Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
I'd just like to see people's opinions on the town of Ironwood, and the western U.P. in general.
What's the weather like?
Are the people friendly?
How's the housing situation? (Rental, utilities cost high or low?)
How's the scenery/outdoors/recreation?
Michigan taxes: horrible or reasonable?
I ask because there is a job opportunity in my field up there, and I've looked into it a little bit online and it looks like a nice little place near some neat outdoorsy locations. The Ottawa National Forest looks pretty neat and the Pictured Rocks lakeshore (3-4 hours away, I know, but I like road trips) looks awesome.
I've never really paid much attention to that part of the country (originally from Erie, PA, currently in western Wyoming) but the shore of Lake Superior and the forests of the U.P. look pretty awesome. (I love outdoorsing).
I'd just like to see people's opinions on the town of Ironwood, and the western U.P. in general.
What's the weather like?
As they say in the UP, "we have two seasons: 'winter's coming' and 'winter's here.'" It's probably similar to what you experience in Wyoming: long winters, short cold springs, short but glorious summers, shortcold falls.
Quote:
Originally Posted by KillerK
Are the people friendly?
Yoopers are some of the most downbeat folks I've met. Not mean or anything, just mopey.
Quote:
Originally Posted by KillerK
How's the housing situation? (Rental, utilities cost high or low?)
Housing up that way is pretty cheap, though it can get pricey in the resort areas just south in Vilas County WI and parts of Iron County WI. Outside of tourism, there's not a lot of economic activity up there. This is reflected in the stark differences in property values up that way: where tourism and weekending is busy, property values climb. Outside the busy resort areas, it's plenty cheap. Waterfront property carries a substantial premium, especially in the resort areas on the Wisconsin side where lakefront property is among the most expensive in the rural Midwest. On the Michigan side property generally goes for less as it's just out of reach for Chicago/Milwaukee weekenders.
Quote:
Originally Posted by KillerK
How's the scenery/outdoors/recreation?
Among the best in the Midwest.
Quote:
Originally Posted by KillerK
Michigan taxes: horrible or reasonable?
More comparable to PA than WY, let's just leave it at that.
@KillerK, my screen name tells you my thoughts. I live in the Chicago area, but have been vacationing in the western UP for some years. The scenery is stunning (for the midwest). The people are laid back - no hurry there - pleasant and friendly (but not in a southern sense).
Ottawa National Forest is beautiful, as is up and down the Lake Superior shoreline, which has some excellent sand beaches and ocean-like views. The sunsets on the western side are exceptional. The vistas with autumn colors are phenomenal. Keweenaw County is my favorite, but Houghton, Baraga & Ontonagon counties are great, too. Check out the Porcupine Mountains state park.
Can't speak for Ironwood; spend most of my time north of 28. Am looking for a second home, although in a rural setting. Very nice, in-town homes are dirt cheap (compared to Chicago, at least). Acreage is also cheap (relatively speaking) compared to rural Illinois or Indiana.
Unfortunately for the locals, many of the smaller towns are collapsing because there is no way to make a living, closing down of different businesses and the economy in general. The area also never really saw the extensive building-out that occurred from the real estate boom, compared to northern Wisconsin which almost seems crowded.
If you live there (as a primary residence), you get a break on property tax. Second home taxes are higher, and depending on the county & township & school district, can be a bit much. You can get a rough estimate of property taxes here https://treas-secure.state.mi.us/pte...testimator.asp by entering half the price you will be paying for your home. Don't let a real estate agent fool you though with the taxes the current owner is paying. Michigan has a cap system which limits increases. The cap is removed when ownership is changed giving the assessor a go at it.
The UP is supposedly the best kept secret of the Midwest. It's probably not so much a secret but more the distance. People give up the drive by the time they hit northern Wisconsin. That's OK by me. Given you like the outdoors and (I assume, with Wyoming) overall cooler temperatures (and snow), you will definitely like it there. I'd move in a heart beat if I could move my job there.
