hot summer; snowy winter cities (home, good schools, prices)

[southernbelle777]

This is my first post!

I'm still a student so I'm not worried about housing prices or anything like that, but I was wondering about medium to large sized diverse cities in the USA that have hot summers (it has to get in the 90's many times during the summer) but still have snowy winters (at least 30 inches). I want it to be a family friendly area, very safe and walkable with good schools (public and private), and lots of outdoor activities. Thanks so much!

[NYMTman]

Salt Lake, Denver.

[Cleverfield]

You want Minneapolis. They have really hot summers, and really cold winters. They don't get as much snow as other places, but what they do get sticks around all winter, because temperatures barely climb above freezing. Another option would be my home town of Cleveland. We get tons of snow in the winter, but it doesn't stick around that much, maybe only a week or 2 at most before it thaws. It also doesn't get that hot in the summer. It averages probably in the 80s. But both cities are very family friendly, have good outdoor options, and good school options.

[Min-Chi-Cbus]

Minneapolis, SLC, Denver, Chicago, NYC (not sure about 30 inches of snow though) and Madison are some good examples.

Cleveland, Detroit, Pittsburgh, KC, St. Louis, Columbus, Indy, Philly, Boston, and D.C/Baltimore are decent examples that fit most of the criteria you listed. The cities with the hottest summers and the most snow would have to be SLC and Denver, but neither have snow/ice that stick around all winter long. For that you'd be better off with really only the Twin Cities, which aren't quite as hot temp-wise but might very well feel hotter if you factor in the humidity. Minneapolis gets about 45 inches of snow on average and the average July high is about 85 with about 15 days >90 degrees per season (so nothing too brutal). The only place with the cold, snowy winters you seek that's any hotter are the Dakotas and Montana, or Souix Falls or Rapid City.....perhaps Omaha, NE.

[southernbelle777]

Thanks! I'll definitely take these into consideration. Being from the south, I love hot summers, but I don't like the fact that we don't get a lot of snow. So thanks for the suggestions. They don't have to fit all the criteria perfectly, just around it. Oh, and as much as I love Winter, I would like for it to be finished around March. I'm not really for an April snowstorm...

[steel03]

April snow can happen anywhere that gets snow reliably. New snow after March is uncommon in Minneapolis even if it does sometimes happen.

If that's still a bit too much, I'd say go one latitude mark down and look at Chicago, Des Moines, and Omaha.

[ckhthankgod]

Any of the major Upstate NY areas, except it doesn't get to 90 or above that much.

[Tor_Nado]

Minneapolis

[TheBeagleLady]

Originally Posted by southernbelle777

Thanks! I'll definitely take these into consideration. Being from the south, I love hot summers, but I don't like the fact that we don't get a lot of snow. So thanks for the suggestions. They don't have to fit all the criteria perfectly, just around it. Oh, and as much as I love Winter, I would like for it to be finished around March. I'm not really for an April snowstorm...

Then Rapid City probably shouldn't be on your list. Most.of our snow happens in March and sometimes April (and this year the first week of October ). It doesn't usually hang around all winter, though. We do tend to get mild temps and the snow usually melts pretty quickly.

[Min-Chi-Cbus]

The weather in Rapid City and South Dakota for that matter is truly unpredictable -- 100 degrees one week, and snow the next!!