Moving to Cedar Rapids in September.... (Iowa City, North Liberty: apartment complexes, for rent, insurance)

[GBurgNupe]

To work at the Eastern Iowa Airport (Air Traffic Controller). I'm originally from Germantown, MD (a suburb of DC) and wanted to know some things about CR.

Is there public transportation (to the airport specifically?)

Any nightlife worth checking out?

Are the winters as bad as they say (we have snow and ice storms here in DC, so it wouldn't be TOO bad)

Should I move to Iowa City and commute? Or stay near or in CR.

What's the airport like? I'm training with the FAA Academy in OKC now and that's where I've been assigned.

Is there diversity in CR? (I'm a brotha!)

Are there any good gyms in the area (I'm a personal trainer as well, and would like a few clients)

Any information would help, as it looks like I'll be in CR for 2-2.5 years while I get certified.

[WoodwardGirl]

Originally Posted by GBurgNupe

To work at the Eastern Iowa Airport (Air Traffic Controller). I'm originally from Germantown, MD (a suburb of DC) and wanted to know some things about CR.

Is there public transportation (to the airport specifically?)
Barely. The stop is out on Wright Brothers Boulevard, which has a lot of parking and circle drive space between it and the airport proper. Here's the transit map: http://www.crbus-parking.org/_routes/Route11.pdf

Any nightlife worth checking out?Downtown has acquired some sophisticated options such as The Piano Lounge (sounds awful, but is very nice) and a couple of great restaurants. If you want bands and rowdiness, though, you'll probably end up in Iowa City.

Are the winters as bad as they say (we have snow and ice storms here in DC, so it wouldn't be TOO bad) This winter sucked like a Hoover. Ask us some other year! I'd say the difference from DC is that the cold weather lasts a lot longer, and there are probably longer stretches between thaws / more pleasant conditions. You'll recognize the humidity here, though!

Should I move to Iowa City and commute? Or stay near or in CR. That depends entirely on what you are looking for in your spare time. The airport is way on the south end of Cedar Rapids, so a commute from Iowa City or even North Liberty (or Swisher or Shueyville or Fairfax or Amana) is super easy. If your second question is about nightlife, I bet you should strongly consider IC or somewhere that will allow you to easily head there for your recreation.

What's the airport like? I'm training with the FAA Academy in OKC now and that's where I've been assigned. Small. Growing. I've always thought it was quite well kept up and the cafe is under management by my favorite coffee shop, The Blue Strawberry (yum!) The airport has had a good "feel" to it for as long as I can remember -- no scandals, no horrible management, no real trouble, and generally responsive to customer needs.

Is there diversity in CR? (I'm a brotha!) Simply put: no. I explain it to people this way -- we went to visit my in-laws in Phoenix and were horrified to learn that our dog barked at people of color. Simply put, she'd never seen anyone that wasn't either the fishbelly white of Iowa's wintertime complexion or the strawberry white of Iowa's sunburned complexion. It was SO embarrassing! As someone who has lived in Cedar Rapids for a long time, I'm always glad to hear of people considering a move here, but I've got to be fair and tell you how the numbers stack up. All that aside, there is particularly a dearth of professional African American men and so you'd have to think those numbers could work in your favor...?

Are there any good gyms in the area (I'm a personal trainer as well, and would like a few clients) Lots of gyms, some probably more professional than others. Again, Iowa City, with the college athletes and wanna-be college athletes and former college athletes, probably has more to offer in this area.

Any information would help, as it looks like I'll be in CR for 2-2.5 years while I get certified.

It's definitely going to be an adventure, and I hope it's a positive one. My biggest suggestion would be to start a blog -- I'm serious -- and then see whether the local media/newspapers want to link to it and/or feature your posts. I think it would be a real eye opener for our area citizens to see how they look to someone of a different background, and could teach us all something about each other.

I hope it is a wonderful experience for you. Best of luck!

