Gun Violence Escalating In Pottstown, Again…

In November 2012, Tom Bartman, published the following information on his blog – on the Patch online news after taking an informal poll about what holds Pottstown back. Crime ranked high but higher, by two points, was that most Pottstownians believe local government is the problem.  Tom says:

The data from neighborhood scout drives other sites such as locationinc.com. NeighborhoodScout has been used in reports on AOL’s DailyFinance. But it still does not answer whether the data is accurate. NeighborhoodScout’s disclaimer states no warranty of accuracy, although the algorithms used claim to provide enterprise-grade data. It is therefore important to look at a second source, BestPlaces.net/crime.

According to BestPlaces, crime data is compiled from the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Uniform Crime Reports. Plugging Pottstown into the site reveals not the level of detail NeighborhoodScout provides, but provides a general crime index from 1-10. Based on FBI data, a higher number corresponds with more crime. With a state average of 4, Pottstown ranks 9 for violent crime and 7 for property crime.

Using BestPlaces and comparing the same cities in PA above, Pottstown has a higher crime rate than Allentown, Reading, Philadelphia, Coatsville, Norristown, West Chester, Quakertown, Conshohocken, Phoenixville, and Royersford. In addition, BestPlaces supports NeighborHoodScout in that the crime rate in Pottstown is higher than Chicago, New York, Compton, and Los Angeles.

This data clearly supports Pottstown residents’ concern of crime in the poll. Whether it keeps Pottstown from success is a decision for the individual. But ask yourself, can a city with an actual or perceived high crime rate be successful?

Statistics have shown, since 2010 that crime will be higher in 2014 – has there been any recognition/preparation for this from government officials? It definitely does not look as though it was important to them.