kenwood versus linden hills (Minneapolis, Edina: 2013, condo, houses)

[mpls204]

Family moving from Seattle to Minneapolis. Want to live in city, not suburbs. We will be working downtown and uptown. In Seattle we are in Capitol Hill neighborhood. Kids 13,12. Want to be in Southwest HS district and home budget is about 950K. Within the SW zone would knowledgeble people recommend Kenwood/Lowry Hill or Linden Hills/Lk Harriet for families. We understand that they are similiar, but is there any subtle difference between these two areas in terms of overall character or should we just find the house we like?

[uptown_urbanist]

Originally Posted by mpls204

Family moving from Seattle to Minneapolis. Want to live in city, not suburbs. We will be working downtown and uptown. In Seattle we are in Capitol Hill neighborhood. Kids 13,12. Want to be in Southwest HS district and home budget is about 950K. Within the SW zone would knowledgeble people recommend Kenwood/Lowry Hill or Linden Hills/Lk Harriet for families. We understand that they are similiar, but is there any subtle difference between these two areas in terms of overall character or should we just find the house we like?

Kenwood seems older, overall -- fewer families, more empty nesters. There's also much less commercial activity, although of course depending on specific location you wouldn't necessarily to be too far from bigger commercial drags like Hennepin. I think with kids, especially, having the Linden Hills village "core" is very nice; the kids can walk or bike to the library and the park (two big preteen destinations). Kenwood doesn't have its own library, although it DOES have a very nice park. On the other hand, Kenwood has some very beautiful homes, nice parks (and a nice ice rink on Lake of the Isles in the winter), and would still be relatively close to things, just has a different vibe than Linden Hills.

This may also be out-of-date information, but when I was in high school (mid-90s) most of the Kenwood kids either went to private schools or attended South; I had a few Kenwood friends, but most of them seemed to go the South magnet route (despite being zoned for SW). I don't know if that's true or not today, and it may not be important, but if you want your kids to live on a block with other kids from the same high school it may be worth investigating.

Both areas are very nice, however. I'd find the house you like, but if being within short walking distance to more businesses you're likely better off in Linden Hills (or in Kenwood-adjacent East Isles, which would put you closer to the heart of Uptown.)

[MnMomma]

I don't live in either, but have friends in both. I think both are great choices. In Linden Hills you are more likely to see and meet your neighbors--mainly because of more kids, more dogs and a more walkable area. Kenwood is quieter. With kids the ages of yours, I'd probably look for houses in both.

[Glenfield]

I think it's a toss up. Linden Hills does have more business activity, but the houses in Kenwood are nicer overall. You would be closer to SW HS in Linden Hills. Both Lake Harriet and Lake of the Isles are quiet without the singles type of scene you get with Calhoun. I think I would find the house you liked and go with it. And welcome to Minneapolis!

[areastwood]

Originally Posted by mpls204

Family moving from Seattle to Minneapolis. Want to live in city, not suburbs. We will be working downtown and uptown. In Seattle we are in Capitol Hill neighborhood. Kids 13,12. Want to be in Southwest HS district and home budget is about 950K. Within the SW zone would knowledgeble people recommend Kenwood/Lowry Hill or Linden Hills/Lk Harriet for families. We understand that they are similiar, but is there any subtle difference between these two areas in terms of overall character or should we just find the house we like?

Hi....just wondering what you ended up doing....we too are planning on moving from Seattle to Mpls and I've been looking (online) at the Linden Hills area....would love to hear where you ended up and what you think!

[Chain of Lakes]

Linden Hills will also have a wider variety of houses. If you go to themlsonline.com, and click on the area west and north of lake of the Isles, you will be hard-pressed to find homes under $1 million.

Linden hills also has very, very expensive homes, but for $950, you'll find a lot more available homes.

[Gibby3000]

Beware of aircraft noise around Lake Harriet if that bothers you at all.

