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--Cr1imsoN-- t1_j5kho94 wrote

Okay. I've live in central Pennsylvania for most of my life, although my childhood was in the Philly suburbs. So I can definitely give you a solid opinion on the area having lived here for 15+ years. I can't speak on Pittsburgh though, because it's not in central PA and I've only visited once or twice.

Harrisburg, Allentown, Reading and York are all 4 very different areas. In fact, you can't even really group them together.

For one, Allentown is actually the 3rd most populated city in Pennsylvania and not even part of central Pennsylvania, but I've been there a couple of times so I can still provide some comments. It is very hit or miss. My mother lives there and hates it, but I don't think it's that bad. Of course, my mother is more of a nature loving person. Allentown is more "industrialized", compared to the other 3. Even Harrisburg is smaller (in terms of population and opportunities) by comparison. I don't think you'd have issues with finding a job here given the population.

Speaking of which, Harrisburg is weird. It is the capitol of Pennsylvania and that's about the only significant part of it. If it wasn't for being the capitol, it would practically be a ghost town. The only real reason to want to move to Harrisburg is if you're accepting a government job with the state or such, because the area doesn't have many worthwhile employment opportunities outside of that. Take it from someone like myself who lived there for 10+ years.

In fact, I moved to Lancaster last year partially because of that reason. I know you didn't mention it, but Lancaster has a lot of start-up companies and is growing both economically and population wise. Much more rural than any of the other cities you listed though. Also more expensive to live in compared to the others and more gentrified.

I've been to York a number of times. If you want to talk about economically depressed cities, then look no further. Sorry York residents, but every time I've driven through York, the city just looks trashy and sad. But if you're looking for employment opportunities, then it's the place to be mostly because no one wants to live there. So you'll never not have a job. Can't speak on how your quality of life would be though.

That leaves Reading. I thought about moving to Reading before I decided on Lancaster and I'm kind of glad that I didn't. It reminds me a lot of the issues that York has (trashy and sad), but also add a ton of trucking companies. A lot of tractor-trailers travel through Reading. So if you're looking to get into logistics and such, then it's probably a good place for that.

Hope that helps! It wouldn't surprise me that you're getting a lot of responses for jobs. Pennsylvania does have a ton of jobs. Central Pennsylvania especially has a need for young professionals and graduates. The real issue is if you actually want to live here though. Some cities are depressing and we shouldn't sugarcoat it. Also if you're coming from NYC, just be prepared that you are going to be in for a serious culture shock.

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anxiousbarista t1_j5md40q wrote

Shhh, let's keep Lancaster our secret. It's getting so populated that it's starting to lose its charm.

I totally agree about York, I lived there for 4 years and hated every moment of it. You could just tell everyone else was miserable being there too. I moved back to Lancaster County as soon as I could.

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agiab19 t1_j5zmnoj wrote

The same is happening with state college, the traffic is getting so bad and the big buildings downtown … when I first moved there it was so nice because the architecture was of small town, but the food delivery was great, lots of 24/7 places. Now it’s big buildings and everything closes at 9/10 pm except a few places. Now we moved out to a more rural area, we still don’t have the deliveries we had before but now the cost of living is better and we don’t have to deal with traffic unless we go to downtown area during busy hours

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antagron1 t1_j61q8ay wrote

Traffic in State College is definitely not “bad”. It might be slow for 4 blocks as you move through downtown. Try being stuck in a 2 hour stop and go jam in the 405 in LA at midnight on a weekday due to traffic volume alone

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agiab19 t1_j6i8jxe wrote

Compared to a big city like LA, yeah it’s not that bad. But compared to what it was a few years ago, it’s getting bad

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gj13us t1_j5m27o7 wrote

This is spot on. Completely agree.

I moved to Hbg in the early 1990s. Living there is like living in Walmart. It has the basics you need but who wants to live in Walmart?

Moved to Lancaster in the mid 1990s and love it

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Patiod t1_j5zkior wrote

One of my friends works for the govt and has an apt in Hbg and a house on the Main Line. She find Hbg weird, creepy and empty.

EDIT: She agrees with the commenter who said everyone knows each other from high school or previous work for the govt.

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finallyalright OP t1_j5kv0lw wrote

Yea, I was taken back by how many responses I got from PA. And most of them were from Harrisburg area it seems. I'm actually from upstate NY, not NYC. Which of course has plenty of depressing cities.

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oglabradoodle t1_j5ljdw2 wrote

I’ve been living in Harrisburg since 2020 and I am actively looking to get out. Covid hit this area hard and made meeting people much more difficult. It’s mostly come back, but I notice that most people know each other from high school/college & aren’t overly friendly (this may just be where I’ve hung out). I made a lot of friends through my job, but every young person wants to get out. I have about 2 of my 10 friends left.

If you had to do central PA, I’d say do the city of Lancaster. It has a much more upbeat downtown area. I’ve had fun every time I’ve visited there, but it is more expensive than Harrisburg.

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finallyalright OP t1_j5lm47v wrote

Thanks for letting me know. Honestly meeting people is my main concern.

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gj13us t1_j5m2kw5 wrote

I had the same experience in Harrisburg in the early 1990s. Some things never change.

I’ve been living in Lancaster since the mid 1990s and love it.

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--Cr1imsoN-- t1_j5mhg15 wrote

Yes!!! Get out when you can!! I also left after the pandemic! I know exactly what you mean and I think a lot of people are just in denial of how badly the pandemic has effected Harrisburg. There are still tons of businesses that are closed and it seems like it is permanent.

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