Sometimes I think Lansdowne would even do better if it were in the Upper Darby school district. Many schools in Philly have a better reputation than the William Penn district...

I have to agree with you there

They seem to bringing their small downtown back up with the opening of businesses such as Cafe Harlem. Is that place any good, by the way?

As mentioned before, I really like it here in Lansdowne. It is diverse and friendly. The street I live on has a range of families of both ethnicity, race and gender. Not sure if they still do it, but one of the churches used to have "Gay Square Dancing" every month.

Trash gets picked up twice a week, and emergency services have responded well, such as the time a tractor-trailer came down the street and pulled down a number of power lines.

Sure, it is a little boring if you're looking for "things to do" or bars or clubs or other trendy places, but those are easily accessible by a short hop into the city limits. It would we fantastic if someone bought the old movie theater and fixed it up like in Bryn Mawr, though. And it would be nice if they "upgraded" the Giant as they did in Aldan. But, if you need "big box" retail items, they're easily accessible down Baltimore Pike.

And, it doesn't seem as if any huge, ugly, 300K/house developments will spring up here... mainly because there isn't room for them.

I had a sandwhich there one time, when the 700 blk of Church Lane, had a outdoor flea market. It was a little expensive, but it was good.
Right now, the borough is trying to attract more businesses like Cafe Harlem, and try doing away with salons, laundomats, etc

The Cafe Harlem is in Yeadon Borough actually. As for Lansdowne proper the area's west of Lansdowne ave are typically nicer as a rule, maily because it's mostly home owners. The town itself has a pretty brief downtown with a few good eateries, and the bordering streets on the edges of the borough have mini business districts too.

Lansdowne is pretty comparable with Germantown/Mt. Airy, in that it's a wide spectrum of nice and not so nice area's, nothing horrible though. East Lansdowne seems to have some nasty characters hanging around, but it also has some nice tree lined steets, particuarly on Penn Blvd. Stay away from Stonehurst and the Long Lane area, it's pretty unsafe these days.

This city resident thinks Lansdowne has all the ingredients for a takeoff like what Collingswood experienced -- just add the right people and stir.

On that cultural indicator, I've been told that Borough Council includes an openly gay member, and the one PGMCer I know who lives there likes it a lot, as does the other gay friend I know there.

Count me as another "Go for it!" vote.

__________________
Sandy Smith, Exile on Market Street, Philadelphia
“Basically I figure guns are like gays: They seem a lot more sinister and threatening until you get to know a few; and once you have one in the house, you can get downright defensive about them.” --Theresa Neilson Hayden

Sounds like Yeadon could have some potential too...

Is there any change or concern if I told you we were looking...

1 - a few blocks south of Garrett Road?
2 - on the eastern edge by the Upper Darby strip b/w Lansdowne and E Lansdowne?

Given the size of the borough it would seem that being in the center was not that much different from being on the edge...but I could be wrong.

Thanks for the great input so far!

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"