Considering a promotion in PA, help with the area please! (Allentown: apartment complexes, crime)

[lmm317]

My job has offered me a position at a new account they acquired in Pottsville, PA. I have never been to this area or even PA, so I could really use some help with the area and what it would be like to live there.
I've grown up in Omaha, Nebraska and currently still live here, but travel most of the time for work. Omaha is a nice city but I like the proximity of things better on the east coast. I like bigger cities that have a lot more things to do and places to go. I know Pottsville isn't a big place but it seems pretty close to either Allentown or Harrisburg? Are there any nice suburbs or other cities that are close to the city but wouldn't put me at too long of a commute to Pottsville? I wouldn't like more than a 45 minute-ish communte in the mornings.
I am young (22) and single with no kids or anything, so school districts and such aren't that important to me yet. I'd like somewhere that is safe for a single female to live, but also have fun!
I really know nothing about PA so any info you could give me will be appreciated! All I know right now is that there is a great brewery in Pottsville!
Thanks!

[W-B proud]

You should check out Reading, Pa. I think that is the closest decent sized city to Pottsville. Do some research though, because Reading is known for crime problems, but like any other city there are good neighborhoods and bad neighborhood's

[r3sunz]

I was going to say the same thing about Reading area being a possibilty. All the shopping you could need and they have some great things going on (along with some of the bad stuff too).

[lmm317]

From some of the things I've read about the Reading area and crime, I don't think I'd be comfortable living there as a single female. And I don't really want to live somewhere I wouldn't feel safe. I've been reading more about Harrisburg and it seems like a nice place. Does anyone know what the commute would be like from there to Pottsville? I believe the account I would be working at is near I-81? Is that about an hour commute? Is there a lot of traffic moving that direction in the mornings and early evening?
Also how is the shopping in the area? Do they have lots of gocery stores, malls, chain type stores (Best Buy, Bed Bath and Beyond, Macy's, etc)?
Finally what about the Hershey area? This area seemed to look nicer for the upper-middle class type lifestyle. Would this be an easier commute into Pottsville?
Thanks!

[ki0eh]

Originally Posted by lmm317

Do they have lots of gocery stores, malls, chain type stores (Best Buy, Bed Bath and Beyond, Macy's, etc)?

Harrisburg area, Wilkes-Barre/Scranton area, and Allentown area have all those. Pottsville doesn't. This is about what you've got around Pottsville: Schuylkill Mall - Home

Originally Posted by lmm317

Finally what about the Hershey area? This area seemed to look nicer for the upper-middle class type lifestyle. Would this be an easier commute into Pottsville?

It's a bit over an hour in no traffic from Hershey (counting as the US 422/PA 743 intersection of Cocoa Ave. & Chocolate Ave.) to either Frackville/PA 61 exit of I-81 or Hamburg/Tilden Twp/PA 61 exit on I-78. Often there is traffic. Hershey has no shopping, locally owned stores are in Hummelstown and box stores are off one of the I-83 east side Harrisburg exits.

[SteelCityRising]

Unfortunately Pottsville (and much of Schuylkill County for that matter) is NOT the place I'd go if I were a 22-year-old embarking upon a new career and looking for "excitement." The county is aging, many old-timers are resistant to change and progress, and most of the housing stock is very poorly-maintained, giving places like Shenandoah, Mahanoy City, Frackville, etc. a "depressed" look.

The good points are that while the people of Schuylkill County may not be as "advanced" overall as the people of Harrisburg, the Lehigh Valley, or Scranton/Wilkes-Barre, they are still some of the kindest, hardest-working, down-to-earth folks you'll meet and would give you the shirts off their backs. The cost-of-living is dirt cheap here, so you could conceivably purchase a row home in need of TLC in or near Pottsville for less than your annual salary! Shopping in Pottsville is indeed limited, but you do have the Schuylkill Mall in nearby Frackville, as well as Lowe's, Wal-Mart, and a few other big-box stores in the immediate Pottsville area.

