Texas to Pittsburgh...so overwhelmed!

[jay5835]

Originally Posted by subdivisions

If you don't absolutely *have* to make a Fort Pitt/Liberty bridge commute, my strong advice to you is: don't do it!

Best advice of the thread. Pe.Ri.Od.

[fleetiebelle]

Early on in the thread, the OP dismissed Mt. Washington as an option, but I think the neighborhood deserves a second look.

The problems we found with Mt. Washington are 1. You probably don't want us to try to drive up and down the mountain in ice/snow...it could be dangerous for a TX driver lol 2. It is not walking distance to much of anything so we figure if we are in a place we have to drive to get to downtown we might as well head down closer to Canonsburg

Point 1. Many neighborhoods in Pgh are hilly, so you'll find ice and snow are an issue everywhere. The city is actually pretty good about keeping McArdle, Grandview, Virginia, and Woodruff streets clear in the winter. And 2. The business district isn't huge, but it's serviceable. There's a grocery store, post office, dry cleaners, drug store, diner, wine bar, dive bars, restaurants, etc. You can take the incline down to STation Square and walk to the South Side or Downtown.

If you don't like the neighborhood, then you don't, but by living there you'd avoid the aforementioned tunnel issue, and you could make it work.

[madg0at]

Originally Posted by subdivisions

If you don't absolutely *have* to make a Fort Pitt/Liberty bridge commute (e.g., you work in the East End or something), my strong advice to you is: don't do it! Compromise a little on the neighborhood and buy yourself some happiness.

I would just like to emphasize that others in this thread aren't exaggerating just because this is the Internet and that is what people tend to do. Any commute that involves tunnels or bridges is pretty bad, when they involve both they become soul crushing.

Pittsburgher's have a phrase for this: "You can't get there from here."

[MathmanMathman]

If you have an MLS, you might also look at librarian positions a the local colleges and universities.

[fleetiebelle]

Originally Posted by MathmanMathman

If you have an MLS, you might also look at librarian positions a the local colleges and universities.

The librarian market in Pittsburgh is pretty tight because of Pitt's library school program. They crank out dozens of librarians every year, many of the graduates try to stay in the area, but the jobs just aren't there.

[markson33]

I disagree about the commute. My office is downtown, but I travel to Canonsburg very frequently. The commute is not bad at all. You will be reverse commuting and if you live on Mt. Washington or the South Side you would not have to go through the tunnel at all.

Of the two places I would recommend the South Side. It can be a bit hard to find a place, but keep trying.

Don't worry too much about the snow and ice. Pittsburgh probably is not as bad as you think (although certainly not comparable to Texas).

You will have a extremely difficult time getting a teaching job here. It was very hard to begin with, but is worse now because schools are trying to cut their budgets. My advice for now is to get your foot in the door by being a sub anyplace you can. Actually South Fayette - near Canonsburg - might be one of the few school districts expanding.

[stevo6]

Originally Posted by Lauren18299

Thanks!
We have looked at Mt. Washington and Southside. The problems we found with Mt. Washington are 1. You probably don't want us to try to drive up and down the mountain in ice/snow...it could be dangerous for a TX driver lol 2. It is not walking distance to much of anything so we figure if we are in a place we have to drive to get to downtown we might as well head down closer to Canonsburg
We liked Southside but we could not find any decent rentals. We did not like Carson Street Commons and we could not get anyone at the Flats of Southside Works to call us back. We would be open to rent houses in Southside as well but just ran out of time

But don't you Texans drive those big 4wd rigs? :-) Anyway- the plows do a good job on the main roads up there- not so much on the small ones. 'Wouldn't be my first choice though because of the commute.
But if you consider the North Side as someone said- its not a bad commute via 65 and the West End Bridge onto 19 and eventually 79 South. This would be close to the ball parks- so you could go see the Pirates and the Astros battle it out for last place...
I assume your husband is coming here for the gas and oil business. Lots of Texans around these days.
ps: the hills and hollows here make it tough to learn your way around...be patient and take some time to explore. This will help the transition a lot.

[liondaughter]

Originally Posted by markson33

Don't worry too much about the snow and ice. Pittsburgh probably is not as bad as you think (although certainly not comparable to Texas).

It's honestly bad enough, depending on the year. I don't think the city really does a great job in keeping the roads clear. It's one of the reasons I'm looking forward to moving to the Midwest. They're better at snow removal, and even supposing they're not --at least it's flat. [I will miss the beauty of those hills for sure though.] Despite growing up with snow, I'm still somewhat of a "weather wimp" when it comes to driving, so ymmv.

I currently live on the East End and work in Monroeville and that's definitely a reverse commute. But it also doesn't involve any bridges or tunnels and I have to agree that those are a pain and going south or west from downtown is likely much more painful than going east. I would echo the posters who are advising looking at Mt Lebanon and Dormont. Though to be honest, if you're planning to rent, you could always try out the Strip or Downtown and if you decide the commute is too unbearable, you could always move after a year and by then you'll know the area better.

Good luck!

[ohjodi]

I live on the South Side on East Carson Street!