[brie8383]

I would NOT suggest living in Iowa City and commuting to Cedar Rapids.
I lived in Iowa City for upwards of 20 years, and the housing prices are ridiculously high - to rent OR to buy. If possible, I would live in Cedar Rapids. That being said, we lost a lot of housing recently and it might be harder to find a place here because half of the city was underwater.

The CR nightlife is much more adult than the Iowa City nightlife - if you go out regularly in Iowa City, you will find yourself among a crowd of people who are too young to drink - and they will be HEAVILY intoxicated.
The Iowa City bar scene is epitomized by the phrase, "Oh, my gawd you guys - I just lit the wrong end of this ciggarette!!! Ah- HAHAHAHAHA!"
followed by a thud as she hits the floor.
The Iowa City bars allow in people over 19, and the Cedar Rapids bars are all 21 and over.

I moved to CR two years ago - and I will never go back to Iowa City.
In Iowa City, I rented a two-bedroom apartment for 720 dollars a month.
I now live in a MUCH nicer neighborhood in a MUCH nicer apartment which has 3 bedrooms - and I rent it for 610 a month.

There are gyms all over CR, I can name 3 within walking distance of my house.

The winters are ridiculous. Almost as bad as the tornadoes. You get used to it though...
give it 5 years and you'll be out on the front porch watching the storm with the rest of us.

Good luck with the move,

-H

P.S. I'm black too. It's not DC but we do live here too, so whoever wrote that up there must not get out much.
Or maybe just doesn't get to the Southeast side much.
We could use some professionals though, she's got that right.

[Roy G. Biv]

Cedar Rapids is basically the regular-joe mostly white working class town with a lot of industrial and tech jobs. The Southeast quadrant of the town has both the old wealthy neighborhoods and lowest income neighborhoods where there is the largest population of black people. The West side of the river is predominately middle-income working-class whites. The The Northeast part of town is the biggest retail and restaurant area and has a lot of new subdivisions and sort of young yuppie suburb atmosphere. Of course thats all an oversimplification, but it gives you an idea. I've mentioned race, but its not a big issue here like it might be out in rural Iowa.

If you're a single guy looking for clubs or bars and such your best bet is to visit Iowa City, but as the person above said its best not to live there because its a big college town and everything is more expensive and immature. There is a lot of good stuff down there though and its only about 25 min South of Cedar Rapids. The Airport is on the very southern edge of cedar rapids on the Southwest side, and it is very close to I-380. So if you do choose to live in Iowa City or in a town in between, it would be a very easy commute. The easiest thing if you're going to be here for only 3 years would be to rent an apartment on the Southwest side (I have some I would recommend and some I would warn against).

As far as mass transit, yeah there is a bus system but in Cedar Rapids you'll want to buy a car if you don't have one. But if you do have a car but you're just looking for a way to get to work, it is possible. Route 11 goes to the airport.

I'm not sure what a "good" gym is but there are a number of big ones--it just kind of depends on what part of town you're in. On the Southwest side where I am, The MAC is the biggest. There are nearby apartments that also give a 50% discount to membership, they also hire people for side jobs to teach classes or perhaps work as personal trainers on the side (a school teacher friend of mine teaches an aerobics class there once a week).

The airport itself is kind of medium-sized, not very busy, clean, and quiet. They keep it up pretty nice, but the guts of the airport where you'll be at...who knows... you'll just have to wait and find out I guess.

As for winter here, it all depends on what you're used to growing up. I enjoy the winter (except for when it gets dirty and slushy) while the people who come here from Florida think they are in a really cold version of hell.

Let me know if there is anything else, I am more than willing to help.

[Roy G. Biv]

BTW as far as gyms go, another big one in my area is Aspen (http://www.aspenathletic.com/pages/club-cr.html - broken link). There are several others on the north side of CR too.

[macfraser]

Welcome to Iowa! My spouse is a pilot so we fly in and out of the CR airport regularly. A nice option in terms of living and working in this area is to live in between the airport and Iowa City in North Liberty or Swisher.

I am an insurance and financial agent with Country Insurance in North Liberty and live in Iowa City and I find from this location that it is very convenient to the airport.

Best Wishes on joining us in Iowa!

