Minneapolis vs. Denver?? (Duluth, Lake City, Wells: theater, calculator, living in)

[xandrex]

Originally Posted by golfgal

And after 9 months still hasn't found a job in either place....

I understand that he needs a job. In which case, if he finds one he should take on in Sioux Falls. The point I'm trying to make is...Sioux Falls very well might be a good city, but it's not what the OP was asking to be compared with. If we weighed NYC in on this, it would win hands-down in the cultural aspect.

So Sioux Falls should be considered if he's having trouble with GIS. But if it's between the two cities he actually listed, then we need to look at the criteria for those.

[Govie]

I've a friend who has lived both (is currently just 20m from Denver). While we both have the four major sports and an array of nightlife to choose from, Denver is significantly warmer year 'round, and Denver apparently has more things downtown (Valley Fair, Zoo, for example). Also you have the mountians (scenery) there and I hear it is quite beautiful.

[DannyBanany]

Denver has a more active (albeit, a bit too touristy) downtown with the 16th Street Mall and Six Flags. There's also the University of Colorado at Denver campus and the Capital Hill area. Denver's called the "Wall Street of the West" because it's the headquarters to so many companies. Go a little further south and the neighborhoods are really diverse and unique.

Minneapolis' downtown is pretty active, but it's mostly just corporate workers and a few people shopping along Nicollet, which isn't all that touristy probably in part, due to Mall of America. I think Minneapolis' downtown has more options for nightlife and clubbing than Denver, but Denver has WAY more venues to see all around and they're all very unique.

Really, both cities are so much alike that it's a hard choice. I was faced with it a few years back and chose Minneapolis. I'm glad I did, but I still think of Denver everyday.

[richwag]

I've lived in the twin cities my entire life and visited denver several times.

Weather wise, they're quite different. MPLS summers are short, with much higher dewpoints than Denver. You can get some lower dewpoints days but count on higher humidity. It rains more and of course with its lakes has a good share of mosquitos in the summer. If you like fishing, boating, MPLS is pretty nice.

Fall is often nice (Sept and October).

Winters are often not that snowy. If you're an outdoor sports person, MPLS is often pretty disappointing. It can get very, very cold and snow is undependable. As a cross country skier, I can tell you than many years there are only a few weeks of decent snow cover. We also get long periods of little sun in the winter. Denver is much sunnier. Of course if you do outdoor sports, Colorado just kills MPLS. Much more snow (mtns), better snow, real mountains. No comparison really.

Spring is slow and things don't really green up until May. As a cyclist, spring is super frustrating because it's often not until June that reliably warm days arrive.

[Ighuc]

Having lived in both cities, the only reason why you could choose Denver is the weather (which I disagree with, gotta have my seasons). Other than that, Minneapolis is far superior.

[JMM64]

I've lived in Colorado for a while now, and have been to Minnesota twice in my lifetime. However I lived in Michigan years ago so I am familiar with the Great Lakes Region.


Scenery-


Colorado is a beautiful state with mountains, desert, canyons, sand dunes, and a bazillion rivers. Also there are several fairly large lakes in Colorado such as Grand Lake, Dillon Lake, and Blue Mesa Lake and others. None of these lakes can compare to the big lakes in Minnesota of course, but they are still large enough for boating, water skiing, and fishing. The Colorado River and Arkansas River are also two of the best places in the world for whitewater rafting. The Southwestern part of Colorado is also actually pretty green and lush as it recieves pretty high levels of snow and rain. I think Colorado is hard to beat in terms of beauty.


Minnesota is also beautiful with more than a bazillion lakes, many rivers, lush green forests, and sandy coastlines. Michigan was like this as well. In my opinion the Great Lakes beat both the Atlantic and Pacific for water activities (except surfing). Minnesota is one beautiful place.


Climate-

Both states have 4 distinct seasons!

Colorado has an overall milder climate than the great lakes states. The winters in Denver are actually pretty mild, and snow melts very quickly when it falls. The winters are also very sunny in Colorado which makes the occasional freezing day not seem like much at all. The summers are nice and mild but can be very hot at times. Luckily the dry climate makes the heat alot more tolerable. Fall and Spring are shorter than summer and winter but are both very nice, the Aspens in the Fall are incredible.


Having only been to Minnesota in the summer I can say it is very very nice that time of year. The temps are mild, but the humidity is something I'm not a fan of. However the humidity is not that bad compared to the south. The winters in Minnesota when referencing my time in Michigan at least are not that bad but it is overall alot colder than Colorado on a daily basis. Also the snow that falls in November is still there in March, and it's not nearly as sunny as Colorado winters. However the snow in Minnesota is beautiful despite it being much heavier snow. Cold winters don't bother me though, and they are very easy to get used to.


Cities-

First I must point out that both Denver and Minneapolis are very bike friendly cities. Traffic doesn't get in the way in either city. Also Denver has many bike trails that lead from one end of the metro area to the other, just like Minneapolis.


