Which Is Better? Joplin Or Springfield (Kansas City, St. Louis: sales, real estate, home)

[designer]

I am considering a move to Southern Missouri. I'm not so sure that either
town are the best choices that one could make but I like the fact that they are somewhat centrally located. Joplin is fairly close to Tulsa and Kansas City and Springfield is close to Branson and not real far to St. louis and on to Chicago.
I have considered staying in the west because it is more liberal thinking
and not as conservative as the rural southern midwest part of the country
but with gas always going up long distance drives are going to be minimized.
Some of my friends are checking out the Bentonville/Fayettevile area
and think it is really pretty but they tell me that property has really gone up
in both places. I like being close to culture which I would think that Joplin
or Springfield would have little to offer except I notice that Springfield has
four or five colleges. Anyway I am curious what others think about these two
southern Missouri cities and what they may have to offer and all positives
and negatives that anybody can think of. I know the ozarks are very pretty
especially in the fall.

Thanks

[Ozarks21]

If liberal thinking is important to you, Springfield is probably not for you. My guess is that no part of SW Missouri or NW Arkansas will be very liberal.

You might consider Columbia, Missouri as an alternative. It meets most of your criteria. Except it's not clear from your OP if you are trying to maintain proximity to any other location. Columbia is closer to KC or ST. Louis than any of the SW Missouri towns.

[Jcoon]

Location wise, I think Springfield is a better choice. Tulsa & KC 3 hrs, Stl 2.5, Chicago 7-8, Memphis 5, Fayettville 2.5. Liberal? I think for the most part, people are polite and mixing liberal and conservative is ones own choice. You can find all walks of life here and I don't think anyone group dominates, at least I have not noticed. Small towns around Springfield do have small town politics. I have not lived in Joplin been there numerous times and I personally would not live there but thats my opinion.
Also, as I keep a watch on the housing market in Springfield and the Fayettville/Springdale area I can say housing although a little more expensive in the Fayettville area it has been coming down drastically....if you are choosey in that market, you can find a decent priced home there.....

[designer]

I was in Joplin approximately 6 years ago and it seemed to me that there
was not to much going on and the downtown area seemed to be somewhat
depressed. Anyway that was the way I saw it but I could be wrong but I
didn't see any new buildings being built in the downtown area. I don't remember to much about Springfield but it seemed to not even have what
I would call a urban downtown area with buildings but I could have missed it.
I would consider Columbia but it's just to cold up there as is KCMO and St.
Louis. But both cities are fun to visit and they offer at least some culture
where Chicago offers plenty. Also when I say I'm looking for a liberal place
I am not all that liberal but I'm not that conservative either. I lived in North
Carolina for a while and I did get tired of many different people come up to
me when I was shopping and try to recruit me into their church. Nothing could turn me off more and at least one friend said she had a similar experience in SW missouri. With the University of Missouri at Columbia I'm
sure it would be a more opened mind society but there area colleges in
Springfield and Joplin but maybe they are religous supported colleges.

[firebll31]

Having lived in neither but visited both many times, I can give the following information:
1. Joplin is not building new buildings downtown, but that is because they are trying to preserve the historical ones and have been doing extensive work in that direction. There are still some run-down areas on Main Street, but it is getting better.
2. Springfield's downtown area has it's share of empty buildings, especially the Square has nothing of real interest. However, just a few blocks away from the square are some good restaurants and bars
3. Both towns have campuses of U. Of M., of which Springfields is the larger. Both towns also have religiously supported colleges.
4. Missouri Southern at Joplin has the Spiva Arts Center and hosts an international piano competition each year. They also feature guest speakers which are open to the public. Springfield seems to have a more active concert and theater venue.
5.From Joplin, Branson is only 2 hours away, perfect for a weekend. If you take the back roads, the drive is prettier and less congested than from Springfield.
I live in Carthage and have no preference for either town. We frequently go to Springfield for shopping, but since the addition of the new shopping centers in Joplin, those trips are less frequent. Carthage is closer to Joplin and has an active Arts center and several sculptors of note. Both Carthage and Joplin have Little Theater productions.
Really kind of a toss-up. If you want a smaller town, go Joplin. If you like a little more variety, go Springfield. But Joplin is closer to Tulsa and K.C. Fayetteville is close enough for a day trip, and Eureka Springs Arkansas is close enough for the weekend. ( 2 hours)

Hope this helps!

