Wondering about places in Minnesota (Minneapolis, St. Paul: crime, how much, houses)
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I've got an interview coming up and am doing research on the three locations where I could potentially get hired at; St. Paul, St. Peter, and Moose Lake. I'm wondering what your impressions of these areas are so far. I've done some research on my own and the impressions (shortly summarized) I get of each are:
St. Paul: a big city that is the state's capital and a very walkable area. The city has a lot of public transit. Not as much of a nightlife as Minneapolis, but the downtown is growing. Lots of traffic of a big city, but lots of different events going on as well.
St. Peter: relatively small town in the more southern part of Minnesota. Near Mankato, which is a college town. This is the town I know the least about out of the three of them.
Moose Lake: small town (3k people or so) located 45-50 minutes away from Duluth. Tons of outdoor recreation activities, lots of small town charm, and so on. The prisons are the biggest employer there.
So, what should I know about the places I've listed? I'm interested in the positive and negative parts of the three places I listed. I don't have much of a grasp on St. Peter, but I feel I know a fair bit about Moose Lake and St. Paul. Is there anything particularly unsafe about them? I heard the east side of St. Paul isn't the safest, but I wouldn't have to live in that part of town. I am aware of Minnesota winters, but I think I would be able to handle those.
St. Peter would be a nice spot. You are just a few minutes (15) from Mankato, which has a major university, and also just down highway 169 from Bloomington (55-60 minutes), a Minneapolis suburb. Set in the Minnesota River valley, there are plenty of trees and places to visit. There is even a trout stream nearby, Sevenmile Creek.
If given those three choices, I would choose St. Peter. I have never been to Moose Lake, but I am less interested in northern winters than some people. St. Paul has some nice neighborhoods and some not so nice. If you need big city living, then St. Paul would be the choice.
My job used to take me to St. Peter a couple of times each year. There is a nice riverfront park and a food Co-op/diner that is one of the best I have shopped and eaten in. St. Peter also has an active arts community. The Minnesota River valley (169) is one of the prettiest drives in the state. I have friends who lived in St. Peter and worked in Mankato. (Now they live in North Mankato.) There are no doubt many Mankato workers who live in St. Peter and other nearby small towns (e.g., Henderson) who commute to Mankato. You could even do the opposite; live in Mankato and commute to St. Peter. Lots of choices in that area.
I'm don't have much to say, but I think you might have it backwords when you say that St. Paul's downtown is growing.
That's not to say things are horrible there, I actually like St. Paul. It has some very nice entertainment venues. Other than those though, it's pretty much just a bunch of office buildings filled with government employees.
You mention something about it being a "walkable" area. Well yeah, there are lots of nice places to go for a walk, but you wont find much in the way of shopping or places to get groceries or stuff like that. Most of the retail that used to be in downtown is long gone.
Like I said, I actually do like St. Paul. It's safe, it has some beautiful riverfront areas, and there's lots of cool, old architecture. I just wanted to make sure you're not expecting more from the place than there actually is.
St. Peter is also a college town as it is the home of Gustavus Adolphus College. https://gustavus.edu Of the three, this would be my first choice. It has a nice downtown area, and lots of sports and cultural activities through the college. It’s also more convenient to the Twin Cities than Moose Lake.
The home page for this City Data has a way to search each of the towns that you've mentioned. It has so much information that would be helpful.
I'm not from MN, but having visited both St. Peter and St. Paul.....I'd say St. Peter would be my favorite. All the things that a person wants in MN, without the big city issues.
Moose Lake probably has lower housing costs than your other two choices. Big town nearby would be Duluth, but the twin cities are not so far from there, straight shot down 35 is pretty fast, if you feel the need to be in the cities every so often.
There are some areas up north that are some what depressed/not so many good job opportunities. Great area for outdoor recreation.
Are you going to be working for prison systems? Just that you mentioned it. I would think that with more Reservations in that area there are probably more native Americans in prisons up north, sad to say. Depressing thing to say, sorry, maybe I shouldn't point that out.
I have been to Moose Lake many times, and while it's fine, it's not my favorite small town. It lives in the shadows of Duluth, and I will always remember it as the town where that girl got abducted and murdered ~15ish year ago (obviously a one off type of scenario, but I still can shake the associated. They have since bulldozed the crime scene). If I'm going to live in a small town for the charm, I don't want it to be in a interstate town that lacks quaintness.
So that leaves St. Peter and St. Paul. This really just comes down to city vs. small town living. Unlike Moose Lake, St. Peter is quaint, a college town, with a cute downtown and Victorian houses. It also has the river and a cute coffee shop (river rock coffee). It's large enough to have enough retail to satisfy someone.
St. Paul is large and has so many different neighborhoods that this is difficult to answer, as you haven't told us what's important to you. It will obviously be more expensive than St. Peter, but will have many more amenities. Like I said, this really all comes down to if you are a city person, or a small town person. But I can definitively eliminate Moose Lake for you!
With all do respect, I don't think bfrabel has been to St. Paul recently. The Lowertown area has completely changed/gentrified, they now have the St. Paul Saints stadium, tons of restaurants, the light rail, Union Depot, a new Pro soccer stadium, a new Lunds&Byerlys grocery store, plans for the old Macy's space, a food hall, etc. No doubt that St. Paul, specifically lowertown, is seeing a resurgence.
I did not know about the L&B grocery store. That certainly does help things. Also, I agree with you about Lowertown. That area has really come a long way during the last few years.
It's not fair counting the soccer stadium though. That's not in downtown. There certainly is a nice stadium, areana, opera house, and science museum there though, so we can count those if you'd like.
