Best places for gay family? (loud)

[Cruz Azul Guy]

As far as my knowledge goes the two areas in Minnesota where gays are prevalent are both located in south Minneapolis.

-The area around Loring Park
-Uptown

[LonghornPaul]

What is "progressive" about Minneapolis? Sounds like a typical liberal catchphrase which means nothing.

[Cruz Azul Guy]

If Minneapolis was really progressive then something would be done about the crazy number of unliveable/abandoned homes on the northside.

[warmweather!]

Originally Posted by LonghornPaul

What is "progressive" about Minneapolis? Sounds like a typical liberal catchphrase which means nothing.

Right on the money, Texas.

[chilaili]

And as for "Minnesota nice" - is this the image of being friendly to strangers? I notice it in WI and MN too. I like the idea of it but we do also want to make lots of friends too, not just say hello and leave it at that!

As someone who moved to Minnesota from overseas, I would describe Minnesota Nice as the habit of saying what they think you want to hear, rather than being 100% honest with you. Eg; one of the biggest problems I had was with people agreeing to do something with me and then making endless excuses as to why they couldn't or flat out failing to turn up and then calling afterwards with a really lame reason why they didn't show up. HOWEVER, not everyone is like that there. There are also plenty of people who are honest and blunt and who won't waste your time - the trick is to find them .

[Camden Northsider]

Hi Citygals, see my post in which "I berate you" in my response to "best places for biracial family". you may want to check up around where we are at, easy access to everything including universities and a lot of social services - actually a lot of persons that work in the social services and a lot of GLBT homeowners live in the Camden area so you'd fit right in- perhaps even be a little cliche (lol) as opposed to the exotic fruit you'd be in most of the suburbs mentioned here.

good website to jobsearch - http://www.mncn.org/jobs/ - virtually all non-profit jobs get posted on this site. in the C-D 'minnesota' forum (e.g. not the 'minneapolis/ st. paul' forum), you've probably gotten a lot of advice to move to the far out suburbs, but if you've been living in Chicago area, minneapolis will feel more like a small town w/ good schools to you - what's the need for a suburb?

[music7lover]

South Minneapolis is a good place for a gay family.

[KristenDuLac]

Sounds like you would like the Seward area which is around Franklin near the Mississippi river or maybe Longfellow just south of Franklin. Most neighborhoods in the city are gay friendly and that area has a lot of artists, teachers and coops. The Birchwood cafe is also in that neighborhood.

Housing is fairly expensive in the city - $250,000 is a good ball park figure. St Paul is definitely less expensive, but not as much fun as Minneapolis.

As far as crime goes..............I used to live in Boston and there are very few areas in this city that begin to compare to other cities.

Originally Posted by citygals

Hi,
We are considering a move to the Twin Cities area and we are also planning on having kids asap. We are from Chicago so we are used to some crime (don't like it) and other less appealing things about cities, but are looking for a less stressful and quieter life. Some friends we have live in Mnpls on the south side and also some near the airport. None of them mentioned crime although some of the neighborhoods south of Lake reminded us a bit of Chicago - construction, lots of neon signs, run down stores. We would consider the suburbs if necessary and also St. Paul too which seems a little more affordable. What is all this about district 196 schools? Where is that?
We would be looking for jobs in social services and in the universities. One of the things that appeals to us is the diversity of this area, the cool stuff like coops and farmers markets and the focus on being eco friendly. Is the crime in the cities really terrible? I would have to be a lot less than in Chicago I guess.
I know people who live in the suburbs near Chicago talk about the crime a lot but I guess we are just used to. It doesn't make life any more relaxing though.
We are looking for a house with a yard for our dogs in the lowest price range - I have seen some people talking about prices already and gather you can't get anything decent for less than $250.
Any suggestions would be great!
Thanks!
PS. And as for "Minnesota nice" - is this the image of being friendly to strangers? I notice it in WI and MN too. I like the idea of it but we do also want to make lots of friends too, not just say hello and leave it at that!

[dangelofnb]

There are several great neighborhoods in the uptown area. Linden Hills is quaint and has it's own little village. Off the beat, yet close to the pulse of uptown.
Re: 250??? that's a challenge.

[Jersey Devil]

Seems like Apple Valley has changed a LOT since I lived there 25 years ago. I remember public service citations for clearing weirdos out of the parks up there.

Thanks for the imput, I was considering buying a lake home up there but it sounds like I need to consider my options more carefully