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I was born and raised in the Chicago suburbs. I am 30, single, no kids and have flexibility and I really just want to move away from here. The urban sprawl is a nightmare in Chicago at this point. I don't enjoy the "culture" of this area (everyone is impatient, unfriendly and generally there's just too much congestion at all times of the day) anymore. Sure, city life is fun every now and then but it's just not for me. When I was growing up about 20 miles from the city it was practically farmland. Now it's become so overrun with traffic, new townhomes and strip malls and it's just no fun to get around.
Anyway, I don't want to keep ranting. The point is that I know a lot of people have been moving to Minneapolis in recent times. Some of my good friends have been telling me to consider it. I've been there twice and really liked it (once in the winter, once in the summer). I am no stranger to harsh winters, so I think I could hack the weather there as long as the quality of life is better.
Are there any other people out there who have relocated from Chicago to MN? What was the experience like? Do you love it still or regret it? Is the food good? Do you ever feel the need to come back to Chicago for anything? Would you have rather moved somewhere further south where it's warmer?
My big dilemma is whether or not I want to try out Minneapolis or some place in the south like North Carolina, Arkansas or Colorado where it's warmer. I keep hearing great things about all of these states, and they seem to have the natural beauty that is my heart's desire.
I was born and raised in the Chicago suburbs. I am 30, single, no kids and have flexibility and I really just want to move away from here. The urban sprawl is a nightmare in Chicago at this point. I don't enjoy the "culture" of this area (everyone is impatient, unfriendly and generally there's just too much congestion at all times of the day) anymore. Sure, city life is fun every now and then but it's just not for me. When I was growing up about 20 miles from the city it was practically farmland. Now it's become so overrun with traffic, new townhomes and strip malls and it's just no fun to get around.
Anyway, I don't want to keep ranting. The point is that I know a lot of people have been moving to Minneapolis in recent times. Some of my good friends have been telling me to consider it. I've been there twice and really liked it (once in the winter, once in the summer). I am no stranger to harsh winters, so I think I could hack the weather there as long as the quality of life is better.
Are there any other people out there who have relocated from Chicago to MN? What was the experience like? Do you love it still or regret it? Is the food good? Do you ever feel the need to come back to Chicago for anything? Would you have rather moved somewhere further south where it's warmer?
My big dilemma is whether or not I want to try out Minneapolis or some place in the south like North Carolina, Arkansas or Colorado where it's warmer. I keep hearing great things about all of these states, and they seem to have the natural beauty that is my heart's desire.
Thank you in advance!
I should preface by disclosing that I've never lived in Chicago but have visited the city many times and am quite familiar with it. Minneapolis is a wonderful city and offers much of what Chicago does on a smaller scale. That is, you'll find excellent restaurants, culture, museums, parks, sports facilities, etc, but not the sheer quantity (or in some cases quality) of these assets you'll get in Chicago. Yet the cost of living, economy, and overall quality of life is hard to beat in the Twin Cities.
As far as weather, although in general it gets a bit colder in Minneapolis than Chicago, overall the climate isn't that different. If you dislike the cold and snow in Chicago, you're not going to like it any better in Minneapolis. In general, our "winter season" starts in November and ends at the end of March/early April. I personally don't like exceptionally warm or hot weather so wouldn't enjoy living in a southern state, but YMMV.
Traffic congestion and urban sprawl are happening in the Twin Cities as well, although neither approaches anything like Chicago's levels. Indeed, new townhomes, strip malls and urban sprawl exist here, but for the most part, unless you're traveling at peak periods or during inclement weather, getting around the Minneapolis/St. Paul area is a breeze.
If you have another opportunity, I suggest you visit the Twin Cities again and look at various neighborhoods to get a better feel for the area. If commuting to a job will be a factor I'd definitely recommend focusing on a location as close to your place of employment as possible.
If you move here and find yourself missing Chicago, the good news is that it's only a quick flight or not-to-bad drive (about 6 hours) away. Best of luck in your decision.
I used to live in Barrington il for a few years, I've been in the twin cities for 20 now. The twin cities is so much nicer and manageable than Chicago. Crime is much better, and we are not yet but slowly becoming a city that is large enough that it has highway traffic on the weekends. In simplistic terms, I feel like we have 90% of Chicago amenities, with only 30% of the hassle. That being said, we aren't necessarily less expensive than Chicago.
But if I were you, I'm guessing you're still young.....I would probably try a more drastically different state down south. This might give you a much needed change of scenery. The twin cities is the safe play, the city that will always be there for you to come back to and raise a family...
My girlfriend is from the SW Chicago suburbs and we spend time there semi-regularly. She prefers it here, though there are things about the Chicago area that she misses. The food, for one thing (though we have a couple of Giordano's now, plus a Portillo's, with more on the way). She also prefers the way people drive the way there to here -- as she once asked me, "do they even teach people how to merge in Driver's Ed here?" Personally, I'm happy to let her do all the driving when we're there.
She also doesn't have a lot of patience for Minnesota Nice and prefers people who are more blunt and direct, and finds cabin/fishing/hunting culture weird. But she likes the lower cost of living, the ease of getting around, a government that seems to function more smoothly, and the good job market.
