I appreciate this one. Both are quite different than Vegas, so hopefully, there are a number of things you are looking to change!
I'm planning a trip to Pittsburgh and Minneapolis to scope them both out as potential relocation spots out of Las Vegas.
Which city is colder? Minneapolis is colder during the winter by a decent margin. It is sunnier also. Summers are maybe around the same.. but I would guess that Pittsburgh might be a bit more moderate at that time too.. don't know how to say it, but the middle and upper-middle of the country just seems... hotter/stickier on average, at least given recent experience. I never felt that growing up in Cleveland.
Which one is better for live rock/heavy metal music, culture, nightlife, theater, art galleries, museums, social events? Minneapolis is a larger metro. I can't necessarily speak to all of your categories.. but while Pittsburgh and Minneapolis both punch above their weights in both of these probably, and Pittsburgh might be even on say, museums.. but Minneapolis I think has more in a number of those other things, but especially theater. I might also give Pittsburgh a case on nightlife.. just speaking to the general level o effervescence in both regions? And the bar density in PGH that I have heard promotes really good nightlife.
Major university for events? I really don't know.. this one is tough. Minneapolis has Minnesota, a public flagship university and a number of well regarded small private colleges.
But Pittsburgh has Pitt, which is a well regarded medium-size private school, and Carnegie Mellon, a borderline Ivy Leaguer. Pittsburgh has more universities overall.. but given the specific criteria.. Minnesota might win here.. it has the most overall I think of student life, big time college sports, etc. but Pittsburgh's number and quality of institutions, gives me pause.
Strong, diverse economy? Pretty positive Minneapolis here. It seems remarkably strong.
Strong sense of community/nice people? Different. Minneapolis has Minnesota Nice, and was rated as the country's most civically engaged major city. But, there is also that 'deep-freeze' socially that some speak to (I haven't personally experienced it.. but my family, given Scandinavian heritage, and travels in Helsinki and Copenhagen, I think I could relate and wouldn't mind it at all). Pittsburgh strikes me as more east-coast in your face (stereotyping, I know), but with less pretense. I would tend to assume PGH has a higher number of people that have been locals in the area a long time, and the area's attitude and sense of community are felt in sports team following, etc. similar to Cleveland in a number of respects.
Less crime? I'm pretty positive Minneapolis, though I've been known to be wrong before.
Cleaner air? I would tend to think Minneapolis. I think it ranks well among US cities in that regard, and I was surprised at the not great air quality last time I was in PGH.
Better doctors? Within Pittsburgh itself, I think it wins with UPMC... but then, Mayo Clinic is hard to account for here. Not sure how much influence it has in MSP itself, but Mayo Clinic is about an hour from the southern end of St. Paul, so most residents would at least have access to their facilities in commute sense.
Schools? Pittsburgh has more highly acclaimed colleges and universities. I am not positive, but I would perceive MPLS to win on K-12.
Most educated? Minneapolis by a healthy margin.
Do both have toll roads? Within the metro area yes... But I don't know how ubiquitous they are in each compared to one another.
Cigarette bans? Don't know.. hope this doesn't offend and such, but while I have libertarian tendencies.. I don't like enhaling smoke, even when in public parks. Not saying they should be banned (they shouldn't), but their public use should be limited IMO so others aren't forced to enhale secondhand smoke.
I like Pittsburgh's location for road trips and being close to major east coast cities. Minneapolis seems a bit land locked.
I'll play Devil's Advocate with ya on this one:
1. Landlocked: Perhaps.. but the Mississippi River offers numerous water based activities and the MPLS area is filled with lakes (land of 10,000). Also, Lake Superior, which truly feels more like a massive inland sea, is only 2 hours from Minneapolis. It is... IMO, stunning. To me, perhaps as much or more so as any natural area in the US... the upper great lakes are just crystal clear on a level that is hard to define.. and combine that with mountainousness (relatively speaking), and lush forest, along with impressive geologic features, and I tend to think you have a landscape you can't find anywhere else in the US.. From Pittsburgh, you are closer to the actual coast.. but still 6 hrs. drive or so, so it's not like you're necessarily gonna be regularly driving there on the weekends.
2. Isolation: Perhaps this is another argument... But Minneapolis IS around the same distance from Chicago that Pittsburgh is from NYC.. maybe a little less. You also have a number of other distinctive and fu cities around including Madison, Des Moines, Duluth, Sioux Falls, Fargo... okay yeah I'm gonna stop because that isn't helping Minneapolis' cause in a road trip sense even though those are decent cities
Can't compare to PGH access to east coast. BUT. Perhaps if MPLS is less accessible.. perhaps it's more exotic? I mean, I know you've already lived out west and seen these landscapes.. but for instance, you can potentially long weekend to the Badlands/Black Hills area. Also.. and I know this is gonna show me forever as being peak midwest (I might as well have just said "ope"), but in a driving day that might pass like a kidney stone... you can drive to Rocky Mountain/Front Range.. or even Yellowstone/Grand Teton.. so I guess that's cool. My LAST attempt to offset this one though.. air travel. Because that's probably how you'd get to many of these places anyways. MPLS is a larger airport with more flights. Because you are in the middle (relatively speaking) of the continent... you can get to Seattle in 3.5 hrs., Miami in 3.5 hrs., Los Angeles in 3.5 hrs., and Boston in less than 3.5 hrs. Sun Country Airlines is HQd there.. meaning relatively cheap and quick travel to anywhere in the country.
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
