Move to Minneapolis or Madison? (St. Paul: new home, neighborhoods, law school)

[flealeap]

Hi all,

I am delighted to have discovered this forum and have already learned so much! I am hoping for some help deciding where to move.

A little background: I am single woman in my mid-thirties, no children. I work in the arts (for not much money!)

I have been living overseas for many years, but will be moving back to the US soon. My life has sort of suddenly come apart at the seams and I need a place to rebuild my world, almost from scratch. This is a really scary proposition, and I would love your help trying to find a good place to make my new home.

A little about what I am looking for: I once lived in Portland, Oregon and loved it there. I liked the fact that it is progressive, filled with parks, and has bike lanes! I liked the fact that it was walkable, with an interesting variety of neighborhoods, and very little deep urban blight. Most importantly, I loved its artsy "coffee house" vibe. I am definitely a bookstore, cafe, foreign-movie type gal. However, the rain really got to me. I much prefer a snowy winter.

After reading these forums a lot, I have narrowed down my choices to Minneapolis and Madison, Wisconsin. They both seem to be progressive and vibrant, with similar weather. They both seem to have safe, walkable, fairly affordable urban neighborhoods. They both seem to have the artsy feel I am looking for, and plenty of natural beauty.

What makes them different? Has anyone spent time in both of these cities? Can anyone give me a sense of why one might suit me more than another? I am interested in everything from safety and cost of living, to the intangible spirit of the place.

I would be grateful for any thoughts! Thanks!

[yellowsnow]

If Minneapolis and Madison are your only choices, I would chose Minneapolis.

It is bigger and can support a larger arts type community. There are more jobs too.

Best of luck!

[kg1701d]

Madison is a fun, vibrant city but mostly if you're a student, if not you might find downtown a little annoying but State Street is a great area even if you aren't a student. The near-west/monroe street area would be a great place to look if considering madison. But on the other hand, I plan on moving from madison to minneapolis this summer.

[flealeap]

Thanks for your replies!

kg1701d -- can you tell me more about why you are moving?

[kg1701d]

For my field, urban planning, there is just a lot more oppurtunity in the Twin Cities area, which would be true for most fields I suppose. I would never suggest to anyone not to move to Madison because I loved my time here and as for the arts they did just reopen and expand the Overture Center which has been drawing a lot of people and exhibits to the city so i'd still take a look into Madison.

[Vagus]

Originally Posted by flealeap

Hi all,

I am delighted to have discovered this forum and have already learned so much! I am hoping for some help deciding where to move.

A little background: I am single woman in my mid-thirties, no children. I work in the arts (for not much money!)

I have been living overseas for many years, but will be moving back to the US soon. My life has sort of suddenly come apart at the seams and I need a place to rebuild my world, almost from scratch. This is a really scary proposition, and I would love your help trying to find a good place to make my new home.

A little about what I am looking for: I once lived in Portland, Oregon and loved it there. I liked the fact that it is progressive, filled with parks, and has bike lanes! I liked the fact that it was walkable, with an interesting variety of neighborhoods, and very little deep urban blight. Most importantly, I loved its artsy "coffee house" vibe. I am definitely a bookstore, cafe, foreign-movie type gal. However, the rain really got to me. I much prefer a snowy winter.

After reading these forums a lot, I have narrowed down my choices to Minneapolis and Madison, Wisconsin. They both seem to be progressive and vibrant, with similar weather. They both seem to have safe, walkable, fairly affordable urban neighborhoods. They both seem to have the artsy feel I am looking for, and plenty of natural beauty.

What makes them different? Has anyone spent time in both of these cities? Can anyone give me a sense of why one might suit me more than another? I am interested in everything from safety and cost of living, to the intangible spirit of the place.

I would be grateful for any thoughts! Thanks!

Hey, great post. I am actually trying to decide on these same cities! Although I'm "demographically" different from you, it sounds like we appreciate the same things in a city, and both Minneapolis and Madison look great (I've been to both multiple times). I think honestly in your case, just like many peoples, it comes down to jobs, and I think someone in "the arts" would probably do better in Minneapolis, given that city's much larger cultural scene.

BTW, I also lived in the Northwest for a while (sadly, it's now too expensive to go back . . . ) -- I always thought we had the best of both worlds in winter -- never too cold down near sea level, but TONS of snow just an hour away and a couple thousand feet up in the mountains! Yes, you will get snow in the midwest, but you'll also get 40-degree-colder winters than in Portland, and I'm going to bet that if you end up in the midwest you will go through mountain withdrawal!

[flealeap]

I feel heartened by these replies. It sounds like I could probably be happy in either city. I think Vagus is right about mountain withdrawal -- being able to easily drive to beautiful mountains is a fabulous aspect that I do miss about the NW!

I really appreciate everyone's feedback!

[mgottsacker]

I've lived in both towns, and they're great! I woudn't hesitate to move to either city, but I agree with the comments about more jobs in Mpls.

Final thought: Be sure to consider St. Paul, too. Some people like its sense of community, eastern-city feel, etc.

Originally Posted by flealeap

Hi all,

I am delighted to have discovered this forum and have already learned so much! I am hoping for some help deciding where to move.

A little background: I am single woman in my mid-thirties, no children. I work in the arts (for not much money!)

I have been living overseas for many years, but will be moving back to the US soon. My life has sort of suddenly come apart at the seams and I need a place to rebuild my world, almost from scratch. This is a really scary proposition, and I would love your help trying to find a good place to make my new home.

A little about what I am looking for: I once lived in Portland, Oregon and loved it there. I liked the fact that it is progressive, filled with parks, and has bike lanes! I liked the fact that it was walkable, with an interesting variety of neighborhoods, and very little deep urban blight. Most importantly, I loved its artsy "coffee house" vibe. I am definitely a bookstore, cafe, foreign-movie type gal. However, the rain really got to me. I much prefer a snowy winter.

After reading these forums a lot, I have narrowed down my choices to Minneapolis and Madison, Wisconsin. They both seem to be progressive and vibrant, with similar weather. They both seem to have safe, walkable, fairly affordable urban neighborhoods. They both seem to have the artsy feel I am looking for, and plenty of natural beauty.

What makes them different? Has anyone spent time in both of these cities? Can anyone give me a sense of why one might suit me more than another? I am interested in everything from safety and cost of living, to the intangible spirit of the place.

I would be grateful for any thoughts! Thanks!

[loulou123]

I feel very competent to speak on this issue-- I grew up in Minneapolis and currently reside in Minneapolis. My husband grew up in Madison, and I went to law school in Madison (spent over 3 years there.) After experiencing both places, I have no doubt in my mind that Madison is the place to be.

Minnesota is ULTRA CONSERVATIVE. It may not seem so at first, but it's a front . I absolutely hate it. Madison is a wonderful, welcoming, progressive community. In fact, our house is going on the market very soon and we're heading back to Madison to enjoy life. Minneapolis has been absolutely MISERABLE!!!

If you do choose Minneapolis, I wish you luck finding friends. Seriously. Most people probably won't talk to you. Madison, on the other hand, is the opposite. People are more than willing to approach a random stranger and strike up a conversation. I can't wait to get back!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[kuan]

I think Minneapolis has much better winter activities. I dunno what loulou is saying about friends, but I've been here seven years and I have tons of friends. Must be personality. Like I said in some other thread, show up to lutefisk dinner with a canoe on your car.