Looking to make a fresh start (Chicago, Quincy: appointed, movies, good schools)

[surfergirl67]

Our family is looking to make a fresh start. We've had enough of South Florida and Florida in general.

We have two girls a teen and a tween. We want an area that has seasons with snow in the winter. Mountains would be nice. Good schools for the girls where english is NOT a second language. We want the old town feel you see in movies (yeah I know doesn't everyone! LOL), but seriously, I want to open up a bakery on Main Street. The top 5 places we are considering are Tennessee, Kentucky, Illinois, Missouri, & Colorado.

Any advice, suggestions, etc would be greatly appreciated.

[chet everett]

Employment???

The greater Chicago region is NOT CHEAP and if you have an idea of what your job would entail /what you can earn that would make it much easier to give you idea of how feasible a move is...

[surfergirl67]

Originally Posted by chet everett

Employment???

The greater Chicago region is NOT CHEAP and if you have an idea of what your job would entail /what you can earn that would make it much easier to give you idea of how feasible a move is...

We are both in engineerining.

[dude1984]

I would say you should visit the cities you are thinking about moving to. Then shorten the list down to two or three cities. Then look for jobs in the cities that have made it to your final list.

[Scio42]

How big of a town are you thinking of (for your bakery on Main St.)? That would help narrow suggestions down. BTW there are no mountains in Illinois, the state is fairly flat, except for river valleys and some rolling hills in the NW and southern parts of the state.

Just from your description, Galena, IL would be worth a look. 19th century town nestled in some wooded hills. Definite old town feel, and plenty of Chicago-land tourists to sell baked goods to (from your bakery)

[surfergirl67]

Originally Posted by dude1984

I would say you should visit the cities you are thinking about moving to. Then shorten the list down to two or three cities. Then look for jobs in the cities that have made it to your final list.

We plan on doing that, first need to find cities we are interested in.

[surfergirl67]

Originally Posted by Scio42

How big of a town are you thinking of (for your bakery on Main St.)? That would help narrow suggestions down. BTW there are no mountains in Illinois, the state is fairly flat, except for river valleys and some rolling hills in the NW and southern parts of the state.

Just from your description, Galena, IL would be worth a look. 19th century town nestled in some wooded hills. Definite old town feel, and plenty of Chicago-land tourists to sell baked goods to (from your bakery)

Thank you! It is beautiful! The shots of main street that I saw were exactly what I had pictured in my mind. I wonder what the job situation is there?

[surfergirl67]

Originally Posted by Scio42

How big of a town are you thinking of (for your bakery on Main St.)? That would help narrow suggestions down. BTW there are no mountains in Illinois, the state is fairly flat, except for river valleys and some rolling hills in the NW and southern parts of the state.

Just from your description, Galena, IL would be worth a look. 19th century town nestled in some wooded hills. Definite old town feel, and plenty of Chicago-land tourists to sell baked goods to (from your bakery)

OH and BTW... LOL IL is FAR from flat! Have you ever been to South Florida???? Our biggest hills are the I-95 overpasses! LOL

[Scio42]

Originally Posted by surfergirl67

Thank you! It is beautiful! The shots of main street that I saw were exactly what I had pictured in my mind. I wonder what the job situation is there?

A great part of the economy in Galena thrives on tourism and residents from Chicago moving there or owning a second home. There's some smaller businesses there too, but it's not really a big place (~4,000 people I think). I'd be a great place for a bakery (as you mentioned) to sell baked goods to tourists. Getting jobs as engineers there would be tougher (unless you can work out telecommute agreement). The closest city of any size is Dubuque, IA.

[Alexva]

If the small town life is what you seek you may want to check out Quincy, Illinois. Sits on the banks of the Mississippi River about two hours north of St. Louis, with a population of 40k. Known as the Gem City, Quincy has scenic rolling hills terrain. For a small town, Q-town has remarkable architecture, a fine offering of the arts, and pretty decent schools. A year ago I moved to Quincy for a fresh start. I have not been disappointed.

Here is a City-Data thread about Q-town: Quincy. Also, you can find several YouTube videos showing some sights of the town if you search on “Quincy, Illinois” in YouTube.

Good luck with your quest surfergirl67.