Shamokin. Please help, About to move there. (Sunbury, Lewisburg: fit in, apartment)

[dtc]

Hi everybody,
I am about to move from the UK to Shamokin with my 3 kids, 2 girls, 7 & 8 and 1 son, 11yrs. We have lived previously in Florida and Northern California, and had to come back to the UK for a couple of years due to family illness.
We are moving there to be close to my adult daughter and son in law to be.
I would appreciate any guidance at all about what the area has to offer in terms of recreation for my children and myself, and advise about the quality of the public schools there.
I will be very close to West Spruce Street, Shamokin, and initially I will be without my own transport, my daughter will be living at least 30 to 40 minutes away. Is there public transport close by? What stores might I expect to find within walking distance? My daughters are really into dance and drama, are there classes for this in the area? I like horses, are there any riding facilities locally? Are there any nice lakes or swimming pools? Also, what is the monthly average I can expect to pay for utilities? Not including sewerage as that is covered in the rent, but all the other utilities including cable TV and Internet, land line phone etc.
Are there any good thrift stores in the area? It's gonna be tough for us initially!
I apologize in advance for having so many questions, but anything you can tell me would be greatly appreciated and most helpful.
One other thing, are the locals generally friendly, will it be difficult for my children and I to make new friends?
Thank you so much if you read this far and can help.
Bless you all.

[bloominscranton]

Well first let me say welcome...I am not familiar with the area so the best I could do is this http://www.shamokincity.org/. Hoping your new move brings you and your family nothing but good luck.

[dtc]

Thank you so much for the link. Have a great evening.

[Dawne]

Good luck with your move. I'm curious -where does your daughter live that is 30 to 40 minutes away from Shamokin?

I'm not sure if shamokin has any public transportation but I'd guess not. It's an old coal mining town and its resources are limited. In fact, I believe the city is on the verge of bankruptcy. There are some wonderful people in Shamokin, but I personally find the whole area a bit depressing.

There are public schools and Catholic schools in town. You may be close to the grocery store (Weis Markets) and a Dunkin Donut and perhaps the downtown, depending how far west you are on or near Spruce Street.

I'm not sure about utilities. It may depend on the type of heat you have and how large your apartment is. Phone will probably run you about $35 per month for basic service, cable TV about $50 or so and Internet through the cable company about $35 or so. Of course that all depends on the package you would choose and which upgrades you might want. I'd figure on a $100 per month average for each of electricity and heat. Do you also have to pay for your own garbage collection? That coud run about $30 to $50 per month depending on how many bags you contract for each week.

Again, best wishes!

[dtc]

Thanks for all the information, I can't remember the name of my daughters town off the top of my head, she hasn't been there long, but when I look it up I'll let you know.
The sewerage is included in the rent, it's a very nice 4 bed house, but it is on the large side with attic and basement too. Mind you, the rent is extremely reasonable! Do you know which cable companies offer services to the area? I could check them out online if I know which ones to consider. I don't know how far west I'd be on Spruce, all I know is it's close to Spruce and 1st street.
If the city is on the verge on bankruptcy, how does that directly impact on the residents there do you think?
Also, what exactly do you find depressing about it? Does it have a heavy negative vibe hanging over it? Is it the scenery, lack of recreational things to do?
I try to be a positive person, and I'm quite spiritually minded, warm and hospitable, a little different from the norm, having had such a huge life experience of many things compared to the average person, so I hope I'll fit in!
Thanks so much for replying, you seem to know the place quite well, are you fairly local?
Where do you think is the best place to live in Pennsylvania when you have a young family that you want to keep safe but also keep from being bored?
And how far am I from the nearest super 24 hour Walmart? HA HA! I miss getting lost in Walmart since I left the US!

Blessings,

Donna.

[rcb1966]

Shamokin is not a bad town....it has gotten a bad rap for a long time, but the folks in this town are generally pretty nice and helpful. The local hospital is great since it has had new administration over the last couple of years. Super Walmart is about 3 miles outside of town between Shamokin & Kulpmont. Elysburg is 10 minutes away with the #1 Family rated Amunsement Park in the country as rated by the Travel Channel www.knoebels.com Lots of inexpensive & great places to eat within a 10 mile radius. I am partial to Elysburg, I grew up there....if you can get yourself a place in this town, you would be set. It is like smalltown USA, great people, good churches, great sense of community, wonderful schools, excellent athletics, & no riff raff or even a bad part of town exists. Good luck in Shamokin just the same, it is not a bad place by any means. Utilities there, by the way, should be pretty inexpensive. How old is the home you are considering??

[dtc]

Thanks for that! Elysburg sounds really great.
I don't know how old the house is. I think it is older rather than newer, it has a basement and attic and is newly refurbished.
I am still excited about moving there, it will give me a chance to get to know the surrounding areas, and as I am renting I can always move on in the future should I need to.
The kids are gonna love having an amusement park so close by, thanks for the link.
Have a great day, and thank you again for your help.

Donna...

[Dawne]

Service Electric Cablevision is the main cable company. I have their service from their Sunbury area office, but they also service the Shamokin area. http://www.secv.com/

Shamokin is a coal mining town. The people there are some of the friendliest and most helpful you'll find. They're blue collar in the nicest sense of the word, but many of them have very limited life experiences. They're usually from families who have lived there for generations. The town itself is very hilly. Many homes are perched on the sides of hills. The town is surrounded by culm banks (coal byproducts) and some small family-owned coal mines. Many of the homes are older and run down. The creek that runs through the center of town is orange from mine acid.

Half of a double home that in Selinsgrove or Lewisburg would sell for $80,000 to $120,000 will sell for about $20,000 to $40,000 in Shamokin. The downtown is struggling and there are not a lot of stores and restaurants to choose from, although they did have the first Super Wal-Mart in the area.

It's not somewhere I'd suggest moving to sight unseen unless you have a short-term lease. I agree with RCB above and would suggest looking at Elysburg or somewhere closer to your daughter. While Shamokin is not horrible, I find it "sad" and would definitely recommend looking elsewhere before making a final decision.

Just so no one thinks I'm prejudiced, I come from a long line of blue collar workers from Jim Thorpe. Both of my grandfathers worked on the railroad, and Jim Thorpe is also a coal mining town. However, the "powers that be" have done a wonderful job of turning Jim Thorpe into a tourist destination and it's absolutely beautiful now. When I was a child it was not somewhere I would have considered living, although I loved visiting my grandparents there. Now it's a beautiful place to live. The same could happen some day to Shamokin, and that would be wonderful - but they don't have the people in power at the moment to make that happen (nor do they have the funds to do it) and I don't foresee it happening in the near (or distant?) future.

As for the town's financial situation, I don't know how that would affect the citizens and residents.

[PeeAye Native]

Did you ever do this move? And how has it worked out for you?

[dtc]

Thank you to everyone who replied to me, your advice and suggestions were all very helpful.
I have been in Shamokin now for about a month and a half, and the people are definitely friendly, however it is deadville for sure!

I would never have chosen to live in this town, but as I had to rely on somebody else finding me the property quickly, I really didn't have a choice.

The property is lovely, but I feel very isolated as I still need to find my own transport.
I am hoping that the schools will be OK? I have 3 children under 11 who need to start school here this month.

I am planning on going back to Florida when my year lease is up, I raised my kids there before I went to the UK and ended up here.

Well, thank you again everyone,

Have a great day...