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Decision, Decisions….I have read so many forums and looked at so much real estate that it is all running together at this point.
We are considering relocation from Houston, TX. My husband may office from home, so the area we chose to live in will not be restricted by commute time. The important factors will be schools and community. I want a small town feel, kids out playing, people looking out for each others kids, etc. I am particular with the type of house I want. I want a new modern home on the inside with all the charm of an older home architecturally. My budget will be 300K-350K
I have found a few homes in Robbinsdale that meet my criteria. Can you tell me about this area? I have read mixed reviews, but some of them are a few years old. Can you tell me about the area for this address in particular? 2728 Zenith Ave N, 55422. Can I send my 10 yr old out to ride his bike and feel comfortable with it? I noticed the homes in Robbinsdale are not as pricey as other suburbs. That sometimes is not a good thing, but if I can find a home I love in a fabulous neighborhood and spend less that would be great (more money for shoes J) I read about Chaska which sounds great, but I am not as impressed with the homes on the market. If it came down to a great home over great community for my kids, obviously community would win. A girl can always wish for both!
Info on Robbinsdale? Other suggestions for a community?
Thank you in advance. I've noticed from other threads that responses are generally very helpful.
Decision, Decisions….I have read so many forums and looked at so much real estate that it is all running together at this point.
We are considering relocation from Houston, TX. My husband may office from home, so the area we chose to live in will not be restricted by commute time. The important factors will be schools and community. I want a small town feel, kids out playing, people looking out for each others kids, etc. I am particular with the type of house I want. I want a new modern home on the inside with all the charm of an older home architecturally. My budget will be 300K-350K
I have found a few homes in Robbinsdale that meet my criteria. Can you tell me about this area? I have read mixed reviews, but some of them are a few years old. Can you tell me about the area for this address in particular? 2728 Zenith Ave N, 55422. Can I send my 10 yr old out to ride his bike and feel comfortable with it? I noticed the homes in Robbinsdale are not as pricey as other suburbs. That sometimes is not a good thing, but if I can find a home I love in a fabulous neighborhood and spend less that would be great (more money for shoes J) I read about Chaska which sounds great, but I am not as impressed with the homes on the market. If it came down to a great home over great community for my kids, obviously community would win. A girl can always wish for both!
Info on Robbinsdale? Other suggestions for a community?
Thank you in advance. I've noticed from other threads that responses are generally very helpful.
I'll be honest with you, Robbinsdale probably isn't the best choice. Sure, a lot of Urbanists in here will say "It's not too bad, and there are some really nice neighborhoods..."
The fact of the matter is that Robbinsale is an older, inner ring suburb. I have family from there, and there really isn't anything to be afraid of, but just understand that the proximity to the larger city, Minneapolis, will result in some spillover crime that may not spillover into outer ring suburbs. Robbinsdale has more WWII era and before type housing stock, as well as more distinct neighborhoods.
Plusses of Inner Ring Suburbs:
-- Suburbs like Robbinsdale, Golden Valley, Crystal, New Hope, Columbia Heights, Fridley, Brooklyn Center, Richfield, etc., tend to have more mature trees, making the neighborhoods really cool. There's nothing I hate more than a suburb with cookie-cutter homes and all generic lawns with NO TREES!
-- Proximity to the 'amentities of big city life'. I know I mentioned earlier that with being adjacent to a large city you may see an increase in crime and traffic, however it's a trade off as you are closer to shows, entertainment, and cultural amentities more-so than if you lived in Chaska.
-- Mix of residential, commercial and industrial properties. Breaks up the monotony of chain restaurants, strip malls and cookie-cutter homes. Not saying Robbinsdale has NONE of this, but its' much less apparent.
-- Mix of ethnicities, cultures and races.
Minuses of Inner Ring Suburbs
-- Crime... Not saying that you're going to get mugged on every street corner, but it might be safe to say that Robbinsdale has more crime than Big Lake, MN (outer ring burb'). maybe some more vandalism, and petty crimes
-- Older housing stock. Homes are generally older. Older homes typically means more maintenance and work
-- Schools are generally not as good. Don't ask me why, but that's how it is. Facilities are usually older as well.
-- Traffic, congestion, pollution, and more commuting vehicles.
"There's nothing I hate more than a suburb with cookie-cutter homes and all generic lawns with NO TREES!"
You and I both hate those type of suburbs. Although I love a chef's kitchen with a 8 ft island, I can't stand that the house next to me looks identical and the landscaping is young.
That being said, What are your thoughts on a suburb that might fit some of my criteria? Thank you!
"There's nothing I hate more than a suburb with cookie-cutter homes and all generic lawns with NO TREES!"
You and I both hate those type of suburbs. Although I love a chef's kitchen with a 8 ft island, I can't stand that the house next to me looks identical and the landscaping is young.