[designer]

Thanks firebll31 for the comphrehensive description of the area. It really helps. I grew up in the area but have been away for many years and I knew
there had to be changes. I have lived in the west for most of my adult life
with a few stops in Atlanta and Chicago for corporate jobs. I was in Joplin
a few months ago but did not have time to drive around and check out
the downtown area. It is good to hear the city fathers are trying to preserve
some of the older buildings downtown but it would be nice to see some new
well designed architetecture going up aside the existing architecture. I know
that St louis and kansas city both have some excellent architecture firms.
I guess a person has to really go to a area and meet some of the people
there and see if there is a fit. I like being a little closer to Kansas City
because of the amtrak line to Chicago and not to mention Kansas City
has some good cultural events as well. I used to go to the plaza area
when I was younger. I'm sure that all those things have only gotten
better with time.

[Bucks371]

I live in Springfield and we have a farm near Joplin, and from my opinion, Springfield is better. However, I don't know if you want a smaller or bigger town. Springfield is much bigger than Joplin, and the downtown area is being renovated and in the last few years has really became a nice place with many bars and clubs and restaraunts and the area definetley has buildings and ther are plans for new buildings to be built, there is a small skyline, nothing like St. Louis but it is way bugger than what Joplin has. The drive to Branson is 30-45 miutes while Joplin is two hours from Branson, Joplin is a little bit closer to Kansas City and Tulsa but it is not a bad drive to either from Springfield, while Springfield is closer to St. Louis. Missouri State University which is the second biggest in the state is located in Springfield, and offers many concerts and other attractions. There are also other universities such as Drury and Evangel which is a religous school as well as some other smaller colleges. Joplin has Missouri Southern State University which is pretty good sized but not near as large as Missouri State, which is over 20,000 students. Springfield also has a national airport, and im not sure what size of airport Joplin has but it is significantly smaller than Springfields. As far as Columbia, which someone mentioned, im a freshman at The University of Missouri which is in Columbia, and it is a much more liberal town, however in Springfield, and i think in Joplin everyone is polite and it is more conservative but its not something to worry about, after being up here for a month or two i would prefer Springfield and probably Joplin over Columbia, because it is a complete college town so if your not involved in the college, i don't think it would be a great place to live, as to Springfield which is a city with a college in it, and by the way neither Missouri State University or Missouri Sothern are part of the University of Missouri. There is pretty good shopping in Springfield, once againg better than Joplin's and there is also minor league baseball here, i don't know if that interests you or not but the St. Louis cardinals AA affiliate are in Springfield and they play in a brand new baseball stadium downtown. Springfield is the third biggest city in the state so it is obviously going to have more to offer, having said that though you may want more of a smaller town, in which Joplin would be a fine place to live. Also, i just saw this, Springfield has ben ranked number 9 on the top ten list of cities to live and work in the United States.

[DocGSD]

Originally Posted by Bucks371

Springfield is much bigger than Joplin, and the downtown area is being renovated and in the last few years has really became a nice place with many bars and clubs and restaraunts and the area definetley has buildings and ther are plans for new buildings to be built, there is a small skyline, nothing like St. Louis but it is way bugger than what Joplin has. The drive to Branson is 30-45 miutes while Joplin is two hours from Branson, Joplin is a little bit closer to Kansas City and Tulsa but it is not a bad drive to either from Springfield, while Springfield is closer to St. Louis. Missouri State University which is the second biggest in the state is located in Springfield, and offers many concerts and other attractions. There are also other universities such as Drury and Evangel which is a religous school as well as some other smaller colleges. Joplin has Missouri Southern State University which is pretty good sized but not near as large as Missouri State, which is over 20,000 students. Springfield also has a national airport, and im not sure what size of airport Joplin has but it is significantly smaller than Springfields. As far as Columbia, which someone mentioned, im a freshman at The University of Missouri which is in Columbia, and it is a much more liberal town, however in Springfield, and i think in Joplin everyone is polite and it is more conservative but its not something to worry about, after being up here for a month or two i would prefer Springfield and probably Joplin over Columbia, because it is a complete college town so if your not involved in the college, i don't think it would be a great place to live, as to Springfield which is a city with a college in it, and by the way neither Missouri State University or Missouri Sothern are part of the University of Missouri. There is pretty good shopping in Springfield, once againg better than Joplin's and there is also minor league baseball here, i don't know if that interests you or not but the St. Louis cardinals AA affiliate are in Springfield and they play in a brand new baseball stadium downtown. Springfield is the third biggest city in the state so it is obviously going to have more to offer, having said that though you may want more of a smaller town, in which Joplin would be a fine place to live. Also, i just saw this, Springfield has ben ranked number 9 on the top ten list of cities to live and work in the United States.

