Burlington, IA questions. (Des Moines, Cedar Rapids, Davenport: real estate, housing, jobs)

[NMFrontier]

Thinking about transfering out of NM to Burlington, IA. Wondering what the town is like as far as crime, good schools etc. We have a one year old and four year old and Clovis,NM is just getting very bad. We just came back from Burlington but only stayed one day, and couldn't get a real good judgement on it. Thought it was beautiful though. Thanks for any input.

Jason McGregor
dakota19@suddenlink.net

[NMFrontier]

Anybody???? No information at all???

[IOWAHAWKEYES]

I grew up in Burlington. It's a nice town that sits in a beautiful natural setting that most residents don't appreciate at all. I still try to make it back there to visit at least once a year and after being away you realize how nice of a place it really is.

Back when I was a kid the population of that town was close to 40K. Today I think the population is more like 28K but it is still the economic and commercial center of the area. There just aren't many professional employment options in the area for the college grad. It's an old blue collar riverboat town with an old downtown that still bears some true architectural gems.

There is a single A minor league baseball team there (Burlington Bees), a big water park recently opened, the annual Steamboat Days music festival on the riverfront still draws big names and packs in crowds of 30K+, serious crime is virtually non-existent, people are friendly, public schools are fine, housing reasonable, etc.

If you have any specific questions, I'm pretty sure I'll be able to answer them.

[NMFrontier]

Thank you very much for the information. We saw the water park, Fun City, I believe, and the Bee's had a game the night we were there, on Tuesday. Did not see very many little ones out, yards, parks, by the river, Wal-Mart etc... so I didn't know if it was more of an older person town or not. West Burlington seemed more active. Once again thanks for the input, it was greatly appreciated.

Jason

[BRL resident]

I live in Burlington. Its not a bad town, its a little smaller then where I grew up. Im married no kids and have no reservations about raising a family in this city. My wife and I have talked about moving back to where we met, Cedar Rapids but we have made such great friends that we really do not want to leave. I'll be honest: economically the city is struggling, alot of jobs have left as NAFTA has outsourced many jobs in todays global economy. But if you have a career bringing you here then your set. However, Burlington is also a very affordable town to live in. Gas was 2.96 yesterday when I filled up my truck. I bought a 1300 sq foot home three years ago with a three car garage for 86K. The real estate market is a buyers market in this area. I'm work for the city. The one thing I love in addition to my friends is boating on the Mississippi River. If you are looking for a small town that is a morning or afternoon drive to STL, or CHI, Burlington isn't bad, I drive 40 minutes to the train station in Galesburg and take a train up to CHI to watch the cubs twice a summer.. GO CUBS. Iowa isn't bad, there are larger cities around that have the bigger attractions like: Davenport, Cedar Rapids, Des Moines, Council Bluffs too. I noticed you mentioned W BRL. W BRL is where all the new urban sprawl is taking place. There is a new hospital built 6 years ago and all the business is growing that way. Yeah, we have Wal-Mart,Target, Lowes, and Menards (home improvement). W BRL is a small suburb that has a large influx of business transients during the day as that is where the majority of retail and industry is located. Anyway if you have any more questions I'd be happy to to answer them for you.

[NMFrontier]

Thanks for the input. My job would be in Ft. Madison, but I rather live in Burlington. So I would make the drive on Highway 61 everyother day. Gas is 3.19 right now and the housing market is sky high here, running about 110 to 135 per square foot. We only have around 32,000 people here and the murders are skyhigh, force rape and crime is just out of hand. We are a very poor state and the education system here is a joke, that is why I am looking, but anyways, thanks again for the information it is very helpful.

[metro223]

I spent 15 years in the Burlington/Ft.Madison/Keokuk area and the only thing i REALLY miss about it is the natural beauty. My family always talks about what a good potential the place could have, but most people in the area just don't have the right attitude and really don't know what they have on the Mississippi. Sadly that area is in a state of decline and things don't look to be getting better.

I wish I could say better about my old hometown but I don't want you to make a bad decision, especially with kids that young.

[NMFrontier]

Thank you very much for your honest opinion. We have decided not to move there. We are still looking around though.
Thanks again

[aurelius]

Burlington has lots of park space! I'm from there but I was smart and got out young

[metro223]

Like I said, for me its just the natural beauty there. I don't want you point you away from IA though, there are some great areas in the state. Des Moines, Cedar Rapids/IA City, Dubuque... and there are nice small or medium size towns within a close commute of all of the above. That's what I would suggest if possible with the job.