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My wife and I are relocating to the Twin Cities for my new job at the U. (east bank campus). We have young boys (elementary-aged). We'd like to find a 2,000 to 2,500-ish square-foot house in the sub-300K range with some decent backyard space and good access to parks/schools ... and yet with a reasonable commute to the university. I should be able to commute at off-peak hours (after 9 a.m.) most of the time, so we're hoping to find something that's no more than 20-25 minutes away in non-heavy traffic.
I like what I've seen from Golden Valley -- houses about the size we're looking for, with a close-in commute, etc. How is the Robbinsdale school district? And the area in general? Recommendations?
We've also looked a bit farther out at suburbs west (Plymouth, Minnetonka) and east (Woodbury especially). I'd welcome any thoughts about the pros/cons of these and other places for finding that right balance between nature/space for boys to roam vs. a reasonable commute to the university. Thanks!
Golden Valley has some great neighborhoods. If you can try and get Hopkins schools, GV is split between that and Robbinsdale schools. Some like Robbinsdale schools and I know some kids who are doing very well in the district. Others aren't as impressed. Robbinsdale gains about the same amount of kids to open enrollment that it loses. We live in the district, we made a different choice for our child but I'm not saying we'll never do the schools. The high schools seem to have a lot of good academic options. Hopkins, the other district that serves GV has a top notch reputation. I don't know the figures regarding open enrollment gains and losses.
I wouldn't hesistate to live in Golden Valley or New Hope which is just north of GV. Lots of nice parks and trails. Pretty, well-kept neighborhoods.
My wife and I are relocating to the Twin Cities for my new job at the U. (east bank campus). We have young boys (elementary-aged). We'd like to find a 2,000 to 2,500-ish square-foot house in the sub-300K range with some decent backyard space and good access to parks/schools ... and yet with a reasonable commute to the university. I should be able to commute at off-peak hours (after 9 a.m.) most of the time, so we're hoping to find something that's no more than 20-25 minutes away in non-heavy traffic.
I like what I've seen from Golden Valley -- houses about the size we're looking for, with a close-in commute, etc. How is the Robbinsdale school district? And the area in general? Recommendations?
We've also looked a bit farther out at suburbs west (Plymouth, Minnetonka) and east (Woodbury especially). I'd welcome any thoughts about the pros/cons of these and other places for finding that right balance between nature/space for boys to roam vs. a reasonable commute to the university. Thanks!
Having grown up in Golden Valley, I have a reasonable amount of authority on this particular subject.
First of all, are you sure you would be in Robbinsdale school district? If you are in the southern half (approximately) of Golden Valley, you'll be in Hopkins District-- which I attended. In fact, tha housing stock you are describing tends to be in the southwest of the city, although it is entirely possible that you can find it in Robbinsdale district, as well.
Either way, the schools are *very* good. Hopkins tends to be more highly regarded than Robbinsdale Cooper or Armstrong, however you can't really go wrong either way. Hopkins has experienced some major budget cuts since I've graduated, though-- at the expense of fine art, music, and language courses. But some of that has happened statewide.
If your primary concern is actually finding the best public school possible, then you'll want to use the open-enroll option, and send your kids to St. Louis Park. That is by far the highest ranked public high school in the state (or at least it used to be). I think that the difference is more or less negligible on a kid-to-kid basis, though, and certainly at elementary school. If you are in Hopkins district, your kids will be going to Meadowbrook. That's about a five minute drive from anywhere in Golden Valley, and of course has bus services. I can vouch for the overall quality of the teachers/curriculum there, too.
Robbinsdale district I don't know as much about specifically. Again, Cooper is not considered the best of suburban, public high schools up here, but the standard is very high and Cooper is certainly a very good choice.
As far as room to roam goes, only you can really say definitively if the specific property you are considering has enough yard space. However, Golden Valley borders Theo Wirth Park-- the largest park in the Minneapolis system. Theo Wirth has a beach, a bog, plenty of trails, a flower garden, and a golf course. Other than that, Golden Valley itself has Brookview-- which has a large playground, tennis courts, and a golf course that is popular with cross-country skiing and snowshoers during winter months-- as well as Lions Park, Wesley Park, and a few others. There are numerous youth sporting activities in Golden Valley. I played soccer, many friends played little league, and my sisters played softball. Of course, all of the local parks have ice-rinks in the winter. I *believe* that the closest pee-wee hockey option is Hopkins.
You will probably never spend more than 20 minutes in traffic commuting from Golden Valley into town. Literally, never. 394 can get backed up, but if it does, you have multiple other routes to get into the city-- 55 or Glenwood Ave, for instance that can be quicker than the freeway in rush hour. If you don't drive, there are express route buses that go from a transit center near Louisiana Ave and 394. Those take longer as they stop to pick up/drop off passangers in Near North, but even those probably aren't more than a half-hour commute.
