Don't move to Des Moines, Iowa unless.. (Denver: best city, living in)

[funksoulbro]

Originally Posted by atler8

econboy
Those of us who are not trying to be contrary understand the nature of your post here.

I understand the nature of his post as well. I'm just curious why he isn't singing the praises of Atlantic City, since they clearly score big on his "skyline-to-people" ratio which is so important for determining the quality of life in a particular city.

If I was someone who was that aroused by smaller towns with bigger than normal skylines, Atlantic City would be the best value in America. Having a world-renown boardwalk with direct access to the ocean would be a huge selling point as well.

But, who wants to settle for Atlantic City's mundane lifestyle when you can see the Principal Building all the way from a cornfield in Woodward, Iowa. That's so much more impressive.

[atler8]

Your typical sarcasm & snideness toward all-things-small-townish & toward Iowa is once again duly noted, tiresome & predicable though it is.
You must have come a long ways from your humble small town origins & made it really big somewhere out there.

[Tek_Freek]

Originally Posted by atler8

econboy
Those of us who are not trying to be contrary understand the nature of your post here.
For the folks up there in Des Moines, I hope it's not too unsettling to be blown "out of the water" by a tiny resort city that has a notable boardwalk hotel strip skyline. But I'm confident that you can handle it ok. There are smallish Florida "condo" cities hugging the coastline with multiple towers too.
By the way, there are some nice compliments to be found about the Des Moines skyine on a Wichita thread.

I think the people here can handle as none of us care. It simply is not important to us no matter how important is it to others, for whatever reason. Silliest damn argument I've ever come across on CD.

[BLCLLC]

I lived in the DesMoines Metro for 31 years. The transformation into a prosperous, dynamic urban center was astounding. When I move there in 1980 it was merely the largest county seat in Iowa. Today there are scores of interesting eateries and niche bars . Downtown is the residential destination planners hoped for 25 yrs ago. It is a clean, safe , vibrant city with financial services/insurance as the dominant industry. Thus the populace is relatively educated. No better place to have a career and a family

[sholomar]

Everything is relative. I'm looking at a move to the Des Moines area from east central South Dakota and from my perspective I love snowfall and cold weather but it's too extreme here. It never rises above freezing and I'm constantly complaining about it. There's too many miles between towns, not enough trees and varied topography, and Sioux Falls as a city is not large enough as a destination for me. The Des Moines area is perfect. Still get snow, but get breaks of 40-50 degree weather that can melt it. Warmer springs and falls and more precip as well which I like. Prospering metro area, affordable housing depending on the area, and low unemployment as well.

Cons: State income tax (don't pay one in South Dakota) and still a lot of gravel roads for the tax burden. Wisconsin, where I lived before South Dakota, manages to pave most of their roads with their tax money. Perhaps that's a waste of money (though it's a road biker's dream come true) but there are areas in rural western MN where there's nothing around except farmfield that have more paved roads than the countryside outside metro Des Moines. The paved road/population density ratio seems to be a bit off.. meaning when I move out there, and ride my road bike on your local paved roads, and yes I WILL RIDE THEM on your roads, there will be more traffic annoyed with me because the roads and the bikes will have to share less paved road per person... also, since all your roads seem to have those bumpy strips along the shoulders to wake drivers up who start to fall asleep, and are otherwise gravel shoulders, that will force me to ride my bike in the lane further than usual. Just a fair warning.

I'd be looking at the Knoxville area to be precise. Probably bike around that lake and that bike path around Pella and the dam, or take the occasional drive to Waukee and take that off road bike path that loops around the countryside. You won't have to worry about me when I do that.

On another note, all that property tax relief for commercial real estate they passed last year... wish they would have just cut the income tax rate on the low end instead... it's a bit on the high side once you get up to around $12,000 in income. Reduce that tax rate closer to the 4% level for working class people will attract them to move to Iowa. The flat 4.5% rate the republicans want would be even better. Cities that require more can adjust property taxes as necessary.

You could eliminate the state income tax entirely or make it quite minimal for working class people and tax and legalize marijuana, too. Just a thought. Sin taxes are always a nice way to redistribute wealth.