Sounds like a good place for me. I grew up near Lake Erie and we had long, cloudy winters with tons of snow, but I love the snow and the cold.
Wyoming is beautiful, with its mountains and sagebrush. I understand our winter has been unusually mild, only going below -25 for about a week or so (yes that is mild for this area!). I do love the mountains but at heart I'm more a forest kid. And the most stunning vistas around here are absolutely breathtaking, but most take hours or days of toilsome hiking just to see them. And I miss my trees.
The Ottawa National Forest looks amazing! Such lush foliage and amazing waterfalls. And I know Pictured Rocks is a fairly long drive away, but after living in Wyoming, any drive of 4 hours or less seems normal. (Everything is soooooo far away from everything else out here, but I kind of like it.) I do love winter and the cold. It gets COLD here but we don't get nearly as much snow, and what we get is dry and powdery...good for skiing, but not for much else.
So I will look into Ironwood! I have heard elsewhere that it's not in the greatest economic shape, but neither is my hometown in PA (just slightly larger than Ironwood) and it didn't have nearly as much going for it, yet I was happy there too. Like my family there says, if you can be happy there, you can be happy anywhere.
I'm not sure what things look like in NWPA, but when I lived in Pittsburgh you saw decay all over the place, especially in the Mon Valley. The UP isn't quite like that because industry never reached that sort of scale up there in the first place. Where there was industry such as copper mining, you can see the old rusted out buildings and the like, but it's more scattershot. While you can see signs of decline here and there in the towns (except the WI resort towns), out in the sticks you mostly just see trees and lakes and stuff and the economic picture is kind of out-of-site/out-of-mind.
Drover, good points. It was pretty similar in NWPA. Steel industry left the small towns, and they began to rot. Without any cash flow or smart minds to lead the towns in transition, many areas are pretty forsaken now. Pittsburgh has made a huge comeback and is now one of the best places to live in the country; if only the rest of western PA would catch up.
But I like the picture you paint of the U.P. I've always been an outdoor-loving country kid and that region seems to fit the bill. Where I am now in Wyoming does too, but without the greenery and water. The mountains are beautiful, but I'm kind of over them. Ready to get back to forests, lakes and (real) rivers.
I don't want to get too sidetracked, but... while Pittsburgh's fortunes are definitely improving, its population hasn't rebounded much yet. Much of the real estate price run-up has happened in the East End and South Side, which were already the least dilapidated parts of the city. The entire Mon Valley starting with Hazelwood and Glen Hazel in the city itself all the way out to Belle Vernon is still a basketcase. Some of those mill towns have lost as much as 90% of their peak population and it's gonna take a whole lot of population influx to even make a dent toward recovery. I suspect much of the Mon Valley will never repopulate and a lot of once valuable real estate will simply be left in the hands of Mother Nature to reclaim as she pleases.
Hi there! My family just moved from Illinois to Ironwood. We've been here for 2 months, moved in December (probably not the best month to move We are LOVING living here in Ironwood. The people here are VERY friendly, especially compared to Illinoisians (sp?). My husband and I were born and raised in Illinois, lived the last 15 years in Southern Illinois....the people here are the friendliest I've ever met. They have gone out of their way to help us settle in. We have four kids, three of which are at Ironwood schools. Some people in other posts have criticized the school here, but it is SO much better than Southern Illinois schools! My daughter is a sophomore, and she said she's learned more in the two months at Ironwood's High School Luther L. Wright than she did in her two years in Illinois. It's all perspective...where you came from originally. We were in the armpit of the country down in Illinois. We come up here during the winter, and it is a wonderful change! The snow hasn't disappointed us--quite the contrary. We wanted more of a winter season, since we only averaged an inch of snow in Southern Illinois on a good year. Our sons are already learning how to ski, and they love it! We hike and snowshoe often. The air is crisp and clean.