[aprilheartsaaron]

It's funny...because I'm planning a move to where you're from, and I lived in Cedar Rapids for awhile too. Anyway...my answers to your questions are below.

Is there public transportation (to the airport specifically?) - not unless you want to take a taxi everyday. The airport is a few miles even from the outskirts of town and there is absolutely NOTHING around it.

Any nightlife worth checking out? there were a few bars in downtown CR that were alright, but i believe they're all pretty damaged from the flood. iowa city has some clubs/bars worth checking out, and great food. but as far as cedar rapids, i hope you like dives. There's tons of those that actually aren't half bad.

Are the winters as bad as they say (we have snow and ice storms here in DC, so it wouldn't be TOO bad) - not bad...if you're used to snow. it's just such a desolate town in the winter. i mean, you literally have to have a good network of friends or you might go nuts. the good thing is, it's mostly older folks that live in cedar rapids, so when it snows, that's the best time to drive around town. there's quick commute times year round, but in the winter, if you are an experienced winter weather driver, you could go anywhere very quickly.

Should I move to Iowa City and commute? Or stay near or in CR. - personally, since living in cedar rapids, i would say live in iowa city. but i like to have things to do at my fingertips. you have to have a car to get ANYWHERE in town, it's the oddest city plan i've ever been to. but iowa city has everything very centralized. the commute would take 20-30 minutes TOPS from iowa city. although, iowa city DOES have higher cost for rent.

What's the airport like? I'm training with the FAA Academy in OKC now and that's where I've been assigned. - small.

Is there diversity in CR? (I'm a brotha!) - haha. there is a lot of diversity. when i moved away from there about a year ago, there was an increase in people from chicago and minneapolis making cedar rapids their home. cedar rapids has a LOT of diversity for being a midwestern town.

Are there any good gyms in the area (I'm a personal trainer as well, and would like a few clients) - the MAC on the city's north side (near marion, stay away, the cops there are AWFUL!) is nice. i had a membership at Aspen on the SW side of town and that was pretty great. there are also a few gyms in coralville that are worth checking out. that town gets a lot of money from the huge mall they built there a few years back, so everything there is pretty nice.

Any information would help, as it looks like I'll be in CR for 2-2.5 years while I get certified. - find friends quickly so you don't go insane. it can be a VERY depressing town at times. be prepared to travel to all 4 corners of town and smell 5 different things (i.e. cheerios, ham, quaker oats, some days you can catch a whiff of crunch berries, those are the best days!). housing is EXTREMELY CHEAP. just stay away from the larger apartment complexes, as they are becoming very rundown. there is crime like every other town, but not as bad as you might think. winters are miserable. have good, reliable transportation (don't rely on public transportation) because you will have to drive EVERYWHERE to find anything. check out the dive bars, they really are pretty charming. enjoy yourself!

[Roy G. Biv]

Is there public transportation (to the airport specifically?) - not unless you want to take a taxi everyday.

That is incorrect. As I said, route 11 goes there and the entrance of the airport (see link above). But you're right that it isn't practical to rely on mass transit in any city in iowa.

it's mostly older folks that live in cedar rapids

haha...WTF? Older than what? According to the 2000 census, the median age is 35 and only 35% of the population of CR is over 45. Its not a college town, but its also not "mostly" old people.

[MastermindDSM]

In Iowa City, I rented a two-bedroom apartment for 720 dollars a month.

This is very cheap, IMO. If you are moving from DC I am sure a 2 bdrm apt. for 720 will seem unreal.

[zz4guy]

Live in Iowa CIty. Get a roommate, make some friends and have some fun. Why isolate yourself in Cedar Rapids? IC is only 15 miles from the airport. You could split a 2 or 3 bedroom for 3-400 with off street parking and still be close to campus. The drive might be 25-20 minutes but you can easily commute that long depending where you're coming from in CR.

Iowa City also has a much better public transportation systen. You can also use the university recreational facilities for free or very cheap. Swimming, basketball, working out, track, etc.

And the nightlife is about 1000 times better