[cubssoxfan]

Originally Posted by stockwiz

Everything is relative. I'm looking at a move to the Des Moines area from east central South Dakota and from my perspective I love snowfall and cold weather but it's too extreme here. It never rises above freezing and I'm constantly complaining about it. There's too many miles between towns, not enough trees and varied topography, and Sioux Falls as a city is not large enough as a destination for me. The Des Moines area is perfect. Still get snow, but get breaks of 40-50 degree weather that can melt it. Warmer springs and falls and more precip as well which I like. Prospering metro area, affordable housing depending on the area, and low unemployment as well.

Cons: State income tax (don't pay one in South Dakota) and still a lot of gravel roads for the tax burden. Wisconsin, where I lived before South Dakota, manages to pave most of their roads with their tax money. Perhaps that's a waste of money (though it's a road biker's dream come true) but there are areas in rural western MN where there's nothing around except farmfield that have more paved roads than the countryside outside metro Des Moines. The paved road/population density ratio seems to be a bit off.. meaning when I move out there, and ride my road bike on your local paved roads, and yes I WILL RIDE THEM on your roads, there will be more traffic annoyed with me because the roads and the bikes will have to share less paved road per person... also, since all your roads seem to have those bumpy strips along the shoulders to wake drivers up who start to fall asleep, and are otherwise gravel shoulders, that will force me to ride my bike in the lane further than usual. Just a fair warning.

I'd be looking at the Knoxville area to be precise. Probably bike around that lake and that bike path around Pella and the dam, or take the occasional drive to Waukee and take that off road bike path that loops around the countryside. You won't have to worry about me when I do that.

On another note, all that property tax relief for commercial real estate they passed last year... wish they would have just cut the income tax rate on the low end instead... it's a bit on the high side once you get up to around $12,000 in income. Reduce that tax rate closer to the 4% level for working class people will attract them to move to Iowa. The flat 4.5% rate the republicans want would be even better. Cities that require more can adjust property taxes as necessary.

You could eliminate the state income tax entirely or make it quite minimal for working class people and tax and legalize marijuana, too. Just a thought. Sin taxes are always a nice way to redistribute wealth.

I think Des Moines is a nice area. But if your an avid cyclist, why not look into Twin Cities?

[sholomar]

Originally Posted by cubssoxfan

I think Des Moines is a nice area. But if your an avid cyclist, why not look into Twin Cities?

Too populated for my tastes for daily living, colder weather, and there is a place to work in Knoxville, IA where I could directly transfer from one plant to another. I'm not an 'avid cyclist' just a casual one.. I'll do maybe 1000-1500 miles per summer. I also like jogging and it supplements the cycling.

[schmink]

If your into fishing, Red Rock lake is outstanding.

[zeta potential]

Just got here 1 month back. Do like winter and cold so that's not a problem. Have found the people to be "colder" and ruder than in most regions of the country, however. Keep in mind, I travel the nation and have lived long-term in 1/4 of the 48 contiguous United States, so I've had my fill of other regions/people/culture. Work now in a religious medical facility. They're mostly about $$, PR and making the floor shine and less about care. One local doc here calls the cross atop my temp facility "the death star". The drivers in Chicago were better and more polite than the ones here believe it or not. I'll definitely cross Iowa off my list from here on out.

[Xander_Crews]

Why is the Iowa forum always full of people complaining that other people think that Des Moines is a world class city, when I never ever see anyone claim that Des Moines is a world class city?

You can compare cities to each other and that doesn't mean they are on the same tier. I bet Des Moines has better air quality than NYC, notice that I compared the two cities, even gave Des Moines the edge... what I DID NOT say is "Des Moines competes with NYC as a city". Yet these are the same kind of statements that send the Des Moines haters into a tizzy. I have never seen anyone say that Des Moines has a better theatre scene than New York... either their posts are magic and disappear when I read the forums or these haters take the comments completely out of context and go on a tirade about how NYC is better than Des Moines while everyone laughs at them.

Do you people think you are charged with making sure people are aware that Des Moines is not a world class city? Because otherwise Des Moines might trick them? You better hurry on over to the Biloxi forums to let them know that they don't live in Monaco.