Rochester, MN (Minneapolis, Wayzata, Byron: crime, neighborhoods, school district) - Minnesota - City-Data Forum

cookingwatcher · 07-30-2013, 09:01 PM

I'm hoping somebody can give some insight on Rochester as I have a few questions about living there. Obviously Mayo and IBM are the main work places--does the town seem "divided" amongst professionals who work there and then everybody else? Is it a liberal or conservative area? My family is pretty middle of the line, but tend to lean liberally for social issues. Is diversity accepted? We have younger kids--is it a family friendly town? Are there other young families readily available to meet and become friends with? I've read (from a few years back) about gangs. Is there any truth to that; bad crime?

Sorry for the numerous questions, but trying to get a feel for the area. We live in the metro and would like to move somewhere less hectic. It's a nice area, close to the metro if needed and we hear there is a nice "small-town vibe". We have visited and enjoyed it, but living there is much different than living. Any insight that is provided would be appreciated. Thanks.

golfgal · 07-31-2013, 06:36 AM

I don't really know what the political leanings are and unless you start the conversation, most people in MN don't really focus on politics in normal conversation so it's not really an issue. I couldn't begin to tell you how any of our friends would vote in an election

.

Rochester is a very family friendly town. It's big enough that there is no real divide between Mayo people and IBM people. It's also big enough that you are going to get your class divisions normally, you won't see a lot of lower income people living in the higher cost areas, for example, so you won't tend to have a lot of friends outside of your general income lines, etc.==which is pretty much the way it works everywhere.

There is quite a bit of diversity in town because of Mayo-visitors as well as staff--but keep in mind, it's Minnesota still. You probably see more diversity in the downtown/Mayo area then you would in most areas of MN though because of people coming in from all over the world for care.

Rochester is a really nice town I think.

cookingwatcher · 07-31-2013, 07:48 AM

Thanks Golfgal. I realize political and diversity views are not commonly discussed. I guess being from a small-town, I have experienced a "vibe" of non-acceptance of things, even though it's not openly discussed. That's not new though...of course smaller areas are more like that than larger metro areas. We hope to avoid this and was hoping Rochester was large enough to avoid some of this thinking.

I also forgot to ask about schools. Looking at past forums, it appears some people think the schools are good, some not so good. That was older data though. Generally speaking, are schools good? Are there truly "ghetto" and "rich" schools in town? Has anybody moved to Rochester from a metro area and regret it? Has anybody moved to Rochester and felt it was a great decision? I know everybody is different with different views...just trying to get a feel. Also, I guess we are "boring" by most standards, so a large nightlife culture doesn't really matter to us. We have 2 kids with one on the way so don't really get out much to bars, plays, etc, at least at this point. We truly just want a safe and friendly area to raise and grow our family.

golfgal · 07-31-2013, 08:02 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by cookingwatcher

Thanks Golfgal. I realize political and diversity views are not commonly discussed. I guess being from a small-town, I have experienced a "vibe" of non-acceptance of things, even though it's not openly discussed. That's not new though...of course smaller areas are more like that than larger metro areas. We hope to avoid this and was hoping Rochester was large enough to avoid some of this thinking.

I also forgot to ask about schools. Looking at past forums, it appears some people think the schools are good, some not so good. That was older data though. Generally speaking, are schools good? Are there truly "ghetto" and "rich" schools in town? Has anybody moved to Rochester from a metro area and regret it? Has anybody moved to Rochester and felt it was a great decision? I know everybody is different with different views...just trying to get a feel. Also, I guess we are "boring" by most standards, so a large nightlife culture doesn't really matter to us. We have 2 kids with one on the way so don't really get out much to bars, plays, etc, at least at this point. We truly just want a safe and friendly area to raise and grow our family.

From what I know, Century is the better high school in Rochester and I also think it's the "rich" high school, mainly because of geography--newer high school built in a newer housing area-it happens.

Rochester is "bigger" than the population shows because of the people that commute there for work and the people visiting for Mayo. Most of the town is just fine. From what it seems, some of the downtown areas are a bit shady but you can see that just driving around too. Rochester is a pretty "wealthy" town though, but it's not ostentatious wealthy like Wayzata.

You will easily find a nice, safe, family neighborhood where the kids are playing in the street and the parents are chatting in the yards. There are plenty of kid things to do and your social circle will be the parents in your neighborhood, parents from the kids' soccer teams or whatever. You are moving at a good time-your kids are young, you will be involved in kid activities and be able to meet other families. I think you will find that overall, for residents, Rochester isn't "that" big but it's big enough that not everyone knows your business like they do in small towns too.

fromupthere · 07-31-2013, 12:31 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by cookingwatcher

I'm hoping somebody can give some insight on Rochester as I have a few questions about living there. Obviously Mayo and IBM are the main work places--does the town seem "divided" amongst professionals who work there and then everybody else? Is it a liberal or conservative area? My family is pretty middle of the line, but tend to lean liberally for social issues. Is diversity accepted? We have younger kids--is it a family friendly town? Are there other young families readily available to meet and become friends with? I've read (from a few years back) about gangs. Is there any truth to that; bad crime?

