Anyone from western Pennsylvania or Pacific Northwest? (Minneapolis, St. Paul: low crime, neighborhoods)

[NewHorizonz]

I'm from Erie, PA and thinking about relocating to the Twin Cities. I was recently living in Seattle for a year, but lost my job and had to move back in with the parents....

I really like Seattle and it seems Minneapolis has a similar feel - education highly valued, good outdoor recreation, green everywhere, water, decent economy, creative and tech industries, good local food scene, low crime, etc..

I'm basically looking for a comparison of Seattle and TC. And maybe what the winters are like compared to northwestern PA..

Any Seattlites or Pennsylvanians out there?? thanks!

-NHz

[Clifford63]

My brother has been in Seattle for quite a while. I go out there fairly often and there are some similarities. Similar size metros, similar apprciation for outdoor life but the activities are bit different. Seattle seems to be more about hiking, camping, biking and MN tends to have that but there is also huge audiance for hunting and fishing, snowmobiling, etc.

We have a lot more sunny days that Seattle.

Seattle winters tend to be damp and cool instead of cold and dry. At times 38 and drizzle can seem worse than 12 and sunny.

Jobs and stuff are spread around Seattle metro somewhat as well as a healthy but not huge downtown. This is very similar to Minneapolis.

Housing is way cheaper in Minneapolis, wages are similar in my profession.

We have no Mountains here. Nothing compares to that.

We have no ocean here, nothing compares to that. Lake superior is big, but 2.5 hours away. Tons of other lakes close.

Both metros allow you to get away from it fairly fast if you love outdoor stuff.

Can't speak to how winters here compare to PA. Just a guess - they are colder here, probably a 2-3 weeks longer. We get a fair amount of snow, but not near levels they do in Buffalo NY.

We have income tax in MN, Washington does not.

Both areas tend to be pretty liberal.

[NewHorizonz]

Thanks Clifford63! That really helped with some of my questions... I'm very big into fishing so that helps too!

What kind of fishing is there in Minnesota?

I go up north in Ontario every summer to go walleye and northern pike fishing in the lakes up there. It seems like the geography is like that in Minnesota too. Just wonder what fresh water fish are up there...??

Thanks again

-NHz

[Clifford63]

Originally Posted by NewHorizonz

Thanks Clifford63! That really helped with some of my questions... I'm very big into fishing so that helps too!

What kind of fishing is there in Minnesota?

I go up north in Ontario every summer to go walleye and northern pike fishing in the lakes up there. It seems like the geography is like that in Minnesota too. Just wonder what fresh water fish are up there...??

Thanks again

-NHz

I like to fish walleye. There is some good walleye fishing in MN, but Ontario is hard to compare with due to number of lakes, Canadian Management practices and dramatically less pressure.

Bass is very popular. Small Mouth are more common, but bucket mouth are here too.

Northern Pike is common. Not that many people target these, but they are fun. Muskie are also present in quite a fee lakes.

Pan Fishing is popular - bluegill, sunfish, crappie

Trout is also popular in streams and some northern lakes. Lake Trout, Brown Trout, Rainbow Trout and Brook Trout are all to be found.

My buddie pulled a 12 lb lake trout out of Burntside which is near Ely last Saturday. That was something of a surprise as he was trolling for pike. Generally lake trout want smelt or cisco and this one hit a plug.

Fishing styles are all over the map from shore fishing, bobber fishing, fly fishing, trolling, jigging, and casting. Something for everyone when it comes to fishing in MN. You don't really need a big boat unless you go to some of the monster lakes where wind can really chop up the lake.

[Family of five]

I grew up just south of Pittsburgh, PA, in a suburb called Mt. Lebanon. My husband and I moved to Mpls 15 years ago to attend grad school at the U of MN. We now live in St. Paul, and we absolutely love our neighborhood (Macalester/Groveland). We lived in Uptown (near Lake Calhoun) and Linden Hills (near Lake Harriet) while we lived in Mpls. Both are neighborhoods within the city proper. Mpls feels younger, hipper, healthier, more vibrant, and cleaner than Pgh, comparing them city to city. Mpls is a fantastic city to live in. Wonderful residential neighborhoods, the lakes, the businesses. Cold - very cold. Pgh winters are not as cold, and the snow melts quickly (helpful when there are no flat, straight roads to anywhere). Mpls is coooold, not much snow, but the snow tends to stay on the ground much longer than in Pgh. It's very, very flat here, and the streets in Mpls are in a N-S, E-W grid - could not be more different than Pgh in that respect. I wish I knew more about the neighborhoods in Pittsburgh, but I never lived in the city itself - only lived in Mt. Lebanon before moving out here. I had good friends who lived in Shadyside and I visited them often, and I have to say I like the feel of the lake neighborhoods of Mpls better.

We love living here and are raising our kids here - it sounds like a cliche, but the quality of life here is really high, as long as you can handle the winters.

[tindo80]

I lived in the inland northwest (eastern washington) for just under just under 10 years before moving to the Twin Cities.

Minneapolis has more in common with seattle than any other city IMO, but the obvious differences are pretty big.

Weather is dramatically different (hotter summers, colder winters). Seattle is far more 'open' to newcomers than Minneapolis. Seattle has better and greater choices of food in my opinion. The park scene is different, but equal IMO (lakes and flatland parks in TC, and mountains and lakes in Seattle). Both places are really laid back overall, other than that.

Beware of Minnesota Ice.

[NewHorizonz]

Originally Posted by Family of five

I grew up just south of Pittsburgh, PA, in a suburb called Mt. Lebanon. My husband and I moved to Mpls 15 years ago to attend grad school at the U of MN. We now live in St. Paul, and we absolutely love our neighborhood (Macalester/Groveland). We lived in Uptown (near Lake Calhoun) and Linden Hills (near Lake Harriet) while we lived in Mpls. Both are neighborhoods within the city proper. Mpls feels younger, hipper, healthier, more vibrant, and cleaner than Pgh, comparing them city to city. Mpls is a fantastic city to live in. Wonderful residential neighborhoods, the lakes, the businesses. Cold - very cold. Pgh winters are not as cold, and the snow melts quickly (helpful when there are no flat, straight roads to anywhere). Mpls is coooold, not much snow, but the snow tends to stay on the ground much longer than in Pgh. It's very, very flat here, and the streets in Mpls are in a N-S, E-W grid - could not be more different than Pgh in that respect. I wish I knew more about the neighborhoods in Pittsburgh, but I never lived in the city itself - only lived in Mt. Lebanon before moving out here. I had good friends who lived in Shadyside and I visited them often, and I have to say I like the feel of the lake neighborhoods of Mpls better.

We love living here and are raising our kids here - it sounds like a cliche, but the quality of life here is really high, as long as you can handle the winters.

Thanks for the rundown on Minneapolis and Pittsburgh. That helped put some things in perspective!

[NewHorizonz]

Originally Posted by tindo80

Beware of Minnesota Ice.

Just like the Seattle Freeze?? I guess they are fairly similar...

[cyberwulf]

Useful thread, thanks! I'm moving from Seattle to Minneapolis at the beginning of next year.