Racine (Milwaukee, Green Bay, Kenosha: appointed, apartments, to rent)

[seansamjoe]

Hi all..

My husband, myself & 2 small children may be moving to the Racine area.
(job offer) from Missouri.

Where would be a good place to live?

I'm not seeing rave reviews about Racine.

We'd want to rent for a while before buying....preferably a house.

Any suggestions?

THANKS SO MUCH...
Becky

[seansamjoe]

Okay, we are moving for sure....

Any suggestions?

Someone suggested Mt Pleasant.

We'd like to find a house to rent for a while before we buy. (3+bedrooms)

How is the Kenosha area?

Is there somewhere I could look online?

Help PLEASE!

Becky

[sakahowdah]

Becku, try visiting the following URL:

http://www.city-data.com/city/Mount-...Wisconsin.html

[jejwrm]

I've lived here all my life, but the crime rates are going up significantly. To get to the lake, you have to go through some bad areas. Best place to live right now is "west of the interstate". Many nice small communities such as Union Grove, Burlington, Waterford, Raymond or even a little south in Pleasant Prairie or Bristol. School system is Racine is horrid. With children I would definitely move more towards Union Grove - Raymond. Much better school system and lower taxes. Moving a bit north into Milwaukee and the taxes sky rocket. FYI

[Turtle]

I grew up in Wind Lake....a very small town just north-ish of Racine and Kenosha. It's a great little town and was a great place to grow up. We could play in the streets without worry of being nabbed and had a great child hood. As a teenager it seemed like a big inconvenience to have to drive the 20-30 minutes to get to the mall or whatever, but looking back now, I really miss that and love going back there to visit my parents who are still there.

As for the schools, that would be the Muskego Norway school system, they have really been revamped since my days, but I graduated high school with honors and went on to get a 4 year degree, so they can't be too bad

Most lots are around 1/2 acre depending on where you look and there are three lakes for swimming, skiing or whatever. I would definitely look into it if it's not to far to commute for you. It's a nice, safe little town.

Good luck

[jaj215]

I am a native of Racine who has lived in Chicago for 14 years. I just bought a house in Racine, and will be moving back. Actually, if you enjoy cultural and social events, I would recommend moving down by the lake, especially around the zoo or north of the zoo. The downtown is undergoing a big renaissacne with all sorts of new restaurants, condos, etc. sprouting up. The Racine Art Museum downtown is gaining quite a bit of recognition, There's a nice zoo and a bike path running for miles along the lake, as well as a new children's park on the beach. A $400 million condo/townhouse will be built on a piece of old industrial by the lake. All sorts of festivals and events take place downtown - Spirit of Racine Triathalon, Harbor Fest, Animal Crackers Jazz series at the zoon, Dragonboat races, Party on the Pavement are just a few. Racine has a great community theater and symphony orchestra. The "bad areas" around downtown are being gentrified.

Yes, Racine has a higher rate of crime than other small cities in Wisconsin and it has a higher rate of povery and unemployment. But the city's got a terrific major and dedicated city leaders who are working hard to improve the city. In fact, the city o f Racine recently was featured in the New York Times as an example of a Midwestern rust belt city that is successfully reinventing itself. The schools are gradually improving - still need work, but attendance and test scores are up. So, if you like a lot of cultural and social activities, then I saw buy on the northside near the zoo, or possibly Manree Park or West Racine.

So, if you

[Mohawk41]

