Talk:Erie, Pennsylvania/Archive 1

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Archive This is an archive of past discussions. Do not edit the contents of this page. If you wish to start a new discussion or revive an old one, please do so on the current talk page.

Contents

Offense

Since mr. sensor is offended, I have edited this article to include only facts. This is a true story. Everything in this brief article happened to me. It's not made up. I lived in Erie for five years until I was laid off from the historic American Meter Company at 10th and Payne Ave. It has since been demolished. I believe that the administrative part of the company has been turned into a family services office. While I worked there, a large International Paper plant in the same area of upper east side Erie also closed. It was very sad to see my friends, many of whom had devoted over thirty years to the same company, being let go with a pat on the back and a couple weeks pay. Clearly, many of these workers would have extreme difficulty trying to retrain into a new field at 50 to 60 years old. Imagine how you would feel if this happened to you. I have an advanced degree from a local private university and over 20 years professional experience in my field. After being laid off, I searched for close to a year to find a job and couldn't find one that paid even half of what I made before. I moved to a major city in Ohio where I found a job making more money in less than one week. It was my personal experience that the people I encountered in Erie were unfriendly to outsiders. It was my personal experience that the people I encountered in Erie tend to stay in the same clique of friends that they have known ever since high school, etc. Example, those who attended Cathedral Prep. I knew a lot of people who went to these strange things I guess they are called "social clubs." These are like bars except that they are private.

Well, I *was* born there, so I guess I can't respond to that. Except to say that I never cared where anyone was born, and neither did my family.

Sorry you feel that way. The Erie page is for factual information on the city, not POV comments about the city's economy. I was born and raised there (lived there much longer than you) and could spend as much time as you have talking about the city's problems, but this isn't the forum for it. - Sensor 00:05, 13 October 2005 (UTC)

Erie is a city on the rebound. After the decline of the industrial base, Erie has repositioned itself to a medical and information technology base. While many workers feel displaced by this it does create tremendous opportunity to those willing and flexible enough to acquire the skills to succeed in todays marketplace.

That's a bunch of Bush crap. There's no way you live in Erie. Have you ever even looked at the Times help wanted - it's a total joke.

I've lived the first 25 years of my life in Erie. I still visit several times a year. You are right--the job base is in the service industry, overwhelmingly.

It's not crap. The unemployment rates in both Erie and Crawford counties have been dropping, and businesses are adding more workers to the payroll. Read the newspaper sometime, or at least watch TV news, and get a clue. By the way, I find the jab at Bush ironic, given that Democrats have been firmly in control of the city for 40 years. What was it Pogo said about having "found the enemy"? Kirchherr 19:57, 27 July 2005 (UTC)
I do know the heavy industries are definitely on the way out, although GE is in no danger of leaving anytime soon. But the old 12th Street corridor of factories is all but dead. Light industry, plastics, service, and, of course, government seem to be the big thing. - Sensor 00:05, 13 October 2005 (UTC)
I love my hometown and would love to be there more than anywhere else. As far as Erie being on the rebound, it might fit the classic definition of a "dead cat bounce." DRK-the dragon
I moved to pitt from Erie about a year and a half ago. There is nothing exciting going on in erie. In pittsburgh you don't even need a car you can easily get anywhere talking the bus. it saves so much in gas, plus it keeps you healthy. This is different because in erie there are so few buses. Also, a great thing is seeing people out walking around and doing things, besides just watching cablevision. I could sit for for hours just watching people jogging or walking dogs. It just makes me feel alive seeing people out and about, and i feel like part of a community.

Erie is suppose to be an upcoming health care center however the wages paid to nurses in this area are the second lowest in all of Penn except the North Central region. Within a 100 miles of Erie approx 350 RN graduate each year, most leave the area. The average wage increase for health care workers for 2006 was less than 2% while CPI increased 3.7%, Sorry to tell you that Erie is a dying town, we lost popluation over the last ten years and more of our educated/techical workforce is leaving..A service based industry in this area is minimum wage, hardly enough to support an individual lety alone a family.

