Moving to Minneapolis and need advice about where to live NW side (St. Paul: real estate, crime)

[ebd914]

Thank you everyone! It seems like the general consensus is Maple Grove or Plymouth! We will start our search there. A realtor suggested perhaps Andover or Blaine as well which originally were not on our search criteria list.

There was one post about Blaine which is helpful. Any opinions on Andover? It seems like the schools won't be as elite as MG or Plymouth but still good? Anything going on in the communities? Shops, restaurants, downtown areas, parks, etc.?

[srsmn]

Originally Posted by ebd914

Thank you everyone! It seems like the general consensus is Maple Grove or Plymouth! We will start our search there. A realtor suggested perhaps Andover or Blaine as well which originally were not on our search criteria list.

There was one post about Blaine which is helpful. Any opinions on Andover? It seems like the schools won't be as elite as MG or Plymouth but still good? Anything going on in the communities? Shops, restaurants, downtown areas, parks, etc.?

Personally, both Andover and Blaine make me want to barf. But that is entirely a personal opinion...

[ebd914]

Originally Posted by srsmn

Personally, both Andover and Blaine make me want to barf. But that is entirely a personal opinion...

Personal opinions are fine! That's why I'm asking! Can you be more specific about what about them makes you want to barf?

[srsmn]

Originally Posted by ebd914

Personal opinions are fine! That's why I'm asking! Can you be more specific about what about them makes you want to barf?

Yes. Weak in amenities as compared with your other options, like Maple Grove and Plymouth. Worse transit infrastructure (Central and University back up like nightmares). Less attractive housing stock (mix of old ramblers and cookie-cutter '90's sprawl houses) on less attractive lots (Maple Grove and Plymouth are wooded and leafy....Blaine lots tend to be barren). Finally-- and this is highly subjective-- more neo-conservative.

[srsmn]

As a point of reference, here is what I think of when I think Blaine, MN:

https://www.google.com/maps/place/An...c63120!6m1!1e1

Whereas this is what I think of when I think Maple Grove:

https://www.google.com/maps/place/Ma...5e410f!6m1!1e1

The first picture was taken in 2008, of course, so some of those trees have matured a bit. There are also exceptions to the rule in both cities...

ps. taking a picture from Blaine on an ishy day and one from Maple Grove on a pretty day was not intentional on my part

[northsub]

I think Blaine is a fantastic place. There's a ton of restaurants. There are a variety of neighborhood/housing options: mobile home, apartment complex, 1/4 acre house lots, 1/8 acre house lots, acre+ wooded lots, 50's and 60's ramblers, 80's and 90's split level, newer housing, golf course centered community, waterfront lots. You also would get to interact with people from a variety of income levels, ethnic backgrounds, etc. There are things to do: soccer, velodrome, hockey, concerts, random events at the National Sports Center. Minnesota's largest outdoor waterpark is essentially at the intersection of Blaine/Andover/Coon Rapids. There's a curling arena which hosts events that are on national tv. The bike path system is pretty good and seems to improve every year.

For parks, Blaine lacks a large park with a hiking-like experience. But, Blaine is bordered by Bunker Hills and Rice Creek Chain of Lakes. The Coon Rapids Dam is also close by.

Blaine is pretty flat. Much of the area was sod farms 25 years ago. The tree coverage is largely oak, aspen/box elder, cottonwood. There are also a fair number of wetlands around.

Blaine is not a place to live if you want to live someplace "cool". I see that as a plus, but others see that as a minus.

Traffic along highway 65/Central can be bad. However, Raddison Road and University Ave provide nice alternatives to the east and west that essentially never backup.

Blaine is probably a bad choice for someone who describes "shopping" as an activity they like. There's no shortage of everyday stores though (Target, Walmart, Menards, Lowes, Kohl's, FleetFarm, 3 (possibly soon to be 4) Cub Foods. There's also some ethnic stores as well.

