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My wife and I have been wanting to live up North for the longest we could remember. We both have alot in common, such as our career in the field of working with the Deaf Community, preference for cold winters and less humid summers, and passion for outdoor (sailing, swimming, hiking, and some camping/fishing/hunting).
We enjoy dining out, shopping, attending theatre plays and opera, and checking out museums of all kinds. If there are good pro teams and sport bars, I would love to go once awhile.
We prefer to live where allergies aren't known to be bad due to pollution, many trees, and ragweed.
I plan to return back to school for Ph.d. in the future so having universities nearby would be a plus.
Although we plan to rent first for 6 months to 1 year, we would like to buy a house eventually so both stable economy and housing market are important along with reasonable cost of living. We want to avoid horrendous commute into the city to work every day like we do here in Austin, Texas.
We happen to be Christians but very open-minded and more moderate to liberal in political views.
If I could get my way, I would pick the Twin Cities (Minneapolis/St. Paul, MN) in a heartbeat. However, my wife doesn't want to be more than 9 hours away from her family in Little Rock, Arkansas and my father in northern Mississippi.
We love Austin, TX except for hot weather. Rising cost of living and increasing traffic congestion are pushing us away.
We have narrowed our choices down to either Kansas City or Indianapolis. We have been to both twice but we are still undecided.
Which one would you recommend to us as a place to live, work, and play? I would love to hear both pros and cons of each city.
I grew up in KC and have been to Indy several times. They're very similar cities.
KC metro area is bigger (I believe by over a half million) and is hillier. Things that stand out are having a baseball team, The Plaza (urban shopping district), and probably a bigger urban district. KC has the Nelson Art Museum (world class), but I'm sure Indy has museums as well.
Both are similar in that overall, neither city seems to lean toward suburban life and development over dense, urban development. Downtown Indy and KCMO are comparable, from what I can tell. People in both cities probably lean more conservative (overall) but it doesn't sound like that's an issue for you.
As for weather, both cities do get quite humid and hot in summer. Indy probably has a bit harsher winters. But I've lived in San Antonio and summers in either place don't compare to the misery of S. Texas.
Traffic isn't much of an issue in either city, so that's probably not any deciding factor. Maybe someone from Indy could sell their city to you since I'm not nearly as familiar with it as KC. Overall, they're just very similar.
I grew up in KC and have been to Indy several times. They're very similar cities.
KC metro area is bigger (I believe by over a half million) and is hillier. Things that stand out are having a baseball team, The Plaza (urban shopping district), and probably a bigger urban district. KC has the Nelson Art Museum (world class), but I'm sure Indy has museums as well.
Both are similar in that overall, neither city seems to lean toward suburban life and development over dense, urban development. Downtown Indy and KCMO are comparable, from what I can tell. People in both cities probably lean more conservative (overall) but it doesn't sound like that's an issue for you.
As for weather, both cities do get quite humid and hot in summer. Indy probably has a bit harsher winters. But I've lived in San Antonio and summers in either place don't compare to the misery of S. Texas.
Traffic isn't much of an issue in either city, so that's probably not any deciding factor. Maybe someone from Indy could sell their city to you since I'm not nearly as familiar with it as KC. Overall, they're just very similar.
I recall Kansas City being more known for having Royals, Chiefs, and The Plaza while Indy has the Colts and Indy 500. I personally don't care for NASCAR.
Isn't crime rate in KC higher?
Would you recommend for us to pick Johnson County, Kansas side or are Missouri inner suburbs better and more affordable to live?
It's odd that you note that you both love sailing (and fishing/swimming) but are choosing between the 2nd most landlocked city in the country (Indianapolis) and another on the Missouri River (not renowned for sailing, to say the least) that's really far from the Great Lakes/oceans/lake territory.
It's odd that you note that you both love sailing (and fishing/swimming) but are choosing between the 2nd most landlocked city in the country (Indianapolis) and another on the Missouri River (not renowned for sailing, to say the least) that's really far from the Great Lakes/oceans/lake territory.
