Young couple - no kids... Pittsburgh a good city for us? (Wilkinsburg: appointed, low crime)

[KSHRCH]

Hello all! My husband & I are 27 and are considering a move to Pittsburgh because my parents live there and we have good job prospects.

We currently live in the South in a suburb and have been really disappointed with the lack of other young couples (or singles... whatever) in the area. We need friends again!!

My husband hopes for an active community - pickup basketball games, soccer, ice hockey in the winter, etc. We both hope to live in an area where we could meet lots of people in our same demographic.

(And yes - we're also hoping to start a family very soon.)

Can any of you offer any info on whether Pittsburgh might be a good place for us to relocate to??

Thanks SO much

[dugdogmaster]

Yep, you'll have fun. Young people live and work in most of the predominant neighborhoods you hear about in Pittsburgh. Pittsburgh is no longer a city of just retirees. You can get outdoors and be active all year long, even in the dead of winter. I.e. ice hockey

[BrianTH]

Pittsburgh is a city of many neighborhoods, and I think there are quite a few neighborhoods that would fit your requirements, others less so. So I think the general answer to your question is "yes", but it will depend on the neighborhood.

So, it might be helpful for you to describe your ideal neighborhood in more detail (e.g., what sorts of housing, what sorts of local amenities, and so on), and then we could tell you whether it exists in the region, and where.

[KSHRCH]

Thanks to both of you for responding.

Neighborhood - SAFE. I like the idea of city living, but I usually am more comfortable in suburbs... just very close. BUT, in the suburbs here in Atlanta, it's all families - parents in their 40s, kids in grade/high school. We'd love to find a neighborhood where a lot of young people/ young families live (late 20s/ early 30s). I'd love a park nearby - we have a dog and I need somewhere to walk her... and my husband needs somewhere to go shoot some hoops.

I know that's not super specific...

We used to live in Madison and loved it there - that's our ideal kind of place. (We're not moving back because job opportunities are so small there and we don't have family in that area.)

Do those traits remind you of anywhere in the Pittsburgh area??

[bbrian12]

baldwin, brentwood, castle shannon, dormont,
most of the south hills suburbs are a nice place to live

safe, nice neighborhoods, good schools, stuff to do (bars, shopping, movies, entertainment)
close enough to the city and far enough away from it to.

[Geeo]

My first thought for you was Regent Square, a city neighborhood that straddles Pittsburgh, Wilkinsburg, Swissvale and Edgewood. Huge park nearby (Frick Park) with a no-leash dog area, quaint business district with restaurants, pubs, an indie movie theater, galleries, antique shops, and drug store. The houses are early 20th century, some craftsman, brick streets, huge trees, and the neighbors are always out walking and sitting on their front porches. Lots of families, but also lots of childless couples, seniors, and gay and lesbian couples.

[BrianTH]

Originally Posted by KSHRCH

Thanks to both of you for responding.

Neighborhood - SAFE. I like the idea of city living, but I usually am more comfortable in suburbs... just very close. BUT, in the suburbs here in Atlanta, it's all families - parents in their 40s, kids in grade/high school. We'd love to find a neighborhood where a lot of young people/ young families live (late 20s/ early 30s). I'd love a park nearby - we have a dog and I need somewhere to walk her... and my husband needs somewhere to go shoot some hoops.

I know that's not super specific...

We used to live in Madison and loved it there - that's our ideal kind of place. (We're not moving back because job opportunities are so small there and we don't have family in that area.)

Do those traits remind you of anywhere in the Pittsburgh area??

Based on that description, I'd say somewhere in the "East End" of Pittsburgh may be the best bet. Much of the East End feels like a college town, which is understandable because it is where the universities are concentrated. I believe it is also becoming increasingly popular with young people and young parents--from recent surveys it appears the City in general has a growing population among young adults and very young children, and I suspect lots of that is happening in the East End.

Anyway, parts of the East End are also towards the inner suburb end of the scale in terms of feel (meaning with lots of detached single family homes with modest yards). There are several great parks in the East End, including Schenley, Highland Park, and Frick Park, with neighborhoods I would recommend near each. As for safety, most of the East End neighborhoods people recommend here are quite safe by urban standards, some very safe (as an aside, Pittsburgh in general is a very safe city as compared to cities of a similar size, and the relatively less safe parts are pretty well localized, a function of the neighborhood structure).

To get you started, here are some of the semi-suburban-feeling neighborhoods in the East End near the parks with low crime rates, in no particular order: Morningside, Highland Park, Squirrel Hill, Point Breeze, and Regent Square. Shadyside is another very popular East End neighborhood, although a little more dense than some of these others (and not near one of the big parks). Friendship is right next to Shadyside, and more transitional, but with some big homes. That is only a partial list, but if you search the forum here for information you can learn a lot more, and feel free to ask questions.

Finally, I think some of the inner suburbs could work too (places like Dormont or Mt. Lebabon), but I am not sure those have quite the same number of young people. Conversely, some other places are popular with young people (like the South Side), but maybe a little more urban than you are looking for. But that is just my preliminary assessment.

[BrianTH]

Originally Posted by Geeo

My first thought for you was Regent Square, a city neighborhood that straddles Pittsburgh, Wilkinsburg, Swissvale and Edgewood. Huge park nearby (Frick Park) with a no-leash dog area, quaint business district with restaurants, pubs, an indie movie theater, galleries, antique shops, and drug store. The houses are early 20th century, some craftsman, brick streets, huge trees, and the neighbors are always out walking and sitting on their front porches. Lots of families, but also lots of childless couples, seniors, and gay and lesbian couples.

I didn't want to single out Regent Square (in part because it is my neighborhood and I talk it up a lot as it is), but I definitely agree it seems like a good fit. And just walking around, you see a lot of young couples these days in Regent Square (some with strollers, some without), and they just started a new charter elementary school in the neighborhood, all of which suggests to me it has become a hot spot for the demographic described by the OP.

[dugdogmaster]

I have to agree with BrianTH that the South Side is becoming very popular with young adults/families. However, he is also correct that it is a very urban neighborhood, although a safe one. I'd go with some of his other suggestions, from what you say you're looking for, they would be a better fit.