South Minneapolis vs Suburbs (Plymouth, Eagan: cul-de-sac, apartments, crime)

[veetzvino]

Potentially moving back in the near future and used to live in South Minneapolis. Life is different now, as we have a kid, so I'm really trying to see positives and negatives to the city vs the suburbs (western). Work would be downtown and commute being short is important. Please give me your opinions on the good and bad of both options. Thank you!

[Min-Chi-Cbus]

South Mpls in a heartbeat! We are a family with two small children and if/when we move back to the Twin Cities South/SW Mpls is at the top of our list for places to live. Here's some key reasons:

Great schools -- some of the best in the entire state
Great accessibility -- jobs, parks, freeways, airport, etc.
Appreciating home values -- if I could invest in housing my money would be on Mpls, as people flock back to the core but try to sustain SOME suburban values
Manageable lot size -- if you don't love spending every weekend maintaining your property
Walkability -- most neighborhoods have commercial zones nearby
Public parks for kids to meet other kids -- we find this invaluable with our children
Public transit options -- less need for multiple cars, which saves us a TON of money!
Access to Chain of Lakes -- one of the best urban parks in the country
Diversity -- racial, cultural, socioeconomical (depends where in Mpls you live to a degree, but most places have diversity within the school system)
Neighborhoods -- true neighborhoods, something that's becoming harder to find these days


A few negatives that I'll add as well, just to be fair/objective:

Higher taxes -- property taxes in particular
Potential for crime -- isn't unique to the city, but it's more "normal" there
More costly -- esp. if you don't like the public schools, but the cost/SF of any home in Mpls probably exceeds anywhere else in the metro, on avg
Congestion -- mainly vehicular traffic, but being in the suburbs you'll still experience congestion....on the freeway
Smaller lots -- if you envision a private park in your backyard for your children, Mpls is a tougher sell

[Pisces69]

I live in SW mpls and see a lot of kids running around playing and families here. I read something saying that children need more unstructured play so good to see that.

[daboywonder2002]

if you dont mind, can you guys list some neighborhoods or apartments you would recommend? i live in edina and really want to get out of the richfield school district. Pisces69, that is exactly what im looking for! KIDS PLAYING OUTSIDE. i dont wanna take them to an indoor park or pay for them every single time i want them to have fun. the main things i want are other african american families, safety, other kids playing outside, and great schools. south minneapolis sounds perfect for me.

[FierySun]

Agree with min-chI-bus and his points. South Mpls hands down and it's not really close.

[veetzvino]

Thanks for the quick responses. We are 95% sure that's where we would go back to, but just wanted to feel out all the options. Min Chi Cbus - those are all the reasons we love South Minneapolis. We don't know much about the schools except that they are rated good right now and it seems like it's only getting better. The only worries I have right now are airplane noise, athletics (if he so chooses to go that route), small yard (which I think is overcome by all the great green space there), and I guess a little bit on the crime. That said, I always felt safe when we lived there, but you just get a little more protective when you have a kid.

Please keep chiming in, like I said, I want to make sure I'm looking at everything from every angle.

[golfgal]

You can get all of that and more in just about every suburb and you won't have to deal with airport noise, crime and the schools really are not that good in SW, but people can keep thinking that if they want .

[uptown_urbanist]

Originally Posted by labarbmb

Potentially moving back in the near future and used to live in South Minneapolis. Life is different now, as we have a kid, so I'm really trying to see positives and negatives to the city vs the suburbs (western). Work would be downtown and commute being short is important. Please give me your opinions on the good and bad of both options. Thank you!

south Minneapolis is a big place and of course it's going to depend on specific neighborhood, but I think you'll be very happy there. My child goes to a school in SW Minneapolis and it is fantastic by any measuring stick. Airport noise likewise depends on specific location. Same with crime. When we lived in Armatage it was both quiet and safe. (And, admittedly, boring, although excellent for kids.)

The main negative is likely going to be cost. You'll pay more for a smaller house in a nice city neighborhood than you will in many suburban neighborhoods, and the property taxes are probably going to be higher, comparatively.

Daboywonder, take a look at Armatage. Not too far from where you are now, some diversity (not much, but there are more African American families with kids there than in many of the SW neighborhoods), great schools, and the kids play outside.

[Kayekaye]

The suburbs offer a more peaceful and safer way of life than the city. My preference having lived in both.

[mpls204]

Originally Posted by golfgal

You can get all of that and more in just about every suburb and you won't have to deal with airport noise, crime and the schools really are not that good in SW, but people can keep thinking that if they want .

No. This is incorrect information. South Minneapolis is probably the only place except St Paul that is NOT like every suburb. There is actually virtually no crime where we are in the SW and the High School and several of the neighborhood elementary schools are objectively among the best in the state according to many. But unlike "just about every suburb", this is a community with its own character, personality, and soul. It is very sad that there is a "moderator" intent on criticizing a community that she does not understand and just doesn't seem to like. When we first moved here, I had perused these forums and heeded this moderator's advice to look into some of the suburbs that were touted as so special. Aside from Stillwater, which is a unique and beautiful town and Edina which a little nicer than the rest, the others are interchangeable not just with one another but with most planned developments across the midwestern states. If you are moving from somewhere else you will be very hard pressed to discern differences between Rosemount, Eagan, Eden Prairie, Apple Valley, Minnetonka, Plymouth, Maple Grove, Burnsville, Lakeville, Blaine, and Woodbury. In fact my kids really cannot ever figure out where we are when we are playing soccer out in the suburbs. While people from the area seem to appreciate the subtle differences; they all have almost identical layouts, retail, and sidewalk-less cul-de-sacs. The bottom line is you just need to visit and look for yourself. You will either "get it" and want to live in the city, or you will get the draw of the suburbs. i think it is fair to say that there are few of us who can appreciate both, and it is therefore nearly impossible to get objective information on this forum ( especially from the "moderator")