Sillyness

Clearly some people on this page have strong feelings about Erie's economy. Nor do I blame them, it is dead. I plan on leaving after college if I can't find a decent job around here.

Depends on what you're looking for. - Sensor 00:05, 13 October 2005 (UTC)

Picture is so gray

The picture at the top of the page is depressingly gray. Doesn't exactly put the best face on Erie, ya know? Does anyone have a better one? Perhaps one from a sunnier day?

Gray skies and Erie are synonymous. Living in Erie most of my life, I've heard all the stories about how Erie has the fewest sunny days in the continental United States, yet the most beautiful sunsets in the world. -- Blueshango 05:59, 28 November 2006 (UTC)
I agree that gray skies are all-too-common, but I also agree that a better picture is needed. The existing picture is low-resolution and not too photogenic -- even a dreary day can still make for a good picture. Perhaps a winter scene, seeing as Erie gets its fair share of lake effect snow? I've tagged this with a photo request. --Thisisbossi 08:35, 3 December 2006 (UTC)

yeah well this winter its been sunny about say ONCE! jeez just let the picture be..it discribes the city very well; dark and cloudy. I bet the person who took it couldnt find a sunny day to take it on!

Does Erie have any radio stations?

I can't seem to find any mention of any radio stations based in Erie? According to the list of radio stations in Pennsylvania, Erie appears to have no radio stations. Do people listen to radio in Erie? --Blue387 03:18, 29 January 2006 (UTC)

Sure we do. Star 104, Rocket 101, Froggy 94.7, Classy 100, Z 102.3, and also some college stations. -- TheNightFox
Some of the others are USA 93.9, Country 98 (Isn't it funny how I loathe country, yet I remember those?), and like Fox said, college stations, one of which being the Gannon station at 90.5. 68.70.136.127 09:57, 9 February 2006 (UTC)

That Thing You do

I'm removing the sentence "Many scenes from the film were shot in downtown Erie." In fact, although set in Erie, no scenes from That Thing You Do were filmed there. [1]Flutefreek 17:41, 9 April 2006 (UTC)

Expired links

Looks like the Lake Erie Ballet domain registration expired recently (8/21/06). Google still has the site cached though (and of course, the ballet company is still around).

Appalachia?!?

I have never heard that Erie is part of Appalachia. Yes, when I went to the Appalachia page the map includes Erie County, but it's still very hard for me (as a native Erieite) to believe anyone really thinks this is so. Thoughts? --Wspencer11 (talk to me...) 13:21, 13 November 2006 (UTC)

Participation in this is new so I'm not sure that this is the most appropriate way to respond to the above comment. As a new person (slightly over a year) to Erie, I would agree that Erie is very much part of the Appalachian culture with a big asterisk. In my various travels over Western PA, Erie is the least Appalachian of the cities with perhaps the exception of Pittsburgh. However, like Pittsburgh, there are definitely pockets of Appalachian culture. One example is the Kearsarge area.

you obviously dont live here..keararge is just a name on the I-79 sign..no one really knows what it is it refers to the millcreek mall and southwest millcreek Whether one observes the Appalachian cultural influence depends on the social circles in which one lives. I noticed that you, Wspencer11, are very involved in the arts, specifically, orchestral music. As a graduate of the Capital University Conservatory of Music, I will guess that you rarely encounter Appalachian culture in Erie. However, it is present although it is definitely not predominant as it is as in locales such as where I spent the previous six years, New Castle, PA.

I hope this helps. This is really just based on observation and conversations with people in Erie especially with those in religious circles. Rmeberly 19:41, 14 November 2006 (UTC) rmeberly 14 November 2006.

Political Stuff

Yeah, the political section was definitely written by a pretty biased source.

71.60.8.223 05:57, 12 December 2006 (UTC)

Yes, the political area of this page is biased. Someone with an unbiased point of view should review this section, as its neutrality should be in dispute. Mellon123 03:53, 25 December 2006 (UTC)

Recent political events

The section about the mayor is highly biased and uses language that doesn't hide it well at all. Should be eliminated and possibly revisited. It's not like it has to be in the Erie page, but an accurate section would improve the page. —The preceding unsigned comment was added by Abeck22 (talk • contribs) 18:29, 1 January 2007 (UTC).

I deleted this section from the Erie page because of the bias and because it is no longer recent - these events occurred two years ago and are no longer relevant to what is currently going on in Erie. -Mr. Universe 01:54, 29 January 2007 (UTC)

Brian Wells

Should we add something into the article about Brian Wells? You know, the pizza-delivery guy who had the bomb attached to his neck? Erie got national attention for quite some time (and, sparsely, still is) for this bizarre murder, and I think it warrants a mention. EdenMaster 03:32, 3 February 2007 (UTC)

I say yes! --Write On 1983 04:37, 19 February 2007 (UTC)


Wineries

Can someone help gather a list of wineries in the region?? I'd like to add them under the sites of interest, or even give them their own page list. --Write On 1983 06:22, 19 February 2007 (UTC)

Casino

with the new casino opening today, someone should include it in the artical. —The preceding unsigned comment was added by 71.121.87.164 (talk) 23:25, 28 February 2007 (UTC).

External Links

Is it possible to "weed" out some of the external links? It seems like a lot of them to me and some of them the page doesn't need. Dtbohrer 15:08, 25 March 2007 (UTC)

Yup, there are definitely too many. Per WP:NOT, Wikipedia is not a directory. Craigslist, for example, has nothing to do with the subject matter in this article, and therefore isn't relevant per WP:EL. Ditto for the mapping links.
Also, the external links that are also in the article (civic center, I think, as an example) are unnecessary; they should be left in the body of the article and deleted in the external links section. -- John Broughton (♫♫) 04:25, 26 March 2007 (UTC)
The words that link to external pages could even get their own page. --Write_On_1983 talk | contribs 04:57, 26 March 2007 (UTC)

I went through & removed a lot of the links. Please tell me if I went overboard on the amount I removed. Dtbohrer 16:24, 26 March 2007 (UTC)

WikiProject Erie????????

So I think Erie needs a WikiProject sort of how other cities have them -- Wikipedia:WikiProject Youngstown and Wikipedia:WikiProject Pittsburgh. I'm willing to start it if others think it's something that should happen. There are a lot of great people from Erie on Wiki that know a lot about Erie. --Write On 1983 00:27, 26 March 2007 (UTC)

heck yes! Id be willing to help its a very good idea, write on 1983 ...-Ttttrrrreeeeyyyyyy 01:11, 26 March 2007 (UTC)
so when do you want to start? lets do it before thoose allentown fools get the idea =) Ttttrrrreeeeyyyyyy 01:44, 26 March 2007 (UTC)
How does right now sound? Wikipedia:WikiProject_Erie --Write On 1983 02:40, 26 March 2007 (UTC)
Screw Allentown. It's just another trashy expansion of Philadelphia. --Write_On_1983 talk | contribs 04:59, 26 March 2007 (UTC)
Amen to that! Ttttrrrreeeeyyyyyy 18:45, 26 March 2007 (UTC)

WikiProject:Pennsylvania Reassessment request

I only reassess up to B-class, as that is the highest one can go via an individual's assessments. I recommend that you submit this for peer review or nominate it for good article status. The regular reviewers of those items will provide much more instructive feedback then I. If you concur with the above, feel free to remove your reassessment request; or if you disagree and would like another reassessment, you may wish to add a short description beside your reassessment request. Good luck! --Bossi (talk ;; contribs) 02:39, 27 March 2007 (UTC)

Sister Cities?

