Welcome to City-Data.com Forum!
U.S. CitiesCity-Data Forum Index
Go Back   City-Data Forum > U.S. Forums > General U.S. > City vs. City
 [Register]
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
View detailed profile (Advanced) or search
site with Google Custom Search

Search Forums  (Advanced)
Reply Start New Thread
 
Old 05-26-2017, 10:48 PM
 
3 posts, read 6,094 times
Reputation: 10

Advertisements

Which one is better for family living, work, schools, weather, taxes, etc. and what are the major differences between these cities.
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message

 
Old 05-27-2017, 06:49 AM
 
26,906 posts, read 43,406,570 times
Reputation: 31647
Minneapolis is nearly the twice the size of Winston Salem so probably not the most fair comparison point if looking at number of amenities for example. However based on climate, family-friendliness, cost of living, taxes and location I would opt for Winston Salem which is one of the few remaining bargains for the price. Check out neighborhoods like Ardmore and Sherwood Forest.
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message
 
Old 05-27-2017, 08:15 AM
 
Location: Minneapolis (St. Louis Park)
5,993 posts, read 10,138,956 times
Reputation: 4401
for schools alone (public) MSP has a serious advantage compared to most places. That is one of the big draws IMO if you have a family with school-aged children. I don't know anything about Winston Salem public schools so I'm not going to speak for or against it, but rather that MSP is strong in that regard, and has been for as long as I can remember. That value is worth the higher cost of living and taxes, IMHO. Can you tell I'm liberal?
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message
 
Old 05-27-2017, 08:48 AM
 
54 posts, read 63,273 times
Reputation: 123
Winston Salem is more charming and friendly, with a lower COL and great access to other cities like Charlotte and Greensboro. Also, taxes are more sane (MSP likes stealing money) and the winters are less cold, if you're into that sort of thing, though I prefer snowy winters.

Also higher education is miles better in NC, with UNC and Duke blowing anything Minneapolis has to offer out of the water.

Quote:
Originally Posted by Min-Chi-Cbus View Post
Can you tell I'm liberal?
Doesn't matter if you can tell someone's liberal. They'll always tell you.
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message
 
Old 05-27-2017, 09:10 AM
 
4,362 posts, read 4,211,582 times
Reputation: 3860
Quote:
Originally Posted by Min-Chi-Cbus View Post
for schools alone (public) MSP has a serious advantage compared to most places. That is one of the big draws IMO if you have a family with school-aged children. I don't know anything about Winston Salem public schools so I'm not going to speak for or against it, but rather that MSP is strong in that regard, and has been for as long as I can remember. That value is worth the higher cost of living and taxes, IMHO. Can you tell I'm liberal?
Thanks for bringing up politics in a non political thread. Good job
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message
 
Old 05-27-2017, 11:11 AM
 
6,337 posts, read 11,507,784 times
Reputation: 6305
It would help us to know why you chose these two cities to compare as they are very different. A lot will depend on a person's preference of weather, city size, topography, access to other cities, etc.

City Data has profiles of all the US cities for detailed comparisons. Click on the title in the upper left.
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message
 
Old 05-27-2017, 11:13 AM
 
26,906 posts, read 43,406,570 times
Reputation: 31647
Quote:
Originally Posted by Min-Chi-Cbus View Post
for schools alone (public) MSP has a serious advantage compared to most places. That is one of the big draws IMO if you have a family with school-aged children. I don't know anything about Winston Salem public schools so I'm not going to speak for or against it, but rather that MSP is strong in that regard, and has been for as long as I can remember. That value is worth the higher cost of living and taxes, IMHO. Can you tell I'm liberal?
I'm a liberal-progressive myself and still find Winston Salem an excellent place to raise children as it does have a very long history of tradition of support for the arts, which has always boded well for public education as well. https://www.visitnc.com/story/winsto...ty-of-the-arts
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message
 
Old 05-27-2017, 06:15 PM
sub
 
Location: ^##
4,963 posts, read 3,685,475 times
Reputation: 7831
I'm conservative and prefer Minneapolis. Ultra pleasant.
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message
 
Old 05-27-2017, 08:27 PM
 
33 posts, read 27,077 times
Reputation: 60
Quote:
Originally Posted by BlizzardsAndSuch View Post
Also higher education is miles better in NC, with UNC and Duke blowing anything Minneapolis has to offer out of the water.