My family and I moved to Racine (not my decision) about three and a half years ago. We moved here from Cedarburg which I would say is the nicest place I've ever lived and I've lived all around the Milwaukee area, Chicago and in Iowa. I had always heard bad things about Racine and dreaded moving here. But now when people ask me how I like it I say "It's not as bad as I thought".
Without a doudt, the worst thing about Racine is the crime and ghettos. No matter where you are in Racine you are never far from a bad neighborhood. My wifes car was broken into in our own driveway and we've had bikes stolen out of our garage. In my first conversation with our new neighbor he asked me if we had a dog. I said no. He said "You better get one". We got a security system instead.
Schools. My daughter started kindergarten the year we moved here. The elementary school she attended was two blocks from our house and a lot of the students came from the nearby ghetto neighborhood. When she was in first grade she was getting her lunch stolen from her on a regular basis by kids whose parents don't feed them. One day she even had her shoes stolen. At the end of that year the school district voted to close that school. I was not at all disappointed. She is now bused to a school in another part of town and it is MUCH better. No more problems.
OK, that's the bad news, now on to better things. There are some very nice things about Racine. The downtown is booming with lots of interesting shops, restaurants and art galleries- lots of art galleries! We have a very nice library and beautiful marinas. There is a festival grounds on the lakefront which hosts a lot of interesting events including my favorite, "Brew Fest" (for all the beer connoisseurs out there). There is a large fountain downtown where a lot of kids come to play and cool off in the summer. My daughter loves it. Right now there is a lot of downtown residential developement underway and planned to start this year so the area should continue getting better and better.
Racine has its own zoo. Nothing to rival the Milwaukee zoo but how many towns this size have a zoo, and it's FREE! Racine has some nice golf courses, a very nice beach just north of downtown and plenty of good shopping on the west side of town. Lets not forget the authentic Danish Kringle which Racine is known for.
One of the real pluses about Racine is its close proximity to Milwaukee and Chicago. Milwaukee's airport is only a 30-40 minute drive. A 15 minute drive to the Metra station in Kenosha and you're on a train to Chicago. Or take Amtrak from the new station in Sturtevant, even faster, but more expensive.
Well there are some pros and cons about Racine. If I were going to move here now I would look for a place south of Durand Ave (hwy 11) or west of Green Bay Rd (hwy 31). I might also look in the neighborhood on the south side bounded by the lakefront, 14th st on the north, Dokoven Ave. on the south and Park or College aves on the west. If I had big bucks I would look in North Bay or Wind Point on the north side.
I don't plan to live in Racine the rest of my life but for now, it could be worse. At least it's not Waterloo Iowa.

[bettyboopster]

What kind of town are you from in Missouri? It depends on whether or not you like hustle and bustle, or a more small town or suburban feel. As for what they said about ghettos--no, not all of Racine is glamorous, but there are some ghettos where I'm from that you don't even want to drive through and even my "nice" family neighborhood had graffiti all over the sidewalks and I lost a friend a couple blocks over from a fatal stab wound in his front yard at 3 a.m. And where my husband's from, it's segregated from the rest of the city, and it has some of the most notorious gangs in the world (City of God). Racine looks great compared to that. Again, just depends on where you're from. But I do recommend Kenosha over Racine. Somers is a nice part of the Kenosha area (it's still Kenosha mailing address--between Racine and Kenosha)) and Forest Park is a nice neighborhood in the center of Kenosha, quiet suburban feel, but close to everything. Depending on your budget, you'll get more for your money if you rent an apartment/condo than a house at first. I can also recommend some nice condo-style apartments if you want me to.

[seansamjoe]

Well we moved to Racine. I actually really like it here. We are originally from the St Louis, MO area. We lived in a small town in SW MO for a couple years before moving up here.
I think the people here have been fantasically friendly! We don't want to buy a house just yet, but found a wonderful rental...south of Durand is an excellent suggestion. Thats where we ended up.
Put the kids in private schools as nobody was offering up rave reviews of the public schools.
Having lived in the St Louis suburbs, I have to say that the "bad" neighborhoods around here dont really seem that bad to us.

Thanks for all the advice!!

[ravenstone]

As a Racine native, I'm glad you like living there. I grew up on the South side, but almost all my relatives live on or near Erie St., so I saw the best & worst of "both worlds." Two of the greatest events in Racine are Salmon-a-Rama and the County Fair. I miss them both! Make sure to attend. You don't have to enter the fishing contest But the best time to be in Racine is on the 4th of July. I have lived all over the Midwest (including Missouri!) (or as we called it, Misery ) and am now in the South, and nowhere I've been can compare on the 4th. The parade is one of the largest in the country -- did you fellow Wisconsinites know that? Amazing. The fireworks are always awesome, but bring a jacket. And, while not vocal about it, we revere our vets. That's one of the best things about Wisconsinites.