What do you think of Madison? (Milwaukee, Kenosha: 2009, crime rate, houses)

[Derry8107]

Dear Wisconsites:

To inform you, I am a Mississippian who is seriously thinking about relocating for UW-Madison Graduate School. I am very eager to hear more about Madison other than Forbes' Best Places to Live, CNN's List of Best Small Cities, etc. Do you like/dislike Madison? Do you have any complaints or concerns about the city currently or for the future since it's very popular and growing quickly? Anything you can share would be very helpful and deeply appreciated. By the way, I also have other thread called "Curious about Wisconsin Culture and the City of Madison" if you want to check out.

[Milwaukee City]

Madison people like to call themselves the Berkley of the Midwest for their "progressive" way of thinking or way they tell people they think and do. I am not a fan of madison, no surprise there but one thing that gets me is this utopia of how cool madison is. They feel the need to tell everyone how cool it is and it seems like people from madison have a need to put down any other city that isn't madison. You will here "how diverse" the city is when in fact it's not. The diverse student population is here for 4 yrs then gone out to LA, NYC, Chicago and other cities of the sort. Madison is a college town and if you want a fun college experience then I cannot think of a better place to go to college. Often people move to madison with big expectations only to be let down when the utopia hype did not live up to the hype. I am still amazed on how many people there have the upper east side of NY pretension about them, it's like nobody ever told them "YOU'RE IN MADISON NOT SAN FRAN!".

I have nothing but bad experiences when I went there and when I met the locals well, they didn't do themselves any favors by constantly putting down other people, cities and other parts of town. Which I thought was wierd for a town that was so "accepting" towards others. madison is what it is, a nice, safe and good place to raise a family. It's not a big city but it basically has everything you would need in life with the big cities close by when you need the big city amenities. One area I think madison lacks is a good nightlife and a upscale scene but how upscale can you get in a college town. 1 hour puts you in Milwaukee 2.5 puts you in Chicago so you don't have to live in madison to enjoy those cities if you prefer a smaller city. I would probably enjoy madison if it wasn't for the people that are from there.

[Allan Trafton]

I enjoy the times I have spent in Madison, the college gives the town an interesting vibrant edge. The University makes the town, without it Madsion would be Janesville with the capitol. The people of Madison turn me off for the most part. They seem full of themselves and the regular put downs towards Milwaukee are over the top. The town does not strike me as cosmopolitan or diverse. It is very much a Wisconsin city. Milwaukee on the other hand does not seem like a Wisconsin city. It's a nice town full of people with a bloated image of themselves and their town.

[jz1988]

I went to grad school at the University of Wisconsin, and I think the people in Madison are very nice. I never got the impression that Madison is a place full of pretentious, conceited people who like to put down other places, like some others seem to have on this board. It's a nice sized college town. Because it is a college town housing a huge student population, there is a surprising abundance of cultural amenities and a decent restaurant scene for such a small city. It's also a beautiful place, with a lot of great outdoor opportunities. Madison was a great place and I loved going to Pharmacy School there. The people are very nice, friendly and down to earth, just as you'd expect them to be in a Midwestern town. It has a very vibrant downtown area and a fun nightlife that caters well to the student population. Since you would be going to Madison to attend the University of Wisconsin, I would highly recommend it. It is a fantastic school with many world class academic facilities and amenities, and is one of the top research institutions not only in the nation, but also in the world in many departments. Also, the sports fans are awesome and UW Badger games are so much fun to go to, especially football, basketball, and hockey. And its location is nice too, it's just about 2 hours from the world class city of Chicago. Milwaukee is a fun, vibrant, mid-size city (where I currently live) and it is only about an hour away. It's a great city for the early to mid-twenties student demographic, but to be honest, the city does not have a lot to offer for those who are not part of that demographic. Another downside is that public transportation is horrible. It will get you around downtown/campus perfectly fine, but it is a huge pain if you are trying to use it to get to areas outside downtown/campus (although to be fair, you rarely will need to go outside of downtown unless you want to go to the mall or visit someone who lives outside of downtown/campus). With all of that said, since you are thinking of coming to Madison as a student, I think you will love it.

[Wellstone]

Don't listen to people from Milwaukee with a chip on their shoulder. Madison is a great city and for some reason folks from Milwaukee see the need to try and **** on it. I think its an inferiority complex. Maybe they believe that being the most populus city means Milwaukee should therefore be the "best". Unfortunately Milwaukee is a city where white flight took hold and left the core of the city to fall apart. After most of the population moved 20 miles out, later they realized it wasn't far enough and now the suburbs extend nearly 40 miles.