If I were you I'd look into a place like Deer Lake, Auburn, or Hamburg, which are near to the Schuylkill/Berks County line. In this sense you'll be a half-hour or less to both your job in Pottsville and to better shopping/dining/nightlife options in Reading. Hamburg is home to a major Cabela's store, and I'm predicting more retail/restaurant growth will soon follow. Otherwise you could live right along the I-81 corridor in a place like Pine Grove to be roughly in between Pottsville and Harrisburg, but you'd be slightly less convenient to each as compared to living midway between Pottsville and Reading.

Try to give Schuylkill County a chance to grow on you before packing up bags and moving on out like a bat out of hell. It is surrounded by larger metropolitan areas (Lehigh Valley, Reading, Harrisburg, Scranton/Wilkes-Barre, etc.), and, as such is only poised for an eventual revival with its slower pace and lower cost-of-living.

[toobusytoday]

A quick google map search shows that Pottsville is pretty much equidistant from Allentown, Scranton and Harrisburg, all of them about an hour away. No one is recommending moving to center city Allentown these days and I'm not sure the towns surrounding that city are so much better then what you would have in Pottsville. Well, Emmaus would be nice and it's on the west side of the city but still an hour.

Hey, how about Kutztown? It's a college town and just under an hour commute. Safe (the murder last year was an anomaly) and with the college, there is always something going on. They have a summer festival that's popular and it's close enough to hop on to route 78. The problem for any place that far is going to be your winter commute, but I like Kutztown and that's my vote.

[lmm317]

Originally Posted by W-B proud

You should check out Reading, Pa. I think that is the closest decent sized city to Pottsville. Do some research though, because Reading is known for crime problems, but like any other city there are good neighborhoods and bad neighborhood's

Could you tell me more about the good areas of Reading? I'm worried that commuting from Harrisburg may be a drain of time and resources. Is the crime localized in Reading or is it spread throughout the city? Is there a nice area/ apartment complexes you could recommend I check out? If you were in my situation (22yr old single female) would you recommend it as a place to live? I know every city has their crime and bad parts, I just guess I want to know if it can be avoided in Reading or if they are crazy and just rob/ shoot/ rape whoever?
Thanks

[SteelCityRising]

Originally Posted by lmm317

Could you tell me more about the good areas of Reading? I'm worried that commuting from Harrisburg may be a drain of time and resources. Is the crime localized in Reading or is it spread throughout the city? Is there a nice area/ apartment complexes you could recommend I check out? If you were in my situation (22yr old single female) would you recommend it as a place to live? I know every city has their crime and bad parts, I just guess I want to know if it can be avoided in Reading or if they are crazy and just rob/ shoot/ rape whoever?
Thanks

Reading, as with any city, has its good and bad neighborhoods. As I said though I'd look into living in Hamburg. You'd be a reasonable drive to either your workplace in Pottsville OR city amenities in Reading, and Hamburg is an area poised for future growth (i.e. property values ought to rise moderately in coming years, especially if the recession ever ends). Hamburg is just under a half-hour to either city. Do you really want a one-hour commute each way from Reading to Pottsville?

[Rally214]

Hey everyone, just wanted to chime in here really quick.

I grew up and lived in Pottsville for many many years, and some of the times here seem to be a bit off.

I'm sure Mapquest or Google Maps or what have you may list times to Allentown or Reading as an hour, but in all reality I cannot recall having to take an hour to get from Pottsville to Reading or Allentown, even going at a nice leisurely speed. If you're not driving 40 mph the entire way I'd say Pottsville-Reading is more like 45 minutes, Pottsville-Allentown a bit more, depending on exactly where in Allentown you are going.

BUT, since you are only 22 and just starting out, I would have to say I don't really recommend locating yourself to Pottsville this early in life. I'm only 23 myself, but I lived there for 18 years (actually going back to visit tomorrow haha) and it's not exactly the most lively place for a 20 something. Sure, if you find yourself a great group of friends, just like anywhere in the world, you'll have an awesome time, but the place isn't exactly exploding with social opportunities for younger people.