[anne.kelly]

Restarting this old thread to see if there is any new information from last year that people have to add for someone who is torn between these neighborhoods. I am not crazy about the airplane noise and the teardowns in LH but it seems like a great community for young children.

[irootoo]

Originally Posted by anne.kelly

Restarting this old thread to see if there is any new information from last year that people have to add for someone who is torn between these neighborhoods. I am not crazy about the airplane noise and the teardowns in LH but it seems like a great community for young children.

I don't know much about Kenwood, but my hubby and I just sold our Linden Hills home where we had lived since 1997. The area is lovely, the neighbors were wonderful, and the walkability was great. But what killed it for us was the constant noise from the airplanes and the ongoing teardowns and construction. It was heartbreaking to walk around and see that out of the blue, what was yesterday a charming little cottage sitting well back on its lawn or a modest 1950s ranch style house is now a gigantic hole in the ground. And later, after weeks of massively intrusive construction noise, what I call a Jabba the House is taking up every bit of what used to be lawn space, along with much of the air and light around it. If you don't live there, you simply can't imagine the number of construction projects that are going on all the time. The noise and the dust are incredible. And most of the people who create these monstrosities seem to disappear after they move in, so they do not add to the communal feel of the neighborhood at all.

The airplanes add immeasurably to the din. On nearly every walk this spring, there were at least two instances in a 30 minute period where my husband and I had to pause our conversation because we couldn't hear each other over the airplane noise. One day when we were trying to decide whether to leave or stay, I decided to count the airplanes going overhead during my walk. In a 20 minute time period, 19 planes went over. One night around 11PM, I couldn't believe how many planes were coming over. I counted a loud plane on an average of every 20 seconds. Even though it is a relatively safe neighborhood, sleeping with the windows open in summer was impossible due to the noise.

And I don't know what has now been decided about runways etc., but back in October what got us thinking about moving was a news report that said the noise was probably going to get worse over SW Minneapolis. Here's a link to that article:
More noise for better airplane efficiency: Minneapolis, Edina neighborhoods fighting the plan | MinnPost

I seem to recall that although there were protests, the plan is going ahead.

Also, Lake Calhoun is beautiful, but it does attract crowds so if you live within a couple of blocks of it, get used to all kinds of trash on your boulevard grass. On Lake Calhoun Boulevard itself, it wasn't uncommon to see used condoms, tampons, beer cans, and assorted liquor bottles tossed onto the ground. We have even seen areas of burned grass where small fires had been lit on people's lawns.

I cried when I packed to move, and again when I left. I loved Linden Hills for its history, its wonderful people, and its beauty, and when we moved in 17 years ago I couldn't imagine ever wanting to leave. But it got to where I just couldn't stand the noise anymore, and I don't see it getting better in the future.

[nokomiscyclist]

Originally Posted by irootoo

The area is lovely, the neighbors were wonderful, and the walkability was great. But what killed it for us was the constant noise from the airplanes and the ongoing teardowns and construction. It was heartbreaking to walk around and see that out of the blue, what was yesterday a charming little cottage sitting well back on its lawn or a modest 1950s ranch style house is now a gigantic hole in the ground. And later, after weeks of massively intrusive construction noise, what I call a Jabba the House is taking up every bit of what used to be lawn space, along with much of the air and light around it.

That's the number one reason we decided against Linden Hills. Even if we were able to get the winning bid on a house we'd more than likely end up sandwiched between new construction McMansions. What's really bothersome about the "Jabba the Houses" is that they really look out of place and make the whole neighborhood look like some terrible suburb. There are some really nice houses right on the lake that are huge and are appropriate for the neighborhood (they're original construction) but the new construction looks beyond dumb. What's really sad is when you see a new construction that's literally hanging over into the neighbors yard.

It's really too bad the city/county backed down on the teardown moratorium. What was once a really nice neighborhood is probably going to look as cookie cutter and crappy as Edina.