About the only people I know that weren't happy in Madison are those who couldn't adjust to the weather, hard line closed minded conservatives, and people from Milwaukee with chips on their shoulder.

[Derry8107]

Originally Posted by Wellstone

Don't listen to people from Milwaukee with a chip on their shoulder. Madison is a great city and for some reason folks from Milwaukee see the need to try and **** on it. I think its an inferiority complex. Maybe they believe that being the most populus city means Milwaukee should therefore be the "best". Unfortunately Milwaukee is a city where white flight took hold and left the core of the city to fall apart. After most of the population moved 20 miles out, later they realized it wasn't far enough and now the suburbs extend nearly 40 miles.

About the only people I know that weren't happy in Madison are those who couldn't adjust to the weather, hard line closed minded conservatives, and people from Milwaukee with chips on their shoulder.

I do realize that Madison is not for everyone. I understand why some people prefer Milwaukee since it's the largest city in the state.

Madison is very appealing to me; I just wish Madison has Cheesecake Factory, Maggiano's, Dave & Buster's, Culver's, and White Castle because those happen to be my favorite restaurants. I enjoyed them while living in both Missouri and Indiana for few years growing up. However, Milwaukee is only 75 miles away for me to enjoy those favorite restaurants once awhile so that's fine with me.

I also heard many people complaining that Milwaukee is becoming more ghetto with Chicagoans including the blacks are moving into Milwaukee, Racine, and Kenosha for cheaper cost of living bringing with them the rising crime rate.

Anyway, my whole point is that I prefer Madison over Milwaukee.

[jz1988]

There are actually about 3 or 4 Culver's in Madison to my knowledge, so you'd be able to enjoy Culver's conveniently.

It definitely would be nice if Madison did have a Cheesecake Factory, but the one in Wauwatosa, WI (a western suburb of Milwaukee) is just a little under an hour from Madison so it's not horrible. You can find the cheesecake from Cheesecake Factory at a few restaurants in Madison though. And to be honest, there are plenty of Italian restaurants that are much better than Maggiano's in both Madison and Milwaukee that you would probably love.

Unfortunately for White Castle, you would have to go all the way to Kenosha, WI (about 30 minutes south of Milwaukee), and you would have to go all the way to Chicago to go to Dave & Buster's. I'm not a big White Castle fan myself, but I hate how there is not Dave & Buster's in Milwaukee, that place is so much fun.

[Wingfoot]

First, although its just a big academic factory. a UW -Madison Phd will serve you well anywhere.
I wonder why the town would even factor in, you want the highest ranked dept. in your field, period.
No offense, but you will find UW MUCH more difficult than Ol'Miss so running hither and yon probaly won't be a priority.

If you are a "yuppy" type person you will likely like Madison , if not you likely won't. not very complicated.
As one poster mentioned, Madison is on a decline, some areas becoming ghetto, though not the end of the world.

[Jesse276]

Originally Posted by Derry8107

I also heard many people complaining that Milwaukee is becoming more ghetto with Chicagoans including the blacks are moving into Milwaukee, Racine, and Kenosha for cheaper cost of living bringing with them the rising crime rate.

If anything, Milwaukee has noticably improved over the last 15 years and especially the last 5. There are people that move to Milwaukee from Chicago and some of them are black (oh no!!!). However, the crime rate has been dropping in Milwaukee year over year, with a higher drop in violent crime.

Milwaukee crime drops 17% in 2009 - JSOnline

If you prefer to live in Madison, that's fine, but don't try to tear down Milwaukee to try to make yourself feel better, it's pathetic.

[Derry8107]

I know UW-Madison is more difficult university than the University of Mississippi "Ole Miss" where I got my BA. I wouldn't consider UW if I wasn't a very serious student. Also, I feel that my education at Ole Miss prepared me for the real, competitive world. Of course, I want the top school in my field, but location is also very important. When I move again, I want it to be an ideal place that I know it fits me very well. So far, Madison matches what I am looking for in a place but I won't make it official until I vist open houses and check Madison out soon. Nothing's wrong with my home state Mississippi but it's not for me at all. What's the point of moving to another state and still be miserable anyway?