Walkable areas, good schools? (Minneapolis, St. Paul: houses, neighborhoods, school districts)

[nueces_78]

We will be visiting Minnesota for the first time this year, and are considering a move there from Europe. We're a 2-income (engineer & writer), middle class household with a child in middle school.

We would prefer some ethnic diversity for our half-Hispanic child. Are there areas that may fit this, and that have some walkability as well?

We've been able to live in cities where we could walk to grocery stores and restaurants, and are wondering about Minneapolis/St. Paul and if there are specific areas that might fit this criteria, with good academic schools?

We're also hoping to live in an area with a nice sense of community. If walkable isn't feasible, we're hoping for an area where we can safely bike, or at least enjoy some nice views.

Just looking for some ideas as to where we should start our search and what might be possible. Sorry these questions are so broad, but I've found this board to be very helpful, and hoped we could get a point in the right direction here.

I should mention, our price range is around 300K.

Thanks in advance!

[TxTnVtMn]

At that price range, I would look in Hopkins, St. Louis Park, and Golden Valley.

Minneapolis in the area near Lake Nokomis may also do the trick.

[Ursicinus]

If you get pretty lucky, you might find a house on the periphery of Linden Hills (SW area, near Lake Calhoun) for around $300k; most of them are above this, though. But that area is tops on the list as far as being walkable, as it has an almost village kind of vibe. But best yet (for me), it's an actual neighborhood with mature trees and rectilinear streets, nothing like the sprawly suburbia you'll find in other areas of the metro area.

[Cruz Azul Guy]

Originally Posted by Ursicinus

If you get pretty lucky, you might find a house on the periphery of Linden Hills (SW area, near Lake Calhoun) for around $300k; most of them are above this, though. But that area is tops on the list as far as being walkable, as it has an almost village kind of vibe. But best yet (for me), it's an actual neighborhood with mature trees and rectilinear streets, nothing like the sprawly suburbia you'll find in other areas of the metro area.

I agree with the Southwest Minneapolis suggestion. Although you'd be below the amount needed for Linden Hills, I just confirmed that there are homes available right now in other very good SW Mpls neighborhoods, including Fulton, Armitage, Kenny, Windom and King Field. I think those areas would meet your criteria.

[cathedralhill1]

Mac/Groveland in Saint Paul.

[nueces_78]

Thank you! And these are academically strong school districts? Great schools isn't showing particularly high ratings, but I understand this may not be 100% accurate.

[Family of five]

The schools in Mpls and St. Paul are fair overall. I can speak a bit to the Mac Groveland area of St. Paul. I live in this neighborhood, but use private schools. The elementary schools are generally very good, but you are not guaranteed a spot and they only go to 5th grade. The middle schools are fair to poor. The high schools are fair. Mpls/St. Paul schools have their share of very challenging issues. I have lived in Linden Hills in Minneapolis, and the neighborhood is very walkable and quite lovely, with Lake Harriet right there and the wonderful "downtown". The airplane noise is noticeable. I don't know about the public schools, but there are plenty of private schools near by.

Unfortunately there aren't many (any?) walkable areas with really good schools. The Twin Cities is a very new area, relatively speaking, and it is also quite flat all around it. There generally aren't geographic demarcations for neighborhoods or towns in the suburbs (I would say that the area around Lake Minnetonka is an exception), and most areas are very broad and sprawling. The Twin Cities is very car-centric.

[nueces_78]

Thanks, Family of five. If walkable isn't possible, great schools are still #1 for us. What are the areas best public middle and high schools? Not charter, not waiting listed, we're not that organized. Just some great local districts. Our budget can go up to 400K for the right house and area. Just want to stay on the safe side in case we have trouble finding work.

[TxTnVtMn]

Originally Posted by nueces_78

Thanks, Family of five. If walkable isn't possible, great schools are still #1 for us. What are the areas best public middle and high schools? Not charter, not waiting listed, we're not that organized. Just some great local districts. Our budget can go up to 400K for the right house and area. Just want to stay on the safe side in case we have trouble finding work.

I think you'll need to get more specific about what is meant by "great schools."

Some districts are known for winning all the time in athletics, others will have more impressive college outcomes (definied as prestigious, out-of-region colleges) some might be better for learning disability programs. Depends on where one rates "diversity" as either a source of strength or concern.

I personally look at Orono as one of the most appealing school districts, because the academic environment is solid and student enrollment is much, much smaller than its western suburb neighbors (950 enrolled at Orono HS, compared to 3,000+ students at Wayzata HS). Others might counter that the Orono community is more snooty and too rural and they'd prefer St. Louis Park, which is more diverse but still a bit smaller of a school (for example).

[Ursicinus]

As far as walkability goes, I'd counter that the cities themselves (Minneapolis and St. Paul) are quite walkable, and are one of the great bicycling areas in the entire country. I actually know a few people who actually commute between the two cities by bike for work. But the thing is, the areas are so big that there are tons of separate neighborhoods that can be quite far from each other by foot, and as someone mentioned above, they don't usually have any clear geographic boundaries. Some of them (I am recently learning) have nice "downtowns" ala Linden Hills, but most seem to moreso be collections of houses with some businesses along the main streets on their peripheries. This isn't necessarily a hard and fast rule, but you get the idea.

As far as schools, it seems that the Mpls/StP are kind of hit and miss. Demographic shifts (including tax base dwindling as wealthier families move to the suburbs) combined with open-enrollment have led to the decline of a lot of schools. Charters and privates are a good option as there are tons of great examples of both, but the former require you to be on a waiting list, and the latter are pretty expensive.