Battle Creek move for a 24 year old? (Detroit, Lansing: home, rent)

[rob043055]

Originally Posted by Pyewacket

. And an alarming increase in crime. (If you decide to go there, I can give you some pointers about where to live..)

What is going on with the "alarming increase in crime" in BC?

[lisalisa81]

Look, it bothers me that people that aren't even from here want to tell you about it. The average age of someone in Battle Creek is 35, hardly an old person town! It's not a town filled with hickerbillys either, yes there are some. Nightlife, there is an after hours club called the vibe that is open until 3 or 4. There is the Balljoint, Par 4, those are bars/clubs. Gary Fields Comedy Club right downtown that has live entertainment 4 to five nights a week, really good resturants like claras on the river, 17 west, etc.. there is a mall, Lakeview Square. Three movie theaters, countless other places to shop, Walmart, Kmart, Target, lots of fast food. Tons of bars we even have our own beer, Arcadia, we have a couple of small college campuses. Miller ,Davenport, Western Michigan, KCC. Kalamazoo is nearby and they also have nightclubs, bars, and shopping. Crime is moderate but you don't have to worry about someone trying to stick you up, mostly young kids trying to be tough. Look, if someone is telling you about Battle creek, make sure they are from battle creek b-4 you listen mmkay!

[tjay]

Originally Posted by lisalisa81

Look, it bothers me that people that aren't even from here want to tell you about it. The average age of someone in Battle Creek is 35, hardly an old person town! It's not a town filled with hickerbillys either, yes there are some. Nightlife, there is an after hours club called the vibe that is open until 3 or 4. There is the Balljoint, Par 4, those are bars/clubs. Gary Fields Comedy Club right downtown that has live entertainment 4 to five nights a week, really good resturants like claras on the river, 17 west, etc.. there is a mall, Lakeview Square. Three movie theaters, countless other places to shop, Walmart, Kmart, Target, lots of fast food. Tons of bars we even have our own beer, Arcadia, we have a couple of small college campuses. Miller ,Davenport, Western Michigan, KCC. Kalamazoo is nearby and they also have nightclubs, bars, and shopping. Crime is moderate but you don't have to worry about someone trying to stick you up, mostly young kids trying to be tough. Look, if someone is telling you about Battle creek, make sure they are from battle creek b-4 you listen mmkay!

no offense but the dude mentioned wanting something like new york city....the best restaurant in mid-michigan cannot even compare to the restaurants there. the only thing remotely close to what he's looking for is ann arbor or grand rapids....or yeah, chicago. i agree with the person who said take the job and save up for a few years....mid michigan is NOT what he's looking for. and who the heck wants to drive all the way to ann arbor or chicago just to go out? those cities are WAY out of the way.

[M TYPE X]

Yay, it has a Target.

Live in Kalamazoo and spend alternate weekends in Ann Arbor and Chicago.

[UpperPeninsulaRon]

Originally Posted by caper656

ahh race tracks!! hrmm soo no mall...no walmart...holly crap..i wont have to field my own veggies will i?? =)

thanks for the info...anyone live there now and have opinions?

also, are there some places to check out while im there? im flying into kalamazoo then driving to battle creek...i figure ill spend a day out in kala since thats the closest actual city

I can only give my impressions of the city because I have a relative who lives in Battle Creek and I have been there countless times. First of all, if your salary is as reported, you will be in the 99.99 percentile of highest paid individuals in the city. There is very little to do - if your definition of "to do" is nightlife, fine restaurants, etc. Yes, there are some fine eateries, but no one central area of places that might draw people to congregate.

Chicago's great, but it's not like you can just get off work at 6:00 and head into downtown Chicago for the evening. But if you want to be able to buy a lot of land, have a nice home in a more rural setting, and like outdoor activities, then you will be fine.

You would love Ann Arbor but that is just way too far. Perhaps an option for you would be living somewhere nearer to Grand Rapids, but then you have a long commute.

As someone who is also an engineer, I can only say that engineering jobs in general are not usually available in places like midtown Manhattan.

[jiffin4java]

I grew up in Battle Creek and graduated from there. My parents now live outside BC but still work at the Enquirer there and I still have many family friends still there. I would suggest living outside BC itself. Kalamazoo/Portage area may be a better bet for you and it's not a far commute. Battle Creek is largely a factory town and the crime is getting worse. I can't say how the schools are now, but they were okay when I went through them ('98 grad). There isn't a lot to do there but like other posters have said, Kalamazoo and Ann Arbor aren't that far away. Michigan does have a lot of nice outdoors places to visit though, so if you like having fun in nature, you'll find a lot to explore up north. Not sure if that helps or not, but hey.

[deslok]

I wonder what the guy ended up doing? This post started a year ago. I live in Chicago and grew up in battle Creek. A lot of posters don't even live in the areas mentioned? Hope you didn't take their word for it! Having lived in all places most mentioned ( GR, Kzoo, battle Creek) I'd say that none of those are what you are looking for. They all lack something necessary for total happiness for what your wanting. Grand Rapids people are too conservative. Kalamazoo is way too spread out. If you don't mind driving 15 minutes to get someplace, go for it. You can live right downtown, but you'll need to drive to get to crossroads mall. Battle Creek has great places to eat, but not enough of what your looking for socially, nightlife wise, or diversity wise. I'd say all of western Michigan lacks the diversity actually.
Dunno what the guy meant about you can't get off work at 6 in Chicago and head downtown for the evening? Well sure, if you consider Chicago to be the SUBURBS, then right, you most likely aren't going to do that. If you live DOWNTOWN though, in one of the 70 neighborhoods in Chicago, of course you can go downtown after work, its a walk or train ride away.

[amanda_2112]

I went to high school in BC and loved it. There is a mall, walmart, meijer, Barnes and Noble. They have a lot of bars, b/c that is what people in the midwest do best... drink! Denny's (good food), Chilli's, Applebees, and many cool places downtown.

The Lakeview School district is a very nice area. Nice homes, taxes are bit high, but there aren't as bad as Harper Creek and not as crappy as BC Central. I personally liked BC just it was big, but if you want something bigger you can always go up to K-zoo. I have lived in K-zoo while attending Western. Great place to visit... sucks to live there. More and more crime. Even in the decent areas anymore. BC isn't as bad.


Welcome to the area

[jsc0787]

B.C is horrible. I spent my first 22 years there and went to the community college. I'm now in a graduate progam at M.S.U. and don't even return to visit. B.C. is a white Ghetto. You can't go to a bar without some punk talking about fighting someone. If you have a post high school education steer clear.

[jpoole52]

it's not a place for young people, i'd definitely just commute the 30 mins from kalamazoo, that's a great place for 20 somethings, contrary to the popular belief that it's just a college town. it has an emerging downtown that keeps getting better.