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Greetings all. I'll start with a little background on our situation. My wife and I are in our mid-twenties. She is a CPA, and I graduate with my DPT (doctor of physical therapy) in May. We have both lived in Indiana our entire lives, and we currently live near, but not IN, downtown Indianapolis. The great thing about our situation is that while we love Indy, we are in a position to explore all of our options and make the best decision for our young family (just us, no kids for 3-4 years.)
The cities listed below are what we are considering at this point. I'm definitely open to others, so mention them if you feel they would suit us. These are in no particular order.
- Indianapolis
- Chicago
- Cincinnati
- St. Louis
- Pittsburgh
- Minneapolis
Here is something of a list regarding our main criteria.
SIZE OF HEALTH CARE JOB MARKET - I'm in it directly, and would most like to work at a hospital. A large children's hospital is a huge bonus, as that would my ideal facility. My wife is a CPA, but specializes in health care.
LACK OF SUBURBAN SPRAWL - The main thing I hate about Indianapolis is that the only reasonable places to live are downtown or outside of I-465 (generally speaking). We live close to downtown now (15-20 minute walk), and if we stay in Indianapolis would likely move TO downtown. This leads me to my next point.
WALKABILITY - Self-explanatory. We are still young without kids, so we kind of want to experience living in the heart of a city. We'll worry about schools in 5 years or so. So, a safe, walkable downtown is key. Great, small neighborhoods that are self-contained near downtown will also be considered; an example of this would be Mt. Adams in Cincy. Walkable and lively in-and-of-itself.
SAFETY AND FEELING OF SAFETY - This ties in with the above two. Safe and lively downtown area. Cincinnati is also an example of what I don't want here. We stayed for a night earlier this year and went to a Reds game. Aside from the game traffic on foot, downtown (4th street) was rather grungy and empty. I certainly don't want to come across as somebody who wants to hide a city's homeless, because I don't, but I was somewhat uncomfortable there. There has to be a healthy ratio of local patrons to loiterers to impart a feeling of security. In Indy, downtown has become a place that is nearly always buzzing, and this feeling of unease is now limited to certain bus stops, etc. This is more applicable to my wife, as I am usually better prepared to defend myself if adverse events unfold.
TIME OF TRAVEL TO INDY - I'm OK relocating away from family, but my wife is less-so. This, along with having a worse winter, are the only two reasons Minneapolis isn't the obvious choice for us. She didn't like the idea of being 10+ hours away by car.
ATTRACTIONS, SPORTS, ENTERTAINMENT - The more there is to do, the better. This all ties into having a healthy, lively downtown where folks actually enjoy being.
PUBLIC TRANSIT - We currently have two cars, but would slim to one given the opportunity. Chicago is an obvious example of a great system, but the light rail in St. Louis could be an asset.
SUPPLY OF NEWER LOFTS AND CONDOS - See post #3.
That's it for now. If I come up with more, I'll add it to the discussion. Thanks for any and all help!
Last edited by -Rooster-; 11-04-2012 at 08:37 AM..
Safety is a relative term somewhat but I find it kinda sterotypical you say you have to live outside i465 in indy to get a safe neighborhood. A good neighborhood outside downtown for you could be meridian kesslar. However since all you wanted seems to be in Indianapolis and your family is there too I would recommend moving to downtown Indy. Downtown indy is very walkable as you said and its ranked highly nationally for that. Plus the super bowl could be coming back to Indy in 2018. I'm sure you had fun with the festivies like I did. You also can't beat the cost of living and quality of life downtown Indy has. Similar downtown apartments in chicago and other cities cost 2X or more to live in. Plus hoosier hospitality is unique to the culture of Downtown Indy. I could keep going on but I think you get the point. Moving downtown would be your best option.
Safety is a relative term somewhat but I find it kinda sterotypical you say you have to live outside i465 in indy to get a safe neighborhood. A good neighborhood outside downtown for you could be meridian kesslar. However since all you wanted seems to be in Indianapolis and your family is there too I would recommend moving to downtown Indy. Downtown indy is very walkable as you said and its ranked highly nationally for that. Plus the super bowl could be coming back to Indy in 2018. I'm sure you had fun with the festivies like I did. You also can't beat the cost of living and quality of life downtown Indy has. Similar downtown apartments in chicago and other cities cost 2X or more to live in. Plus hoosier hospitality is unique to the culture of Downtown Indy. I could keep going on but I think you get the point. Moving downtown would be your best option.
Thanks for posting. It was very stereotypical, as it was a generalization. The point was that the VAST majority of folks in Indy take their families outside of the city...more-so than in other midwest cities I've been to. Another area we've looked at here are the newer homes in Fall Creek Place. Still, this is only because there is a very limited amount of newer, loft-style condos in downtown. Seems that there are always a few projects in the works, but places like CityWay end up wildly overpriced from the onset. Don't get me wrong, I love Indy. However, I refuse to stay here just because we're here already. It definitely has its shortcomings, as does any city.
That brings me to my next point. I would like more options for true downtown living than we have in Indy. Converted lofts, newer high-rise condos, etc. Supply/demand causes prices to get pretty high in Indianapolis. Supply is increasing here, but this move will happen next summer.
if I'm not mistaken aren't they developing the former bank one operations building by msa into apartments? Also I agree with fall creek place. Its a safe urban neighborhood that's only 2 miles north of the circle and downtown. Plus its recently revitalized and the neighborhood feel is good and indygo services the area.
