Neighborhoods close to Governmental Employers (Minneapolis, St. Paul: city hall, to rent, houses)

[Sunbrite]

Need to find a neighborhood to live within walking or close driving distance to governmental employers/government jobs.

Looking for:

Laid-back and relaxed atmosphere
Safe, Quiet
Close to Library
**Close to major Colleges/Universities (that offer a lot of lectures open to public, and that have excellent music schools)
Plenty of Coffee Shops, Bakeries, and Cafes, Breakfast places
Near walking trails
Near art centers and museums
Near excellent pre-schools


THANK YOU!

[MnMomma]

Government jobs could be anywhere. What price range are you looking in to rent or buy?

If you want to be very close to colleges, you'll probably want to focus on St. Paul. Everything else on your list can be found in numerous places throughout the Twin Cities.

Do you plan to move before finding a job? It will be much easier to recommend places when you know where the commute will be to.

[Sunbrite]

Thanks for the response, I appreciate it! We're looking to buy, probably in the 250K range, although that may be flexible.

Spouse is currently looking for a job in public relations/public affairs and I am looking for a job in government so really interested in neighborhoods close to where these employers are. Will commute if necessary, would prefer 15-20 min.

St. Paul sounds like a good area! Definitely want to be close to colleges, also libraries. Will have a 1- year old so good pre-schools, etc. would be a plus too. We like lunch,breakfast cafes, coffehouses, farmers markets,grocery stores.

I think we like the Uptown area but we're not into the party/bar scene so looking for more laid-back, relaxed atmosphere. Safe and quiet, yet plenty of things to do as well- museums, art centers, etc. We visited a couple of summers ago and enjoyed biking on the Lake Calhoun paths, really like places like this where we can exercise and walk outdoors easily.

Thank you for your insights and suggestions.

[golfgal]

These jobs could be anywhere in the metro and to find a place to live before you have a job, especially if you are going to buy may cause you to have an hour+ commute. There is no one area where jobs are located in the Twin Cities.

[Camden Northsider]

From personal experience, I would say the Victory Neighborhood (and possibly other areas of Camden) is about an 80% match to the things you specify as important. Interestingly, there are many government employees that live in the neighborhood (including a lot of politicians), as well as a lot of Uptown expats- people that didn't want to leave the city but wanted a quieter change of pace (includes my wife and I). Other pluses for what you're seeking: Very high marks for being safe, quiet, laid-back/relaxed; it's generally not farther than 15-20 minutes to anything, including St. Paul; there's a huge recently remodeled regional library on Lowry Avenue (easy enough bike ride/very short drive), and a $15M library project planned in the next year/two for the intersection of Webber Parkway/Victory Memorial Parkway (just east of the n'hood a few blocks on parkway/grand rounds system). $250K would get you a very nice, solid house with good square footage; the grand rounds system/trails circle the neighborhood and connect to lots of amenities; there's a breakfast/lunch joint (Emily's), family Italian restaurant, gastropub, and coffeeshop- all 'award-winning'- here in the neighborhood; 2 lakes w/in short walking distance; art gallery/theater (workhouse theatre); popular neighborhood farmer's market every summer/fall. Things that don't really meet your criteria: not really close to colleges/universities (u of m would be 10 minute drive, there is an extension office not too far away though, and the northside hosts alot of lectures/events throughout the year pertaining to social justice issues); and not really any museums close by- but Uptown isn't too far away comparatively via 94 or grand rounds. There could be excellent preschools close by, I just have no knowledge in this area to go off of (good schools close by, however). But if you're seeking to be around govt-employee types or people w/similar interests, you won't have to look far here.

I manage a lot of govt contracts/ interact with a lot of govt offices in my nonprofit job- if I knew what area of govt you are in/seeking out, I might be able to provide a little better guidance as to potential location (the 'hubs' would be downtown Mpls and in/around the Capitol in St. Paul, but there are a number of govt offices throughout hennepin county and the metro- generally speaking, now is not a good time to be in most areas of government, but there are exceptions, especially if your area has potentially been boosted by stimulus funds).

[Ben Around]

<<What Camden said, plus: State government jobs (the office based ones) are clustered mostly in the Capitol area of downtown St Paul. There are a few outliers in the inner suburbs, but most are downtown. There is a large federal office building housing many agencies in far South Mpls, out near the airport. Hennepin and Ramsey County government jobs are clustered in the downtowns of their respective county seats, Mpls and St Paul. The suburban counties tend to spread their offices around the counties in various suburbs. I'd also suggest St Paul. For example, even if you find a job with Dakota County working in their large facility in West St Paul, or working for Washington County in Stillwater, you'd be best located so the chance of your wife's finding a job convenient to your home would be better. We live in St Paul and find the location excellent. I work downtown St Paul and my wife works in Roseville. Prior to that she worked in South Mpls, and prior to that Bloomington. None of these commutes were horrible for her, and mine is a breeze on the bus.

[DaPerpKazoo]

I would take a look at Seward (in Southeast Minneapolis) if I were you.

Right outside downtown, so you're close to a lot of jobs. City Hall, Hennepin County Government Center, all the federal buildings, ect.

Right outside of both the U of M and Augsburg College.

Very friendly, diverse, semi-quiet neighborhood (certainly moreso than Uptown). Cheaper than Uptown too.

[Ben Around]

Originally Posted by DaPerpKazoo

I would take a look at Seward (in Southeast Minneapolis) if I were you.

Right outside downtown, so you're close to a lot of jobs. City Hall, Hennepin County Government Center, all the federal buildings, ect.

Right outside of both the U of M and Augsburg College.

Very friendly, diverse, semi-quiet neighborhood (certainly moreso than Uptown). Cheaper than Uptown too.

Good suggestion To that I'd add one of my favorite Mpls neighborhoods, Hiawatha. OP, it's just south of the Seward neighborhood. A little farther out but generally quieter.

[Sunbrite]

Wow, thank you so much everyone, I have received such amazing and detailed responses on my question!!!!! I haven't visited the site in a while, and was so thankful to see all these suggestions when I returned. We've got a lot to do already just moving from one state to another, and this will cut down on the countless questions and anxiety level, we really appreciate it.

We're going to sit down and go through these responses and really review all this information. Our budget is super tight, but we're planning at least one visit before we move, and we'll visit all the places that everyone recommended. This is really going to help us out a lot, and I cannot thank all of you enough. Thank you again, and Happy Holidays everyone.

[Ben Around]

Originally Posted by Sunbrite

Wow, thank you so much everyone, I have received such amazing and detailed responses on my question!!!!! I haven't visited the site in a while, and was so thankful to see all these suggestions when I returned. We've got a lot to do already just moving from one state to another, and this will cut down on the countless questions and anxiety level, we really appreciate it.

We're going to sit down and go through these responses and really review all this information. Our budget is super tight, but we're planning at least one visit before we move, and we'll visit all the places that everyone recommended. This is really going to help us out a lot, and I cannot thank all of you enough. Thank you again, and Happy Holidays everyone.

Our pleasure! You'll get a good variety of opinions from the regulars on this site. Let us know if you have other questions, and we'll keep you informed (confused )