Philadelphia

[dannopelli]

Hey all!

Well, it looks like I may be moving to Philly soon. If I accept the job I will be working just about on the north side of the airport.

So can anyone tell me where to:

Live.. I have a family. Need good value and not the highest prices. Plus easy commute to the northern airport area. Oh and taxes, insurance, tolls, etc. Not at all averse to living in DE or NJ.

Buy Andersons... What and where are the better music shops in and around Philly. I have 24 high end, (six Andy's), geetars and they need tender care, like I get from Dave here in Richmond.

Run... I like to run.

Harley/Motorcycle shops... need to feed that beast too.

THANKS IN ADVANCE FOLKS!

[dannopelli]

Anyone? Anyone?

[dkaplowitz]

Hi there, Philly area resident here. Congrats on the offer. Hope it works out well for you. The airport's pretty centrally located so you have a decent choice of where to live. I think Springfield's probably pretty nice and not too far from where you're going to be working. Another reasonable, yet nice family area is Drexel Hill. If you have some money and like being around affluence, then the main line is the place to be (Narberth, Bala Cynwyd, Bryn Mawr), but there might be a bit of a commute from there (like 35-45 min). There are nicer parts of Philly proper and South Philly, but you kind of have to scour, and I don't know the whole schooling system, etc. Best if you have kids to stay out of Philly, but YMMV. DE is an option that's not too far, but still probably 35-45 minutes on a good day. I'm not a native, so I've probably missed a bunch of cool areas that are possibilities.

Depending on where you live there are lots of places to run. One of the best areas is along Kelley Drive by the Philadelphia museum. It's a long, straight run around/along the Schuylkill river. I'm guessing the main run around is about 3-4 miles. If you go further up the Schuylkill, you'll also be able to do some running/hiking in one of the larger urban parks in the nation...which has plenty of paths that are well suited for running/bicycling/hiking. It's one of the best things this area has.

Regarding taxes, I don't find Philly and its surrounding areas to be too draconian. I hear Jersey's bad for taxes and car insurance. DE's probably the best in the area with no sales tax. They have EZ-Pass everywhere around here, so tolls are "EZ". And I think in PA the only toll road is the turnpike, which is still dirt cheap compared to the NJ Turnpike and Parkway.

Magdon Music (this board's sponsor) is about a nice 90 minute drive from where you'll be. Best store in this whole area if you ask me. There's actually an Anderson dealer in Bryn Mawr (5 minutes from where I live), but I can't really recommend them. I won't go into details, but suffice it to say, I'll take the 90 minute drive to Magdon over the 5 minute drive to this place any day. They're nice guys though. There's also all the big guys -- Sam Ash in King of Prussia, and a few GCs within reasonable driving distance and there are plenty of small-ish shops/luthiers and amp techs in the area.

There are plenty of Harley shops in the area too! You'll find no shortage of those here. I'd guess there's one every 20 miles or so.

HTH

Good luck with your decision. Hope it works out well for you and your family. Feel free to ask any questions you might have.

Dave

[dannopelli]

Dave,

THANKS SO MUCH! That was REALLY great info! I have considered DE. It seems like the right idea tax wise. I will definitely look into the other areas too. In fact I printed your reply and am going to MLS.com after this post.

I do have kids so suburbs with good schools and lower crime are important. Good point, thanks!

I really do avoid the GC/Sam Ash scene. In fact I may just drive back to Richmond to have my guitar work done. Dave here is just that good. But I have heard SO much good about Magdon that I will definitely cruise up there.

Thanks again! :D

Danno

[wodka]

Hi. I live in Center Ctiy Philadelphia. I agree that Springfield is a good area. You may also consider West Chester which is a bit farther north off of I-95 As for taxes, Philly is pretty good. For new construction homes, you get a 10 year property tax abatement. For existing homes, property taxes are very low. However, there isa 3.8% wage tax if you work in the city. If you live in Philadelphia county, there is a 3.2% residency tax. If both live and work in Philly, you only pay the residency tax - you don't get hit with both as most people think. As for running, it is a great area. The loop around Kelly/West rive drive is 8 miles. Or you can extend the run up into Wissahickon park for another 10 miles. Lots of running clubs. Ironic considering is was the fattest city. By the way, living in the city is much better than 10 years ago. A lot of renovation and crime isn't bad at all. There are some really bad areas, but you will never have to venture there. Schools? Well, I don't have kids but I would never consider a pulbic education in Philadelphia. It has one of the worst systems in the country. If you can afford private or charter schools are your best bet. And last, guitar shops. Not much going on there. Magdon Music is in Olyphant PA which is a sold 2 - 2.5 hour drive. If you can get there in 90 minutes, I never want to drive with you :) Great shop, though. The only other boutique shop is Medley Music, which the other responder mentioned. I wouldn't buy a thing from them. However, their acoustic department is run seperately (Acoustic Roots) and has a tremendous selection. From them, I have purchased a few things. It's a great city with a bad reputation.

[dkaplowitz]

Good points, Wodka. I didn't mean to harsh Philly proper either, but my wife and I are thinking of having kids and I just can't really see raising them in the city and not feeling paranoid all the time. But I agree, the crime in the city isn't outta control like it is in certain other cities and areas (none of what I just said applies to a large portion of No. and NE Philly ;) ).

I think the best school district in the area is Lower Merion Township, but that's the main line and can get pretty expensive to live there.

I forgot about Acoustic roots. Yeah, that's definitely worth the trip to Medley in Bryn Mawr. From the raves it gets, it's probably one of the best acoustic shops in the area. Medley's electric dept. is pretty lame though... odd b/c they have a good lock on that area and there are a bunch of colleges and small time music schools and conservatories in the area. Must be a bad management thing. They also don't seem to have a problem with letting rubber burn holes in nitro-finished R9 Les Pauls that hang on their walls for years.

I forget what my best time for getting to Magdon was. I'm thinking it may have been on the order of 2.0 hours, but I can't remember that well. I spend most of the time thinking about the guitar I'm going there to pickup. ;)

[wodka]

Oh, I didn't think you were being harsh. I don't think I would raise kids in center city either. I love Narberth, by the way. I used to work at the Balcony Cafe a long time ago. Not sure if it is still there next to the movie theatre.

[dkaplowitz]

I used to work at the Balcony Cafe a long time ago. Not sure if it is still there next to the movie theatre.
We live a block from there. That cafe doesn't ring a bell though. There's a Chinese restaurant on one side of the theater and a she-she chick stuff boutique on the other side. It would be nice if there was a nice non-chain cafe/coffeehouse there, but I guess the boutiques seem to take over. There's still some really good bars in Narberth (so I've heard, since I'm a non-drinker) with some pretty decent food, as there probably was when you worked there. It's still a great town. We're very happy to be there, but we probably couldn't afford to buy there, so we may have to leave within the next couple years.

[wodka]

It was about 14 years ago. Guess it is long gone. Yes, home prices have gotten way out of hand. Springfield is still affordable.

[dannopelli]

Thanks for the info guys. I will be workinng in Philly, so I expect the taxes. I checked out the Springfield and Drexel Hill areas on line. West Chester too. All look really reasonable. Those other areas - WOW! Big bucks. I may consider South Jersey too. I am originally from NJ.

Amazing that Philly has such crappy music stores. Guess I'll have to drive to NJ or over to Magdon.

And thanks for the info on places to run too.

You all have been such a big help!

Danno