The city needs some help
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6/23/2018
There are pros to living in the Syracuse area- the cost of living is relatively cheap (compared to the rest of the Northeast) although the sales and property taxes are very high. If you like winter sports like skiing and having access to beautiful lakes and mountains then you might like the Syracuse area.
I also met some great people there and made some lifelong friends.
There are some things to do, but not a lot. There are festivals in the spring and summer and Armory Square is nice but once winter comes along, unless you like being outdoors, you are pretty limited to the mall.
It can be a nice place for the right person but for me and my family there were just too many cons. People say the winters aren't "that bad". No they really are that bad. The average yearly snowfall is about 120 inches- the average snowfall which means that some years have more and others have less. In the almost 10 years I lived there I think the lowest amount of snow was around 70 inches. The cold can be brutal, and sometimes for weeks on end (think Polar Vortex) and the lack of sun just makes for a very depressing winter. (With winter lasting 5-6 months there). Then the spring can bring a lot of rain, and again, no sun, sometimes for weeks.
The economy is not doing well in Syracuse. It is quite difficult to find a job that isn't in the retail industry.
Finally the crime: yes some people will say it is not that bad, and compared to some other cities around the country that is true. However for a city of its size, the amount of crime is high.
After 9 years we decided Syracuse was definitely not for us and left for NC, never to look back.
I do think with the right leadership, Syracuse has the potential to grow and improve.
Mary | Greensboro, NC