Compared to Maple Grove, Blaine has shopping and other amenities spread throughout the city. In Maple Grove you can be a long way from a place to buy anything at all. The address in Maple Grove used above seems to be 1.4 miles from an Applebees. It looked to be 1.8 miles from anything else where you could spend money. You might be able to find such an area in Blaine (eastern part of the Lakes if you don't count the food/rentals at the beach there?), but that describes vast swaths of Maple Grove. Maple Grove does have a nice concentration of stores in one part of the city.

Also, 4 year old neighborhoods in Blaine do not have mystical powers to have trees as large as 16+ year old neighborhoods in Maple Grove. Of course, if you look at neighborhoods of comparable age the trees will be the same size.

[ebd914]

Thanks srsmn and northsub for the input!

[srsmn]

Originally Posted by northsub

Compared to Maple Grove, Blaine has shopping and other amenities spread throughout the city. In Maple Grove you can be a long way from a place to buy anything at all. The address in Maple Grove used above seems to be 1.4 miles from an Applebees. It looked to be 1.8 miles from anything else where you could spend money. You might be able to find such an area in Blaine (eastern part of the Lakes if you don't count the food/rentals at the beach there?), but that describes vast swaths of Maple Grove. Maple Grove does have a nice concentration of stores in one part of the city.

I don't really take issue with anything else you said (although I don't necessarily agree with it, as I prefer Maple Grove and Plymouth) but I don't really see how this is true. Maple Grove is right by Arbor Lakes, which is better shopping and dining than anything in Blaine. It is a skip, hop and jump from downtown Wayzata, a little bit further to the West End, 55/Winnetka in Golden Valley, or even downtown Robbinsdale or Hopkins. Generally, the West Metro has better shopping and dining amenities (in my opinion) than the North Metro, and it's not really all that close.

I do love Bunker Hills, and have favorable impressions of the Sports Center from my youth soccer playing days. Although Elm Creek Park and French Park certainly level that playing field, or beat Blaine. Plus Medicine Lake.

I understand that Blaine's newer neighborhoods have smaller, less mature trees (actually, I pointed out as much in a previous post). I'm not saying Blaine should be "mystical" in its tree development, but that does not negate the fact that the neighborhoods aren't as leafy and green (as a whole) as in Maple Grove or Plymouth.

I will say Blaine might be better if you are an avid golfer....like, you *need* to live on a golf course, avid. I am not, but Brookview would be a poor option for somebody who really loves to gold. GV Country Club might be better....Interlachen, Minnikahda aren't too far. My map says there are a few courses in Plymouth proper and Maple Grove proper. Again, not a golfer so I can't vouch for them...

[srsmn]

Originally Posted by ebd914

Thanks srsmn and northsub for the input!

You're welcome!

[northsub]

Originally Posted by srsmn

I don't really take issue with anything else you said (although I don't necessarily agree with it, as I prefer Maple Grove and Plymouth) but I don't really see how this is true. Maple Grove is right by Arbor Lakes, which is better shopping and dining than anything in Blaine. It is a skip, hop and jump from downtown Wayzata, a little bit further to the West End, 55/Winnetka in Golden Valley, or even downtown Robbinsdale or Hopkins. Generally, the West Metro has better shopping and dining amenities (in my opinion) than the North Metro, and it's not really all that close.

I'm talking about day-to-day things. Getting a gallon of milk in many parts of Maple Grove looks to be a pain. The commercial in Maple Grove is almost all in one location. Blaine has 4 or 5 commercial districts depending on what you count (and surrounds another in Lexington/Circle Pines). It's a different model for development. The end result is that Maple Grove has a larger shopping center, but you are much more likely to be close to a shopping center or a gas station or a restaurant or an ATM or a Redbox location in Blaine.

Most of the things you list as being near Maple Grove (downtown Wayzata, West End, downtown Robbinsdale, downtown Hopkins) I would view as trendy locations. If that's the kind of stuff you are into, then Blaine probably isn't right for you. You can find a few of those places in Blaine, and they seem to be growing in number, but the overall vibe isn't geared toward that kind of stuff. It's more of a small-town diner/mom-and-pop/dive bar type of place. Or if you can't imagine buying clothes at a place like Kohl's, then Blaine is likely not the place for you.