Urban suburbs of Philly? (Philadelphia, Bethlehem: crime, big house, movie theater)

[Cnote11]

Indeed, it does. That is one thing I quite enjoy about the Philadelphia area is that there are so many livable towns in the area. It is what I appreciate most about a lot of countries across the globe and I think the United States made a HUGE mistake when it decided to built such a sprawl instead of sticking with centralized towns. I'm from the Midwest (Michigan) and if you've ever been out there then you will imagine how happy I am to see such clustered towns out here in the Northeast. I actively despise the suburbs back home, but I really find many quite dear here around Philadelphia, and Narberth is, in my opinion, one of the best.

[Duderino]

Originally Posted by Cnote11

Indeed, it does. That is one thing I quite enjoy about the Philadelphia area is that there are so many livable towns in the area. It is what I appreciate most about a lot of countries across the globe and I think the United States made a HUGE mistake when it decided to built such a sprawl instead of sticking with centralized towns. I'm from the Midwest (Michigan) and if you've ever been out there then you will imagine how happy I am to see such clustered towns out here in the Northeast. I actively despise the suburbs back home, but I really find many quite dear here around Philadelphia, and Narberth is, in my opinion, one of the best.

Wholeheartedly agree. Although the Philly region certainly is not perfect on the sprawl front (I know first-hand from growing up in the exurbs), I would agree from my traveling experiences (mostly in the South and West) that Philly's suburban municipalities tend to be much better at land preservation and zoning (which is to say, more strict) than most urban areas. The region was also lucky to come of age at a time when the automobile was non-existent.

Moving forward, there is still a strong need to continue to re-invest in older towns and inner-ring suburbs instead of fueling unsustainable growth on the fringe of the metro area -- but that's a whole other thread.

[BPP1999]

Originally Posted by Duderino

Moving forward, there is still a strong need to continue to re-invest in older towns and inner-ring suburbs instead of fueling unsustainable growth on the fringe of the metro area -- but that's a whole other thread.

Right. And to help in that regard, we need to pressure our politicians to fight for Federal funding to restore train service to places like Phoenixville, Royersford, Pottstown, Souderton, Sellersville, Telford, Perkasie, Quakertown, and back out to West Chester. This, too, is a topic for a whole other thread.

[pman]

narberth is a great little suburb but not urban in the way conshohocken was referred to. if im not mistaken conshohocken, norristown, upper darby , and west chester all have similar levels of population density which are kuch closer to the citys average than other suburbs. of those only upper darby was built as a suburb i think. west chester was market town and county seat (an urban center) as i believe fits norristown. those two county seats are bigger and more dense than media or doylestown.

[FindingZen]

Living currently in the DC area and having spent quality time in the Dallas-Fort Worth area, I wonder if the OP is thinking of areas such as Bethesda, MD, Alexandria, VA or Plano, TX? Areas like those will make one feel as if they are in a city (which they are technically) but yet (far) outside the core.

While Philly has more than its share of organic, walkable suburban downtowns - rather than the pre-fabricated "town centers" put together in more amorphous suburbs - the accompanying high-rise features are rare, at least on the PA side with which I'm most familiar. IMO Conshohocken and Jenkintown might come the closest. King of Prussia has all of the high rises but none of the walkability; I find Plymouth Meeting and Fort Washington to be similar albeit on a smaller scale.

So, the good news is that there are no shortage of walkable suburban communities. The "bad" news - at least for the OP, perhaps - is that the areas where there are high-rise office parks and apartment buildings tend not to be particularly walkable.

[pman]

west chester blows jenkintown out of the water in terms of walkability..and i hate that phrase

[PhilliesPhan2013]

In my opinion, Media is a very nice, walkable suburb of Philly. The neighborhoods definitely have history to them, and you can see this as you walk or drive through them. Plus, getting to Philly is super convenient as the 101 trolley and the R3 Elwyn (it's now called the Media/Elwyn line) both go through the city.

Also, I have heard that West Chester, Doylestown, Kennett Square, Narbeth and other Main Line towns, and Abington are all nice. You should stay out of Chester, however! Even though it is urban, it is extremely dangerous and blighted.

[Tiger Beer]

Originally Posted by Duderino

High-rises are fairly rare in the Philly suburbs (particularly compared to other major urban areas -- a result of strict NIMBYism and zoning) but the region definitely has its fair share of pretty dense, urban "nodes" outside of the city.

Other than Conshohocken, here is a list (not comprehensive) of other relatively urban suburbs (although some are more blighted than others and not all have high-rises):

Inner-suburbs - PA

- Upper Darby
- Norristown/Bridgeport
- Bala Cynwyd
- Chester
- Yeadon
- Lansdowne
- Media
- Jenkintown
- Ambler
- Ardmore
- Narberth
- Bryn Mawr
- Wayne
- Glenside
- Lansdale
- Swarthmore
- North Wales
- Bristol

Inner-suburbs - NJ

- Collingswood
- Haddonfield
- Moorestown

Outer-suburbs - PA

- Malvern
- Newtown
- West Chester
- Downingtown
- Pottstown
- Doylestown
- Phoenixville
- Kennett Square
- Oxford

Reading the thread, Narberth was questionable. Any others on here that should be removed, or added?

[stuckinsj]

lots more in NJ. including haddon heights, Palmyra, Burlington, Woodbury, and Glassboro.

[Snwmn5]

Originally Posted by Tiger Beer

Reading the thread, Narberth was questionable. Any others on here that should be removed, or added?

If youre including Bridgeport and North Wales, I would include Rockledge, PA on the list.