YOU MUST LIVE HERE!

I am 42 and moved here two years ago from Illinois. My first 20 years were in Chicago, the second 20 in Central Illinois. My BF is 50 and aside from a few years, has lived here his whole life.

So I think we're almost old enough to be your parents, but if we can live here and enjoy it, then you can, too. You'll probably enjoy it more.

We both work dahn-tahn at PPG and a Large Bank, so I can't speak to commuting, because ours is short and we can walk home if we want to, or have to.

EVERYTHING you need is here, except parking and a laundromat, lol They just closed the laundromat on Sarah St, and the one on Wharton is a dive and the machines don't work. So get an apartment with laundry and parking.

Other than that, this is a fantastic place to live, especially if you want to feel like you Belong in Pittsburgh.

Aside from restaurants, bars, and tattoo shops, there's a big movie theatre at South Side Works, a post office, the library will reopen next year after a remodel, several busses to take you downtown or to Oakland, a grocery store, an Aldi's grocery store is opening soon near South Side Works, a farmer's market May-Nov......all of these are within walking distance of just about any place you might live here.

We don't have a car, but frequently rent a ZipCar when we want to get around. There's a huge mall at the Waterfront in Homestead....it's a VERY EASY and FLAT 20 minute drive down East Carson, and there you'll find the Big Stores like Target, Lowe's, Bed Bath and Beyond, Macy's, Best Buy, Barnes & Noble, etc.

Anywhere else you want to go isn't too hard to drive to because the South Side is just about in the middle of everywhere else.

And yes, when they say "You Can't Get There From Here" it's the TRUTH. My first day in Pittsburgh was spent driving around for three hours, over and under bridges, through tunnels and up mountains, just trying to return a Uhaul trailer. It's the best thing that could have happened, because I now NEVER second-guess my BF when he says "You Can't Get There From Here".

Just because you see a bridge doesn't mean you can get on it. Just because you're on a bridge doesn't mean you can get off it.

And I made up my own motto: "If you miss your turn, CHANGE YOUR PLANS". It's one hell of a lot easier than trying to get back to where you were going. I'M NOT KIDDING, LOL.

Live here for a couple of years while you explore Pittsburgh and get your bearings. Taking the bus or the T is a great way to check out the city without the headache of driving. Of course, there are other headaches when taking the bus, but I love that I can just hop over to Oakland, Downtown, or the Strip whenever I feel like it.

I feel VERY safe in this neighborhood......take normal precautions, of course.

There are some things I don't like, but I live ON East Carson, at 20th. It will be more calm and clean on a residential street. My bedroom is over the street. It's Spring Break and Mardi Gras on Thursday-Saturday nights. I've learned to sleep through EVERYTHING including a rock band under my bedroom window at 8am during a marathon race.

I work evenings, and we're not much for going out at night on the weekends, anyway, but there's tons to do if you're still in your 20's.

I'm not complaining, and some of the "festivities" are amusing.....especially hanging out my window on Halloween weekend, checking out the costumes.

Actually, the way these college girls "dress" is AMAZING.......I'm dying to ask "why dress like you're selling it when you're just going to give it away?" LOL

And then the 42 year old in me wants to take pictures and send them to their mothers!

Oh, there is no "dress code" or any sense of modesty in Pittsburgh. Swear to God. I work downtown and I see "professional" women dressing like they just got in from the club....and they work at banks and law firms. I don't think any of them own mirrors. Age doesn't matter. Figure doesn't matter.

It's all stilettos and "I'll just wear a belt with my little sister's sweater and call it a DRESS."

Ok, maybe I'm off topic! Just live here for a couple of years, you will not regret it. Then move elsewhere if you want.

We're moving to probably Dormont soon. It's not that we want to leave the South Side.....we don't want to. But we'd like a bigger apartment, and anything bigger here is more than we want to spend. We can afford it, but just don't want to (we're at that "omg we've saved NOTHING for retirement" phase)

SOUTH SIDE FLATS!!!

They're turning the old high school into apartments, and I see apartments being created in several buildings on Carson (including one across the street from me), so there will be plenty of options for you.

Remember : LAUNDRY and PARKING. If you don't get a parking space, you'll have to be home by 7pm on the weekends to get one.........or stay out until 2am, lol

[Burghfeeder]

I've lived in the Pittsburgh area for many years, including suburbs in the North Hills, and in Bethel Park but for the past four, I've been on Mt. Washington and really love it. This is the first time that I've ever lived within the city limits and we were very apprehensive, but it's really been great. I travel to Bridgeville (just north of Cannonsburg) daily and have found that traffic is not a major issue. Being able to come down the back side of Mount Washington allows me to avoid the bridge and tunnel issues and the trip outbound on the Parkway west in the morning is not bad, although it does get bad in the evening. We walk to Shiloh street where there are a couple of casual restaurant/bars, a grocery store, post office and banks. It's only about 5 or 10 minutes to the South Side, Strip District or downtown.

Don't let the hill scare you. The roads up to Mt. Washington are well taken care of in the winter.