Erie, Pennsylvania

I had a phone interview earlier today that went well for a job in Erie, Pennsylvania doing engine validation testing. I may end up moving there soon, but I don't know much about the town yet. I live in the complete opposite corner of the state, and I'm looking for people that live in the area to tell me what its like up there in general, not just for automotive things. I hear it can be a bit snowy, and the rust looks down right evil. Any suggestions for things to see, and good places to live in the area?

We have a man on the ground there and I am sure he will chime in soon.

Nothing to add, but I'll be working in that area the week of the 13th. Cheap but yummy dining suggestions desired.

ddavidv wrote: Nothing to add, but I'll be working in that area the week of the 13th. Cheap but yummy dining suggestions desired.

http://www.chick-fil-a.com/erie

7160 Peach St Erie, PA 16509 (814) 868-8557

What kind of things do you enjoy doing in your free time?

Boating? Listening to live music? Snowmobiling? Golfing?

Erie is a cheap place to live, I'll give it that. I'm originally from Lancaster, PA and I've gotta say that apartments up here are a good $200-$300 cheaper in the city.

However, growing up in Lancaster I got used to 2 hours driving getting you in Baltimore, Chesapeake Bay, Gettysburg, Reading, hundreds of small unique towns, lots of breweries, state parks and of course, Philly. I lived across the river from some nice sized hills, and could ride the river for 3 miles east/west and up into a nice county park. I could get a 10 mile ride, all dirt, from my back yard.

What I miss the most about that side of the state is the diversity. Erie has the Lake, and it's got a few cool streams here and there, and the rest is marshland.

The county ditched its parks in the 80's, so all the parks are owned by the municipalities, which means they are all virtually undeveloped and hard to access. Or they are a swamp. No mountains to speak of. The transportation system makes even the nearest small town a 20-30 minute drive, and unfortunately the small towns are just that...small...with no real "unique" aspects to them.

When my girlfriend first moved to Erie in 2010, she told me "Erie feels 10 years behind the times." and now that I've been here for 2 years, and I can definitely see that just about everywhere.

Erie's biggest problem is its separation from the rest of the State's population. Take a drive from Pittsburgh on Rt 79, and after passing I-80 you'll notice that the number of exits, houses, and development thins out, and you really don't see it for 100 miles until you get close to Erie metro.

I know some folks who love it here, but they are really held down by family and friends. Most outsiders come, work, and leave after a few years.

Oh and motorcycles and cars are quite popular. During the summer we have a cruise-in by the Bay every week. Misery Bay SCCA has a few events every year.

Downside to this that because we're so seperated from Pittsburgh, Cleveland, and Buffalo, that any events that we have are the only ones.

Compare this to higher population areas like the Southeast side of Pennsylvania, and you not only get your club for events, but you also get any number of surrounding clubs.

Where to live?

City Life: West side of Erie, between Peninsula Drive and Greengarden Blvd. Area around Frontier park (where i live) is awesome, but I think living above 20th street would be nice too.

Town life: Girard, Lake City, North East, are beautiful little towns (North East especially), but it'll take you 20-30 minutes to get into Erie.

Suburbs: Harborcreek and Lawrence Park are probably the best areas in terms of traffic. Millcreek is nicer, but it really really feels like a typical big city suburb. Lots of traffic, lots of development.

Focus on trying to find housing around parks. It seems that areas with open space are considerably nicer than those without. If you want to be involved in social events and gatherings, the closer you are to the water the better, but getting everywhere else then takes some time.

Honestly,

If I met a young person who's skills were in demand, and they were from eastern Pennsylvania thinking of moving to Erie, I would highly suggest they look into other options. It's a 6-7 hour drive to Nottingham, and to give you an idea, 6-7 hours would get you down to North Carolina or up into New Hampshire.

I'm a government planner. I should be talking up Erie like its the best place in the world, but in good conscience I can't. This city/region has been making mistakes for two decades. It's put too much reliance on GE, International Paper, and Lake Erie. It is ADDICTED to the stoplight. The city had a study done in 2009 that said 30 stop lights could be removed. How many have they removed? One. Nobody has the balls to make the changes neccesary to attract young people. They get this false sense of youth loving this area because of the number of colleges in the city...but all those students promptly leave for Pittsburgh once graduated. Residents move here to escape Pittsburgh, Buffalo, and Cleveland, but usually those "escapees" are retirees, and they don't want Erie to change at all.

Young people moving away. Old people retiring here. Everyone else is here for a job, family, or friends.

My whole family is in Erie. (That's actually not true, they are in Edinboro, Waterford, Springboro and some other places, but to us Pittsburgers, anything north of I-80 is "Erie".)

10 years behind is being generous, but yes. If you like to hunt ducks, you will be in heaven. If you like trendy nightclubs, you will not enjoy it as much. Its a real small-town vibe, hanging at the Peninsula in the winter, skiing at Peak N Peak in the winter. If you like boats and quads, its really a great place.

pinchvalve wrote: If you like trendy nightclubs, you will not enjoy it as much.

