Yeah, but factor in the costs of living in Center City as well.

Again, IMHO, if you can't afford a $25 cab ride, you shouldn't be going out!

Plus no parking garage fees, or parking tickets.

Works for me.

North by Northwest is the closest thing i know of to a club in Mt. Airy, and i'm fairly certain it's the only game in town when it comes to that kind of venue in that neighborhood. http://www.nxnwphl.com/ Chestnut Hill (the northwestern-most neighborhood just past Mt. Airy) has a handful of pub-style places. The closest neighborhood with a dense concentration of bars/lounges/DJs is Manayunk (looking on a map, you can see that the Wissahickon section of Fairmount Park sort of cuts the NW section of Philly in two, with GTown, Mt. Airy and Chestnut Hill above it, and Manayunk/Roxborough/East Falls below it). So, in some cases your Mt. Airy address could be less than a mile from Main Street Manayunk but you need to get across the park by car, bike or cab...maybe there's a bus? And you're right, because the trains in that part of the city are part of the commuter rail system, they don't run frequently enough or late enough to really be able to spontaneously go out.

If diversity and frequency in nightlife and restaurant options is something you value from NYC, then i think University City has to be the answer. It's got dozens of venues...though admittedly many immediately surrounding Penn and Drexel and therefore overrun with college students. More broadly UCity has multiple modes of public transport to Center City, including several 24-hour bus routes (the Market-Frankford Line subway also runs as a bus from around 1am-5am). And a cab would never cost much more than $10 coming back from downtown. UCity is much more walkable in general. In my mind, the biggest thing you sacrifice by picking UCity (other than a lower price) is the Wissahickon. The park is just so unbelievably secluded, it's hard to comprehend that you're still within city limits. In UCity, there is plentiful green, but it comes in smaller doses (Clark Park, Locust Walk, Woodlands, quick run to the river trails, etc). Overall, UCity feels more like the areas of Brooklyn that i'm personally familiar with...so who knows.

Hope this helps!

I moved to Germantown in July 2000 after looking in UC, Mt Airy, Manayunk & G'Town. I live in the Tulpehocken Station district (my neighbors call it "west central germantown"). I love my neighbors & my neighborhood. west central is a diverse and welcoming community. People are friendly (& social) and truly care about the neighborhood (i.e. protecting green spaces, protecting historic buildings/properties, and the general aesthetic of the neighborhood); re: social, in my area we have at least 2-3 neighboorhood parties a year; re: politics, mostly Dems, but there are a few members of the GOP.

if you enjoy the outdoors, earlier comments are right on the nose re: forbidden drive, the Wissahickon trail, & Fairmount Park (i.e. west river drive is closed to motor vehicle traffic every weekend Ap-Oct for recreational use) -- all of these places are great for mountain or road biking (which is what I do most), hiking, running, long walks, picnics, or just enjoying being outside. If you're into rock climbing there's some great rock for bouldering and even some bolted rock for rope climbing in the area (in addition to a great rock gym down near Spring Garden & Delaware Ave (for rainy days))

in G'Town you're also an easy bike ride to most of these places. You can ride to Manayunk or any of these oher spots & there's even a trail (mostly flat) that you can take all the way out to Valley Forge.

re nightlife...depends on what you enjoy. -- see comments from others...

re public transportation...i am 1 block from bustops that will take me to Center City (CC) (1 w/a connection & 1 direct). The direct route is the 23 Bus; some may have issues with this b/c it goes through the hood (north philly). I've never had a problem, & I have ridden it late at night. The connection is the Rt 65 which connects to a pleathora of options at the Wissahickon transfer station. -- I'm also 2 blocks from the R8 train station (not the greatest for returning home late).

re a car...i do have a car (bought it on craigslist). Parking is waaaaaay easier in in the northwest (g'twn, mt airy & chestnut hill). meters are a LOT cheaper too (when you actualy have to use one). -- When parking in UC, you are competing with Penn & Drexel students AND Penn employees AND hospital employees who would rather walk than pay $12-15/day for parking (I'm not kidding; i work at the hospital).

the bottom line (for me) is...I love the northwest b/c of all the things I said above, the fresh air & feeling like you're in the burbs while still being only about 15 minutes away from CC...AND b/c after living in center city & the art museum area for 12 years, I felt I needed to be able to look out my window or step out my front door and see more than 1 tree. And (sorry to sound like a hippy, but...) I wanted the trees i saw to be healthy and robust...not sickly street trees that can barely stretch their roots out. I also wanted to be able to able to walk down the street and not smell (or slip in) restaurant slime as it ran across the sidewalk.

sorry to sound so negative at the end, but...just being honest.

I think you'd be happy in Mt. Airy. Make sure you check out the area around the coop if you didn't already (sounded like you may have been on Germantown Ave).

huh? I live in cc and I don't have the hassle or cost of $25 cab rides, insurance, gas, or any of that stuff. if you want to go out in cc often, it makes little sense to live in mt. airy, which is less diverse than people say it is. that's not to say it isn't a nice place to live, if you like talking about how you are so much better than everyone else.

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I had jury duty today and I thought of this thread. The trial was concerning a hold up of a grocery store on Island Avenue. They polled the potential jurors and asked them if they had ever been the victim of a crime. One woman who lives in University City said she had her car broken into five times last year and has been mugged three times as well! Another juror was from University City and had a couple of incidents with car break ins too.

If you choose the right parts of Germantown and Mt Airy, I think you are much safer there as far as crime goes. And if you want green living, as some posters have said, you have ecology minded people and the beauty of the Wissahickon minutes away. Plus parking!

P.S. Rich McIlhenny is a great realtor who knows the area well. (He posted above) If you don't have anyone to help you look for a house, I recommened him highly. You're welcome Rich!

Um,...Thanks Dave!

I was riding my bike down the Wissahickon with a friend on Sunday morning. We were enjoying the beauty of the day and the park and he told me that he is going to have his ashes spread out in front of the Valley Green Inn when he dies. I thought that was rather morbid at first, but once I got past that I thought it was a great idea!

I would go for several bike rides down there and try and cover the whole path along Forbidden Drive before you make your decision. It just might be the reason you choose Germantown or Mt Airy.

Good Luck!

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Rich McIlhenny
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