Mississippi River Towns/Life in MN south of metro (Rochester: best towns, rent)

[summersun]

I would like opinions on which are the best towns to live in along the Mississippi. My main concerns are safety and a fair amount of stores - like Red Wing offers. I have only gone as far down as Wabasha which is on my list and am curious about Wabasha to La Crescent/La Crosse WI. I mention safety because I keep reading about how Red Wing has taken a turn for the worse in that regard, but I can't tell everything from reading the local newspaper. Also, I do love Wisconsin and am considering that side of the river, too although they usually have higher property taxes. Thanks in advance for your help. I hope to get off the iron range sometime this summer!

[summersun]

Was it something I said?

[fromupthere]

I know someone in Winona who absolutely loves it there. I don't know much about the towns along there otherwise.

[TimtheGuy]

I personally like all the river towns from Stillwater down the St. Criox, and Hastings down the Ole Miss to the Iowa border. I would never consider Red Wing, or any other town along the way as dangerous. I live in Hastings.

[oconnorcm3]

Hi,

I grew up in Winona. It was and is a great place to raise children. Quiet, only around 25,000 people, not too much spread (although it has happened around the bluffs, up and out). Winona was an island, long, long ago. It has Lake Winona (two lakes with a road and small bridge dividing them, small lake and big lake) on one side, with the beautiful bluffs looking down on the lakes. On the other side of town is the Mississippi, with Wisconsin on the other side of the river. Winona is a college town (Winona State, Winona Technical College and St. Mary's College). That means that September and May are busy months for folks moving in and out, plus the partying begins. The college students are fairly respectful of the locals (probably because the police get called and react quickly otherwise!).

Lake Winona only allows tiny motor boats (for fishing), canoes, paddle boats, non-motorized, etc. and has a beautiful park on one side of the lake (Highway 61 on the other side of the lake). They also rent paddle boats out in the summer. There is a beautiful bike path all around both lakes. Really nice. The parks have ball games, little league and organized sports throughout the summer. The band shell has free Wednesday night concerts and encourages locals to play in the band. July 4th fireworks are on the Mississippi. There are several marinas to either store your boat or places to put it in for the day.

Winona is one of the nicest cities along the Mississippi. The bluffs make a big difference since the Fall colors are spectacular. You wouldn't go wrong deciding to live in Winona. I like it better than Red Wing because the Mississippi is closer (in Red Wing the rail road cuts you off from the Mississippi, I think). And Wabasha is pretty small but cute.

Best of luck with your choice. Let me know if you have any questions.

[summersun]

Thanks for the comments.

To oconnorcm3 I enjoyed your write-up on Winona; very helpful. I know what you mean about the location of Red Wing regarding the river. Winona is a town I keep hearing good things about. Thanks again.

[oconnorcm3]

Well thank you, Summersun. There are a few things that I forgot to mention about Winona though!

Lake Winona has a lovely ice skating rink (or it did when I was a child, long, long ago) in the winter, cleared and maintained. The bluffs are wonderful to hike in and Garvin Heights (the top of the bluff, looking down on Winona) offers spectacular views, up and down the Mississippi. Sugar Loaf (a big rock on top of the hills) is dangerous to climb, and you hear of a death every few years, but would be very good climbing for experienced rock climbers. There are places to ride horses with lots of countryside to ride in too. Shopping downtown is limited because of the slow down in the economy (downtown has been dieing for quite sometime) but the city is trying to revitalize it. They have a small, inexpensive bus service that runs up and down Winona, taking folks where they need to go. 'Real' shopping tends to be out on Highway 61. Walmart, Target, K-Mart, Shopko, Fleet Farm, etc. and car dealerships. Winona Senior High sits at the top of the small lake of Lake Winona with school playing fields having some of the nicest views of the lake and bluffs. The Middle School is out near Vo Tech and brand new. It too has lovely views, nestled in the bluffs. Winona has a wonderful, large outdoor swimming pool with water slides and children's area plus the YMCA has indoor swimming for the winter months. Winona Hospital is well thought of plus you have close by LaCrosse Luther and Rochester Mayo Clinic. There is a nice senior center in downtown Winona offering computer classes and the library is right next door. Calista Court is a nursing home for seniors and is really nice and well run.

I've driven up and down Highway 61 for many years and the views always make me sigh. The Mississippi spreads the land out with bluffs running alongside. Another really lovely town to consider is Lake City, one of my favorites. It just doesn't offer a lot to do besides the lake since it's small (under 10,000 I think). I think that day to day life there would be boring plus you'd have to travel to get or do anything. But summers in Lake City must be magical.

[akronbball]

If you like smaller towns Winona is a nice and save place to live. Winona has around 27,000 people, but with neighboring cities and townships probably close to 35,000 in the area. The area has quite a bit of blue collar jobs, but the two Universities and Tech College help make it a pretty diverse city for its size and provides some more excitement. Downtown does seem to be struggling, but there a still quite a few unique places to visit. It’s a scenic area with the bluffs and River and if you like the outdoors there are plenty of things to do in all seasons. In the fall when all the college students are back there are a lot of people that use the parks and paths along Lake Winona. In the winter there still is an ice skating rink with a lodge, warming house. The arts scene up and down the Mississippi River Valley seems to be pretty good too. I actually saw Branford Marsalis this winter in Winona that was put on by the Beethoven Festival that has a few performances during the winter and quite a few free during the summer. There is also the Shakespeare festival during the summer and the frozen river film festival in January, which is pretty cool. The Park and Rec is decent as well and provides all types of activities. It is a little small for my liking, but overall it’s not a bad place to live, other larger cities are close and SE MN and SW WI offer a lot of different outdoor activities.

[summersun]

Thanks akronbball. A lot of people like Winona. Small town is o.k. with me and I have lived in much smaller. As long as I have some variety in culture, nature, stores, etc. I'm happy. I am actually considering Lake City also, because for a small town it has enough going on and plus there's Lake Pepin. I like the location of Lake City; there are many choices for travel to interesting places within 15, 50, 100, or more miles in all directions. And I can even get on Amtrak and go somewhere - I love train rides. Anyway, I will be checking out Winona (how can I not? ) and thanks again for your input.

[MN_Nana]

Wow- this is tough.
All the Towns/Cities are nice in their own way! The scenic route is beautiful! Eagles galore! I'm ticked that anyone would knock Red Wing!? It is one of the best!