Is Des Moines very "crunchy" (Iowa City: fit in, homes)

[decidingwheretolive]

We are looking to relocate to either Des Moines or Iowa City. It's my husband and I and 2 preschool age kids. We are liberal, not religious, own an "eco-friendly" business and are looking for a nice family friendly neighborhood. We have looked at Iowa City and liked the area but are wondering if we should consider Des Moines as well. Or does it sound like we'd be a better fit in Iowa City. What I like about Des Moines from my research is just that it is a larger city and there seems to be a lot of nice homes in our price range and good schools.

[Roy G. Biv]

Either would be fine. Iowa City is a lot smaller but has more character.

[capitalcityguy]

You'd fit in well in Des Moines.

[thatguy1]

Lol, crunchy?

[mrs_moby73]

I think it's just another way of asking if DM is "granola" or at least open to granola-ness. I personally liked how she put it...it made me laugh.

[thatguy1]

Originally Posted by mrs_moby73

I think it's just another way of asking if DM is "granola" or at least open to granola-ness. I personally liked how she put it...it made me laugh.

I’m a fairly inarticulate dude, things like that get past me like a blue hair gets passed on the freeway.
I get it now, though!

[my54ford]

only if you fry it too long..............

[Northern Traveler]

I LOVE granola but I'm not a liberal what-so-ever. Frankly I get tired of hearing a great food get associated with politics.

[SharpHawkeye]

According to Urban Dictionary:

CRUNCHY: Adjective. Used to describe persons who have adjusted or altered their lifestyle for environmental reasons. Crunchy persons tend to be politically strongly left-leaning and may be additionally but not exclusively categorized as vegetarians, vegans, eco-tarians, conservationists, environmentalists, neo-hippies, tree huggers, nature enthusiasts, etc.

Also used to describe establishments where alternative foods and products are sold, i.e. natural food stores.

In my opinion, there are 'crunchy' neighborhoods in Des Moines, (Sherman Hill, Ingersoll, Drake perhaps) but as a whole it's not on the whole a 'crunchy' place. (Very car-orientated, lots of suburbs, etc.) Iowa City is more 'crunchy' on the whole, but I think you could make it work in Des Moines also.

[Cornbowler]

Having lived and worked in Des Moines and with relatives still there, I would definitely place my bets on Iowa City. DSM is certainly larger, but mostly sprawl. You really don't gain much from the size other than longer commutes. I have lived all many places (London, Australia, Wisconsin, Tennessee) and Iowa City feels more "crunchy" than DSM by a long shot. I think the previous post was correct there are pockets (Sherman Hill, Drake) in DSM but you will be close to shady parts of town. Having said that all that, I have never lived in Iowa City but if you polled most Iowans I think they would pick Iowa City for the granola city.