10 reasons why or why not to move to Fort Wayne area (Columbus: relocate, real estate)

[elmplove]

As you have read in a post below we are considering moving to Fort Wayn... what part we don't know ... but I really thought this would be a fun thread

What are the 10 best reasons to live in Fort Wayne???

10 Reasons NOT to live at Fort Wayne

LOL there is no right or wrong answer but a way people can get to know your city better

[ShadowCaver]

Pros
1. Many festivals in town, and in surrounding areas
2. Convenient to Indy, Chicago, Cleveland, Columbus, Detroit...
3. Many choices of restaurants - some very great local places
4. Many choices of sports - minor league hockey & baseball
5. Very nice parks, greenways, and recreational areas
6. Good-to-great choices and quality of educational systems
7. Non-smoking areas [bars, restaurants, clubs, etc.]

Cons
1. Cold, blistering cold in the wicked winters
2. Kinda flat [head a bit north, and get some nice rolling tho']
3. Corn, soybeans, corn, soybeans...
4. Not very bicycle friendly
5. Coliseum Road, and [getting worse too] Lima Road - too many freakin' stoplights!
6. Hamilton Hole, errr,,, Square - politics and waste of taxpayer money
7. Too close to Detroit
8. Gas prices are 10-20 cents higher than surrounding areas

[mbuszu]

Pros (just adding to what was previously posted)
1. Fort Wayne is a very family-friendly city with more than its fair share of activities and accommodations geared towards children and/or families. There's more affordable activities here in this specific vicinity than I've seen in many other comparable cities.
2. Weather in Fort Wayne is moderate without tremendous extremes of cold or heat experienced in places I have lived previously such as Buffalo NY. Sure we have cold winters and warm summers, but the great thing is that the majority of the year is comfortable.
3. The cost of real estate is quite affordable in Fort Wayne. Among the lowest cost on average in the entire USA, great deals can be found. You can literally spend as much as you want. Relatively new 4 bedroom/2.5 bath houses are available here for only $150k or up to $700k+ in manor-like settings.
4. State Income and sales taxes are below average in Fort Wayne. Additionally, the cost of insurance (property/casualty/health/life... etc) is below average. Thus you can do well in Fort Wayne on less income than most other mid-sized cities.
5. Fort Wayne is quickly becoming very bicycle friendly as bike trails are being added in several parts of the city. In Southwest Fort Wayne the Aboite New Trails project is experiencing incredible success and within just another year a couple major bike routes will be completed connecting neighborhoods and retail centers as well as the southwest vicinity with downtown.

[DC 38]

Originally Posted by ShadowCaver

6. Hamilton Hole, errr,,, Square - politics and waste of taxpayer money

Do you by chance mean Harrison Square? I have heard it is a pretty controversial development. As an outsider, I think it looks nice.

[mbuszu]

Originally Posted by DC 38

Do you by chance mean Harrison Square? I have heard it is a pretty controversial development. As an outsider, I think it looks nice.

Yes - he meant Harrison Square.

Many of the locals do not support the Harrison Square project because of just a few key reasons. Here they are:
1) The project is projected to cost an unbelievable large amount of money (over 100 million). Additionally, no general vote was conducted to determine that Harrison Square was a project Fort Wayne citizens even wanted.
2) The core of the project is a baseball stadium geared towards a minor league team (and for which there already is a stadium which will be left when Harrison Square is completed).
3) The politicians of Fort Wayne have made numerous "poor" fiscal decisions over the last 7 years I've lived here... costs have been in the "millions" and who knows how many lost jobs.
4) The main roads downtown around where Harrison Square is being constructed cannot support the amount of traffic which will be generated by the stadium. Not even factored into the cost of the project several roads will need massive expansion in the not too distant future (if the stadium really draws as many people as the ambitious projections indicate)

I can actually think of a lot more reasons to not support Harrison Square, but those are the top ones I hear often.

What irks me is that Fort Wayne obviously needs more well-paying jobs to continue to expand and prosper. If our local Government spent a fraction of what they proposed for Harrison Square instead on courting a few mid-sized corporations to establish or relocate their base of operations in Fort Wayne each year, we would have all the growth we could handle (including a larger tax base).