Sorry for the numerous questions, but trying to get a feel for the area. We live in the metro and would like to move somewhere less hectic. It's a nice area, close to the metro if needed and we hear there is a nice "small-town vibe". We have visited and enjoyed it, but living there is much different than living. Any insight that is provided would be appreciated. Thanks.

There is definitely no obvious division between Mayo and IBM. For the record, rumor is IBM is on its way out of Rochester anyway in the next couple of years. IBM rumors tend to be true. So no need to worry there. You will find both liberal and conservatives in the area. That being said, really, it's Mayo more than anything. Mayo employees over 34,000 people in Rochester alone, so things tend to lean towards what Mayo wants. This angers some people, others could care less.

Diversity is very accepted here. There was just a news story about the schools, and there are over 70 different languages spoken in the school district. There are many, many people of different color, race, creed, etc., that live here.

Yes, Rochester is a family friendly town. One thing to make note of is you usually have to look for stuff if you want to find it. Things are advertised here like they are in some other places. Rochester isn't a tourist place, so you won't see ads and billboards for all the different things you can do here. But there's plenty to do. There's a Children's Museum, lots of parks and playgrounds, a nearby zoo (near Byron), Quarry Hill Nature Center, which along with the zoo are free but donations encouraged, hockey (Ice Hawks), baseball (Honker's, Royals, vintage base ball Rooster's), the history center, which frequently has activities going on for children and families, a nice library with frequent happenings for children and families, etc. You shouldn't have trouble meeting other families. Remember, though, it is Minnesota and some people are a little more reserved and may not come up to you and introduce themselves. I, personally, am much more introverted and that just means I'm not usually the one to initiate conversations.

The crime that happens in Rochester that would be gang related is more "within gangs". It is not something that has been much in the news lately. There is still some crime going on, but nothing you wouldn't see in any city of similar size.

The schools are good. We have kids in elementary and middle school. The middle school is the one that people considered "a bad school". We have not had any problems and are pleased with how things have been going so far. The elementary school our kids attend is on a 45/15 schedule and is a choice school. There are other choice schools in town. These are schools you need to apply for and there is a lottery to get in them. There are schools that people don't like here, i.e., some of the SE Roch schools. I think a lot of this comes from many, many years ago the SE part of town was considered "the bad part of town". That's not the case. There are "bad" areas in all four quadrants of the city, none any worse than any other. There are good neighborhoods and good schools throughout the school. There are plenty of alternative options to public school as well. There are Catholic schools, Lutheran schools, a Christian school, all private so tuition based. There are other options within the public schools as well. Because of the boundaries for the schools, there really isn't any school that is full of rich kids or poor kids. They try to incorporate what would be considered lower income areas with the higher income areas.

I think Roch is a good place to raise a family.

Beenhere4ever · 07-31-2013, 03:28 PM

Isn't Tim Walz their congressman? If so, they aren't all THAT rightwing!

cookingwatcher · 08-01-2013, 08:33 PM

Thanks everybody for the input. Fromupthere, thanks for so much detail...exactly the things I want to know about.

Bloopysdad · 03-08-2014, 09:10 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Beenhere4ever

Isn't Tim Walz their congressman? If so, they aren't all THAT rightwing!

Unfortunately, that is correct. Rochester is an island of conservatism in a predominantly liberal state.

There are good and bad aspects to both, but Walz is rather unpopular among the Rochesterites with whom I roll.

chessgeek · 03-09-2014, 01:58 PM

Rochester's population is 107,000, so you should have a better chance of running into people with similar views to yours than if you were in a smaller town. It is a little more conservative than Minneapolis, but has become more moderate in the last decade; I was doing some searching for the percentages of Democrats, Republicans and independents in town, but it was in vain. You will probably be able to find out some people's viewpoints when elections are happening and less often when they are not.

It is considered a good place to live and raise a family. Good luck!

tijlover · 03-09-2014, 10:37 PM

I grew up in Rochester, 1957+, and I question whether it's a great place to raise a family. I didn't even spot a black person until I went up to Minneapolis in 1970, and what a shocker that was!

In retrospect, if I were to raise a family, I'd want my children to have more exposure to minorities!

And I don't think a city that "washes down its streets with Pine Sol" is healthy either. Nowadays, I just run from sanitized, anti-septic cities!