That's not really true, nor is it a fair comparison for this thread (you're talking NC, an old state with nearly twice the population of Minnesota, not city vs. city).

Minneapolis has the University of Minnesota, a powerhouse research institution and a top public college. It also has Macalester, a prestigious liberal arts school college (among other smaller colleges--including two more prestigious LACs, Carleton and St. Olaf, both within an hour's drive).

Winston-Salem has Wake Forest, which is sort of hybrid liberal arts college/research univ., and is a top-ranked school. It also has Winston-Salem State (an HBCU), Salem College (a women's school), and UNC-Greensboro if you want to include it.

So I'd agree that NC beats MN in higher ed overall, but Minneapolis is no higher ed slouch. I'd call it a tie with W-S.

I'm probably one of the few people here who has lived in both cities. I prefer Minneapolis, but it's not really a fair comparison--one MSA is about 3 million and frequently touted as one of the best cities in the country, and the other is about 650K that's forever in the shadow of Charlotte, Raleigh, etc.

Minneapolis wins: things to do, variety of housing options, K-12 ed, diversity, jobs, urbanity (i.e., public transit, walkability, bike-ability, etc.), food options, parks.

Winston-Salem wins: cost-of-living, weather (big time).

Though I will say it's a very nice mid-sized city that punches above its weight. If you want a mid-sized town with cheap cost of living, beautiful forested hills, and unique character, it's a great place. I like it more than most other NC cities because (1) it's FAR less congested and (2) it has a less sunbelt-y vibe given its history as a manufacturing and agricultural hub.

Can't really go wrong with either location.
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message
 
Old 05-29-2017, 08:11 AM
 
54 posts, read 63,273 times
Reputation: 123
Quote:
Originally Posted by Nomad21 View Post
That's not really true, nor is it a fair comparison for this thread (you're talking NC, an old state with nearly twice the population of Minnesota, not city vs. city).
When looking to choose between 2 states, if one is older and therefore has more amenities, why should that disqualify that state? That's just preposterous. Play that through - "I'm trying to decide between Minnesota and NC, but it's not fair to appreciate NC's world class institutions because Minnesota is newer, so I need to wait 100 years for it would be a fair competition" LOL

Quote:
Originally Posted by Nomad21 View Post
Minneapolis has the University of Minnesota, a powerhouse research institution and a top public college. It also has Macalester, a prestigious liberal arts school college (among other smaller colleges--including two more prestigious LACs, Carleton and St. Olaf, both within an hour's drive).
Haha, U Minnesota and Macalaster don't even come close to Duke and UNC. Both NC schools are far more selective and prestigious, with more well regarded programs.

Quote:
Originally Posted by Nomad21 View Post
So I'd agree that NC beats MN in higher ed overall, but Minneapolis is no higher ed slouch. I'd call it a tie with W-S.
Yeah, but students from Winston-Salem all apply to UNC and the top students also apply to Duke. UNC is their state school, and it's way nicer than U Minnesota.

Quote:
Originally Posted by Nomad21 View Post
and the other is about 650K that's forever in the shadow of Charlotte, Raleigh, etc.
This sort of thing only comes to mind of people on CD. I've lived in WS, and the "shadow" you're seeing is actually just the great access people in WS have to several small to medium cities, which allows them to explore their state. It's actually really convenient because there's quite a few different vibes to choose from.
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.

Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.


Reply
Please update this thread with any new information or opinions. This open thread is still read by thousands of people, so we encourage all additional points of view.

Quick Reply
Message:


Over $104,000 in prizes was already given out to active posters on our forum and additional giveaways are planned!

Go Back   City-Data Forum > U.S. Forums > General U.S. > City vs. City

All times are GMT -6.

© 2005-2024, Advameg, Inc. · Please obey Forum Rules · Terms of Use and Privacy Policy · Bug Bounty

City-Data.com - Contact Us - Archive 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28, 29, 30, 31, 32, 33, 34, 35, 36, 37 - Top