Trendy being anything hip, cool, different, unique or progressive. I can't remember the last time I walked into a place in Erie and said "Wow, I've never seen this before" because 9/10 I have, years ago.

I would agree, it is very small town feeling, even though we've got 100,000 plus city population.

I spent a month working at the airport in Erie. I think one commuter jet a day flies into that town. Also PA liquor laws are bizarro. I liked it for that month but I could see it getting old.

Actually our airport has been increasing in traffic, and is being expanded to allow for larger passenger aircraft.

Thanks for all of your knowledge about the town and surrounding area, you can only glean so much reading wikipedia and random articles throughout the internet. The job I am considering is tied to GE which I saw you mention. Nottingham is a small town (Herrs Chips & Cows) but I do enjoy the accessibility of Newark, Lancaster, Philly, and Balimore along with the parks. It sounds like this may be a good opportunity to get started after college as I just graduated in May, but maybe not a place to stay permanently.

pres589 wrote: I spent a month working at the airport in Erie. I think one commuter jet a day flies into that town. Also PA liquor laws are bizarro. I liked it for that month but I could see it getting old.

See now I find it weird when a food store sells beer and liquor because I've always lived in Pennsylvania. I usually hit up Maryland for my purchases anyway because right now I live right on the border.

If you need a job and your just out of school, GE is a great place to start.

Hit me up with a PM if you want more info.

Not much to add. I have flown in dozens of times, but I never left the airport. This website is interesting.

http://www.city-data.com/city/Erie-Pennsylvania.html

All I can add is I use to know a girl from there and she could not wait to move away.

Yea, most of the most passionate locals are those that really haven't lived anywhere else.

Engine validation testing in Erie.

So GE locomotive or Cummins in Jamestown NY?

Erie ain't much, but it is cheap

I have only been to Erie once, and the colleges there seemed fun, but after a weekend in the winter, it was more than enough. Coming from school/bars in Philly, the $1 Molson bottle special at a bar, I think someplace called Boardwalk or Broadway, was quite fun. I will say that the novelty would wear off quick if I had to deal regularly with the amount of snow that fell that weekend.

One thing that isn't specific to Erie, but if you are a recently graduated person, going to a college town might not be that bad, but just know that you have 2-3 years to save up some money and take advantage of the cheap cost of living, then be ready to move on as it will get old quick.

I've been there several times. My impression is; Meh. Its a very grey town. It seems to lack a lot of key things that make a town attractive to me: arts/culture, aspirations, green things called plants, will to live, or pride. :)

Its not that bad, I just don't dig it.... and I live in Pittsburgh, so that's saying something. At least the 'burgh has a misguided will to live because of our sports teams.

Put it this way... its about half way between Buffalo and Detroit.

If it offers what you want, then its great. Kinda like Pittsburgh.

I went to college in Meadville, about 30 miles south of Erie (back in the paleozoic) - Allegheny College, if anyone's interested. Anyhow, I remember that weather statistics said that we averaged about 260 days a year without seeing the sun, and boy, did we get lake effect snow. And rain. Not saying that this is bad, just that it's something to consider.

OTOH, the summers were absolutely beautiful on campus, and some of the back roads were fun.

I much prefer the sunshine, low humidity and virtually rust-free cars of the southwest.

Nitroracer wrote: Thanks for all of your knowledge about the town and surrounding area, you can only glean so much reading wikipedia and random articles throughout the internet. The job I am considering is tied to GE which I saw you mention. Nottingham is a small town (Herrs Chips & Cows) but I do enjoy the accessibility of Newark, Lancaster, Philly, and Balimore along with the parks. It sounds like this may be a good opportunity to get started after college as I just graduated in May, but maybe not a place to stay permanently.

This is completely OT because I know nothing about Erie, but if you're in Nottingham, come on down to Glasgow, DE next Saturday (08/11) and run in our local club's autocross! It's a small club and small venue, but we have fun. I live in Newark.

The lack of sun really hit the past year. It seemed like from October until May we had virtually no clear days.

Now for the last two months I think we've only had rain 3-4 times.

Duke wrote: This is completely OT because I know nothing about Erie, but if you're in Nottingham, come on down to Glasgow, DE next Saturday (08/11) and run in our local club's autocross! It's a small club and small venue, but we have fun. I live in Newark.

I tried to make it to an earlier event but plans fell through. Chances are I'll be on my way back from Virginia that morning after helping my sister move. I'd love to go if I can get the timing right.

PHeller wrote: The lack of sun really hit the past year. It seemed like from October until May we had virtually no clear days. Now for the last two months I think we've only had rain 3-4 times.

Ugh, that sounds pretty depressing. I think the climate of Pennsylvania as a whole maybe changing and hard to predict right now. I remember wearing shorts and a t-shirt on new years, and no rain down this way either.