Honesdale , PA (Scranton, York, Dickson City: assessor, how much, hotels)

[bamboosmom]

Pat, when we were up in May the realtor pointed out the spot where the Lowes was going to be built. It's down past Home Depot and up on a hill.
I think its Rt. 6 but I am not sure. She said it was in the very very early stages. You know how they like to keep it a secret sometimes. This is all I know. She could have been wrong. I don't mind traveling to the stores either.
How far is Dickson City from the area?

[Pensypat]

Dickson city is about a 1/2 hour drive from Honesdale. It's about 40-45 minutes from where I live. There is just about every store imaginable there. I can shop there all day and don't even go into 1/2 of them due to lack of time. (and lack of $$$ too! LOL) Before Home Depot was built, there were rumors for several years about when and where they would build one. It might be the same for Lowes as I don't doubt they want to give Home Depot some competition. Anyway....I just got back from Home Depot about 1/2 hour ago. This is just a small store. The one in Dickson City is larger.

[bamboosmom]

Ok, that sounds good. We were in the Walmart in Honesdale and it is small compared to what they are building all over the place. The Home Depot was nice too. Scranton has alot of stores too. I am glad that things aren't that far, but far enough for my peace and quiet.

[SteelCityRising]

Originally Posted by Pensypat

Bamboosmom, I was wondering where you got your info about a Lowes coming to Honesdale? I've heard or read nothing about that and I shop in Honesdale as it is the closest town. They finished remodeling Walmart this summer and now I can't find anything. Someone told me they changed it so all the Walmart's would have the same floor plan. I personally do not like seeing all the big chain stores move into our area. We moved out here years ago to get away from all that. To me it is the city following us out here. That is just my personal opinion, of course. I was happy driving to Dickson City to shop in the big stores. Everything you need is there including Home Depot, Lowes, and many other stores. I don't need them right around the corner from me.....I moved to a rural area and would like to see it stay that way.

A fellow anti-sprawl NEPA resident? Can it be?!!! HALLELUJAH, HALLELUJAH!!! To think I thought I was the only one concerned about the "big-box" infestation spreading into every small nook and cranny in the region, driving out "mom-and-pop" stores! Unfortunately, I foresee the same happening to Tunkhannock as well---There have been rumors of new stores coming to Wyoming County for a while now.

[Pensypat]

ScrantonWilkesBarre, There certainly are more of us out here who hate seeing the big discount stores etc. moving into our small town areas. My husband and I were born and raised in New Jersey and we can honestly say been there, saw that! We grew up in small towns that let the big stores move in and destroy the ambiance of the area. For some reason the people running all these small towns and villages think that letting big chains into our areas will bring jobs and cure all the money woes. Well the jobs don't pay much and they bring traffic, crime etc. into the area as well. And.....once they are there, you cannot get rid of them or go back. So now you have more cars, need to widen the roads, add traffic lights, and you might as well increase your fire and ambulance squads while you are at it too. We do need more jobs but those are not the kind they should be allowing out here by the dozens. You already have a decent shopping area you can drive to. Is everyone so lazy that they need these big stores right down the street from them? What the heck do you live in the country for in the first place if you need to have street lights, wider roads, big chain stores, etc. It's just my opinion, but if that is what you need then you should not move out to the rural areas then. I love the little stores in the town of Honesdale and I support them by shopping there. If we don't do that then more of them will go out of business and you will not have these quaint little towns any more. OK....sorry....I will get off my soapbox now folks.

[bamboosmom]

They just built a huge Walmart down here by me. It's right outside the community. Yes, they made the road wider, there's more traffic and noise now. It is great to be at the store in 5 min. when I need something but I didn't mind traveling to get to the other Walmart for six years. So now, that once quiet corner has a huge Walmart there.
I want to move to where I can enjoy the peace and quiet and will travel to get to the stores. I hope they don't mess up the beautiful countryside up there. Geez.

[docscoobie]

What is the nearest train station to Honesdale, PA to commute to NYC ?

[Pensypat]

Originally Posted by docscoobie

What is the nearest train station to Honesdale, PA to commute to NYC ?

Sorry, but there isn't one.

[FightinPhils]

Originally Posted by ScrantonWilkesBarre

A fellow anti-sprawl NEPA resident? Can it be?!!! HALLELUJAH, HALLELUJAH!!! To think I thought I was the only one concerned about the "big-box" infestation spreading into every small nook and cranny in the region, driving out "mom-and-pop" stores! Unfortunately, I foresee the same happening to Tunkhannock as well---There have been rumors of new stores coming to Wyoming County for a while now.

