Welcome to City-Data.com Forum!
U.S. CitiesCity-Data Forum Index
Go Back   City-Data Forum > U.S. Forums > Minnesota > Minneapolis - St. Paul
 [Register]
Minneapolis - St. Paul Twin Cities
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
View detailed profile (Advanced) or search
site with Google Custom Search

Search Forums  (Advanced)
Reply Start New Thread
 
Old 01-17-2012, 12:20 PM
 
1,072 posts, read 2,918,262 times
Reputation: 611

Advertisements

ok moving here last year from philly. i have really grown to like edina. easy access to my job in bloomington. living near target, southdale mall, galleria, southtown(gamestop, applebees, toys r us). Just the fact that everything i Need is less than 10 minutes from me. also on nice days i can walk to places if i choose to. the kids go to school in richfield school district and have grown to enjoy it. but i do have a few problems. 1) i need something more kid friendly. im used to growing up and the kids can go outside and play. or you can play with the neighbor across the street. the condos here dont have that. so im looking for a 3 bedroom townhouse/condo no higher than $1300 rental. with high walkability and also kid friendly. either edina, st louis park or richfield. ive been hearing great things about slp. so im willing to give that a try.
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message

 
Old 01-17-2012, 12:30 PM
 
20,793 posts, read 61,319,403 times
Reputation: 10695
SLP is going to be pretty much what you have now if you end up in an area where there are a lot of rentals, except that you will get much better schools. The areas there that are close to the amenities will have busy streets and not really "kid" friendly. If you want more of a residential area, you give up walking to "stuff".

I'm no more than 10 minutes from everything I need on a day to day basis (15 minutes to the mall though) and the kids can ride their bikes everywhere, kids playing outside all the time, great schools, etc. Contrary to what a lot of people here will tell you, Edina, Richfield, SLP, etc. are really not that walkable if you want a kid friendly area as you have found.

You really need to define what you mean by "highly walkable". For some here that means you have to live next door to everything, others that means that you can walk to get to whatever you need. If by walkable you mean that the kids can walk to friend's houses, etc. that is a different situation.
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message
 
Old 01-17-2012, 12:43 PM
 
455 posts, read 1,114,960 times
Reputation: 422
Quote:
Originally Posted by golfgal View Post
SLP is going to be pretty much what you have now if you end up in an area where there are a lot of rentals, except that you will get much better schools. The areas there that are close to the amenities will have busy streets and not really "kid" friendly. If you want more of a residential area, you give up walking to "stuff".

I'm no more than 10 minutes from everything I need on a day to day basis (15 minutes to the mall though) and the kids can ride their bikes everywhere, kids playing outside all the time, great schools, etc. Contrary to what a lot of people here will tell you, Edina, Richfield, SLP, etc. are really not that walkable if you want a kid friendly area as you have found.

You really need to define what you mean by "highly walkable". For some here that means you have to live next door to everything, others that means that you can walk to get to whatever you need. If by walkable you mean that the kids can walk to friend's houses, etc. that is a different situation.
OP, the golfgal lives about 25 miles from St Louis Park in a far south suburb, therefore I have no idea how she thinks she has authority to speak about St Louis Park. Edina, Richfield, SLP are all great areas and walkable. Check out more info on St Louis Park. The area has really been built up in the past few years. The commercial areas close to Excelsior have a lot of new condos etc. and by areas closer to the lakes. Also, there are tons of small starter houses in great condition in St Louis Park. Maybe you will be able to find a house rental with a fenced yard in a nice, quiet KID FRIENDLY neighborhood.

I used to work in St Louis Park for almost 10 years. Spent a lot of time there. If I was family person and had little kids, St Louis Park is the place to be. Safe, affordable, and close to Minneapolis etc.

