How does Madison compare with other major university towns? (Janesville: appointed, fit in)

[filmfan]

Hi there-
Recently my job will require me to relocate and I'm deliberating where to live. One of my top choices is at Janesville and I'm thinking it will be a welcome change to live near Madison. The other choice is in MN, 1.5 hours from Minneapolis.

Been missing my days in Ithaca in upstate NY and the life surrounding a university-- the diversity, intelligent conversation and good food that can be had there. I grew up and went to school on the east coast and have been working in Iowa for the past 5 years or so. Of course, now I'm 30-something and I wonder if Madison is mostly for students. Also, reading some of the threads here wonder if there's any hope for outsiders (is it better to be from IL or NJ?)

As for WI, I've only visited once and don't know too much about the area. How are the roads in winter? I figure I'll end up commuting a bit just to be closer to the city. Are there any towns more progressive than others? Are there any areas better for singles to live? Where I live now is mostly populated by families, and so as far as I know there isn't too much out there for me in terms of having a social life. Any areas that should be avoided? My income is decent so I'd be willing to pay higher rent in exchange for easy access to culture, a sense of open-mindedness and a chat over a good brew every once in awhile.

This turned out to be a lot longer than I'd intended.. thanks for all your time and comments.

[Chelito23]

Janesville is a nice small city about 30-35 mintues from Madison on the interstate. It is not a mecca for singles, as most small midwestern cities aren't. It is a nice place though, lots of shopping and restaurants. Like you mentioned, Madison is close for the university lifestyle and influence since that is what you are looking for. Madison is not only for college students, it is for people like yourself who like the food, culture, diversity and can afford to live near and amongst it.

If you live in Iowa now, you won't have any driving problems here in the winter.

As for being an outsider, I think there has been some misinformation. People in Wisconsin tend to be sheltered. They cannot understand why anybody could possibly want to live anywhere else, and do NOT take criticism well at all. With that said, if you are the type to go with the flow, and not rock the boat and stand out amongst the locals, people will be fine. Personally, I hate the fact that people here need to force their beleives and values on others. But this is the Midwest, and I suppose people want to keep the livability high. Nonetheless, if you are a decent average person who adapts well to new situations and don't mind the Stepford wife mentality to some extent, you will be fine.

Other towns to consider could be Stoughton. Avoid Beloit, it's not as nice and has higher crime. Although it does have diversity! Hope this post helped.

[Drover]

I've been to several major university cities in or near the Midwest: Lafayette IN; Bloomington IN; Bloomington/Normal IL; Champaign/Urbana IL; East Lansing MI; Wheeling WV; Evanston IL; Iowa City IA; Lawrence KS. None of them with the possible exception of Evanston begin to compare to Madison; and Evanston only compares because much of its culture and nightlife is shaped by the fact that it borders Chicago proper. The quality of life throughout the entire city, the diversty of businesses, the vibrancy and vitality of the combined dowtown/campus areas, several vibrant neighborhood business distrcts, great restuarants, great bookstores, great music stores, nice coffeehouses, a surprisingly tame bar scene (not to say there aren't plenty of frat-meathead barfholes in Madison -- there are, but there also a lot of nice bars), the two lakes right downtown, quick access to just about any type of outdoor recreational activity, and a seamless transition between the university culture and the city culture all make for a pleasant experience. Madison verily shouts "this city is ALIVE" from corner to corner. And unlike most univerisity towns, Madison is not just for students. There is a little something for everybody there. As previously noted, the culture between the university and the surrrounding city is practically seamless; there is virtually no "student versus townies" animosity as is often found in other midwest university towns. Based on what I know about Ithaca, which is admittedly from anecdotes only, I think you'll find Madison compares quite well.

This may not be important to you, but for me another bonus for Madison is that it has the best beer scene in the Midwest. A whole bunch of high-quality breweries call Madison their primary market (New Glarus, Lake Louie, Capital, Ale Asylum, Great Dane) or their secondary market (Sprecher, Central Waters, Lakefront).

If there's a downside, it's that this all comes at a price: Madison is an eye-openingly expensive place to live for a Midwest metro area of its size. Real estate prices are pretty comparable to the Chicago area. This may not be a concern if you intend to live near Janesville, as the real estate insanity does not reach all the way down to Janesville. But neither does the Madison hipness. Not that there's anything wrong with Janesville, but much of the stuff that makes Madison what it is does not apply to Janesville.

Chelito suggested Stoughton. That's probably the best place to be if you need to commute to Janesville for work but want relatively easy access to the amenities of Madison. Not to mention Stoughton is a nice little town in its own right. Not exactly a "nightlife" town (and neither is Janesville) but a very nice little place to call home. Best of all, the Madison housing market hasn't jacked up Stoughton real estate prices too much. It's still pretty affordable.

[filmfan]

Well, I do consider myself a decent person, definitely not unique, albeit I realize I'm somewhat of an oddball in the midwest scene. For instance, I'm not white or black or an immigrant. There are people that I have worked closely with for years who somehow still don't get that I was born and raised in the US like themselves. Accepting that I am different, I'm hoping to find a place where the prevailing idea of "average" is not too narrowly defined.