I don't think there's anything wrong with big-box discount stores. As someone with a family who doesn't have a money tree growing in my back yard, Wal-Mart is great. They have everything I need and are significantly cheaper than other stores. I would be more than happy to shop at mom-and-pop stores if I didn't have to pay an arm and a leg to do so. But I do agree with you about sprawl. It is possible to bring in national chain stores and not have too much sprawl. Case in point: the new Wal-Mart that will be built on the site of the old Jamesway shopping center on Main Ave on the border of West Scranton and Taylor. The old shopping center has become a boarded-up eyesore, and Wal-Mart is redveloping an existing site rather than knocking down more trees in a wooded area.
And for me its great, because I won't have to fight Rt.6 traffic in Dickson City to go grocery shopping.

Although for sprawl, the worst thing ever built in this area was the Casey Highway. They destroyed pristine wilderness on the mountains above the eastern side of the valley and put in a highway that makes previously distant areas easily accessible to Scranton on a highway., which only encourages more people to move out of Scranton and move up to the northern end of the valley. Former Gov. Casey really stuck it to his hometown of Scranton when he released the funds for that "road to nowhere."

[SteelCityRising]

Originally Posted by conorsdad

I don't think there's anything wrong with big-box discount stores. As someone with a family who doesn't have a money tree growing in my back yard, Wal-Mart is great. They have everything I need and are significantly cheaper than other stores. I would be more than happy to shop at mom-and-pop stores if I didn't have to pay an arm and a leg to do so. But I do agree with you about sprawl. It is possible to bring in national chain stores and not have too much sprawl. Case in point: the new Wal-Mart that will be built on the site of the old Jamesway shopping center on Main Ave on the border of West Scranton and Taylor. The old shopping center has become a boarded-up eyesore, and Wal-Mart is redveloping an existing site rather than knocking down more trees in a wooded area.
And for me its great, because I won't have to fight Rt.6 traffic in Dickson City to go grocery shopping.

I agree with "infill" development as well. Personally, I wouldn't have minded the new "Shoppes @ Montage" complex coming to our area if they had chosen to develop a brownfield site, especially if it was in the city limits, as opposed to clearing out a large hillside on Montage Mountain, just over the Moosic border, in which Scranton will be hurt, in the long run, as tenants leave the Mall at Steamtown en masse this year for the new center. At least if the "Shoppes" were built in Scranton, the city wouldn't be hurt at all. I can't help but drive past that hulking old warehouse all the time on Cherry Street in South Side between South Washington Avenue and Pittston Avenue and envision it as being the perfect location for a brownfield redevelopment project in the form of a neat loft-style outlet shopping area, such as the ones in Reading. The only valid argument I could see against that proposal would be parking, although there is definitely enough land nearby to build a parking garage. Then again, you'll also hear arguments that redeveloping brownfields is much more expensive than building fresh in the suburbs, which was the excuse provided for this project. Well, what then are we supposed to do with urban blight? Just say "oh well" and carry on like the disposable society we are?

Also, I have a problem with Wal-Mart trying to become a "neighborhood store." There once was a time when people from miles around would flock to one commercial center for shopping and entertainment (downtowns). Now, Wal-Mart is trying to bring those conveniences closer and closer and CLOSER to the consumers, to the point where many have no reason anymore to venture out of their own suburban homes into a downtown setting. For example, by the end of this year, we'll have Wal-Marts opened in Honesdale, Dickson City (Scranton), Taylor (West Scranton), Pittston Township (Pittston), Eaton Township (Tunkhannock), Wilkes-Barre Township (Wilkes-Barre), Hanover Township (Nanticoke), Hazle Township (Hazleton), with the possibility of ones opening up in the Back Mountain (Dallas) and West Side (near the new Lowe's in Kingston). A rumor is also swirling about one coming to North Pocono (Moscow) in the upcoming years, but I don't think there's any "merit" to that gossip. I just don't ever want to have "no" alternative besides Wally World in the future because there's a Supercenter every five miles.

Originally Posted by conorsdad

Although for sprawl, the worst thing ever built in this area was the Casey Highway. They destroyed pristine wilderness on the mountains above the eastern side of the valley and put in a highway that makes previously distant areas easily accessible to Scranton on a highway., which only encourages more people to move out of Scranton and move up to the northern end of the valley. Former Gov. Casey really stuck it to his hometown of Scranton when he released the funds for that "road to nowhere."

I'm actually mixed on this one. On the bright side for Scranton, this new highway made the city much more convenient for people moving into Wayne County to access the city, as opposed to the old way of the stop-and-go traffic at all of the lights on Business Route 6 through Mayfield, Blakely, etc. I'm sure people in Wayne County, such as PensyPat, appreciate the new highway's convenience to get her into the city. On the flip side, I have been seeing many more newer subdivisions popping up in the Mid-Valley since the highway was built (Acorn Hill Estates, Hills of Archbald, etc.) This highway gives people more of an incentive to move to the Mid-Valley and erode the city's residential tax base, but it also gives the far-flung people out in Wayne County more of an incentive to visit Scranton's businesses. I guess I'm just "neutral" on the Casey Highway issue.