Grand Rapids is really a sister city?? --Write_On_1983 talk | contribs 16:54, 9 April 2007 (UTC)

I was thinking the same thing. I donr know if this is true, an IP put it on the page.Ttttrrrreeeeyyyyyy 17:15, 9 April 2007 (UTC)
haha. I'm going to say it's not, mainly because the city has a sign as you enter it on 79 near 8th and Bayfront and Grand Rapids ain't one of them. --Write_On_1983 talk | contribs 21:25, 9 April 2007 (UTC)
I have never seen this sign...I will look for it next time I go downtown, and I didnt think it was a sister city anyway,,,Ttttrrrreeeeyyyyyy 21:30, 9 April 2007 (UTC)
It's on the right side of 79 right around those apartments (brick buildings in the background) and near a billboard sign. I'm not in Erie or I'd grab a picture of it. And actually....I don't even remember Erie having four sister cities. And I thought one of them was a German city? The government and airport authority is doing all that work getting companies to use the airport for cargo...I swear there is a German sister city. --Write_On_1983 talk | contribs 21:35, 9 April 2007 (UTC)
All of the german airport deal has gone down the tube. no more. the germans wanted alot of extra money and refuse to negociate. Its been reported on, might want to do a search on goerie or action news 24. Ttttrrrreeeeyyyyyy 23:38, 11 April 2007 (UTC)

Erie as City vs. Regional Hub

I keep wincing whenever I see Erie depicted as the home of places like Conneaut Lake Park, Edinboro University, and Allegheny College. Rather than editing these into oblivion, I thought I'd mention this first, as I think it speaks to the question of whether this is really a "City of Erie" page (which is how I see it), vs. an "Erie as Regional Hub" page (which for better or worse, is how it now reads, at least in these respects). DagnyB 01:02, 10 April 2007 (UTC)

I think the page, and the WikiProject, serve more as Erie being the central location of a small region. If you glance at Philadelphia, Pittsburgh, Cleveland or any other city, places, people and other items that may not be within the city limits are considered part of the city's Wiki page. Locals in Edinboro may not consider themselves "Erieites," but on a broader scope, Erie is the central spot for this small region. --Write_On_1983 talk | contribs 02:11, 10 April 2007 (UTC)

GA Review

Article needs better organization. Probably early "B-class", if not, start-class. Many sections are just lists and not organized as prose (sports, media, colleges and universities, sites of interest,... The article also lacks sufficient reference citations as well; please review WP:V for guidelines on citing and verification; please review WP:CITE for guidelines on how to format inline citations.

The recent developments section seems out of place, and probably shouldn't be in a main section. I'd include this at the end of the history section. Promote the demographics & geography sections to just after history, and I'd also put the ethnicities & religion section within demographics, probably as a subsection. Change the name of the colleges section to education, and include information about K-12 schools as well as the colleges. Education & transportation can probably be 'demoted' somewhat in the order of categories; most city articles have these near the end (but before sister cities & see also). I'd put sites of interest as a subsection under culture as well.

Write out the sports info as prose, and talk about some of it better. Put some prose in the media section, or kill that section and include a 'see also' link at the end of the main culture section.

Some of the photos seem kind of awkwardly placed -- the 1912 panorama looks weird in my browser -- placed kind of diagonal from the infobox. Consider different monitor sizes & browser widths when placing images. Why is the red-dot map under transportation? Shouldn't that be placed in the geography section?

Overall, it looks like this article has quite a bit more work for GA status. But it's a good start! Editors might find it helpful to review the good article criteria for tips on building a better article. There is also useful information at Wikiproject cities, which can guide you on some of the common characteristics of city articles as well. It might also be good to read some of the city articles that are GAs: Richmond, Virginia, Minneapolis, Minnesota,... Good luck! Dr. Cash 01:33, 10 April 2007 (UTC)

Recent Vandalism

Ive noticed that the erie page has been under a rash of vandalism lately. IP's putting WE HAVE BAD WEATHER ect. what should we do? there were 17 edits (vandalism) by 1 IP in 1 hour. request protection? just my 2 cents. Ttttrrrreeeeyyyyyy 23:36, 11 April 2007 (UTC)