We came from a larger town of about 16,000, yet Ironwood still seems to have more in the way of specialty shops than our old town did. The cost of living here is MUCH CHEAPER than Illinois! The state taxes are much better. Even though gas is a little higher, we don't have to go as far to get to the grocery store or schools (we live in town), so we actually use less gas. I'm not much of a shopper, so the distance to good shopping doesn't bother me. We went to Duluth a few weeks ago--not unlike having to travel to St. Louis down in Southern Illinois. They have a nice little theatre here--it feels like you are watching a big screen right in your own living room Again, the people have been very, very friendly--they are welcoming us into their town with open arms.
It all depends on what you are looking for. We were looking for a small town atmosphere, friendly, with four seasons. We wanted a place where we could enjoy the outdoors...we love to hike, fish, etc. A lot of people on the forums push for Marquette since it is a bigger city, but we didn't want to raise our kids in a big city. We have a son with special needs, and the schoools have been wonderful in helping him acclimate. My daughter brought a friend home from school their second day of classes! Most of the kids up here seem grounded without a lot of drama. My daughter said she was accepted and invited to join in right away. My autistic son actually has friends for the first time in his life. I have enjoyed Ironwood thus far. We are renting for a year to give it a good shake, but my husband and I are already talking about purchasing something for the long term up here. We promised ourselves we would get through all four seasons before making a permanent decision.
Hope this information helps! Please feel free to ask any questions. People have all kinds of perspectives of living in different places. Our perspective is coming from a very corrupt state with a population of people that have a very defeatist attitude about life. Here in the U.P., people don't seem angry or cliquish like they are in southern Illinois. The Yoopers absolutely love their area--they are very proud of it's beauty, and they should be! It seems very clean here--not a lot of junk littered in yards, etc. I am looking forward to seeing the spring and summer and what it brings (it has to be better than the 125 degree days we had in Southern Illinois for the whole month of July).
Wow thanks SoontobeYooper (Though maybe you should just say Yooper now? )
That sounds great! It sounds a lot like my hometown in PA, which I also loved growing up, but with more things to do and places to see. I did some searches and the surrounding area looks absolutely gorgeous. Love the thick pine forests and Lake Superior. My hometown never had a movie theater, and even the drive-in theater we all loved closed down a couple years ago...kinda sad.
Although I'm coming from a different perspective as a single 25-year-old guy, I'm not a city person (never have been), never really cared for nightlife or the "dating scene" or whatever, always loved the outdoors, and have always easily been able to keep myself entertained. My fun usually = running around outdoors, doodling around on the computer, or going to the pub with friends.
We moved to Ironwood in May 2012 permanetly. We bought a house here in 2011. We are from Chicago. Previous to that we lived in lower Michigan. It is a beautiful area but, boring sometimes. If it was not for Sin City Hurley and the nightlife, I would have already went nuts...
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
Given you like the outdoors and (I assume, with Wyoming) overall cooler temperatures (and snow), you will definitely like it there. I'd move in a heart beat if I could move my job there.
We are LOVING living here in Ironwood. The people here are VERY friendly, especially compared to Illinoisians (sp?). My husband and I were born and raised in Illinois, lived the last 15 years in Southern Illinois....the people here are the friendliest I've ever met. They have gone out of their way to help us settle in. We have four kids, three of which are at Ironwood schools. Some people in other posts have criticized the school here, but it is SO much better than Southern Illinois schools! My daughter is a sophomore, and she said she's learned more in the two months at Ironwood's High School Luther L. Wright than she did in her two years in Illinois. It's all perspective...where you came from originally. We were in the armpit of the country down in Illinois. We come up here during the winter, and it is a wonderful change! The snow hasn't disappointed us--quite the contrary. We wanted more of a winter season, since we only averaged an inch of snow in Southern Illinois on a good year. Our sons are already learning how to ski, and they love it! We hike and snowshoe often. The air is crisp and clean. 
