I am a native of Lansdowne for going on 25 years now. I grew up in what is considered the West side of Lansdowne, closer to Drexel Hill. I have seen Lansdowne's culture and diversity grow over the past 5 years or so, which is my opinion, a great way to enhance our neighborhood. From the years growing up here, in which there were 50 kids on my block playing "Capture" til all hours of the night, to the now more quiet and somewhat more diverse street of dog walking and gardens, Lansdowne is still a great place to live. I work in Center City and I use the Gladstone Train Stop every morning - it is SO convenient and beats traffic any day - only takes me 12 minutes to get to work - can't beat it! My neighbors are all great. I am an avid runner as well, so I tend to take my runs around town and I can tell you that homes and yards are looking better than ever. It is a gorgeous town and with a few people who value its charm, we could keep this neighborhood on the "up"! Philadelphia Magazine even recently cited Lansdowne and Media as 2 Philly burbs on the rise! I personally think a classy BYOB restaurant would benefit this town on the Lansdowne Ave Strip...we need a little night life and this would take care of the no-liquor policy (dry town)! I soo wish Starbucks would have opened in place of the new Dunkin Donuts; however, they did a really nice job with this new business and it looks great - even an outside cafe area! To wrap all my thoughts up, Lansdowne has LOTS to offer...great Boys and Girls Club for youth sports, parks, dog walking, weekend Farmer's Market, culture, Lansdowne theater, beautiful homes, Regency Cafe, even sushi place up on Lansdowne Ave that looks weird from the outside but is GREAT, etc, etc...In terms of the school system, I cannot comment. I went to school at St. Charles and St. Philomena's (which is still going strong!) and had a great time! I also went to Prendie, all Catholic schools within walking distance that welcome all. I would highly recommend buying a house here and helping make our neighborhood even better.

In answer to looking by Garrett Road, you need to be careful - the Bywood section and anything close to 69th street is somewhat "bad" - HOWEVER, it only takes a few people to make a place "good"