My girlfriend is from the SW Chicago suburbs and we spend time there semi-regularly. She prefers it here, though there are things about the Chicago area that she misses. The food, for one thing (though we have a couple of Giordano's now, plus a Portillo's, with more on the way). She also prefers the way people drive the way there to here -- as she once asked me, "do they even teach people how to merge in Driver's Ed here?" Personally, I'm happy to let her do all the driving when we're there.
She also doesn't have a lot of patience for Minnesota Nice and prefers people who are more blunt and direct, and finds cabin/fishing/hunting culture weird. But she likes the lower cost of living, the ease of getting around, a government that seems to function more smoothly, and the good job market.
This is a very good assessment. I'm a native Minnesotan who lived in nw Chicago burbs for a decade. Came back - like it here better. But, The drivers here are too passive and I never realize just how culturally different Minnesota is from other parts of the country in regards to direct communication until I moved away and came back.
There are tons of threads on here you can sift through for pros and cons of moving to the Twin Cities, including some on your exact proposed move. So, that could be worth your while to see what people here have said on the subject in the past.
But generally speaking, the handful of comments in this thread already have pretty well summed it up: generally cheaper than the Chicagoland area, similar weather, "Minnesota nice", horrible drivers, tons of potential avenues for job opportunities in various fields, and so on. When it comes to food/culture/etc., I like CityKid's quip about having "90% of the amenities of Chicago, with 30% of the hassle." We've got tons of dining options, lots of museums, theater, and whatnot, just not quite in the quantity of Chicago. But unless you're going to museums and eating in restaurants every day, it's probably not going to be a deal breaker
Oh and one thing I haven't mentioned yet: PARKS. Our parks here are amazing, and all over the place. There's a reason Minneapolis and St. Paul have been jockeying for #1 position for "top parks system in the US" over the past several years. Most neighborhoods have at least once city park, there are walking and biking trails out the wazoo, the parks system operates (quite well) tons of spaces in the cities that you might not assume a parks system would. Seriously, the reason I bring it up is that it's the kind of thing where before I moved here, I'd think "Who cares? I don't need playgrounds." But it's so much more than that that it's really hard to explain without coming here and seeing it. Now that I've lived here for several years, I'll go visit my parents or friends in other parts of the country and it's one of the first things I notice about places I used to live, which makes the Twin Cities look that much better in comparison.
This is a very good assessment. I'm a native Minnesotan who lived in nw Chicago burbs for a decade. Came back - like it here better. But, The drivers here are too passive and I never realize just how culturally different Minnesota is from other parts of the country in regards to direct communication until I moved away and came back.
A good example of this -- when he was still here, the local media once made a big deal about Coach Yeo of the Wild angrily swearing at his players during a practice after a game where they particularly played poorly. There was a lot of hand-wringing about it, but my girlfriend said she didn't see the big deal. "That's just how Coach Q would talk even if the 'Hawks won," as she put it.
She also doesn't get why Twins fans still like Justin Morneau, while booing A.J. Pierzynski when he played for the Sox.
Thank you guys so much for your responses! It sounds like my assessment from my short time in Minneapolis was pretty true to form. I really did like it there, I just need to get out there a few more times to see how I really feel over a longer period of time. I just hope I'd be able to find work in a shortish period of time. I also still want to travel to some Southern states to see how I feel about those as well. But I really can't stop thinking about Minneapolis at this point.
As someone who lived in Minneapolis for many years, but now in the southeast, I would say give the southeast a try if you want something different. We love Minneapolis and I do miss many things about it. All of the points previously made about MN are spot on. In the SE, what we noticed is how much friendlier people are and inclusive of new transplants in social outings. Minneapolis to me is great for raising a family - safe and good schools - but it sounds like you are not quite there yet.
As someone who lived in Minneapolis for many years, but now in the southeast, I would say give the southeast a try if you want something different. We love Minneapolis and I do miss many things about it. All of the points previously made about MN are spot on. In the SE, what we noticed is how much friendlier people are and inclusive of new transplants in social outings. Minneapolis to me is great for raising a family - safe and good schools - but it sounds like you are not quite there yet.
I live in Michigan, but returned to the Twin Cities a few years ago to do a short-term web project with friends from grad school. I was there 8 months, and I have to say that the winters are still harsh (even compared to the 1980's), and the central core of Minneapolis is not safe, IMO. I lived in the SW corner of the city (general area of Washburn and 58th), but did not feel safe walking around at night. During the day was fine, however. In the central city, I found that good neighborhoods were right next to very run down areas where you would not want to live.
When I lived there, even though my immediate neighborhood was fine, gangs of punks in SUVs would drive around good areas where people were waiting for buses to go to work in the morning, for example, and stop at bus stops, jump out, rob everyone at the bus stop at gunpoint, then jump back into their SUV and drive away. Only one small example of the plentiful crime. Shootings downtown were not uncommon a few years ago, which was a huge change from the 1980's.
As far as "Minnesota Nice," I experienced a range of attitudes toward newcomers. A few people were "nice," but I did feel an insularity that's hard to describe. In general, I did feel like an outsider and was not made to feel particularly welcome by locals. I had a few friends from college that were the exception, but overall, I wasn't left with the impression that Minneapolis was a warm and friendly place, as I have experienced in other parts of the country. I've not lived in the south, so I can't comment on any comparisons.
Good luck to the OP with your decision! Every place is a trade-off!
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