Can a family "live" in Galena? (Rockford, Freeport: to rent, amusement park) - City-Data Forum

kbug3 · 09-08-2011, 12:16 PM

Hello me again...we are looking at Galena, but I am wondering if you can live there? I know it is VERY touristy, but could my family settle there, and commute for work say to Rockford, or Dubuque? Or to WI?

We used to live in a historic small town (5000 ppl.) it had two groceries, a few elem. schools, one high school, one hospital, a small liberal college, movie theatre..but unfort. no work really, but we miss that town. In other words..does it have a real community feeling, we want to be involved with the community, small town parades, sports etc.

Our old town had alot of tourist come in the summer, but more ppl. that lived in the county, full time. Is the area welcoming of outsiders? I keep reading on the data..that these small towns (MO, and IL) are leary of outsiders, and are filled with generations of people.

Would we be welcome?
We love the look of the town, the water, everything..the historic homes..we would love to rent one long term..
Any info would be greatly appreciated! thanks so much

chicago103 · 09-09-2011, 06:28 AM

I don't understand why so many people frame questions in these manner. This is a free country, there is no gestapo with machine guns preventing you from raising a family in Galena or anywhere. Now if you want to ask about expectations on quality of life and/or how much outside of your comfort zone or what you consider "normal" to be that's a fair question that you somewhat expanded upon in your post. However the title of the thread just sounds weird; Galena is an incorporated community with real people living in it, it's not like it's an amusement park or historical museum.

kbug3 · 09-09-2011, 06:43 AM

well that was not very nice..I thought I was clear...alot of small touristy towns are awesome to visit, but not to live in. Either they are priced way to high for an average family to move to..(Oxford MD) near us...they had so many wealthy retirees there that they had no Volunteer Firedept. so when their expensive homes caught fire they were S>O>L till the Fire Dept. from the neighboring town (20miles or so ) away arrived...or they have no school, no services..so I was asking the same...is Galena filled with Retirees? do young families live there? Is it a weekender kind of town with few full time residences...maybe I should have worded it diff? Don't want to move to an area that is indifferent to outsiders...(old boys club) and we are not one of the good ole boys?? Thanks

Vlajos · 09-09-2011, 07:48 AM

Huh? Why wouldn't a family be able to live in Galena?

chet everett · 09-09-2011, 08:42 AM

Galena is not particularly "vibrant". It is very quiet. Across the river Dubuque is not exactly bustling either. Though there are college kids at Loras it is not a "party hardy" crowd. The employment options in the area are constrained. Although there has been some development (IBM has relatively new data hosting facility) it is very much an area where agriculture is far and away the biggest employer.

It is not an easy drive to cross into Iowa (or Wisconsin) for a daily commute in winter or even during heavy rains -- the scenic hillscapes are not as treacherous as mountain passes out west, but they hinder road building.

I'd think long and hard about how to earn a living in Galena. Even in "higher end" resort towns (like Lake Geneva WI, Aspen Co, New Buffalo MI or Sedona AZ) locals often come to hate the vactioneers that they depend on to supply the life blood but they make living costs high and lead to "busts" when the economy gets tight. Look at towns in SW Michigan for lessons in how fickle the tourist based economy can be. St. Joe has a gorgeous public beach but most of the rest of town is almost ghost town. Further inland Three Oaks literally is bankrupt as the boom in folks priced out of waterfront towns was very short lived and did not sustain the historic loss of manufacturing...

Galena is probably even a tougher long term bet -- high fuel costs and increasing congestion from sprawling NW suburbs make it hard to justify the drive...

cubssoxfan · 09-09-2011, 08:50 AM

to me, everything starts with quality of schools first. Here is a link to the Galena Schools web-site. Galena Schools - Home

Maybe you will be lucky and someone at the district will be "chatty" and answer some of your questions.
A visit during the week can help. It is usually slower and you may find shopkeepers who are chatty enough and candid enough to fill you in. Then a visit during a "high season" tourist weekend would be in order to see if you can handle the traffic and people levels.

A commute to Rockford would be brutal. US 20 east is 2 lane and hilly until you reach Freeport and it's around 70 miles each way.
Commuting to Dubuque would be easier.

debbie at bouontiful · 09-09-2011, 11:02 AM

Having live there I would say Elizabeth would be more family oriented. I for one would love to move back and would love to live on Park Avenue. Beautiful town, great for retirement with not only things going on in Grant Park, but Chestnut Mountain, Mississippi River. Now, I've live in the area two times. While raising children, I think I would just right outside of the town in residential subdivision or farm like setting. As neat as Galena is, they do have (in my book only) have issues you may not want your children raised with. Although, I had teenagers there for 3 years but home schooled them with no issues. I could be wrong, but for me I would go straight back to the center of town but if I had children I would live right out of town but close.

Vlajos · 09-09-2011, 11:06 AM

What are the issues in Galena?

debbie at bouontiful · 09-09-2011, 12:59 PM

As you know most of IL is quite liberal. Except the Northwest corner of IL which is mostly diary farmers and they tend to be conservative except the town of Galena. It is very artsy and liberal. Being a closet conservative in a liberal town was the only ISSUE. As I said, I'd move back in a heartbeat now that my kids are grown, married with kids of they're own I could case less about conservative/liberal area anymore. don't scream at me I didn't want to mention politics or any other liberal/conservative issues. The lady writing might not care about it either.

I guess I just came out of the closet. Yes, I'm a conservative but "not in your face" type.

Vlajos · 09-09-2011, 01:10 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by debbie at bouontiful

As you know most of IL is quite liberal. Except the Northwest corner of IL which is mostly diary farmers and they tend to be conservative except the town of Galena. It is very artsy and liberal. Being a closet conservative in a liberal town was the only ISSUE. As I said, I'd move back in a heartbeat now that my kids are grown, married with kids of they're own I could case less about conservative/liberal area anymore. don't scream at me I didn't want to mention politics or any other liberal/conservative issues. The lady writing might not care about it either.

I guess I just came out of the closet. Yes, I'm a conservative but "not in your face" type.

got it, didn't know what you were alluding to.