Relocating to Green Bay area, maybe. . . (Milwaukee, Appleton: apartment complex, rent, houses)

[geekduo]

Hi, my husband has a job opportunity that would give him a choice between GB or Stevens Point. We are both originally from western Wisconsin and we currently live in Minnesota. We miss being back home. We have almost all of our friends and family out there in various places around the state. Everybody hates having to drive thru the twin cities to see us, so very few do. Anyway, we really are looking for a small town within a half-hour drive of a bigger city area. Since my career is in engineering, we are thinking of looking in the Green Bay/Appleton area. Any opinions on the towns around there? We need a good school for the 3 kids too. We are considering Seymour, De Pere, and Kaukauna so far.

[CivicMinded]

DePere is a good choice.
I wouldn't rule out the Green Bay schools though. I have 3 kids myself and I personally don't believe you can "shelter" your kids completely in ANY school. Don't believe the crap you hear about how "bad" the "inner city" schools are. There are no-good punks in any school.
I'd rather my kids be acclimated to kids with different cultures and learn to be tolerant of people different than themselves. That's one of life's most important skills, so why shelter them in school?

Given that you are an engineer, I assume you make pretty good money...If I were you, I'd move in an instant to one of the cool historic neighborhoods in Astor Park area of Green Bay or the inner part of DePere. It really doesn't get any better than this.

Stevens Point is nice, too....I lived there as a college student and for a while afterwards.. Though my wife and I have now grown to LOVE Green Bay and all of it's "character". Join us, you won't regret it.

[lem]

Originally Posted by geekduo

Hi, my husband has a job opportunity that would give him a choice between GB or Stevens Point. We are both originally from western Wisconsin and we currently live in Minnesota. We miss being back home. We have almost all of our friends and family out there in various places around the state. Everybody hates having to drive thru the twin cities to see us, so very few do. Anyway, we really are looking for a small town within a half-hour drive of a bigger city area. Since my career is in engineering, we are thinking of looking in the Green Bay/Appleton area. Any opinions on the towns around there? We need a good school for the 3 kids too. We are considering Seymour, De Pere, and Kaukauna so far.

I have some friends who live in the town of Freedom, which is about 5 miles south of Depere and they like the small town and the close distance to Green Bay. Just a thought.

[Packrat]

Stay out of GB with kids-the nature of industry in this area is VERY attractive to illegal immigrants -the schools are getting rougher all the time.Stevens Point is probaly one of the best places in the USA to raise a family.

[lem]

Originally Posted by Packrat

Stay out of GB with kids-the nature of industry in this area is VERY attractive to illegal immigrants -the schools are getting rougher all the time.Stevens Point is probaly one of the best places in the USA to raise a family.

Weird because I could have sworn the Green Bay city council passed a law prohibiting and taking severe action on companies who hire illegal immigrants. The schools are not that rough just a bit more diverse than they used to be.

[BacktoNE]

I would stick with Stevens Point. Green Bay is getting nastier all the time.

[ekg56]

I live about 15 miles north of Stevens Point. It is a nice area. I like Green Bay too. The area north of UWGB is really nice and so are many of the smaller towns around Green Bay.

[alle]

City of 34,000 just 35 minutes south of Green Bay. My husband commutes daily and it's a breeze on I-43. Housing is cheap, schools are good and the lakeshore is beautiful. Folks are friendly and there is a lot going on-Capitol Theatre, symphony, Lakeshore Wind Ensemble (large concert band). Many festivals and events year round. Very safe and family-oriented community. 35 minutes to Green Bay, 45 minutes to Appleton and an hour or less to Milwaukee.

[Dolly]

We just moved to DePere. It is a nice community except for all the tore up streets and construction messes. But that will pass. I have been impressed with how nicely people keep their homes and yards here, lots of beautiful flowers and landscaping. You see people out walking, roller blading, biking, walking their dogs, etc. It has kind of that "Beaver Cleaver neighborhood" feel to it, in my opinion. I think houses are a little overpriced here but we rent in a very nice apartment complex and probably will just continue to do so.

(I think the economic level of DePere is little better than GB overall too. I did some research and found the income level of those in Depere is quite a bit higher than GB residents, which could explain the nicer looking neighborhoods.)

[Gulley]

Have you thought about Ashwaubenon? It's a small village between Green Bay and DePere. The property taxes are much lower than Green Bay or DePere. The schools are awesome! Very few student problems and a very accelerated curriculumn. All of our kids graduated from Ashwaubenon and loved the schools!
Good Luck