That being said, What are your thoughts on a suburb that might fit some of my criteria? Thank you!
In that case, it just becomes a matter of preference because almost all of the suburbs have a bit of both...
Golden Valley is a nice suburb, as is Fridley. Even Robbinsdale too! You'll get some help in here soon, there will be tons of great ideas..
Hastings, Stillwater, Waconia, Forest Lake, White Bear Lake, Northfield, and Lindstrom would all be good choices. They are all small towns on the edge of the Twin Cities metro, so while there is suburban development, they still have that small town charm. If commute is no factor then you can even consider further-out towns like Faribault, Albert Lea, and Milaca.
Robbinsdale is nowhere near what you want - it is literally right next to Minneapolis, and the ghetto side of Minneapolis at that (the north side). It is very urban feeling - not much of a small town feel.
Cities like Plymouth, Arden Hills and Woodbury are nice - but VERY cookie-cutter suburbia - strip malls, subdivisions, etc.
Closer to the cities, I like West St. Paul, South St. Paul, North St. Paul, Shoreview, Golden Valley, Hopkins and St. Louis Park. All of these are nice, historic suburbs that border either Mpls or St. Paul. I prefer St. Paul to Minneapolis, so I'm a bigger fan of the St. Paul suburbs (N/S/W St. Paul, Shoreview), but that's more personal taste than anything. Schools vary in these areas - and as a single guy, I don't have any experience with school quality.
Robbinsdale is nowhere near what you want - it is literally right next to Minneapolis, and the ghetto side of Minneapolis at that (the north side). It is very urban feeling - not much of a small town feel.
Seriously? Robbinsdale does have a small town feel, it's one thing that I, and my neighbors, love about it. There is a strong sense of pride in the homes here.
There's a lot I like about Robbinsdale and some things I don't.
Safety - I do feel safe during the day, I've never felt safe anywhere I've lived at night. I see people out and about a lot during the day walking, fishing, playing, riding bikes etc. I wouldn't hesistate to let a ten year old go out on his bike alone.
Crime - There have been some property crime and a neighbor had his car broken into. We left ours unlocked once and people got into it. They'll also cruise alleys and go into open garages. We close ours and have never had anything taken from it. I don't know how this compares to some of the further out suburbs. My SIL, in far out Shakopee, had a package stolen from her front porch so it happens anywhere, I don't know how the stats compare.
Community - Robbinsdale does strive for a small town feel and I sense that everywhere I go. It's a mix of retirees, empty nesters and young families. One complaint of mine, and a reason I may leave Robbinsdale, is that there's not as many kids as I'd like to see. However I live about a mile north of the house you're looking at where the homes are a lot smaller and people move. A friend of mine just added to her family and moved within town. There are a lot of kids here, I see them in sports or other local activities, I think it's just my neighborhood of 2 bed 1 bath houses, I would happily live in a more kid dense area in Robbinsdale. I think the area you're looking at does have bigger houses so that may not be a problem there.
Schools - Some people love them, some don't. It's not a bad district but it's not a great one either. Minnesota does have the open enrollment option where you can enroll in a different district if they have room for students. To get a sense of how Robbinsdale fares in open enrollment about the same amount come in as leave. I know some people doing very well as a result of education here. We chose to go to another district however I am open to coming back after elementary.
The home you mentioned is near the Jordan neighborhood of North Minneaopolis. I have no idea how much of an impact that has as far as crime. You can check some old police reports here http://www.mnsun.com/robbinsdale/police_and_fire/ (broken link) and check with the local police department too.
Other areas I like are Golden Valley, New Hope and Maple Grove. Of the three Maple Grove is the one with the most recent growth and the one that seems to have the highest density of kids, it has new developments but also a fair amount of older developments. Golden Valley is either Hopkins schools (excellent reputation) or Robbinsdale schools. NH is Robbinsdale schools on the side where the test scores go a bit higher. A Northern suburb I like is Coon Rapids. It has a lot of older homes, the kid density varies based on the neighborhood. The schools are Anoka Hennepin up there, the biggest district in the state. I think of it as a middle district too.
I think Robbinsdale does sound like a good choice. I know a couple of people who live there; they moved there for the same reasons you did. I certainly wouldn't say Robbinsdale has an urban feeling. I don't know that it has a small town feel -- I'll leave that up to those who actually know Robbinsdale well to comment on -- but it's not bland suburbia, either, and it's certainly not the "ghetto." Robbinsdale seems to be a popular choice with younger families.
Given your preferences and budget you might also want to take a look at southwest Minneapolis; the schools over there are very good, there are some beautiful older homes that have been completely renovated inside, and there's a pretty strong sense of community. Linden Hills, for example, sounds exactly what you're looking for; your budget is on the low end for that neighborhood, but there are nice homes in your budget there. It's about as kid-friendly as you can get, tons of community activities (parades, festivals, lego contest at the toy store, etc.). It's not a suburb (technically part of the city of Minneapolis), but based on your wish list it sounds like it could be a great fit, better than many of the suburbs. (many Minneapolis neighborhoods are more like what you would consider inner suburbs in other, older cities) Other SW neighborhoods that would also be potential good fits would be Windom, Fulton, Kenny, Armatage, parts of the city of Edina, and, I'm sure, other ones I'm forgetting right now, although some of those areas are heavier on the post-war housing. Closer to Linden Hills would get you a broader variety of older, renovated homes.
I also agree with the Hopkins and St. Louis Park suggestions. And if you want to live in an actual small town not too far from the Twin Cities, Northfield would top my list.
I would say Stillwater would be your best choice if you want an older house that has been renovated. You will have the largest stock to chose from there. Northfield would probably have the next best selection. Hastings would be my third choice. Schools in all the communities are good with Stillwater having the slight edge over Northfield and Hastings. All of these towns are about 15,000 and would have pretty much everything you need day to day, Stillwater having a bit more than the other two.
If you want even smaller, New Prague, Jordan and Afton would be places to look. If you want REALLY small, Henderson is a cute town. If you don't mind being an hour out of the cities, St. Peter is a GREAT place to live too.
Linden Hills (the neighborhood in Mpls mentioned above) does feel like the quaintest small town. I lived there for about a year and felt like I could live there forever. Beautiful library, park, cute business district, Lake Harriet - wow. There is also a Catholic school right there, too, if that is something you'd consider (I think it's K- 5 right there, and 6-8 on another campus nearby). The only downside is airplane noise, but maybe the flight path has changed since I lived there.
My neighborhood (Macalester/Groveland) in St. Paul has a more urban feel than Linden Hills, but to me it feels like a small town. We walk everywhere - our school (K-8) is down the block, the corner store is two blocks away, the Rec Center is two blocks away (with free outdoor skating rinks in the winter). What keeps me out of the suburbs is the driving - I could not live somewhere where I was forced to get in my car for absolutely everything (we are a one car family). Part of me would love to live way out with some acreage, but practically I require a mixed-use neighborhood, with pedestrian-friendly sidewalks.
My block has 23 kids, who are out playing together everyday. They ride their bikes to the Little League games. They have pick up kick ball games at the school playground. The Ice Cream truck comes twice a week in the summer. I see people I know out and about every time I leave the house. This neighborhood feels like a small town, but we are in the city. Maybe something to consider? One minus for you would be that the houses are generally old (mine was built in 1927), but they are charming and beautiful. With your budget, maybe too small, too. Lots are generally tiny, but I appreciate the tightly-knit neighborhood that creates. Check out houses in 55105, and then you'll know right away if it's something you'd even consider.
Robbinsdale is nowhere near what you want - it is literally right next to Minneapolis, and the ghetto side of Minneapolis at that (the north side). It is very urban feeling - not much of a small town feel.
Closer to the cities, I like West St. Paul, South St. Paul, North St. Paul, Shoreview, Golden Valley, Hopkins and St. Louis Park. All of these are nice, historic suburbs that border either Mpls or St. Paul.
Here are some of the most common sights I see in Robbinsdale (of which i live a few blocks away from): a ton of families gathered to watch their kids play baseball at Sanborn Park; young couples and families walking/biking around Crystal Lake or Victory Memorial Parkway; the whole town (and persons from surrounding areas) coming together to celebrate Whiz Bang days, and the friendly downtown butcher (Hackenmueller), baker (Wuollet), or dairy queen cashier small-talking with their local customers.
Pretty small-townish to me. There would really be no reason to be worried about your kids going out and wandering around the neighborhood. People aren't worried about this in my neighborhood, which also feels pretty small-town, and I live in the *scary* (HUGE emphasis on the quotes) side of Minneapolis bordering Robbinsdale a few blocks from the parkway (we take walks around Crystal Lake and up to the downtown area of Robbinsdale all the time, the areas between Victory Memorial and Crystal Lake are probably some of my favorite in Robbinsdale).
FlyingWriter's comments are interesting, as he then went onto recommend Golden Valley, which generally speaking borders higher-crime areas of Mpls than Robbinsdale. One of those neighborhoods (Willard-Hay) would be one bordering the address you listed, but I have friends that live in this area (Mpls side) and love it- it's pretty nice in and around the parkway areas.
And I think Robbinsdale is way nicer than flyingwriter's recommended suburbs of south st. paul and n. st. paul, and fairly equivalent in desirability to st. louis park.
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