Harveys Lake has recreation among Northeastern PA's scenic landscape
Set among the rolling hills of Luzerne County, Harveys Lake has long attracted visitors and residents seeking relaxation on the water. Throughout the late 1800s and early 1900s, Harveys Lake was a bustling vacation area with an amusement park, boathouses and several hotels. Although most of these structures no longer exist, Harveys Lake is still a well-traveled recreation spot with a solid community of part-time and full-time residents. Tracy Zarola, area resident and Realtor at Lewith & Freeman, explains that many people use their properties in Harveys Lake as a second home that becomes their primary once their children move out or they retire. "Some people here, rather than having a beach house, want to have a house at the lake," she says. "You have people that have been here three or four generations."
Summertime recreation on the lake
Although the lake's year-round residents stick around during the winter months, when snow coats the trees and a layer of ice covers the water, Harveys Lake comes to life in the summer. Locals and visitors from around the region come to the water to jet ski, motorboat, fish and paddleboard. "On the weekends, people will have music playing on the docks, or out on their pontoon, swimming off the boats," Zarola says. The town has fireworks over the water over Labor Day weekend, among other community-led events. "The residents like to throw things. They just had a run around the lake, sponsored by a local running group, and the money went to the police and fire department," Zarola says.
Small, tucked-away homes and larger waterfront properties
Housing styles in Harveys Lake include well-maintained farmhouses on private lots, restored Victorian homes on the water, and modest cottages on residential streets. Homes don't often come up for sale, but values can range from as little as $100,000 to over $1 million. "A lot of things have been renovated and have gone from summer cottages that didn't have heat or AC to million-dollar homes," Zarola says. "To get anywhere on the lakefront would generally be over $800,000, but there are cottages off the lake that are $150,000 to $250,000." High-end waterfront properties tend to have features like private boat docks, while homeowners not on the waterfront can use the public boat launch or join a private organization like Harveys Lake Yacht Club.
Local diners and nearby grocers
Potato Pancakes serves platters with fried potatoes, beer battered fish and shrimp. Down the street, Lakeside Skillet offers breakfast platters with hashbrowns, bacon and waffles in its humble venue with nautical decor. For quick errands, Dollar General is about 2 miles away. Weis Markets, about 5 miles away, is the closest full-service grocery store. Harveys Lake has a CAP Index crime score of 2, below the national average of 4.
Drivers connect across the state via PA-415
Pennsylvania Route 415 goes through Harveys Lake. Drivers can use this road to connect to major interstate systems. Wilkes-Barre, the county seat, is about 15 miles away and is home to the Wilkes-Barre General Hospital. Scranton is 30 miles away, and Philadelphia and New York City are 125 and 150 miles from Harveys Lake, respectively. Wilkes-Barre Scranton International Airport serves the region.
Lake-Lehman School District serves Harveys Lake and nearby townships
Students living in Harveys Lake are zoned for Lake-Noxen Elementary School and Lake-Lehman Jr./Sr. High School. Both of these schools in the Lake-Lehman School District earn B-minus grades from Niche and serve Harveys Lake as well as five other nearby townships. District students have the option to enroll in Lake-Lehman Cyber School, where they can take online classes full- or part-time. This alternative program is available to elementary, middle and high schoolers.
Flooding is among the rare environmental issues Harveys Lake faces
Severe storms, such as Hurricane Irene in 2011, have historically caused flooding in the area. However, flooding is generally uncommon. "The houses all sit up higher than the lake. Sometimes the boat houses down at the bottom have floods when the water is crazy high after rain," Zarola says.
Additionally, Harveys Lake previously had issues with pollution and algae blooms due to urban runoff and erosion. In 1996, the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection put the lake on the list of impaired waters. The lake was removed from the list in 2014 following restoration efforts from local and state authorities that helped improve the water quality.