We both want the Twin Cities (Minneapolis/St. Paul, MN) but my wife doesn't want to be over than 9 hours away from her family in Little Rock, AR.
She is also concerned about not fitting in socially if we live in the Upper Midwest. It is not a concern for me because I have lived in St. Louis, MO and Wisconsin before.
As a result, we narrowed it down to two cities in the Lower Midwest for family reason.
I know Indy has man made lakes nearby. I don't know about Kansas City though.
I don't sail personally, but I know people who do on Eagle Creek. There is a club on Geist, but I know very little about it and don't follow the typical city data "I don't know but I want to win a debate so I'll make stuff up" shtick.
Indianapolis is going to be less humid than KCMO.
Indy has IUPUI, KCMO has UMKC. They both probably have similar small schools too. IU and Purdue are both about an hour outside Indy, KU is maybe about the same from KCMO.
My honest take is this..............KCMO and Indy are pretty similar. Hearing that drives people in KCMO nuts. No doubt, we'll be subjected to a photo dissertation on that subject. Reading the OP, I think OP would be happy either place.
I don't sail personally, but I know people who do on Eagle Creek. There is a club on Geist, but I know very little about it and don't follow the typical city data "I don't know but I want to win a debate so I'll make stuff up" shtick.
Indianapolis is going to be less humid than KCMO.
Indy has IUPUI, KCMO has UMKC. They both probably have similar small schools too. IU and Purdue are both about an hour outside Indy, KU is maybe about the same from KCMO.
My honest take is this..............KCMO and Indy are pretty similar. Hearing that drives people in KCMO nuts. No doubt, we'll be subjected to a photo dissertation on that subject. Reading the OP, I think OP would be happy either place.
Eagle Creek State Park outside Indy. That's what I am talking about.
I've been told that Johnson County, Kansas is more of a dry rolling prairie with urban sprawl. I know KC has better museums though.
Honestly, I think KC, Indy, and Columbus (OH) are so similiar that you can't go wrong with one of them except for a great college football atomsphere in Columbus due to Ohio State. Austin has Longhorn Football so it's another reason I like Austin, TX.
There is no important difference between the 2 (with regards to day-to-day life). Go with wherever you can get better jobs or whichever is closer to family.
The cities are very, very similar, with KC being just a little bit more "big city"-ish, a little hipper and livelier and a little more traditionally "urban". If you've lived in St Louis, KC would fall somewhere on the spectrum between St Louis and Indianapolis, but shading toward Indy, in terms of size, ammenities, culture, etc.
Sailing (assuming you mean in reservoirs/lakes)/hunting/hiking/camping options, climate/allergies/humidity and crime and lack of congestion are probably as close to identical as you could get. So are the flaws of the 2 cities: conservative (civicaly and culturally, I mean, not politically), poor transit options, suburban-dominated even the core cities, high violent crime rates, pronounced inferiority complex/"can't do" attitude, terrible anti-city out-state government, significant urban core depopulation/disinvestment.
Eagle Creek State Park outside Indy. That's what I am talking about.
I've been told that Johnson County, Kansas is more of a dry rolling prairie with urban sprawl. I know KC has better museums though.
Honestly, I think KC, Indy, and Columbus (OH) are so similiar that you can't go wrong with one of them except for a great college football atomsphere in Columbus due to Ohio State. Austin has Longhorn Football so it's another reason I like Austin, TX.
Eagle creek is city, not outside. Indy has some great parks, just not enough of them. Kc has the fountains while Indy is about monuments. One major difference is proximity. Nothing really close to kc while Indy is between many areas so a couple of hours you can take in derby weekend in Louisville, cincy jazz fest or the taste of Chicago.
Neither will blow the other out of the water in any category. Kc better surrounding hoods, Indy better DT if urban living is your thing. Plenty of museums in both but you do need children to go to the children's museum which is in its own tier from its competitors. Both on the same concert/Broadway circuit and plenty of sports to fill your taste. Basically, flip a coin and call it.
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