What do Iowans think of each other? (Des Moines, Cedar Rapids: section 8, high crime)

[thtapler]

I'm wondering what Iowans think about other Iowans from other parts of the state. What does someone from Council Bluffs think of Dubuque? Or someone from Davenport and Sioux City... you know.



For me, being from Dubuque I would say
Davenport, Des Moines and Cedar Rapids - I just think of as big cities that I can't really put a face to, and I don't necessarily think "yay I'm going to Davenport!". That's just what I think personally, but I know people that do get excited to go on a little road trip to these places

Iowa City - I just think of bars and restaurants even though I live here and I know there's more than that

Waterloo - a city that I dont recall ever going to, and don't know too much about it. I guess I just picture it as a miny Cedar Rapids

Western Iowa - don't take this the wrong way but I kinda just go about life as if the western half (past Des Moines) didn't exist . It seems like it's so distant and that I'll never need to go there for any reason since there are bigger cities closer.

Small towns - I kinda picture all small towns to be the same... I imagine most of the smaller towns to have a main strip or main square and a park nearby, some hardware stores and diners and an outlying residential area and not much else.

and finally,
Dubuque - when I think of Dubuque I think of friends and family (biased, naturally) and I also think of a clash between historic Dubuque (being the oldest city in Iowa) and a viral touristic modernization taking place. I think of it as almost a hub for those going to Wisconsin, and a very scenic place with the river, the mines of spain, the bluffs and parks, etc.


Basically I'm just curious to see other perspectives, and how your narratives differ from mine.

[Chicago60614]

I grew up in Iowa City. Of course all these things people are going to say are mostly stereotypes or personal opionions, so you have to take everything with a relaxed view.

I grew up in Iowa during the 1980's when things were going very bad in the state.

Iowa City - home. Safe, one of the only prosperous places in the entire state during the 1980's.

Cedar Rapids - went there for shopping. Nice city, kinda "default" and "boring" as far as not having a ton that set it apart. Overall it's a good place though.

Des Moines - healthy economy, growing, becoming the real "center" of Iowa as far as large population, shopping, ammenities. Pretty safe. Iowa's big city.

Waterloo - had pretty bad views actually. It was a place that was really struggling, and honestly I never met anyone who had a reason to go there. It was just kinda shoved to the bottom of the pile and not talked about.

Dubuque - hilly. Stagnant economy. Blue collar. Scenic.

Davenport - a place we never went to for anything even though it was 45 minutes away. More high crime and failing economy. I went there with a friend once in high school just to check it out, and we got the "why on earth are you going there?" and the worries from our parents about safety. It was an unknown area.

Sioux City - in the middle of nowhere. Sewer City. Not growing at all. Knew nothing about it.

That was the 80's and early 90's though. I know most of my views were pretty negative, but that's just how we saw things in Iowa City. Really Iowa City, Des Moines and Cedar Rapids were about 80% of our "world" in Iowa. The rest was just kinda sitting out there, we didn't have a reason to care about it.

I know many of those areas have stabilized and are doing much better now.

If I had to say the current view I get from people, Des Moines/Iowa City are probably pretty high up on the list of positive places in the state, and Waterloo is at the bottom.

[Dport7674]

Iowa City- Football games, Concerts, Bars

Cedar Rapids- Concerts at the 5 seasons center, has a different name now.

Des Moines- Went to a couple car shows and State Fair once growing up, Been going to 80/35 fest the last couple of years.

Quad Cities- Home, Good festivals and concerts

Clinton- HeadShop, smells funny

Other than that, don't have much of an opinion. Never really "went" anywhere else in Iowa other than driving thru, like Dubuque, Muscatine, Counsil Bluffs etc.

Most mid-west cities look and feel the same to me.

I'm proud to be from Iowa, Go Hawks and all that, but Iowa City and Quad Cities are prob'ly the only places in Iowa I'd live.

[Persimmony]

I've lived in Southeastern, Northeastern, and Central Iowa. Iowa is somewhat of a large state geographically with a spread out population - I think this is why people in Sioux City see Quad Cities as so distant and vice versa. I've noticed the people of central Iowa seem to have the highest awareness of different areas of the state as there are so many places equidistant. Only makes sense right?

Ok I'll do mine.

Central Iowa/DM - Growing the fastest, most people. Very clean. Where I plan to stay for awhile.

Cedar Rapids - Not for me, but not a terrible place. Czech culture comes to mind.

Iowa City - Growing, clean like Des Moines area. Coralville comes to mind before the University. weird I know.

Quad Cities - I had very good first impressions of QC growing up - family lived in Bettendorf so I figured the whole area was this clean. Now being older I realize it isn't what I always thought. But I like it for the size - It'd come 2nd after DM for me.

Dubuque - Lots of hills and the river. Kind of boring - the only thing I hear about it is the history... yawn. River bluffs isn't my cup of tea so that doesn't help.

Waterloo/Cedar Falls - Cedar Falls comes to mind first since that seems like home ... very clean town I love it there ... then I remember Waterloo ... which really isn't all bad like many say. Lot's of great smaller communities surrounding that area.

Burlington - a small depressed Dubuque.

Council Bluffs - I consider this part of Omaha so I don't mind it as much - but CB aside ... no thanks. I'm sure there are great areas but from what I've seen I would not be happy.

Sioux City - I think I would like Sioux City - I like the region and I like that it is tightly knit with Sioux Falls.

[CampbellsChunkySoupra]

The only problems I see with people in Iowa are the ones from Chicago. Ones born with a silver spoon in their mouths an a complete lack of respect for people actually have to work hard.

Des Moines people are fine. Even better in the Sioux areas up in the North West. Iowa City is full of turds.

[Persimmony]

Originally Posted by CampbellsChunkySoupra

The only problems I see with people in Iowa are the ones from Chicago. Ones born with a silver spoon in their mouths an a complete lack of respect for people actually have to work hard.

Des Moines people are fine. Even better in the Sioux areas up in the North West. Iowa City is full of turds.

what?? I don't even know what you just tried to say.

[Chicago60614]

^ I think in reference either to the huge population of Chicago kids that go to the U of Iowa, or the fairly large population who has been moving from Chicago to Iowa City as they tear down the projects in Chicago and people are trying to find cheap Section 8 housing.

[CampbellsChunkySoupra]

Originally Posted by Chicago60614

^ I think in reference either to the huge population of Chicago kids that go to the U of Iowa, or the fairly large population who has been moving from Chicago to Iowa City as they tear down the projects in Chicago and people are trying to find cheap Section 8 housing.

He is correct. I am most definitely referring to several of the Chicago kids that come here because they weren't good enough to get into Illinois-Champaign or Northwestern and Iowa accepts them. They party, trash the city, have no respect for anyone, and destroy the reputation of the business college.

[mustang84]

I grew up in a medium sized town in Western Iowa, went to college at Iowa State, lived in Des Moines for a couple summers, and now live in Cedar Rapids, so I've had a chance to experience multiple environments within Iowa.

Council Bluffs / Omaha - what I was most familiar with growing up. It was the "big city" and very diverse compared to the small towns I grew up around. Extremely fast growing...when I was a kid 132nd Street was "out there," now 240th Street the edge of the metro. I always thought of it as a city with an industrial past, but transitioning into an almost chic modern day version itself. Downtown and the riverfront has cleaned up and become a destination. On the flip side, there are some severely blighted neighborhoods. Lots of big money out in West Omaha. Council Bluffs used to be seen as the pimple of the metro area (nicknamed Counciltucky), but ever since tax dollars began flowing in from the casinos, the city has really cleaned up and become a major entertainment and shopping gateway into Omaha.

Sioux City - We always called it Sewer City due to the smelly John Morrell plant right on I-29. Sioux City has some nice areas (especially across the river in Dakota Dunes, SD), but in general it also felt like a smaller, economically-depressed version of Omaha.

Des Moines - We passed through here many times as a kid, but I was never as familiar with it as Omaha until I lived there during college. It's not as urban as Omaha, but in general it is a cleaner city. Due to the terrain and rivers, Des Moines seems to sprawl more. Downtown has become very vibrant in the last few years. The I-80 corridor in West Des Moines has transformed since the early 1990s when McDonald's and the Marriott were about the only things out there (when it used to be 74th Street instead of Jordan Creek Parkway).

Cedar Rapids - Was completely unfamiliar with this city until my sophomore year of college. I knew it existed and I knew it was the second largest in the state, but we never had a reason to come here as a kid. When I first moved here, I was really not impressed...it seemed dated and dirty, and in general it felt conservative and stagnant compared to more progressive cities like Des Moines and Omaha. But over time, I am really coming to like Cedar Rapids and all that is / will be happening over the next few years.

Iowa City - I feel like Iowa City is beginning to steal some of Cedar Rapids' thunder. It's location on I-80 makes it a prime spot for retail. It's amazing that for a city of Cedar Rapids' size, I have to go 25 minutes to the south to visit a decent mall or a sporting goods store that sells ski equipment. IC has a great downtown area and the proximity to U of I seems to work well.

Ames - Clean, very research-oriented, and more conservative than Iowa City. The Iowa State campus is a far nicer campus in my opinion.

Davenport - It still is somewhat depressed, but downtown Davenport has really come around. Across the river in Moline and Rock Island, it is a much different story. I don't think any blighted area in Iowa can match Rock Island, except for maybe the CR flood zone...and even then, Rock Island isn't too far off.

Waterloo - I have been to Cedar Falls, but I have never been to Waterloo except passing by it on Highway 20. My whole life I have heard that Waterloo was run down with little opportunity.

Dubuque - seems to be a nice city set in a scenic area of Iowa. The amount of early-mid 19th century brick buildings there makes it feel like a completely different animal from nearly every other city in Iowa. Definitely one of the more historic places in the state.

Clinton - a mini-Cedar Rapids, except less going for it. Very industrial.

Fort Dodge - the downtown area is a boarded-up ghost town. This city has little going for it, and is so isolated that I think it will continue to leak population to some of the larger cities around the state.

I have never really been to any of the river cities south of Davenport, so I can't really comment on any of those.