Denver is a nice city, and has definitely grown a S**T Load in the last 20 years. The suburbs of Denver are nice, and the events and sports in Denver are great! There are alot of opportunities for Tech and Govt. Jobs and the city parks are actually pretty nice. There are also many large businesses and a few fortune 500 companies headquartered in Denver. Parks such as City Park and Sloans Lake park are actually pretty beautiful and are right near Downtown Denver.


Colorado Springs is also nice, although not as large as Denver or Minneapolis it does still have everything a bigger city has. The mountains near Colorado Springs are also breathtaking, and there are also many jobs available in many feilds. The military in Colorado Springs has a large impact on the city as well.


One unknown fact is that when Colorado is not facing a drought both Denver and Colorado Springs are actually pretty green in many places.


Colorado cities offer urban feel with the sollitude of the mountains not far away.


Minneapolis in my opinion feels like a bigger city overall than Denver. It's image and connection on an international scale is larger than Denver. The suburbs are also very nice, and beautiful! The water activities in the Minneapolis are unrivalled, and if you like lakes more than anything else, you can't beat Minnesota.


Never been to Duluth so can't comment, but it looks beautiful!


Both Denver and Minneapolis offer many options for outdoor recreation as well, and both are in the top 5 fittest/healthiest cities in the country. Colorado and Minneapolis cities are also both regularly rated in the top 10 best places for quality of life in America. Bottom line is that both states are unbeatable in this category.


Culture and Diversity-


Previous posters have it already explained pretty well. Denver has several great museums and a large performing arts scene. Minneapolis has fantastic museums, and a more diverse ethnicity as a whole.


Education-


Both States have an equally educated population, and great Universities.



Overall in my opinion I would pick Colorado simply because I love what we have here, but Minnesota is very comparable in most ways and I'd be happy there too. Make your decision based on what you prefer as you really can't go wrong either way.

[JMM64]

Originally Posted by Grant_Hobgood

The biking is something I would save for non-freezing months honestly, i'm not a commuter/hardcore biker right now. To be quite honest, it is something I have gotten into on and off and feel I would stick with in a city that offers the ease of doing it regularly. I don't believe Denver does outside of Downtown possibly? I've heard it does/doesn't, but i've heard people talk about how bad Denver traffic in general is quite a bit.

I wish I could spend a year in Minneapolis and see if I enjoy it and then move to Denver or come back home, recoup, and move then.

Is the job market in Minneapolis as bad as it is most places? Where i'm at now I can't even find part time at the moment.

Denver actually has an incredible biking system, with trails spreading throughout the entire metro area. Most never cross a major road so traffic will not be an issue. I used to ride from my old home in Parker to Downtown Denver on the cherry creek trail, it's over 24 miles long and never crosses a major road!

The job market in Denver is really no worse than anywhere else in the US, but it REALLY helps if you know somebody.

[knke0204]

The best thing I've read in this forum in a long, long time --

"Denver is called the Wall Street of the West".... hahaha.

[MplsTodd]

Originally Posted by knke0204

The best thing I've read in this forum in a long, long time --

"Denver is called the Wall Street of the West".... hahaha.

I've heard that expression before. I've also heard 17th Street called the "Wall Street of the west" or "Wall Street of the Rockies" (which is probably more accurate). Kind of like Nicollet Avenue was known for retail and Marquette Avenue was known for banking & finance, Denver's equivalents were 16th Street (retail) and 17th Street (banking/finance).

[justinguru]

Originally Posted by Grant_Hobgood

Hello all, i've posted here before but it's coming closer to time and i'd love some more feedback.

I graduated college with a BS in Geography/GIS and want to move to the midwest of sorts. It's either Denver (around March) or Minneapolis (later into next year) and I can't figure out which city is going to suit me better, though I think either will do well.

For those who may know does [URL="http://www.proweb365.com/internet-marketing-seo/"]Minneapolis[/URL] have a GIS sector or job market at all? I've got what was taught to me for experience but I love working with ArcMap and designing maps and databases but the job market is killing me at the moment.

I want to bike as 75% or so of my transport, going to bars with friends, getting to work, going to the store for simple things and such as well as just enjoying it. Denver seems like that is a bit of a stretch but Minneapolis seems like its easily done and people do it regularly. MPLS seems to have a larger biking community over all.

The big thing about Denver is that I knew a few people up there and my brother and a friend want to move as well making rent and utilities cheaper. I don't have a career and don't work anywhere that i could transfer and be promoted or similar. I'm going to have to find a new employer either city that I go to. I like the thought of Denver because of the surrounding mountains and it seems to be pretty progressive and up to date on certain interests of mine, but Minneapolis has always been on my mind for some reason. I love the music that comes from Minneapolis but mostly I think the biking would be great for me. My only big big worry is how cold Minnesota gets compared to Colorado. -25 and 0 are a long ways apart, haha.

Can anyone that has lived in both areas share their thoughts across the board? I realize this is the Minneapolis subforum but hopefully I can get some honest opinions even though you guys live in the twin cities.

Well! I've used that site as well as seamless quite a lot actually. ESRI tends to want professionals not entry level, though i'd love to get a foot in with that company within either city. In my point of view, the hardest part is not knowing anyone within the industry in either city or really any city i'd like to move to.