Sioux City??? Can You Tell Me About It? (apartment, homes)

[jack7y]

I realize a year has passed since this post was published, but I found it so helpful that I hope you can shed a bit more light on a question related to my specific circumstances. There is a possibility of moving to SC with an assistant professorship at Briar Cliff U. I am married but will certainly make well below the $75,000 you mention (I mean well below, at least $30,000 less). My spouse is a school teacher, and as I understand it, school teachers are not exactly privileged in the job market there. We are also not at all conservative, not in the political sense, and lean rather on the liberal side of the bar (without tilting it much, if that makes sense). That is, we are by no means activists, but also do not fit in one bit with the conservative circle. I suppose my question has to do with your personal take on it. That is, would you recommend SC to someone like me, based solely on what I've shared (which may sum it up sufficiently anyway). I'll get to the point: are there any places/cities/towns around SC that would offer, perhaps, a bit more hope with relation to housing/living/more "open-minded" cultural areas and to job opportunities for middle- and high-school teachers, and for a married couple (no children) who are "progessive" in an ideological sense? This all may sound a bit odd, but I really would love your opinion. Thanks so much.

I have spent some time in Sioux City and I think that you could be happy there. There are progressive people and people that could be described as liberal in the American political sense of the word. I've met some art students at Briar Cliff that could be described as progressive creative types. I've seen some edgy left-leaning community theater in downtown. On the other hand I've struck up conversations with people I suspected as progressives and found out they dress like, act like and listen to music that you'd expect progressives to listen to, but had a somewhat more right-leaning mind. You can personal message me if you want to hear more.

[iowatater]

Sioux City could be a nice place to live...As long as the winds are out of the west or north.

[jack7y]

An area of Sioux City smells but I don't remember it being everywhere. Better city planning would ideally have made this smell non-existent.

[Shay53]

sioux city had a very bright past and is a much older style town and i agree agree with some other people. ITS NOT THAT BAD! Its one of my favorite places it does have some downfalls like all cities but its not like the worst one ever.

[lurtsman]

This thread has been dead for 4 years. Let it rest in peace. Not all SC threads need to be revived.

[mnrunner89]

I'm considering applying for a coaching job at Morning Side college. I'm from a surrounding midwestern state, but don't know anyone in that area. Can anyone provide some insight as to whether or not I would likely easily be able to meet new friends there or will it be challenging in Sioux City. I recently spent the past 9 months coaching and living in a small town in a southeastern state and did not really make any new friends in town besides a few co-workers I rarely hung out with. I do not really want to repeat that experience. I am very outgoing and not afraid to join a group activity by myself.

[Shay53]

[alunner89;44508179]I'm considering applying for a coaching job at Morning Side college. I'm from a surrounding midwestern state, but don't know anyone in that area. Can anyone provide some insight as to whether or not I would likely easily be able to meet new friends there or will it be challenging in Sioux City. I recently spent the past 9 months coaching and living in a small town in a southeastern state and did not really make any new friends in town besides a few co-workers I rarely hung out with. I do not really want to repeat that experience. I am very outgoing and not afraid to join a group activity by myself.[/quote]
I think this town is pretty easy to get along with. My grandma, aunt, cousin, ect. all live there and get along with their neighbors and have people they hang out with so it seems like a good place. Also working at morningside college will mean you will know a lot of people because the college employs over 800 total. I think you should give Sioux City a try.

[Dewey59]

Originally Posted by SiouxCityNative

Sioux City is a great town with booming commercial developement. It has many well maintained city parks, and good high schools. It is situated mid-way between Sioux Falls and Omaha - which are nice to visit, but we are always happy to return home from the overcongestion of those towns. We used to go to Omaha and SF to shop several times a year, but since Lakeport Commons has opened next to the Southern Hills Mall, we have little reason to shop outside of town.

There are many community events happening year 'round, especially in the summer. At Grandview park, in the summer, they show free family movies Saturday nights and on Sunday evenings the municipal band gives free concerts. Sioux City is home to the Women's NAIA Basketball Tournament, and the Saturday in the Park band festival - to name only a few.

It's not difficult to find good paying jobs in this town. There are affordable neighborhoods, and high-income neighborhoods as well. You can ignore the "smell" comments listed here because it's soo overstated. You'll find no odor unless you are standing outside the water treatment plant, or the packing house - no different than in the industrial sections of other towns.

