Des Moines area : good idea? (neighborhood, living, cost of living)

[Tek_Freek]

Originally Posted by runewell

I don't see these native stickers and I've lived here 7 years.

Iowans wouldn't have any need for the stickers anyway. It's not something that needs to be bragged about, and probably 3 out of every 4 or 5 people have lived here their whole life anyway.

What's good about Des Moines?
Roads are good, rush hour traffic moves pretty well. Very family friendly. Nice safe downtown. Low unemployment, there are lots of places looking to hire white-collar talent. The cost of living is very low. Yes, you CAN go lower. Gas just dropped to $2.99/gal today. So quality of life is good - you can have a good job with a fair to easy commute, live in a decent place, and enjoy yourself on the weekend.
Large weekly farmer's market in the summer, art festival, and we do get some amount of concerts and such.

What's bad about Des Moines? It's flat & boring. There are no hills to be found anywhere. There are good scenic places to take walks and go for bike rides, but be prepared to see corn fields while driving around the state. If you need the visual appeal of a mountain, or an ocean or giant body of water, you have come to the wrong place.

Also professional sports is lacking, if that's your thing. But people are extremely wrapped up in their local college offerings: Iowa State, U of Iowa, UNI, and Drake.

Don't get out much?

[tollfree]

Originally Posted by runewell

No one in Des Moines would wear a t-shirt like this. The fact that you find one on your abacus - I mean, the internet - means nothing. The proper attire would be Hawkeye or Cyclone apparel.

I've seen people wearing them before. That shirt has been around for years, and is still being marketed. There must be a reason for that. Never heard of a business that would advertise something for no reason for so long, especially if they thought no one would buy it.

[Tek_Freek]

{Sigh} Don't take everything so seriously, dude. Haven't you ever heard of the term tongue-in-cheek?

Jeez!

[tollfree]

Yes, I have. Except, they actually do believe that in Des Moines.

Time to bring out the abacus.

Des Moines is NOT Boring

Des Moines, Not Just for Young Professionals

Although you may not notice it, there is an idea that Des Moines is basically NYC/LA/San Francisco in a smaller package. Just as liberal, artistic, amazing, trendy, etc. If you disagree, then it's because you don't realize how awesome it is.

If someone can join the culture of self-pandering, then maybe they'll like it.

Like a previous poster said, with mid-sized white collar cities the only thing that gets mentioned is lower cost of living, some urban amenities, and the only consistent complaint is the cold weather or snow. Besides that, it's a perfect utopia. No one ever actually brings up the culture of the city, the way it's done in larger cities.

[Tek_Freek]

zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz

[GraniteStater]

Originally Posted by Chelito23

Very interesting thread. I have to say, Des Moines sounds a lot like Madison, WI...high quality of life, nice mid-size Midwest city...and Ronnie pinned it prfectly-with a fanatical cult like following. And rightly so, there is a lot to be proud of. But it is off putting to some, and that is also valid. The caveat is, if you are mainstream, it is great. Otherwise, it's like the Stepford Wives. I totally agree that the lack of diversity from within the US is a huge factor-in Madison there are mainly people from Wisconsin, Twin Cities, Chicago and the Pacific NW. Lots of Coloradans too. Sounds similar to Iowa.

I don't think people who are in the mainstream share this view, but if you travel more and live elsewhere, you will understand Ronnie's points. As would many transplants from other areas or minorities I would imagine.

I think this thread points out a very important aspect of living in a mid-sized midwest city, like DSM, but could be the same for several cities in the region. It is a factor that isn't verbalized very much, since QOL, COL, crime and other statistics tend to dominate most conversations. Ronnie's dissent is good for the subforum, it would be a boring (and quiet) forum if everyone agreed, there was no discourse and no difference of view points-check out the Madison subforum-very quiet for that reason and the same 3 questions by posters seemed to get recylced endlessly, everyone cocurrs and then crickets. I think it's similar to DSM, except there isn't a "Ronnie" poster here to shake things up. Trust me, it's a good thing, and if it's too much for some people to read endlessly (probably how he feels reading reaffirming posts), you can always block certain posters!

Disagree. Madison attracts a greater variety and diversity of people due to the UW Madison, proximity to Chicagoland, and excellent job growth overall. In my workplace alone we have plenty of people from both coasts and the surrounding region. A solid mix of people. I moved from NH.

[Chelito23]

Originally Posted by GraniteStater

Disagree. Madison attracts a greater variety and diversity of people due to the UW Madison, proximity to Chicagoland, and excellent job growth overall. In my workplace alone we have plenty of people from both coasts and the surrounding region. A solid mix of people. I moved from NH.

That's right, you did. I am not saying there are zero people from other areas in Madison or DSM, just that inboth cities, the newcommers tend to be somewhat uniform. I'm glad your work place is more representative of a different experience though!

[duster1979]

Originally Posted by RonnieJonez

Des Moines is NOT Boring

Des Moines, Not Just for Young Professionals

These links are from a blog written not by a lifelong Iowan, but by someone who moved from San Francisco to Des Moines.

And the theme is no that Iowa is just as "fabulous" as larger metro areas, but that the area has its good points once you get to know it.

Sorry, but this really doesn't help your case at all.

[tollfree]

That person is from Iowa (but lived in SF), and now looks for every reason under the sun to draw comparisons to NYC/SF.

Very common theme in Des Moines. Either that, or something about how Des Moines Young Professionals are experts on tofu or whatever is supposedly popular in NYC, LA or SF.

[Tek_Freek]

zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz