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Old 12-10-2009, 02:00 PM
 
Location: NW Portland
30 posts, read 129,709 times
Reputation: 29

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I've been frequenting the forums because we are moving from Portland, Oregon, to Oskaloosa IA in the next month or two.

I have found SO many threads that just rip Iowa apart, from crime in Des Moines to how horrible the schools are to how backward & narrow minded Iowan's are.

Please, tell me there is something good about Iowa. (Lol)

We are moving to be near my fiance's family, not to mention, the cost of living is EXTREMELY lower in Osky than in Portland. Here, a three bed house will run you close to $300. We can barely pay our bills on almost $65k/year.

I think we are making the right decision, but after reading time & again how boring Iowa is, how you aren't accepted unless you grew up here, etc, I'm almost second thinking it!
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Old 12-10-2009, 06:28 PM
 
Location: Between here and there
159 posts, read 623,466 times
Reputation: 89
I'm a bit biased because I'm actually from Iowa (Waterloo), but I moved to Seattle a few years ago and am looking forward to moving back to the Midwest. It really depends on why you're moving, though. If your fiance is from Iowa, you guys might have a better idea of what it's like than someone who has no ties there. You know better than anyone what you want and where you'd fit in best. People here think I'm insane to want to leave Seattle, especially for somewhere in the Midwest (I'm actually moving to the Twin Cities - more job opportunities there than Waterloo), but they're not me. What kinds of things do you want in a town?

I've never been to Oskaloosa, but I imagine it's like most small Iowa towns, which are absolutely nothing like Portland, but any small town is going to be different than Portland. No matter what state you live in, if you're in a small town, you'll have less stuff to do and you might get bored. Also, rural Iowa is different than the rural Pacific Northwest. Almost all of it is developed; there isn't much wilderness to be found there, if that's something you've gotten used to in Oregon. Personally, I find the corn and soybean fields, the rolling hills, the dirt roads, etc. to be beautiful, but you can't usually go hiking through people's farms

I don't know about small town Iowa so much as other areas, but I've found people in Seattle to be nice but not friendly, a bit passive-aggressive, and none of them seem to get my dry sense of humor. I've had a lot more trouble making friends here than I ever did in Iowa. They're also a bit self-righteous here about the whole environmentalist thing. I recycle, use public transportation, etc, but I'm not a jerk about it. There's narrow-mindedness everywhere, but it might come in different forms.

Anyway. Figure out for yourself what you want and go for it. If you don't like Iowa, you can always move. But I think you'll like it.
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Old 12-10-2009, 06:37 PM
 
Location: Rock Island
31 posts, read 104,932 times
Reputation: 39
Quote:
Originally Posted by PDXby7 View Post
I've been frequenting the forums because we are moving from Portland, Oregon, to Oskaloosa IA in the next month or two.

I have found SO many threads that just rip Iowa apart, from crime in Des Moines to how horrible the schools are to how backward & narrow minded Iowan's are.

Please, tell me there is something good about Iowa. (Lol)

We are moving to be near my fiance's family, not to mention, the cost of living is EXTREMELY lower in Osky than in Portland. Here, a three bed house will run you close to $300. We can barely pay our bills on almost $65k/year.

I think we are making the right decision, but after reading time & again how boring Iowa is, how you aren't accepted unless you grew up here, etc, I'm almost second thinking it!
If you are planning to move to Oskaloosa you should not have to worry about the crime in Des Moines because Oskaloosa is quite a few miles away and not apart of the Des Moines Metro. But crime in Des Moines is not that bad as compared to other places its size anyway. Iowa can be boring but I guess it also depends on what you are into.

Last time I checked Iowa as well as a couple of bordering states were in the top 3 in regards to education. I have not seen any stats recently. But I am sure not much has changed. I know plenty of people who have moved from other places and they get along fine. They had no problems making friends; they did not have any issues other than getting acclimated to the weather, lifestyle, and other normal issues that arise when you move away from home or wherever you decide to move from.

If a person is having trouble making friends I don't think it can be blamed on the city or state where that individual decided to moved to; the issue might be that person. Of course moving to a small town like Oskaloosa everybody knows each other and inhabitants have been acquainted with each other for years so it may be difficult to find your place in a community like this initially but eventually you should be able find your place in this community.
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Old 12-10-2009, 08:34 PM
 
Location: Sioux Falls, SD area
4,820 posts, read 6,825,110 times
Reputation: 10098
Oskaloosa is a very nice town. It's got some size to it, giving you plenty of commercial areas to get almost anything you want.

It's also a reasonable driving distance to much larger communities like Ottumwa and especially Des Moines.

Overall, I'll guarantee that you're kids will have a much better opportunity for a quality education in Iowa than in most any part of the United States. This ESPECIALLY holds true when comparing the major metropolitan areas and considering using the public education systems. Granted, in very large metro areas you'll have private schools with glowing academic records IF YOU CAN AFFORD TO SEND JUNIOR THERE.

Crime in communities outside of the very largest cities of Iowa is not even an issue.
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Old 12-10-2009, 09:15 PM
 
Location: NW Portland
30 posts, read 129,709 times
Reputation: 29
We are looking to escape the city life, pretty much. The kids go to an amazing school now, but they also attend with about 700 other kids. And the high school is even bigger, more like 1,200. We both grew up in small towns, and pretty much don't want that for the kids at all.

I like Osky. We contemplated Des Moines, but like I said, no more city life. Traffic, pollution, annoying people everywhere, expensive housing, etc etc. I sort of giggle when I see complaints about crime in smaller Iowa towns. Hello! Come to Portland, or Seattle, or Tacoma for that matter.

I just can't figure out why I keep finding these Iowa bashing posts! I've only been there a couple times, but I enjoyed it. Granted, it is vastly different geographically, but it is beautiful in it's own sense. Pretty sure we'll be happy & find what we are looking for there.

We can't get away from the city fast enough... Hurry, February, hurry!
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Old 12-10-2009, 09:51 PM
 
Location: Des Moines, Iowa
2,401 posts, read 4,325,429 times
Reputation: 1464
Quote:
Originally Posted by PDXby7 View Post
. We contemplated Des Moines, but like I said, no more city life. Traffic, pollution, annoying people everywhere, expensive housing, etc etc. I sort of giggle when I see complaints about crime in smaller Iowa towns. Hello! Come to Portland, or Seattle, or Tacoma for that matter.
The city life you describe is not the city life you'll experience in DSM.
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Old 12-11-2009, 08:55 AM
 
Location: Buck Grove, Iowa
23 posts, read 76,704 times
Reputation: 27
Negative people have negative experiences and try to ensure everyone else is sharing them. I feel sorry for them. Just be positive and easy-going and you will likely love living back near relatives. Some really funny things happen in small towns if you don't let yourself take everything too seriously. Sometimes I feel like my friends and family are the characters of The Music Man!
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Old 12-11-2009, 11:59 AM
 
11,289 posts, read 26,054,414 times
Reputation: 11353
Quote:
Originally Posted by PDXby7 View Post
I've been frequenting the forums because we are moving from Portland, Oregon, to Oskaloosa IA in the next month or two.

I have found SO many threads that just rip Iowa apart, from crime in Des Moines to how horrible the schools are to how backward & narrow minded Iowan's are.

Please, tell me there is something good about Iowa. (Lol)

We are moving to be near my fiance's family, not to mention, the cost of living is EXTREMELY lower in Osky than in Portland. Here, a three bed house will run you close to $300. We can barely pay our bills on almost $65k/year.

I think we are making the right decision, but after reading time & again how boring Iowa is, how you aren't accepted unless you grew up here, etc, I'm almost second thinking it!
Are you sure it was on Iowa?? Des Moines has one of the lowest homicide/violent crime rates of any city in the country. Iowa also ranks in the top 3 normally for public schools, test scores, graduation rates, etc.

It's strange you're finding websites where people are bashing Iowa for those facts.
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Old 12-11-2009, 12:01 PM
 
11,289 posts, read 26,054,414 times
Reputation: 11353
Quote:
Originally Posted by PDXby7 View Post
I like Osky. We contemplated Des Moines, but like I said, no more city life. Traffic, pollution, annoying people everywhere, expensive housing, etc etc. I sort of giggle when I see complaints about crime in smaller Iowa towns. Hello! Come to Portland, or Seattle, or Tacoma for that matter.
Des Moines really has no traffic, pollution, overly rushed or bittler, expensive housing, poor schools or crime. It's not an urban gritty area in any of those senses.

I'd read a few more threads on city-data compared to whatever else you're reading, because most everyone on here tends to love Des Moines. It really is a pretty great city. One of the lowest unemployment rates, the most affordable mid-sized metro area, one of the best economies in the country, etc.
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Old 12-13-2009, 12:57 AM
 
Location: NW Portland
30 posts, read 129,709 times
Reputation: 29
See, I liked Des Moines when we were there too. And I didn't come close to seeing the whole city but the pics I've seen of it show me that it's beautiful. And as far as schools go, well, hello Iowa Tests of Basic Skills!

I've found posts on here & other websites, just from random searches like "moving to Iowa" and such.


Funny side story... We went to some all night breakfast place after our flight landed, and I forgot my sons bottle in the car... My father in law wouldn't let me walk to the car alone at 10pm because we were in the 'bad' part of Des Moines. Heehee. It was funny to me, considering I take public transit all over Portland. Lol.


Thanks again for the encouragement. I'm really getting excited to move to Iowa! Iowan's seem a bit more mellow than the crazy west coast grind. It's the I-5 corridor, I swear.
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