To give you an idea, my parents' house is about 6 or 7 miles from city hall in downtown Minneapolis, on the nose.
All in all, Golden Valley is a very nice place to grow up. It tends to be older, I think: most of the people there are retirees or empty-nesters with kids that are off to college or in their 20's or 30's. But that demographic can vary widely. It is known for being heavily Jewish (my classes at Meadowbrook were sometimes 50%+), which is an interesting demographic to grow up in. There is easy access to the city, a general lack of big-box shopping, but some chain restaurants along Wayzata Blvd. on the south side of 394, and a few strip mall developments in "downtown" Golden Valley (Winnetka and GV Road) that actually have some nice restaurants and other conveniences. Ridgedale and Knollwood will be your big malls-- both within fifteen minutes' drive. The biking and hiking trails are not quite as good as they are further south in St. Louis Park and Minnetonka, but the streets are quiet and overall pretty bike-friendly.
In Plymouth or Woodbury your commute would almost certainly be worse. 494 and 169 are disasters during rush hour, and it would make no sense to take 55 into town from there, either. Woodbury is just geographically far away from the U of M. In general, either of those would offer more "nature" than Golden Valley, but that's a slippery slope: Plymouth and Woodbury probably have closer proximity to large regional park reserves, but both certainly have less accessible neighborhood parks, like the ones I mentioned. Also, the class sizes are certainly larger in Wayzata school district (Plymouth), but the quality of education is not-- in my opinion-- any better. There will also be less of a neighborhood "feel" or "character" in either of those places.
I could rave about Highland, but hopefully this all gives you something to think about. I have nothing bad to say about GV. It was a great place to grow up, and I was always thankful that I was close to all of the amenities of the city, but had enough room to breathe, and was generally isolated from big-city problems of crime and noise.
Hopkins has very good schools, Robinsdale, not so much so if you settle on Golden Valley, try for Hopkins schools.
Your commute from Woodbury at off peak hours would be very easy. You wouldn't have to drive on 494 at all. You could take 94 to the East Bank. It would be easier than coming from Golden Valley by quite a bit. I am not a fan of Woodbury personally but a lot of people like it there.
You could also look into Eagan. That is a very easy hop to the East Bank. Eagan also has a lot of very nice parks, a very large county park with a lot of nature trails, etc.
Plymouth would be a not so fun commute to the East Bank but it is a nice community with good schools.
Mahtomedi would also be a good choice but housing there is more expensive so finding something under 300K might be hard but worth looking into. Easy commute on 36 to 280.
St. Louis Park does have good schools but they are not the "top" rated schools any longer. The nice thing about Minnesota though is that other than a handful of districts you are going to be just fine (in the metro area) with any of the districts.
I think Golden Valley sounds like a good fit for nature (Wirth Park, etc.) and commute; you might also want to do a search and see some of what Camden Northsider has posted about his neighborhood of Victory in Minneapolis. And I think Mac-Groveland or Highland Park would be excellent options, although am not sure what's available for your price range. The commute would be excellent, though, and the proximity to the river a real plus.
I know people in Robbinsdale; they've been quite happy there. A lot of the homes seem to be smaller, though, although there are some bigger ones available as well.
I hesitate to throw it out because I'm not sure how likely it is you'll find something in your price range, but the Prospect Park neighborhood of Minneapolis (very near the U, seems popular with faculty) might be a good option. Same thing with the St. Anthony Park neighborhood of St. Paul or neighboring Falcon Heights. (right next to the U of MN's St. Paul campus)
Personally, I would stay away from Robbinsdale district, especially Cooper High School. Just last weekend over 100 kids were at a party from Cooper & a high school boy got shot and killed. You'd do much better with Hopkins, Plymouth or Woodbury. Golden Valley does have some pretty areas though.
^ I'm hesitant to blame entire schools for incidents like that, but for what it's worth, were many of the kids there actually from Cooper? I'd read that the boy who was shot was new to the school, and the party itself was in Brooklyn Park (which fair or not, does have a reputation as having some rough neighborhoods). I don't know in or with kids in Cooper so I don't know what the school is like, but I wouldn't jump to conclusions based on that incident alone.
Golden Valley is a great place to live with some excellent neighborhoods. Close access to Theo Wirth Parkway and the lake trail system is a big plus. Commute would be easy fairly easy, but still have to get around Minneapolis to get to the U.
Highland Park would be a super easy commute to the U (and scenic because it's along the river). Great neighborhood school and access to bike trails here. Keeping within your price range may be tough, but isn't impossible. A quick look shows about 8 properties for sale in your range. You won't get a huge yard unless your price range goes up a bit or find a house with a double lot. You would really appreciate the short commute time here and the commuting options. My neighbor who works at the U bikes everyday (including winter). