Best college town in Minnesota (St. Paul, Duluth: school district, suburbs, metro area) - (MN) - Page 3 - City-Data Forum

Camden Northsider · 06-28-2011, 05:39 AM

I went to (and voted for) Morris- although it doesn't get very high marks in "cultural attractions and employment opportunities", it excels in university atmosphere (if you like a small atmosphere), diversity, and academic excellence and is a little more unique, IMO, than the Northfields of the world (although I generally agree that Northfield, with 2 respectable universities in a beautiful town setting, is also very nice). Plus there aren't any campuses that are as green/sustainable as Morris- I know Carleton has had some initiatives and I believe is utilizing a windmill now, whereas Morris recently added a second windmill and has been a pioneer of biomass technology to the point where it's basically working towards a negative carbon footprint right now.

golfgal · 06-28-2011, 05:46 AM

I had to give the nod to St. Joseph. It is a college town in every sense of the word. Many people that live in town work for one of the colleges in the area, businesses are set up to support the schools in the area, cultural experiences on the campuses are amazing. The other towns on the list are nice towns but the are more towns that happen to have a college in them vs being a college town.

northstar22 · 06-28-2011, 08:58 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by golfgal

I had to give the nod to St. Joseph. It is a college town in every sense of the word. Many people that live in town work for one of the colleges in the area, businesses are set up to support the schools in the area, cultural experiences on the campuses are amazing. The other towns on the list are nice towns but the are more towns that happen to have a college in them vs being a college town.

I forgot about including St. Joe on this poll.

Still, I don't see how towns like Mankato, Northfield and Marshall are not college towns. They revolve around their universities, even though not everyone living there is affiliated with the schools. Students make up almost 1/3 of the population of Marshall and Mankato and 1/4 of Northfield's population, and there are also all of the professors and employees who work for the various colleges.

golfgal · 06-28-2011, 11:09 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by northstar22

I forgot about including St. Joe on this poll.

Still, I don't see how towns like Mankato, Northfield and Marshall are not college towns. They revolve around their universities, even though not everyone living there is affiliated with the schools. Students make up almost 1/3 of the population of Marshall and Mankato and 1/4 of Northfield's population, and there are also all of the professors and employees who work for the various colleges.

I don't think those towns revolve around the universities at all, which is why I think that they are towns will colleges in the vs being college towns. Marshall revolves more around the high school activities then the college and even more around functions at Schwan's, US Bank, etc. Northfield is the same way, the town is set up for locals and tourists and has the added attraction of having 2 colleges. Mankato is too big to be a "college" town again, set up to be a regional shopping/employment area that happens to have some colleges in town. St. Joe, on the other hand has what, 4 pizza places, 3 bars, a sub shop...all for college students.

Cruz Azul Guy · 06-28-2011, 11:16 AM

St. Peter and St. Joseph would be my top choices....so I guess I have to go with "other."

northstar22 · 06-28-2011, 11:48 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by golfgal

I don't think those towns revolve around the universities at all, which is why I think that they are towns will colleges in the vs being college towns. Marshall revolves more around the high school activities then the college and even more around functions at Schwan's, US Bank, etc.

It depends on the age group you're in. If you're in your 30s or 40s, then you'll probably do more activities with your employer and your kids' schools. The college certainly has a lot of activites for people in their early 20s. During the school year, the bars and restaurants downtown are full of college kids.

Quote:

Northfield is the same way, the town is set up for locals and tourists and has the added attraction of having 2 colleges. Mankato is too big to be a "college" town again, set up to be a regional shopping/employment area that happens to have some colleges in town. St. Joe, on the other hand has what, 4 pizza places, 3 bars, a sub shop...all for college students.

Using your definition, Ann Arbor, Champaign-Urbana, Iowa City and Madison wouldn't be college towns, either. There are VERY few towns that have a college and nothing else, especially in the Midwest (besides Ohio). However, there are a lot of towns that most residents consider to be college towns, including Marshall, Mankato, Northfield and Morris, Brookings, SD, Eau Claire, WI, etc. Rochester and Duluth are cities that happen to have colleges -- students make up a very small portion of the cities' population, the universities there have little to no impact on the overall communities, and the students are usually commuters from the local area.

Radical_Car · 06-28-2011, 12:17 PM

I forgot about St. Peter.
I LOVE St. Peter.
And having lived in St. Cloud for 3 years, I have rarely, if at all, been to St. Joseph.

And outside of Minnesota not too far over, whether it's a college town or a city with college(s), Eau Claire, WI is awesome !

xandrex · 06-29-2011, 02:09 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by northstar22

I'm surprised Mankato didn't get more votes. It's one of the fastest-growing cities in Minnesota and offers a lot for its size, including good jobs and beautiful scenery. The main negative of Mankato is that it's so close to the Cities; when I lived there I knew some people who commuted to the MSP 'burbs for work (and vice versa). If Kato was where Marshall or Morris is, it would be awesome.

How far does one need to be from the Cities to be far enough away? Seriously, Mankato is a pretty decent hike from the metro area, so I don't know why it would be a negative (if you view relative proximity to a large metro area a downside, which few would).

In these last posts, people have also been talking about what a college town really is. It seems there's some refuting of any town that isn't specifically for college students and just them.

I think any small or medium sized town with a university or private college is very likely a college town. When I think of St. Cloud, I think of one thing - all the kids that go to school there (and no less, the ones I know who go there tend to be the party type who would ooze the collegiate mentality in it's most hedonistic sense). That said, St. Cloud is large, an employment center in its own right, and has proximity to the metro core (sort of). But St. Cloud is a college town to me. Northfield and Mankato as well (and many of the others listed).

northstar22 · 06-29-2011, 03:24 PM

In my opinion, any town that's less than 3 hours from the Cities is too close in. I still love Mankato, but it's only about 30 minutes south of the suburbs. I think it would be better and have more local flavor if it were further from the metro area.

Cruz Azul Guy · 06-30-2011, 03:08 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Radical_Car

And having lived in St. Cloud for 3 years, I have rarely, if at all, been to St. Joseph.

This actually doesn't surprise me much. St. Joseph is a good college town but I wouldn't consider it a destination town. For anyone not associated with CSB/SJU, unless you were hitting up a college-age kegger I can't really think of any reasons why you would go out of your way to go to St. Joseph, MN. I guess that's part of what makes it a college town by definition?