Green Bay, Madison or Milwaukee?? (Appleton: job, offer, schools)

[vagabond wannabe]

all i'm trying to say is that it seems that some of you are "representing" certain cities, or even trying to promote them (do you work for their CVBs?). frankly, i find your views on GB and MKE to be a little pollyanna. of course there are good areas and nice things about every city, but i'm trying to give a general impression. GB, when compared with Madison, will leave MOST people bored out of their respective gourds. but, in fairness, i've not lived in MKE, so i'll leave them alone for the rest of my days.

[43north87west]

... yeah... if you are concerned about the size of the city, pick Milwaukee.

You can find it all. It is only 1.5Million people (metro area) which is smaller than the Minneapolis/St. Paul area, but it still offers a lot.

As far as Green Bay goes, it is a nice area with easy access to a lot of recreation and close proximity to nature, but... not my thing. It is a little too "small town" for me.

Madison is very cosmopolitan because of the huge University student population. Very liberal too, in many ways. I would check out Milwaukee. If church is a big part of your life, you will find exactly what you're looking for, even if only because of the larger population. And it is really a nice place to live as well.

[ekg56]

I really like Milwaukee. Coming from Chicago it is a smaller version of Chicago. My daughter plans to move their when she is done with school, she is going to be a nurse. We live about 3 hours north of Milwaukee but we try and get down there at least once a month. I love the lake and the great variety of restaurants.

[toast12]

Madison is an all around great city. Pleanty of churches great schools (public and Private) and a good sized metro area.

[StylingDave]

I have lived in green bay my entire life. Not much changes around here. It has just enough traffic to get under your skin. Though there isnt much to say about the night life, you have plenty of things to do on those warm summer days.

I havent reaklly noticed crime as a growing problem, but someone dug through my car in my driveway 2 nights ago. This was the first time I had ever been a "victim" to any crime in green bay.

Other than that, life is pretty casual.

[why_so_much_racism]

well certainly as Green Bay is a more rural community, church going bible beaters tend to hang out there lol. but i'm sure you coudl find what you want in Madison or Milwaukee. i'm personally from Madison, and i'm realy fond of it. state capital after all, beautiful, not too big (like milwaukee), not too small. i dont know if you would like a big city like milwaukee. if youre from the twin cities youmight. but as many say you shoudl live in a burb of milwaukee, not in the city. whereas in Madison, i woudl recommend living within the city limits. its just a friendlier community. but the choice is yours.

[MWKlover]

Originally Posted by 43north87west

... yeah... if you are concerned about the size of the city, pick Milwaukee.

You can find it all. It is only 1.5Million people (metro area) which is smaller than the Minneapolis/St. Paul area, but it still offers a lot.

Don't mean to be a know-it-all, but according to recent (2006) census figures the population of Milwaukee's metro area is actually about 1.75 million, a comfortable population.

[joe_joe]

But I thought I'd offer my two cents here anyways. It's pathetic to see all the Green Bay residents here ferociously sticking up for their town. The UW-GB student was absolutely correct in stating that the city is zoned very poorly. Industry is all over the place and the city has absolutely no feel to it whatsoever. Not sure if you've ever been to Rockford, IL, but it's very similar. There's also very little to do if you don't like drinking beer. It is, however, very close to Door County which is a beautiful part of the state. The problem with Green Bay is that many of the residents have a chip on their shoulder and constantly feel the need to praise their town and make it seem like something it's not - as is evidenced by the posts on this thread. Many of them do not like outsiders and in my opinion aren't very nice in terms of interacting with strangers. The town definitely has a backwater feel to it, and not in a good way.

Madison would probably be my recommendation for you if you are looking to get into a smaller town. It does not have a "city" feel to it the way the Twin Cities and Milwaukee do. Madison is home to a large university and many politicians, but it is also full of great cultural opportunities (restaurants, opera) and natural outdoor beauty. However, while there are churches in Madison, you will probably not be happy with how liberal 99% of the city is given that you are apparently a conservative. If you like to receive varying points of view from your local media outlets it won't be happening in Madison. That being said, I think that the people who gravitate toward Madison are very similar to those living in the Twin Cities, and you would probably feel at home living there if you liked MN.


If you don't mind being in a larger city, Milwaukee would be a good option for you as well. While others are correct in stating that race relations are very strained in Milwaukee, this isn't exactly a problem that shows itself on a day to day basis. I would recommend the Bayview neighborhood. You can get a relatively cheap home and it is very safe. One problem with Milwaukee is that its public schools are atrocious, and you have stated that you are raising children. If you move to Milwaukee, I would highly recommend sending your kids to a private school if you can afford it. You will most likely be able to since living in Milwaukee is far cheaper than living in the Twin Cities. As someone else stated, the churches in Milwaukee are fantastic. It is a large enough city where you will always have something fun to do, and there are festivals all summer long. At the same time there are neighborhoods like Bayview which are very cozy and do not feel so crowded.

Best of luck with your move if you haven't already made it.

[ladihawkae]

I guess it really comes down to what you want to do when you get here. The best advise I can give you is to give up a couple of weekends and come visit. spend a few days in each city and talk to the locals. check out the churches and see what each city has to offer. we can all recommend but ultimately, everyone settled on their preference for their personal tastes. we can tell you where to go but in the end, our wants and needs are not necessarily your own. That said, I am deciding where I want to move to as well. I am between Janesville, Madison and Milwaukee. would absolutely consider appleton if it were not for the fact it is way to far from our kids who live in east troy and delavan areas. I lived in greenfield, which is outside of milwaukee, and actually lived downtown when i went to marquette u. which by the way one of the worst neighborhoods..there wasn't a day that went by when i wasn't approached for change. and there was actually a shooting a few doors down from me. that said, there is going to be bad neighborhoods no matter where you go. it goes with the territory of cities and a homeless population. i'm actually leaning towards janesville. its a nice town from what i've seen of it. i like madison as well. you mention the housing was expensive in mn. well, you may want to check out madison's housing because it is a lot higher than milwaukee and green bay, and janesville. the taxes are wild. But...you get what you pay for. that said..happy hunting!

[trizkutt]

My two cents...

As a Milwaukee transplant living in Madison for school, I can say with confidence I'd take Milwaukee over Madison in a heartbeat. Madison is a mostly one-dimensional college town, with a somewhat delusional culture built around their own perception of Madison as God's gift to the upper midwest. I'd say Madison is smug to a fault.

Yes, there is a farmer's market. Yes, you have less racial strife than Milwaukee. Yes you have UW. But really, there is only one or two streets with anything going on (State, and maybe Johnson, although that's a stretch). I've honestly never understood the Madison worship that goes on around this state and even beyond. It's a college town. It has nowhere the diversity of offerings Milwaukee has, which is really the only true city in the state. I doubt those who label Milwaukee a "run-down, rust-belt" city have ever been there. Or if they have, they certainly missed the better parts.

In terms of culture, Milwaukee has everything Madison has except on a larger scale. It has literally dozens of neighborhoods that would beat any Madison neighborhood, save state street, in a heartbeat. The development that my hometown has seen is incredible. Madison's building...a new dorm? Not a whole lot else, relatively speaking.

OK, that's all.