of applying for a promotion to a different agency in Philly; office is on Market Street near the Centre City. I'm a native Iowan, I've lived all over the US since getting out of grad school, including Minneapolis, Battle Creek, Indianapolis, Dayton, Northern VA/DC, Richmond, Jackson, MS and Sacramento.

I know the weather is going to be different and I think a comparison of the cities on that basis is meaningless; I'd make about 100K a year in Philly. I've been to Philly a lonnnng time ago and it wasn't for long, but I've heard good things about the burbs and that housing is affordable compared to most NE locations. Another attraction is that my small children, who are 10 and 8, live with their mother up in Cheshire, CT, south of Hartford, and I'd be what - a 3 to 4 hour drive away - so obviously I could see them a lot more than I do now.

I have friends in New York City and Providence so its not like I'd be moving out somewhere where I know "no one".

It does seem like you get more house for your dollar in Philly, and taxes don't seem as bad as they are out here. State and local gov't doesn't seem as dysfunctional, either, and I'm guessing that the suburban school systems are quite a bit better than what we have here in California (the public schools are simply horrible because of unchecked immigration and the state's overtly generous welfare programs has brought a huge underclass into California).

I'm interested in the music and dating scenes as I'm almost 50, 2x divorced, have my BA and MA and I'm very physically active and also play jazz guitar. It seems like between Philly and NYC I'd certainly be able to find people who share similar interests...

Any input would be appreciated. Thanks!

Before I actually went to Philadelphia, I might have said Sacramento. Recently I visited Philly though, and absolutely loved the city. So much character and charm and everything else. I think it is easily one of the most underrated cities, especially if a person wants OUT of the Car..and be able to just walk around to all kinds of interesting anemities, etc.

One thing I must say about Sacramento. That city is in a HUGE FLOOD ZONE...one that is long overdue. It's a city built that damned all the rivers over a 100 years ago, and will have all kinds of problems because of that. Basically they'd have to spend gazillions of dollars to repair and do it all right...but pretty much impossible to do at this point. Most of the city shouldn't have even been built in the flood zones. But developers and money speak, so can pretty much do whatever they want. These last ten years before the foreclosures, people were pouring into Sacramento escaping the high prices of SF, and they couldn't build fast enough - incidentally MOST all of the developers were getting cheap cheap deals in the flood zone areas - which is most of the city, so most of the housing was going right there.

[bluevelo]

I hear you on the flood stuff.

What's the local music scene like? I've been playing jazz/fusion/rock guitar for 35 years, and I regularly go to jam sessions around here. I'm not so much interested in joining a band (unless its weekend gigs only - I just cannot stay up until the wee hours and work the next day), but are there any good jam sessions in town?

[kalyson]

I lived on the Main Line outside Philadelphia for about 7 years and have lived in Sacramento for maybe 18 years.
The weather is better here in Sacramento, for sure (unless you like snow). Right now in October it has been in the 80s and even low 90s one day. Does not snow here at all and it is very sunny much of the year. Rains some in the winter but not at all in the summer.
If you are into outdoor stuff, probably Sacramento is better. You are right next to the Sierras (in case you've never seen them -- they are a SPECTACULAR mountain range), close enough the the Pacific Ocean to drive there in couple of hours, there is a nearly 70 mile dedicated bike trail up to Folsom Lake that goes through Sacramento, there are the Lakes themselves and the American and Sacramento Rivers are here. So people ski, snowboard, bike, canoe, kayak, sail, run, hike, etc. all the time. From what I saw, the number of people into fitness and outdoor stuff seemed greater here. Far fewer smokers here, too.

I did love living on the Main Line, though. We were close enough to the city to visit all the time. In terms of culture, Philadelphia is a better choice. It is a much larger city, though. I liked the European influence there and the fact that flying to Europe was much easier than from the west coast. The people were a bit more reserved in the Philadelphia suburbs than here. It is very easy to meet people here. There is less transience in the Phil. neighborhoods than California in general -- people have lived in the same place there for years. People move around a lot here, so probably they are more open to meeting new people for that reason.
Sacramento has a downtown that mostly shuts down after the state workers go home after work. There are some restaurants that stay open, but that is it. Not much going on there. Occasionally there are events like the Jazz Festival, and we have the Cal Expo State Fair, etc. In terms of theater, ballet, opera, etc., not much to speak of. There are some of these types events that come through town and we do have some local theater, but it just is not going to be the same caliber as larger cities.
Food here in Sacramento is pretty marginal. The crime rate is much worse per capita than many larger cities. Air pollution in Sacramento is worse due to the inversion layer.
Traffic and crowding are bad both places -- not sure about the trend in Phil. but in Sacto it is getting worse each year. The economy here seems to be doing better than some places in spite of the recession.

[Avalon08]

Very balanced and objective post, Kalyson.

[bluevelo]

I have a phone interview on Thursday... got back from a week in Disneyland with my kids last Thursday and sent them back to CT on the plane yesterday... I'd be able to see them more often from Philly, but living here in Sacramento I *do* like the weather better (I grew up in Iowa and I hate winter) than back East, and I like being able to be outdoors more often. I love the fact that California is much more anti-smoking and health oriented than what I've seen of the East... hard decision to make, but I can always withdraw my application, too.

[Avalon08]

Well, why don't you see where the interview leads you? You might not even get the job. But if you do, what could be the harm of moving to be closer to your kids for a few years while they're still young? They'll soon be teenagers, with their own lives and friends and maybe not so fond of leaving to go cross-country to visit Dad. Not trying to guilt you, just trying to give you food for thought. They'll only be kids once, and you won't be able to get this time back. So if you don't like Philly after a few years, move back to CA -- you're still young enough to enjoy it.

[bluevelo]

kalyson - thanks much for your input. I pulled the plug on interviewing... there's a better opportunity in Hartford and I'd be much closer. I'd still be 4 hours away in "good" traffic and in Hartford (our office is in Glastonbury) I'd be 20 miles from their house, half hour's drive, and I could live in the same community. It makes more sense for me to be in NY, CT, RI or MA than in PA in terms of access to them.