I was thinking back to how it was around 20 years ago when I think Dayton's was still alive and well and I remember a building called the Galtier Plaza that had a movie theater and a bunch of shops and restaurants and a liqueur store in it. Then there was the World Trade Center (which I think changed it's name after the buildings in NYC fell down) which was like a little indoor shopping mall. That place was attached to what I like to call the MN Dept. of Motor Vehicles (which is still there).
Things change I guess. Some amenities came, and some went away. It is still a nice place.
I have been to Moose Lake many times, and while it's fine, it's not my favorite small town. It lives in the shadows of Duluth, and I will always remember it as the town where that girl got abducted and murdered ~15ish year ago (obviously a one off type of scenario, but I still can shake the associated. They have since bulldozed the crime scene). If I'm going to live in a small town for the charm, I don't want it to be in a interstate town that lacks quaintness.
So that leaves St. Peter and St. Paul. This really just comes down to city vs. small town living. Unlike Moose Lake, St. Peter is quaint, a college town, with a cute downtown and Victorian houses. It also has the river and a cute coffee shop (river rock coffee). It's large enough to have enough retail to satisfy someone.
St. Paul is large and has so many different neighborhoods that this is difficult to answer, as you haven't told us what's important to you. It will obviously be more expensive than St. Peter, but will have many more amenities. Like I said, this really all comes down to if you are a city person, or a small town person. But I can definitively eliminate Moose Lake for you!
With all do respect, I don't think bfrabel has been to St. Paul recently. The Lowertown area has completely changed/gentrified, they now have the St. Paul Saints stadium, tons of restaurants, the light rail, Union Depot, a new Pro soccer stadium, a new Lunds&Byerlys grocery store, plans for the old Macy's space, a food hall, etc. No doubt that St. Paul, specifically lowertown, is seeing a resurgence.
The incident in Moose Lake you refer too was closer to 19 years ago, not 15.
Second, was there not a murder suicide in St Peter or the area almost 9 or 10 years ago>
If I am wrong I will freely admit it.
Last edited by demtion35; 02-25-2018 at 05:48 PM..
Thanks for your responses everyone! I'll try to ask some follow-up questions.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Teak
St. Peter would be a nice spot. You are just a few minutes (15) from Mankato, which has a major university, and also just down highway 169 from Bloomington (55-60 minutes), a Minneapolis suburb. Set in the Minnesota River valley, there are plenty of trees and places to visit. There is even a trout stream nearby, Sevenmile Creek.
If given those three choices, I would choose St. Peter. I have never been to Moose Lake, but I am less interested in northern winters than some people. St. Paul has some nice neighborhoods and some not so nice. If you need big city living, then St. Paul would be the choice.
My job used to take me to St. Peter a couple of times each year. There is a nice riverfront park and a food Co-op/diner that is one of the best I have shopped and eaten in. St. Peter also has an active arts community. The Minnesota River valley (169) is one of the prettiest drives in the state. I have friends who lived in St. Peter and worked in Mankato. (Now they live in North Mankato.) There are no doubt many Mankato workers who live in St. Peter and other nearby small towns (e.g., Henderson) who commute to Mankato. You could even do the opposite; live in Mankato and commute to St. Peter. Lots of choices in that area.
It's good to know St. Peter is nice; it seems like Moose Lake has more natural amenities nearby, but St. Peter doesn't seem to have a bad amount of them. How much warmer would St. Peter be than Moose Lake?
Quote:
Originally Posted by Citykid3785
I have been to Moose Lake many times, and while it's fine, it's not my favorite small town. It lives in the shadows of Duluth, and I will always remember it as the town where that girl got abducted and murdered ~15ish year ago (obviously a one off type of scenario, but I still can shake the associated. They have since bulldozed the crime scene). If I'm going to live in a small town for the charm, I don't want it to be in a interstate town that lacks quaintness.
So that leaves St. Peter and St. Paul. This really just comes down to city vs. small town living. Unlike Moose Lake, St. Peter is quaint, a college town, with a cute downtown and Victorian houses. It also has the river and a cute coffee shop (river rock coffee). It's large enough to have enough retail to satisfy someone.
St. Paul is large and has so many different neighborhoods that this is difficult to answer, as you haven't told us what's important to you. It will obviously be more expensive than St. Peter, but will have many more amenities. Like I said, this really all comes down to if you are a city person, or a small town person. But I can definitively eliminate Moose Lake for you!
With all do respect, I don't think bfrabel has been to St. Paul recently. The Lowertown area has completely changed/gentrified, they now have the St. Paul Saints stadium, tons of restaurants, the light rail, Union Depot, a new Pro soccer stadium, a new Lunds&Byerlys grocery store, plans for the old Macy's space, a food hall, etc. No doubt that St. Paul, specifically lowertown, is seeing a resurgence.
So what is the lack of appeal of Moose Lake aside from the one crime that happened there 15-20 years ago? Based on what I saw on Google Maps, other people's pictures, and talking to someone from there (a self-admitted biased source) it seems like a nice small town with a lot of open space and natural areas.
Things that I value in any town (not necessarily in order) are safety, access to natural amenities, air travel relatively nearby (so I can visit Michigan and other places as needed), and enough to do so I won't get bored. The last one is obviously the most subjective, but I'm more of a homebody than someone who enjoys going out a whole lot. I think I would be okay in all three of those towns in that regard due to Moose Lake being near Duluth, St. Peter being a college town and St. Paul being in the Twin Cities area.
The job, should I get it, would be with the state of Minnesota government (but not the prisons). Thanks again! I've already done some research on my own, I just want to be sure that I have as much information about the cities as possible.
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