The perfect place to live in Minnesota (Duluth, Rochester: relocate, vacation)

[Indy-Mom]

Is anyone familiar with the Detroit Lakes Area? My husband used to go there to a resort on Pickerel Lake many years ago and he was wondering how the area is doing and if it is thriving.

[MidniteBreeze]

Detroit Lakes Area:

It's growing. Very popular vacation spot for people from the Fargo area. They also have their big 4th of July fest every year (rated one of the best
4th fests in the nation recently). It's also the home of We-Fest, a big country music festival.

[Marla Nesbett]

Originally Posted by VALT

Is there an upcoming area in downtown - or a mile away - in Minneapolis that has houses, yards, good schools. We can spend between 250-300.

PS Cities where we have found this possible: Pittsburgh, Chicago

Housing in the downtown Mpls area and anything within a one mile proximity is high density rather than detached single family homes and rather expensive.

If you had a of money to spend you could live in the area near the Guthrie Theater and Walker Art Museum.

Have you tried plugging some addresses in on Zillow.com to see what they say the value of the properties in that area are? Good luck.

[DuluthMinnesnowta]

Duluth is a great place to live if you can survive the winter...if you are an outdoor enthusiast it is the greatest place to do it all. Winters can be great especially when you get out and enjoy what you have in your "backyard" snowshoeing, skiing (downhill and CC), skating, snowboarding, winter camping, etc. Summer's are gorgeous and you can go hiking, camping, swimming (although superior is a little chilly), kayaking, canoeing, etc, etc. Duluth hosts all sorts of activities for the active person, so I'd have to say it's one sweet place to live.

[cantgolf4beans]

Originally Posted by Indy-Mom

Is anyone familiar with the Detroit Lakes Area? My husband used to go there to a resort on Pickerel Lake many years ago and he was wondering how the area is doing and if it is thriving.

Hi Indy-Mom,
There are a few Pickerel lakes in N. Minn. My family happens to vacation yearly at Hoot Owl resort near Detroit lakes. My wife has been coming here for over 30 years! I have had the pleasure of vacationing there the past 8 years. It is a family owned/run resort situated on both Hoot Owl and Pickerel Lakes. Both lakes are relatively small - Hoot Owl is roughly 70 acres - and extremely quiet and peaceful. Besides the resort's 7 cabins, there are only 4 or 5 other properties around the entire lake. It is on the White Earth Indian Reservation, and development is minimal. It is also near the border of Itasca State Park - headwaters of the Mississippi River.
To our surprise, we found out that the resort is on the market during our last trip in July. Fortunately for us, we found out that an agreement to buy the resort and turn it into "investment" properties fell through in the end of August. While driving the area looking for other vacation options, we talked to other resort owners who say that more than half dozen resorts were selling off to be converted to timeshares. I find this trend disheartening.
Soory this was so long, but I could gush forever about this tranquil area. Let me know if this was where your husband vacationed.

[emeraldhopes]

Sargeant Mn is a great place to live...only 32 homes, 75 people and right between Austin and Rochester where everything is available. Want to live where you don't have to lock your doors....come here...nice farming area.

[chilaili]

Originally Posted by dannl

If you could live in any place in Minnesota where would it be ?

Highland - a suburb of St Paul but doesn't feel like it at all! Only one highrise building there, right on the Mississippi river with a wonderful riverwalk, a couple of great restaurants and a cinema, supermarket, Patina store, library, everything within walking distance, really nice housing (pre- and post-WW2), easy access to downtown St Paul or Minneapolis or the suburbs, 10 minutes from the airport but you never get any noise like Nokomis does. Only downside is that it's quite pricey due everyone wanting to move there . IF I ever moved back to TC I would live there again without hesitation.

[Ben Around]

Chilaili--As a 20-year resident of Highland Park, I agree with everything you said except that it's a "suburb". It most certainly is not, it's city, and that's why it's such a great place. Yes, it's pricey compared to suburbs, but we were willing to buy less house just for the location, and have't regretted it one bit. Highland is just the type of place the "new urbanists" are trying to replecate, except it's been this way since it was first developed in the 20s.

In addition to what you said, its crime rate is lower than many of the suburbs, it's populice is well-educated, public transportation is about as good as it gets in the TC (which isn't that good for a metro area!), and lots of friendly people. As the older folks move out, the homes are bought by young families--always a good sign in a older,settled neighborhood!

[xz2y]

Originally Posted by DuluthMinnesnowta

Duluth is a great place to live if you can survive the winter...if you are an outdoor enthusiast it is the greatest place to do it all. Winters can be great especially when you get out and enjoy what you have in your "backyard" snowshoeing, skiing (downhill and CC), skating, snowboarding, winter camping, etc. Summer's are gorgeous and you can go hiking, camping, swimming (although superior is a little chilly), kayaking, canoeing, etc, etc. Duluth hosts all sorts of activities for the active person, so I'd have to say it's one sweet place to live.

Are there jobs in Duluth? If so, what kind of industries?

[WalterRuckes]

I would move to the hometown of Troy Grengs and the Hoglund Brothers: Richfield, Minnesota.