Last edited by lalife; 01-17-2012 at 12:51 PM..
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message
 
Old 01-17-2012, 12:48 PM
 
20,793 posts, read 61,319,403 times
Reputation: 10695
Quote:
Originally Posted by lalife View Post
OP, the golfgal lives about 25 miles from St Louis Park in a far south suburb, therefore I have no idea how she thinks she has authority to speak about St Louis Park. Edina, Richfield, SLP are all great areas and walkable. Check out more info on St Louis Park. The area has really been built up in the past few years. The commercial areas close to Excelsior have a lot of new condos etc. and by areas closer to the lakes. Also, there are tons of small starter houses in great condition in St Louis Park. Maybe you will be able to find a rental in a nice, quiet KID FRIENDLY neighborhood.

I used to work in St Louis Park for almost 10 years. Spent a lot of time there. If I was family person and had little kids, St Louis Park is the place to be. Safe, affordable, and close to Minneapolis etc.
Amazingly enough, I do travel around the metro quite a bit...
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message
 
Old 01-17-2012, 12:53 PM
 
455 posts, read 1,114,960 times
Reputation: 422
Quote:
Originally Posted by golfgal View Post
Amazingly enough, I do travel around the metro quite a bit...
Yes, and I bet when you look out over the freeway at about 35W and Lake Street, you think that it is a dangerous, scary neighborhood. Driving through a place is not the same as spending time somewhere on a day in a day out basis.
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message
 
Old 01-17-2012, 01:00 PM
 
1,072 posts, read 2,918,262 times
Reputation: 611
golfgal, when you live less than 5 minutes from southdale mall and right next to target. you tend to get spoiled.
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message
 
Old 01-17-2012, 01:08 PM
 
Location: Mahtomedi, MN
989 posts, read 2,962,472 times
Reputation: 329
Quote:
Originally Posted by daboywonder2002 View Post
golfgal, when you live less than 5 minutes from southdale mall and right next to target. you tend to get spoiled.
Have you considered looking at renting a single family home? A yard might really help with having space for the kids to get outside. Finding condo/townhome with green space is a tough nut to crack in those areas. There is some duplexes scattered around SW Minneapolis too.
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message
 
Old 01-17-2012, 01:54 PM
 
20,793 posts, read 61,319,403 times
Reputation: 10695
Quote:
Originally Posted by daboywonder2002 View Post
golfgal, when you live less than 5 minutes from southdale mall and right next to target. you tend to get spoiled.
True but you have to figure out what you really want, to be able to walk to Target or to have a place for your kids to play? You just aren't going to get both anywhere in the metro, except possibly living in Cobblestone in Apple Valley. For those without kids, they just don't understand the difference it makes having a yard, having a quiet street where your kids can play, etc. I can walk to Target but it it isn't next door.
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message
 
Old 01-17-2012, 02:02 PM
 
812 posts, read 2,173,388 times
Reputation: 314
I'd look more for the neighborhood than the suburb. I'd also consider townhomes. Look for a development that puts in green space and play areas and places that have a lot of 3bed/2 bath units. I'd also look near a public park.
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message
 
Old 01-17-2012, 03:30 PM
 
12 posts, read 28,908 times
Reputation: 18
Thumbs up on SLP in general, but different neighborhoods give different experinces. SLP is more expensive near the Minneapolis and Edina borders, and feels more suburban near the Minnetonka border. I've found some of the areas off Hwy 7 to be tired looking. Most of the areas north of Minnetonka Blvd are good. The Meadowbrook Manor apartment complex is to be avoided. It's not Cabrini-Green but it has a lousy reputation.
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.

Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.


Reply
Please update this thread with any new information or opinions. This open thread is still read by thousands of people, so we encourage all additional points of view.

Quick Reply
Message:


Settings
X
Data:
Loading data...
Based on 2000-2020 data
Loading data...

123
Hide US histogram


Over $104,000 in prizes was already given out to active posters on our forum and additional giveaways are planned!

Go Back   City-Data Forum > U.S. Forums > Minnesota > Minneapolis - St. Paul
Similar Threads

All times are GMT -6. The time now is 09:24 AM.

© 2005-2024, Advameg, Inc. · Please obey Forum Rules · Terms of Use and Privacy Policy · Bug Bounty

City-Data.com - Contact Us - Archive 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28, 29, 30, 31, 32, 33, 34, 35, 36, 37 - Top