Might Be Moving To Iowa From Georgia (Posibbly Coralville or Iowa City)

[iowegian]

Scotsdale isn't a bad neighborhood, but it's not as nice as the neighborhood Park Place is in. It is situated in a pretty low-income area and there isn't much within walking distance. Certainly not a dangerous area by any means, just less aesthetically pleasing and a little less convenient.

Parkside Manor is about a block from Park Place and so the same comments apply to it. I had a friend who lived in those apartments about 10 years ago and they were nice then...of course you'd have to check them out but I don't think that would be a bad place.

I believe the only laundromat in Coralville is at 22nd Ave. and 9th St., which isn't too far but of course on-site laundry would be preferable.

[Geokam85]

Ok if tornadoes are rare what about flooding? What neighborhoods were spared the last and 2008 flood because I'm thinking of moving and I can't imagine waking up to wet feet!

[Geokam85]

Originally Posted by iowegian

While a tornado did actually hit Iowa City a couple years ago, tornadoes are an extremely rare occurrence. We may hear the tornado sirens a few times each summer, and you may have to go to the basement once in a while, but you could live here for many years and never see a tornado. I'd venture to guess that most people have never seen one.


It is more like a college town than a big city. If you liked Athens, you'll like it here.


Coralville is a very nice suburb of Iowa City that offers cheaper rent (but comparable housing prices, if you're buying) and a short drive into downtown. It is a center for retail stores because of Coral Ridge Mall, which is the second-largest mall in the state. Whether or not it would suit you kind of depends on what you want. If you want close proximity to nightlife, you might want to look at downtown Iowa City instead. If you want a safer, more family-oriented area, Coralville is great, as is much of Iowa City.


Despite what some people around here think, Iowa City is extremely safe. There is one neighborhood on the southeast side of town that has had a few highly publicized fights, but overall crime is very low. Don't walk around drunk at 3 AM downtown and you'll probably be okay.


Eh, people are people. You'll find plenty of nice people but of course there are also people who are not very nice at all. It's like anywhere else if you ask me.


There is not a passenger airport in Iowa City itself, but Cedar Rapids' Eastern Iowa Airport is only about 15 minutes north. A (usually) cheaper alternative is the Quad City Int'l Airport in Moline, Illinois, about an hour east. Both offer non-stop flights to Atlanta. Des Moines is about an hour and a half (I think?) away.


Well, I can't say it's perfect, because nowhere is right now. But the Iowa City area does have the lowest unemployment rate of any metro area in the nation, at 3.2%. I believe retail sales have slumped a little, but you would probably be better off here than you would be in most places.


Steer clear of the neighborhood east of Gilbert, south of Hwy. 6, and west of Heinz Rd, just to be safe. Otherwise, I think the rest of the metro area is fine.


Well, it's a lot bigger. As such, it offers a lot more, especially for entertainment options. You would have to decide whether you wanted a more Athens-esque college town setting or the more urban life that Minneapolis can offer.

Hope that helped! Please ask if you have more questions!

What's wrong with the neighborhood?

[SharpHawkeye]

1. Flooding

You can look up FEMA flood maps to give you a better idea...they were updated after the 08 flood. But my quick layman's version would be this:

1. Avoid the "old town" Coralville area (1st Ave to maybe about 4th)
2. Avoid the area of Manville Heights around Normandy Drive
3. Avoid the Taft Speedway/Idyllwild area (if houses were even rebuilt in that area)
4. Last, while I really do like the Pennsula area, it has one road in and out, and that road was impassable in 08, even if the Pennsula area itself did not flood. I don't know if the city has fixed this yet. I wouldn't let it stop you from looking at houses there, but it could be an issue

2. The problem south of Hwy. 6

This is a very touchy issue in Iowa City, so I'll try to tread lightly. There are a lot of, um, "low socio-economic status" African-American persons in that area of the city that have moved there, for the most part, from Chicago. That part of the city has had a well-documented crime problem in the last few years.

[jmgg]

Originally Posted by SharpHawkeye

1. Flooding

You can look up FEMA flood maps to give you a better idea...they were updated after the 08 flood. But my quick layman's version would be this:

1. Avoid the "old town" Coralville area (1st Ave to maybe about 4th)
2. Avoid the area of Manville Heights around Normandy Drive
3. Avoid the Taft Speedway/Idyllwild area (if houses were even rebuilt in that area)
4. Last, while I really do like the Pennsula area, it has one road in and out, and that road was impassable in 08, even if the Pennsula area itself did not flood. I don't know if the city has fixed this yet. I wouldn't let it stop you from looking at houses there, but it could be an issue

2. The problem south of Hwy. 6

This is a very touchy issue in Iowa City, so I'll try to tread lightly. There are a lot of, um, "low socio-economic status" African-American persons in that area of the city that have moved there, for the most part, from Chicago. That part of the city has had a well-documented crime problem in the last few years.

Well put. You have the politically correct answer of the day.

[Geokam85]

Thanks! Finally someone is willing to talk about the flooding.

So essentially if I worked ay UI and wanted to walk to work my options are not good.

[SharpHawkeye]

Originally Posted by Geokam85

Thanks! Finally someone is willing to talk about the flooding.

So essentially if I worked ay UI and wanted to walk to work my options are not good.

I wouldn't say that all. Now, the UI is a very big campus, so we'd first have to start with what area of campus you would be working in. You can find nice, walkable neighborhoods all around campus.

Thanks, jmgg. I wanted to say what it was without turning this into some kind of Hwy. 6 flame war.

[Geokam85]

Ok I would work at the hospital. Also are there like condo apts in the city? And that 2008 flood was like a 500 year event? Or 100 ? But please don't tell me every year!

[Chicago60614]

Originally Posted by Geokam85

Ok I would work at the hospital. Also are there like condo apts in the city? And that 2008 flood was like a 500 year event? Or 100 ? But please don't tell me every year!

The 2008 flood was a 500-year event (or even 1,000 I heard). Basically it was far beyond any other flood in the city's history. There was another 100-year flood in 1993, so people were a little freaked out that 2 big floods hit within 15 years. Honestly though, Iowa City normally doesn't have problems with flooding, and I wouldn't stay up at night worrying.

The areas that got flooded in 2008 did a lot of damage to the University and commeercial areas, but as far as the city and metro as a whole, it was a quite small % of housing units that actually got flooded. Almost all of the houses that flooded were bought up and torn down. You have an extremely small chance of living in a house in Iowa City or Coralville and having it flood. The city certainly isn't "known" for flooding on a regular basis.

The city recovered very quickly, and within a year or so most of the commercial properties that got flooded were back up and running just fine. 3 years after the flood you can drive around town and see very few signs of it. There are a couple of University buildings that need work or will be torn down, but from the outside you wouldn't really notice that something was amiss. All commercial areas look perfectly fine.

Cedar Rapids on the other hand had thousands of houses flooded as well as the entire downtown.