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Minneapolis wants more tax revenue, like anywhere. They have boosted population by bilding tall condos near downtown- no need to have a car, maybe no need for bus. But there is the unspoken selling point: If you're on the 15th floor & there is a drive-by shooting, it is very likely the bullet won't go that high! Crime drove people out of Murderapolis, but this was the solution. Also, less crime on near north side with many houses vacant or missing. There was a tornado to drive those out that didn't move because of crime.
Now, a few suburbs out, many enjoy ultra-low crime, so Minneapolis still has to compete with that.
I think large families will likely be suburban, as so many suburbs have over 100 businesses & very good parks for kids of all ages. Minneapolis has great parks system, too, but safety is a concern at many locations. Best wishes.
The Twin Cities have an unusually diversified economy. They have huge corporations across a variety of sectors including retail banking (US Bancorp), investment banking (Piper Jaffray), healthcare (United Healthcare), manufacturing (3M), insurance (St. Paul Companies), retail (Target), food (General Mills), agribusiness (Cargill), etc. This shelters them somewhat from downturns in any one sector.
The Cities also have a large group of civic boosters that actively encourage and support cultural life and other amenities. Great cities are fostered and maintained by people; they don’t happen by accident. Wealthy business owners and “Establishment” types are necessary to support institutions like schools, universities, museums, parks, libraries. Cities that have done especially well in the last 30 years (Boston, San Francisco, New York, Seattle, the Twin Cities, LA, DC, Chicago, etc.) have civic leaders that are willing to support them with large checks.
Interestingly, Michigan has the same number of Fortune 500 companies as Minnesota. The difference is that Michigan companies are not as diversified and civic leaders abandoned Detroit decades ago.
Check out this graphic recently posted at a local TV station showing the massive decline of the middle class and the explosion of the very rich and very poor across Chicago between 1970 and 2012. The middle class in Chicago certainly has declined and I would say that is bad for any city.
Is this thread a joke? Neither city is even a shadow of what they once were. They both used to be cities of nice neighborhoods where you didn't even have to lock your door day or night. I am talking about before WW2 of course. But socially both cities have slid down the toilet even in the past 10 to 20 years.
Have you been in Minneapolis/St. Paul in the past 10-20 years? It has some of the best neighborhoods in any city and, like many cities, is experiencing renewed growth in the older neighborhoods and downtown. Minneapolis IS a nice city. It's constantly recognized as one of the most livable, healthy, literate, etc.
Chicago did decline, immensely, along with the decline in manufacturing, but was able to diversify its economy and reinvent itself, mainly due to its size.
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