Video related to this article is available below.Issue date: 10/30/07 Section: News
When it's a little tricky to get a treat
With University City awash with students, families find new ways, places to trick-or-treat
Katie Karas
|
He'll be joined by a slew of other superheroes, princesses and monsters.
What's attracting all these oddities across the Delaware River? Candy, of course.
Second-grader Adam Dwyer, who plans to dress up as Batman for Halloween this year, and his mom, Marcella, are one of many families living in University City whose Halloween plans are complicated by the number of college students living in the area.
Bruce Andersen, a board member of the Spruce Hill Community Association, said that as he takes his kids closer to Penn's campus, it becomes more difficult to find good trick-or-treating.
Others have tried to stay in the neighborhood when Halloween comes around with little success.
"When we first moved here, we went trick-or-treating, but most housing with students didn't have any candy," said local resident Richard Palmer, who has a six-year-old son.
It may seem that students are the Grinches of Halloween, but in most cases, it comes down to sheer laziness.
"Nah, we're probably not going to buy any candy," a surprised Jake Ratner, a College sophomore, said when asked about his preparation for Halloween. "Why? Do you think we should?"
Families worried about safety when spending Halloween in University City often pick alternatives to door-to-door trick-or-treating.
For example, Andersen is in charge of planning an annual Halloween parade for the Spruce Hill neighborhood that attracts about 300 kids. The parade began 10 years ago in response to safety concerns after Penn researcher Vladimir Sled was stabbed to death on Halloween night on the 4300 block of Larchwood Avenue.
Andersen also pointed to other activities on Halloween that cater to families with young children: a block party near Clark Park on Regent Square, school parties and a variety of other private parties scattered throughout neighborhoods.
Be the first to comment on this story