I'm moving to Marshall, MN (Mankato, North Mankato: rent, neighborhood, buy)

[kdogge1]

Can someone tell me about the town? The good, the bad and the ugly??

[kuan]

Interestingly enough, the best place to eat is the HyVee. It seriously beats the Landmark Bistro which tries hard but falls flat on execution. The fresh scones at Bagels and Brew are fantastic however.

[jmgg]

I travel there for business a couple of times a year. I used to have to go there twice a month for many, many years.

This is a nice clean town. In comparing towns with a decent size college in it, it ranks as one of the most boring places I've been to, especially considering that it's about the 2nd largest town in SW Minnesota after Wilmer.

LIVING there and getting into the local social scene may be a different story. People there have always been very friendly. I don't know of any area in town that would be considered a bad neighborhood. A far cry from it's closest town population wise in SW Minnesota, Worthington.

[golfgal]

Marshall is a great town to raise a family. It is not a large metro area but there are plenty of things to do, especially with the college bringing in various arts attractions from concerts, plays, speakers, etc. The economy in Marshall is very stable with Schwan's, US Bank, SMSU and other larger employers. It is a town where you can walk around any time of the day or night and feel safe. Kids can have free run to ride bikes, play in the parks, etc.

I do have to disagree that Hy-Vee is a good place to eat-sorry but yuck. TK Steakhouse is one of our favorites but in general dining out isn't all that great. There are some worthwhile places to go in some surrounding towns too.

We lived there for many years and would go back in a heartbeat. Feel free to ask any specific questions.

Do you have a family, are you single, where will you be working?

[kdogge1]

I have a great federal job and I'm moving from Hawaii. Loved it there but my friends and family pulled me back to the state I was raised. Bummer to leave the great weather but Minnesota is cool too. Can't wait to go to the "Great get together." How are the golf courses around town? I love to golf and will be doing that everyday.

[golfgal]

The golf course is fantastic. It is a hidden gem in SW MN. it is a semi-private club but Memberships are reasonable and a good portion of the town golfs. There are a couple other courses nearby that are worth playing as well. The golf leagues are very popular and they have some fun tournaments.

[heather.kruk]

I lived in/near Marshall for most of my life minus the four years I went to college. I moved last year down to West Texas and am really happy about that. Marshall is pretty small in population (only about 13,000 people) and there is almost no shopping or good restaurants to be had. You'll need to travel to Sioux Falls, SD (about 90 miles away), or the Twin Cities (about three hours away) to find anything decent. Since you used to live in MN, hopefully the weather won't be too much of a shock, but I was thrilled to leave the cold winters and the humid summers for a climate that's much more suited to me.

That being said, Marshall is safe and I don't think there are really any areas that would be considered bad or dangerous. The public school system is pretty decent if you have kids. You asked about golf and I don't know much about that, but Marshall does have a golf club and there is also another nice golf course in Lynd, MN, which is about 10 minutes from Marshall. I don't think you have to be a member to play there. Other than that, there isn't a whole lot to do in Marshall itself. There aren't any nightclubs or anything...a few bars of course, but they aren't anything great.

[lolabonita00]

Okay, friend, let me tell you the truth. First, don't live there. Marshall has big city dreams and carries a self-awarded proclamation of being "The Best Small City in the Midwest". Don't buy it.

Second, don't golf in Marshall. If your driver's license says you live in Marshall you will pay through the NOSE to purchase the membership required to play there. Play in Lynd or even Cottonwood, both are open to the public and very nice.

The Schwan's Food Corporation influences what happens in nearly the whole town (as it is headquartered there). If they don't get their way on a public proposal they threaten to withdraw the company and kill off the main income generation of the whole community. By the way, don't work there. If you need to know why, rent the movie "The Office". It is like that whether you are in the call center, developing programs at IT or doing an internship in the packaging department... and beware the layoff cycle... For that matter, avoid US Bank at all costs as well. Both of those places are known for hiring a large number of new employees and within months laying off most of them.

There is no shopping unless you consider ShopKo, Kmart and Walmart shopping. Marshall claims "The Market Street Mall" is, in fact, a mall, but it's not. There is a small Hallmark card store, a small Maurice's, a Christopher Banks, a tiny bookstore and a Sears Appliance store. That is IT. The nightlife is weak- a bunch of college kids going to small town bars to throw darts. HyVee Grocery is NOT the best place in town to eat unless you are a pathetic cheap-o. That said, there IS no "best place" to eat, they are all equally generic and blase. Perkins and Applebee's are about as good as it gets. Coldstone went up a year or two ago and is a great place for a cheap date (which you will certainly find in Marshall, given the large student population).

Good luck. P.S. Don't get involved in the rent-to-own through Bot Appliance if you can help it. My husband worked there for years, they will repo your stuff in a heartbeat and then take you to court just for a couple extra bucks. Not kidding.

[rcsteiner]

Marshall only has 13,000 people or so, so I'm not surprised that it's lacking in some amenities.

I lived in Mankato as a student for a few years, and I found *it* lacking in several respects, and quite a bit larger than Marshall if you count North Mankato, etc (85,712 combined metro population according to the 2000 census).

[minnesotawoman]

Hi, I hope you can still change your mind about moving. I went to college there, and one summer I worked there and didn't return home...thought I would die of boredom. Then later I moved back there and lived there for about 6 years in my thirties. Again, it was SO BORING I thought I would lose my mind or wind up committing suicide, I got so depressed. It was horrid and I would never live there again. If you have a family, it might be tolerable. No place for a single person. You know where the most action was?? The Hy Vee grocery store.