Greetings all. I'll start with a little background on our situation. My wife and I are in our mid-twenties. She is a CPA, and I graduate with my DPT (doctor of physical therapy) in May. We have both lived in Indiana our entire lives, and we currently live near, but not IN, downtown Indianapolis. The great thing about our situation is that while we love Indy, we are in a position to explore all of our options and make the best decision for our young family (just us, no kids for 3-4 years.)
The cities listed below are what we are considering at this point. I'm definitely open to others, so mention them if you feel they would suit us. These are in no particular order.
- Indianapolis - Chicago - Cincinnati - St. Louis - Pittsburgh - Minneapolis
Here is something of a list regarding our main criteria.
SIZE OF HEALTH CARE JOB MARKET - I'm in it directly, and would most like to work at a hospital. A large children's hospital is a huge bonus, as that would my ideal facility. My wife is a CPA, but specializes in health care.
LACK OF SUBURBAN SPRAWL - The main thing I hate about Indianapolis is that the only reasonable places to live are downtown or outside of I-465 (generally speaking). We live close to downtown now (15-20 minute walk), and if we stay in Indianapolis would likely move TO downtown. This leads me to my next point.
WALKABILITY - Self-explanatory. We are still young without kids, so we kind of want to experience living in the heart of a city. We'll worry about schools in 5 years or so. So, a safe, walkable downtown is key. Great, small neighborhoods that are self-contained near downtown will also be considered; an example of this would be Mt. Adams in Cincy. Walkable and lively in-and-of-itself.
SAFETY AND FEELING OF SAFETY - This ties in with the above two. Safe and lively downtown area. Cincinnati is also an example of what I don't want here. We stayed for a night earlier this year and went to a Reds game. Aside from the game traffic on foot, downtown (4th street) was rather grungy and empty. I certainly don't want to come across as somebody who wants to hide a city's homeless, because I don't, but I was somewhat uncomfortable there. There has to be a healthy ratio of local patrons to loiterers to impart a feeling of security. In Indy, downtown has become a place that is nearly always buzzing, and this feeling of unease is now limited to certain bus stops, etc. This is more applicable to my wife, as I am usually better prepared to defend myself if adverse events unfold.
TIME OF TRAVEL TO INDY - I'm OK relocating away from family, but my wife is less-so. This, along with having a worse winter, are the only two reasons Minneapolis isn't the obvious choice for us. She didn't like the idea of being 10+ hours away by car.
ATTRACTIONS, SPORTS, ENTERTAINMENT - The more there is to do, the better. This all ties into having a healthy, lively downtown where folks actually enjoy being.
PUBLIC TRANSIT - We currently have two cars, but would slim to one given the opportunity. Chicago is an obvious example of a great system, but the light rail in St. Louis could be an asset.
SUPPLY OF NEWER LOFTS AND CONDOS - See post #3.
That's it for now. If I come up with more, I'll add it to the discussion. Thanks for any and all help!
pro Chicago; born and raised but besides that I truly believe it is the BEST of the BEST! Is it perfect..no, but then no place really is but in my opinion this is as good as it gets, but again this morning I have to say that I am extremely biased.
I have only addressed a few of your criteria (Church is calling) but enough so that you will certainly be able to draw your own conclusions. Sincerely, best of luck in making your decision, relocating is always a tough call.
Bets regards, sincerely
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Travel time from Chicago to Indy, 2.5 to 3 hours; traffic can be a huge variable though because there's a great deal of traffic in the "Tri-State" area.
I'll elaborate a bit more later, (a lil busy and I have a few questions) but if you are wanting to leave Indy I personally feel Chicago or St. Louis are probably your best bets based on what you said so far.
Pretty much all points to Chicago. There are more areas that are unsafe in Chicago, but there are also more safe areas in Chicago simply because Chicago is just much bigger than the other cities. And while Chicago may have more healthcare jobs, it also has more people applying to them so there might be some competition. Chicago is also obviously a pretty short distance from Indy among these picks.
I'd probably see what kind of offers there are for work in these cities for both of you and then see how that jives with your career goals and the area's cost of living.
In terms of urbanity and transit, St. Louis and Pittsburgh seem up there. In terms of safety, Indy and Minneapolis probably ranks the highest, but Minneapolis has a lot of sprawl and it's the furthest from Indy.
I agree that Chicago would be a really good choice. On another note, don't let the weather keep you away from Minneapolis. It may be about 10F colder, in the winter, than the other cities you've listed, which really isn't that bad. It just might require a slight bit more of preparation, but it is definitely manageable.
St.Louis is a very walkable city but its not like you can walk everywhere. You most likely could not walk from your house to your workplace. St.Louis has crime, most of it is robbery or break in crime. A feeling of total safety is something you have to choose, by choosing the right neighborhood. I would suggest living in TGS, Ellendale, Dogtown etc. St.Louis has a ton of suburban sprawl, more than most cities have. I believe we are spread over 10,000 sq miles or more which is a ton for a metro of 2.8 million.
St.Louis's health care field is large and robust so you should have no problem. There are many large hospitals here (barnes jewish, mercy, ranken jordan).
Public transit here is terrible compared to Minneapolis or Chicago. It can get you places if you drive to the station and then board metrolink. Basically it just goes to the most popular areas of the st.louis area and nothing more. Unless you lived within a mile of these stations its usability is 0.
Basic overview of St.Louis
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