There is tons of cheap housing in the areas surrounding Haddonfield. I have a buddy who bout a 3 bedroom row house in Oaklyn 2 years ago for $120k. Properties in Camden are dirt cheap. But people want to live in Haddonfield type towns at Camden prices which isn’t the way the world works.

How so? Is what’s wrong about American cities really people who want to live in quite safe suburban neighborhoods but who pay a fuck ton in taxes to the nearby city they work in? Is what’s wrong with American cities people who want east access to take public transportation from their home to their office? I personally would put these things pretty far down on the list of what wrong with American cities. But maybe we just don’t have the same priorities.

Yup. It’s great to live in peace but be able to get public transportation to make money.

Not everyone wants to live packed in like sardines. Which is why there are different places people can live. I’m all for dense housing in the city, because that is where it makes sense. But not everyplace needs to be an urban megalopolis

This is what happens when the drains doesn’t get cleared in a regular basis.

For us it wasn’t a matter of health, it was a matter of space. We now both work from home which meant that our 900 sq ft row home wasn’t big enough to accommodate our life. We also wanted more outdoor space and a parking spot since my work requires me to drive and come home much later than normal rush hour and there was no place for me to park at those times. Not to mention when working from home in the burbs my partner could avoid all wage taxes and I could avoid some BIRT and NPT taxes. So it’s basically a wash cost of living wise for a bigger place.

Also during the pandemic nothing that makes cities fun and enjoyable we’re still there. Concerts, bars, museums, etc. I know personally I realized that access to these things were not as important to our lives as pre pandemic I would have thought they were.

In general people’s lives and priorities shifted in many fundamental ways that are not shifting back any time soon.

Edit: wanted to add that if you want there are lots of opportunities to walk around in many suburban areas. Do I walk to the grocery store? No. Did I do that when I lived in Fishtown? Also no. Do I know just take regular pleasure walks by myself? Yes. Did I do that in Fishtown? No. So it really depends again on your lifestyle and priorities.

I’ll add my personal anecdote here: I lived in Fishtown and worked downtown. Moved to the western burbs during covid and mostly work from home, but go to various parts of the city for work about 3 times a week. But I don’t really shop or eat in the city anymore since it’s more expensive (various taxes) and less convenient form me. I do however go to the suburban outposts of many of the places I used to go in the city like la Colombe, white dog, etc. If they didn’t exist in the burbs I would just be a lost customer since it it wouldn’t be worth it go into the city for them since there are other great local options. And I know lots of other folks who once were city dwellers / workers who now work from in the burbs and feel the same. It’s smart of these companies to follow their customers.

I will say that one of the big motivators for us moving to the burbs was the overall declining quality of life in the city (including, but not limited to crime), but that’s not why I wouldn’t go to a store or restaurant in the city. Now that I’m here it’s a matter of convenience. Especially since I’m the mainline area there are lots of great shopping and dining options closer to home.

Are there some whackos who won’t cross the city line for fear of being immediately murdered? Sure. But that is really a very small part of the suburban population and most of us suburbanites also think those people are crazy.

We’re you around for the two round of riots in 2020? Why did people in Philly riot then?

Ya know…. The eagles might just be what saves the city from burning for a 3rd time in as many years.

The mainline health system has been really great at getting appointments with doctors (even specialists) in a timely fashion.

That doesn’t work for and ER follow up visit to primary care. Urgent care is not primary care.

Our water cost went significantly down when we moved from PGW to Aqua for the same usage. So maybe you are just using a lot of water. Perhaps you should evaluate your water usage. Maybe get more water efficient appliances. Showers not baths. Have a professional check for leaks. Etc.

Edit: confirmed with my partner - the city was $90+ a month and Aqua is less than $70 a month

I’m not sure but you can look up all the unpaid liens the PWD has secured in Common Pleas court. There is a whole team of lawyers who just do that day in and day out so you know those numbers are significant.

Equity doesn’t mean that people who willingly choose not to pay their bills or sign up for any of the numerous assistance programs get a pass on consequences.

And also what a happens when you let properties rack up tens of thousands of dollars of unpaid bills with no consequence.

Aqua in the burbs is way cheaper than PWD and maintains their infrastructure way better.

There is no consequence to not paying so people just don’t. The only consequence is that you have to pay when you sell the property, but these delinquents just pass the property on to a relative and keep the tally going. And they never turn it off.

Before raising everyone’s rates they should really consider collecting all the money owed to them from delinquent property owners. You shouldn’t be allowed to owe the water department $10k+ and still have your dam water on. Turn it off and get a lien. PWD should also be able to force a sals of the property for unpaid liens.

CBA’s are essentially community groups blackmailing developers and business owners for bribes so that the developers / owners can accomplish things that are actually good for communities, like developing blighted buildings. They are also stupid because they often lack real enforcement mechanism anyway so they come down to everyone slapping each other in the back and saying how awesome they are for getting or giving XYZ. Dumb.

Is anyone actually surprised that these funds are being mismanaged? Anyone at all? We all saw this coming right? It’s funny, but not at all since that money could have been spent in ways that would actually help the community instead of lining the pockets political cronies and other ineffectual organizations.

The guy who runs the community group (7th st community council) in that area, Bruce Baldwin, is a corrupt racist asshat who fights any sort of development or improvements in the area unless the proper bribes are paid and the applicants are of the right race (not Hispanic or Asian) It’s the worst RCO I’ve ever had the misfortune of working with because of him. He is doing real harm to that area that could easily become a thriving community with a bit of investment and some real policing and code enforcement.

The guy who runs the community group for that area won’t let people improve properties without first bribing him and also being the right race. He is openly anti Asian and makes it clear that are not welcome in his neighborhood. Bruce Baldwin is probably in my top 5 most hated people in Philly for being a corrupt racist.

The guy who runs the community group (7th st community council) in that area, Bruce Baldwin, is a corrupt asshat who fights any sort of development or improvements in the area unless the proper bribes are paid. It’s the worst RCO I’ve ever had the misfortune of working with because of him. He is doing real harm to that area that could easily become a thriving community with a bit of investment and some real policing and code enforcement.

I had a lady jump out of her car and throw her coffee at my windshield for not jumping a light and mowing over pedestrians at Berks and Frankford a few years ago. I’m not sure how that saved her any time in the long run and she also wasted her iced coffee. What is wrong with people.

I always love when people downvote factual statements and links to informational sources on this sub. Like why are you downvoting facts?!?