A few things to add....
Sppringfield is not MUCH bigger than Joplin. Joplin took in a bunch of land about a year ago and the land size is now around 60 square miles as compared to springfields 77. Joplin's downtown has recieved State and Federal money for the same project. Neither city has a skyline. One building in springfield dosent constitute a skyline. NYC has a skyline. I dont really know of much difference in shopping between the two cities. Springfield has more, but Joplin has pretty much the same chain stores. Springfield has a resident population of 150,000+ with a rapid decline in the past few years. Their daytime population is around 400,000 as google shows. Joplin resident population is 50,000+ and daytime is 280,000. Besides MSSU, Joplin also has Vatterott College, Ozark Christian College, Messenger College, Franklin Tech, and WTI

I probably prefer Springfield to Joplin myself. I'm not trying to pick apart the post but there are some things that I disagree with. Springfield in my opinion is a younger generational crowd than Joplin. People are moving out of Springfield and into Ozark and Nixa. People are moving in to Joplin and Webb City and Carl Junction.

[pedro24]

Springfield is a much more desirable place to live than Joplin, which is why the Springfield metro is growing much more rapidly than the Joplin metro. As of 4/1/2006 the Springfield metro (Greene, Christian, Webster, Polk, and Dallas counties) had a population of 407,092. This total represents an increase of 9,223 residents from 4/1/2005 and an increase of 38,718 residents from 4/1/2000. As of 4/1/2006 the Joplin metro (Jasper and Newton counties) had a population of 168,552. This total represents an increase of 2,584 residents from 4/1/2005 and an increase of 11,230 from 4/1/2000. So while the physical area of the city of Joplin (population of 47,994) may be similar to the physical area of the city of Springfield (population of 150,797), Springfield's population is MUCH bigger than Joplin's (by the way, all of these population figures are from the U.S. Census Bureau). This is a FACT. Another fact is that Springfield's population has not been in rapid decline. As I've already noted, the Springfield metro is experiencing healthy growth. Within the city limits of Springfield, the population peaked in 2000 (again, according to the census) at 151,978. Therefore, it has declined by 1,181 (.08%) people while the metro gained nearly 39,000 new residents. That doesn't seem like rapid decline to me.

[DocGSD]

Originally Posted by pedro24

Springfield is a much more desirable place to live than Joplin, which is why the Springfield metro is growing much more rapidly than the Joplin metro. As of 4/1/2006 the Springfield metro (Greene, Christian, Webster, Polk, and Dallas counties) had a population of 407,092. This total represents an increase of 9,223 residents from 4/1/2005 and an increase of 38,718 residents from 4/1/2000. As of 4/1/2006 the Joplin metro (Jasper and Newton counties) had a population of 168,552. This total represents an increase of 2,584 residents from 4/1/2005 and an increase of 11,230 from 4/1/2000. So while the physical area of the city of Joplin (population of 47,994) may be similar to the physical area of the city of Springfield (population of 150,797), Springfield's population is MUCH bigger than Joplin's (by the way, all of these population figures are from the U.S. Census Bureau). This is a FACT. Another fact is that Springfield's population has not been in rapid decline. As I've already noted, the Springfield metro is experiencing healthy growth. Within the city limits of Springfield, the population peaked in 2000 (again, according to the census) at 151,978. Therefore, it has declined by 1,181 (.08%) people while the metro gained nearly 39,000 new residents. That doesn't seem like rapid decline to me.

Census is taken every 10 years. According to the Joplin Chamber of Commerce, Joplins population is 52,039 as of June 2007. As for Springfield, I could not find a yearly or quarterly number. While I agree that Springfield is a cleaner and more desireable place to live, the population is in decline according to the real estate sales market. The market is seeing more people move from the Sfield city limits to the towns of Nixa and Ozark. I believe that to be more accurate than even the US census because of the routine updates they do.