I did take positive note of the beer selection during my visit to Madison (yes, a definite bonus for me, too!) as well as the film festival held there.

Both of you recommended Stoughton- I will definitely look into it. Any other towns or particular neighborhoods within Madison to check out?

Thanks to you guys for putting in the first replies to my post. If your posts are any reflection of the rest of Wisconsin I should put my worries aside!

If anyone else reading this post moved to WI from out of state, what initial factors do you think were instrumental in getting yourself well adapted?

[Drover]

Oddball-ness and/or eccentricity is considered a high art in Madison. But here's the thing: Madison is an oasis of oddballism in an erstwhile landscape of standard Midwest small-town normalism. And it is primarily the latter you will find in Stoughton. I think the reason we both suggested Stoughton was to suggest a clean & tidy place to live that would cut down down on your commute time to Janesville while still giving you relatively easy access to Madison. Many have observed that Wisconsin folks are a bit slow to accept outsiders and that it is the outsiders who need to approach folks to make friends. Again, Madison is the exception to this paradigm but Stoughton is not. If you're worried about fitting in, Stoughton may not be a good fit. If you're not necessarily worried about fitting in but want to be yourself without being run out of town on a rail, then Stoughton will work, as your neighbors are more apt to ignore you than give a crap that you're an oddball.

Still, it sounds like Madison proper would be a better fit for you, if you can cope with a one-hour, 40-mile commute each way. It will be mostly easy interstate stuff. No traffic jams, unless you decided to live right in or near downtown Madison. The portion of Madison where eclectic-ness is most on display is on Williamson Street on the East Side. (Madison neighborhoods don't really have names.) But you'll be right at home anywhere within a 3-mile radius of campus. Even outside that radius eccentricity is accepted; it's just not as prominently displayed as in the campus area.

Best of luck to you.

[Chelito23]

Drover,

I was thinking about recommending McFarland...it is really more of a suburb than a rural community. Plus it is a community on the southeast side of the city, so that would shave 15 minutes off of a daily commute to and from Janesvile. Interstate the whole way. Not sure about rental opportunities there.

OK, I say check out Monona and McFarland to be closer to Madison. These areas will be more pricey than an outlying community...but more of the Madison vibe and still easy access to Jville. Also, they are the cheaper parts of Madison.

I think the best thing is to come and visit and chek out the area first hand though, because many people have different tolerances for commutes, aethetics etc. What do you think Drover?

[filmfan]

Hmmm. How would you describe the eccentricity there? I think I may have chosen the wrong word- I don't try to be different but my ethnicity makes me stand out in the midwest; since I really don't fit into any stereotypes I wasn't more specific. Just thought I would clarify before all the other posters join in with the possible interpretation that I'm some flaming weirdo. With 2 yrs of living in NYC figured into my own barometer of eccentricity, actually I feel I'm quite dull-- and in need of a charge from the city. Thanks once again for the tips, they are very helpful.

[Drover]

Well, I hate to be cynical about this, but it seems to be true: in Madison, ethnicity and eccentricity are part of the same continuum. If you're ethnic, they will go out of their way to be annoyingly accepting and gracious and whatever, in order to make sure you're perfectly clear about the fact that they embrace all things different. And while Madison swears it's the most diverse place on Planet Earth, it is still 85% white, so being ethnic will make you "different" and therefore "good." Madison is the kind of town that points to the fact that it has a Middle Eastern restaurant & a feminist bookstore and says, "See? We're like, totally diverse n' stuff, and we want recognition for our diversity!" It's enough to make a Chicagoan want to smack 'em all and tell 'em to shaddap.

On the other hand, most of small-town and rural Wisconsin is more apt to look at you, shrug their shoulders and say "meh" even as they secretly wonder how you ended up in the middle of a ghost-white state.

So basically, your ethnicity, whatever it is, shouldn't be a problem anywhere in the Madison-to-Janesville corridor. The question becomes, how much time do you have to be plugged into "the city" to get your charge? If it's most or all of the time, I'd lean toward recommending living in the south part of Madison and commuting to Janesville. If you just need to plug in occasionally, such as on weekends, I'd still suggest some place like Stoughton that will give you easy access to Janesville for work and Madison for play.

[Chelito23]

That previous post was an excellent synopsis of Madison. Very white bread, yet diverse for the Midwest. Being non white if anything will make people more interested in you. A lot of people are genuinelyinterested in "different" people here, and most will go out of the way to show that they accept you. This is no Chicago...at all! But, Jancesville is prob. on 5% whereas Madison is 15%. I would def. choose Madison. There are a lot of decent, affordable apartments in South Madison (and some not so nice ones) which are truely diverse. Chech SOUTH of the Beltline near Fish Hatchery Road and Arbor Hills. Some complexes are better than others. My sister and husband just moved there and like it. Still easy access to Janesville.

[filmfan]

Thank you both for taking the time to share your expertise of the area. I also scrolled down to previous posts and found more interesting info, including some of your posts. My decision has been made and I'm ready to follow up on it. This website was surprisingly helpful to me and I think Drover should be appointed an ambassador for his contributions！