It's been a great place to live, with some of the nicest people you will ever find.

Do your own reseach at sioux-city.org, or check it out on wikipedia.com.

How long have you worked at the Chamber of Commerce? Your username and the fact that this is your first post suggests you have some connection to promoting this horrible city. Every time I have been there the stench went on for miles - and that was just driving through on I-29!

[atler8]

Originally Posted by Dewey59

How long have you worked at the Chamber of Commerce? Your username and the fact that this is your first post suggests you have some connection to promoting this horrible city. Every time I have been there the stench went on for miles - and that was just driving through on I-29!

You've dug up & criticized a post in this thread from 8 years ago.

In it's heyday as a packing plant & stockyards town, Sioux City was known for having a smell from those industrial facilities. The technology available & used in those fields today is much different and what is found in the Sioux City area today is quite different from what is was historically (see the link) found there.
As for a current smell, I'd suggest that the gentleman from Sioux Falls who is active on Iowa threads & who drives through Sioux City could respond as to whether or not Sioux City smells today. His own location of Sioux Falls has a huge packing plant too so it might be helpful to have some perspective from him.
As for Sioux city being a "horrible" city...
I recall from my years at Iowa State University that a handful of my friends were from Sioux City. Given the quality of those people, and the warmth of their families, I'd have to say that Sioux city made a favorable impression on me in terms of it's people.
As for the person who inquired the other day about Sioux City & a position at Morningside, the forum unfortunately is fairly quiet for some sections of Iowa including Sioux City. You may not have much response here from Sioux City area residents given that there seem to be almost no actively posting members from northwest Iowa.

Smelly Sioux City stockyards closing | Amarillo.com | Amarillo Globe-News

[jmgg]

Originally Posted by atler8

You've dug up & criticized a post in this thread from 8 years ago.

In it's heyday as a packing plant & stockyards town, Sioux City was known for having a smell from those industrial facilities. The technology available & used in those fields today is much different and what is found in the Sioux City area today is quite different from what is was historically (see the link) found there.
As for a current smell, I'd suggest that the gentleman from Sioux Falls who is active on Iowa threads & who drives through Sioux City could respond as to whether or not Sioux City smells today. His own location of Sioux Falls has a huge packing plant too so it might be helpful to have some perspective from him.
As for Sioux city being a "horrible" city...
I recall from my years at Iowa State University that a handful of my friends were from Sioux City. Given the quality of those people, and the warmth of their families, I'd have to say that Sioux city made a favorable impression on me in terms of it's people.
As for the person who inquired the other day about Sioux City & a position at Morningside, the forum unfortunately is fairly quiet for some sections of Iowa including Sioux City. You may not have much response here from Sioux City area residents given that there seem to be almost no actively posting members from northwest Iowa.

Smelly Sioux City stockyards closing | Amarillo.com | Amarillo Globe-News

I'm assuming you're talking about me. I'm happy to chime in.


After the stockyards were razed many years ago the constant smell is pretty much gone. The packing house in Dakota City does not omit even close to the aroma you got from the stockyards. Plus, it's located a fair distance south of the main city. When an odor is omitted from there, due to it's proximity with the main city I would guess Sioux Falls' Morrells packing house would be a little worse.


Smell is not Sioux City's problem. It's the lack of vision their leaders have shown over the years. Example being that probably their #1 attraction is the Hard Rock Casino downtown. Throw in their insistence that the 40+ year interstate road construction project never get's finished so that they can fleece money from those driving through that town with their photo enforcement and you've got a town without much of a positive reputation. When Sioux Falls had a population in the 40,000 range, Sioux City was close to 80,000. Now Sioux Falls is around 180,000 and Sioux City is still 80,000. There are reasons for that. The suburbs around it with the exception being Dakota Dunes haven't grown that much either so you can't point to that.


I know little about Morningside College as to it's academic reputation. It's a private school connected to the Methodist Church. In other words, it's expensive unless you have lots of financial aid. Since they dropped down from NCAA Div. II to NAIA many years ago, they have had a dominant athletic program in their division. It has a horrible venue for basketball. It's a throwback gym from probably the 1940's. I haven't been there for 10 years, but I've heard they haven't replaced it.


You're going to find that most people from Sioux City is like everywhere else around here. Pretty friendly and welcoming. For a bigger Iowa city, it's pretty conservative.