From Green Bay, WI to Minneapolis metro (St. Paul, Edina: houses, neighborhoods)

[msmil]

Hello all. Just as the thread title implies, my family will be relocating to the Minneapolis area in the very near future. A little background about us: I am a stay at home mom mostly focused on my kids, and my husbands new position will be around 50% travel. My childern are 11, 6 and 4 years old. Living in a good school distict is a big priortiy for us. Also, living near parks and recreaction and not "out in the boonies" is important to me. I would prefer to have parks, schools, shopping and eating all within walking distance.

Now here is my dilemma: From what I have read so far, the best school districts are Apple Valley, Rosemount Etc etc.. south suburbs basically. But I am finding some GREAT houses in St. Paul, South St. Paul and more near the city. I prefer houses that have some unique qualities about them VS the "cookie cutter" look of new constuction. And I would love to live closer to the city and near where the "action" is. However, I worry about the school districts in the city. So there are pros and cons to living both places and I am not sure what our best bet would be.

I would love to hear feedback from people who are from and/or living in the area, and also your opinion about where are the most family friendly neighborhoods. Thanks in Advance

[golfgal]

There is a reason those houses are cheep and a lot of that is because of schools. Our son was in the South St. Paul schools for a year, never again. Basically you have to decide, do you want to be 10 minutes closer to the "action" or do you want to be in a good school district? There is plenty to do in the outer suburbs, especially with smaller children. You can still take advantage of all the great things in St. Paul living in the suburbs too.

If you really need an older house, consider Stillwater or Hastings. Both have much better districts than you will find in South St. Paul or St. Paul and have the charm of older homes, etc. For us, we gave up living in an older home for better schools. We don't regret it at all.

[iNviNciBL3]

See if there is any nice affordable homes in Southwest Minneapolis or Edina. Both are very urban, walkable and have good schools

[uptown_urbanist]

Originally Posted by BobMarley_1LOVE

See if there is any nice affordable homes in Southwest Minneapolis or Edina. Both are very urban, walkable and have good schools

Totally agree. Sounds like the OP would not be happy in somewhere like Apple Valley, and considering that many people in the metro area don't consider the south suburb schools to be the "best" in any case, no reason to look out that direction if it's not to their taste. District 196 or whatever certainly doesn't have the lock on good schools!

I don't have personal familiarity with the St. Paul schools, but there are some very, very good public schools in that district. Otherwise the public schools in Southwest Minneapolis are some of the best in the state, and adjacent Edina tends to get the props as being the "best" in the metro area. St. Louis Park tends to be more affordable than SW Minneapolis or Edina, and the school district has a very good reputation. My only personal experience is with Minneapolis, and I can tell you that I would send my son to the schools in this area without hesitation. You can't beat Southwest High School, and there are many top-notch elementary school options, from the neighborhood options like Lake Harriet to local magnets like Armatage Montessori.

And while I don't live there, I'm a big booster for Linden Hills (Minneapolis); I think it is THE #1 best family-friendly neighborhood in the Twin Cities, and sounds like it would be somewhere the OP would love.

[golfgal]

That 49% graduation rate for the Minneapolis schools just screams "quality" to me...

[uptown_urbanist]

oh, come on, not THIS argument again? To the OP, just do some research on Southwest High School (or the other Minneapolis schools mentioned) and try suggesting that it's not a top school. When it comes to the bigger districts, overall numbers are very misleading. Heck, that's true for smaller districts and schools, too. (and if Golfgal is going to start bashing Southwest, then she'd better take a look at some of her beloved District 196 schools, as Southwest blows it out of the water in many academic parameters. The point is not that ALL Minneapolis schools are going to offer all students the best education, but it's also clear that many schools are offering many students a great education. And given that the comments above were specifically about the SW Minneapolis schools, it becomes even more obvious that yes, these schools are high-quality. Not to bash District 196 -- I'm sure the schools there are good, too (FWIW, overall test scores at Rosemount H.S. and Southwest H.S. are almost identical, although SW produces far more National Merit scholars, and also FWIW, SW is also far more diverse, if that's something the OP values, and has more advanced coursework available), but since OP doesn't like exurbia and prioritizes walkability, Apple Valley, Rosemount, etc. aren't a good option, given that there are neighborhoods with more character, more walkability, and equally or better schools in or right by the city. No need to trek all the way out to the "boonies."

[golfgal]

Again, not true at all about the neighborhoods in the areas discussed but whatever......

[uptown_urbanist]

what do you mean? Are you suggesting that Southwest Minneapolis neighborhoods have poor schools? Edina has poor schools? Most people who live in Edina and SW would strongly disagree, and in fact often move to those areas BECAUSE of the schools.

[ozzie679]

Originally Posted by msmil

Hello all. Just as the thread title implies, my family will be relocating to the Minneapolis area in the very near future. A little background about us: I am a stay at home mom mostly focused on my kids, and my husbands new position will be around 50% travel. My childern are 11, 6 and 4 years old. Living in a good school distict is a big priortiy for us. Also, living near parks and recreaction and not "out in the boonies" is important to me. I would prefer to have parks, schools, shopping and eating all within walking distance.

Now here is my dilemma: From what I have read so far, the best school districts are Apple Valley, Rosemount Etc etc.. south suburbs basically. But I am finding some GREAT houses in St. Paul, South St. Paul and more near the city. I prefer houses that have some unique qualities about them VS the "cookie cutter" look of new constuction. And I would love to live closer to the city and near where the "action" is. However, I worry about the school districts in the city. So there are pros and cons to living both places and I am not sure what our best bet would be.

I would love to hear feedback from people who are from and/or living in the area, and also your opinion about where are the most family friendly neighborhoods. Thanks in Advance

Yes, there are some great schools in the South Metro, but there are great schools in every corner of the TC Metro. I wouldn't make your decision based soley on information you get from City Data. We have a small number of very active posters from the South Metro that are in love their school districts and they sell them well. (no offense to said posters)

[uptown_urbanist]

Originally Posted by ozzie679

Yes, there are some great schools in the South Metro, but there are great schools in every corner of the TC Metro. I wouldn't make your decision based soley on information you get from City Data. We have a small number of very active posters from the South Metro that are in love their school districts and they sell them well. (no offense to said posters)

That's one of the nice things about the Twin Cities; you can really focus your search on other factors first (commute, preference for type of neighborhood, budget, etc.) and then worry about finding a great school. Not all schools are good, but you never have to go far to find a good one.