What is a brand new baseball stadium, a few condos, and another strip mall mostly funded by tax dollars really going to achieve? Wouldn't better city schools, downtown revitalization projects involving local business owners, and more medium-sized businesses setting up shop in Fort Wayne go a lot more farther than Harrison Square in helping out our city?

[ShadowCaver]

Originally Posted by DC 38

Do you by chance mean Harrison Square? I have heard it is a pretty controversial development. As an outsider, I think it looks nice.

Thanks DC 38 for catching this, and mbuszu for the help in clarifying... durn those beers on a Sunday evening affecting my name-remembering & typing skills . Yes, mbuszu captured most of main high [or low] lights of this project. Guess hoping not to stray too far off-topic here, but as we are discussing pros/cons of Ft Wayne, and this can definitely be one of those. My biggest beef is that there is a perfectly fine stadium [underutilized IMHO] that is paid for, is relatively comfortable, and has quite decent access, esp. when compared to downtown area. I love the thought, idea, desires, push to develop downtown, make it strong and vibrant - but NOT at the expense of killing something that is already working good PLUS at this financial [taxpayer, past and present and future] cost.

Again, IMHO, take the money being spent on this 'project' and use it for the waterfront and related greenways and parks and water-related developments there upon. I would bet a much larger success and payback with this kind of endeavor. For example, Headwaters Park is very nice, but there is so much more potential that could be done up and down all three sections of the rivers here. Clean 'em up, work WITH the river levels, don't fight 'em, and make it a place of attraction and pride, not something that appears filthy/dirty and underappreciated - using the Old Fort as part of this too. Just a thought...

[fabumom07]

The gentlemen have summed up the very truthful reasons Harrison Square is problematic, but the reason it is being done is that our downtown has been less than vibrant since the 60's. We never successfully re-imagined our downtown, tore down lots of cool buildings and put in some homely ones in the 70,s and there are not enough great stores or restaraunts to draw a lively scene.

There is a feeling that we should have a great downtown scene like other cities, so the "experts" keep trying to compare us to similar size cities and repeating their downtown revitilizations. People hang out at Glenbrook mall, Tuscan style outdoor Jefferson Pointe Mall, and other places. But our central hub is less dynamic. I still love downtown, and go to Coney Island,Henry's, Club Soda and other gems if you know where to look.

If you have kids, the Zoo makes up for all that! It is wonderful.

[ShadowCaver]

fabumom07 brings to mind an important point - the comparison to other cities of similar sizes, etc. Having spent a bit of time in Greenville, SC, it was interesting to see that place being used as a model by the FtW group. While there is the BiLo Center and some other sports/concert/other venues in the downtown area, what brought me there to that part was the rich variety and quality stores, restaurants, shopping, and the such - kinda vibrant [SC style of course ], unique, and good. Had some streets blocked off on occasion, holding such like FtW is doing with Columbia Street [recent Mardi Gras and Jimmy Buffett fests ]. Anyhow, its those combined little things [not the large single focus stadium thing], all combined and together, that make the downtown and alive, and profitable...

[fabumom07]

Hi cagirl767, sorry it took me awhile to respond, it is back to school regisration time here. All the activities mentioned like Science Central, It's Playtime(Yeah we have one Southwest,between that and the new Target I'll save gas going North!),and the painting studios are great activities. I will also tell you that our local YMCA-Jorgensens is a beautiful new facility with a pool, climbing wall, game rooms, basketball, etc. and many area families join as a place for warm indoor winter activities. We were members one year, and I used the health club which has free childcare for members. There are lots of classes on dance, sports, swimming, and arts. It is a higher fee for non-members and you must be a member for swim classes.

The public Southwest Allen schools also offer afterschool enrichment classes that are very affordable in everything from Tae Kwon Do to guitar to scrapbooking for kids.

Another winter activity that kids rarely tire of is simply playing in the snow! I moved here feom CA at age 10 and found the snow to be a source of wonderment. You will be cold, but bundle your kids up and give them a sled and snowboard and they will have plenty of fun in the snow, playing and buiding snowpeople .Just have the hot coa-coa ready when they come in!

[fabumom07]

I really need to stop posting before my last cup of coffee is gone- this reply was for Cagirl, but hope everyone here enjoys it too!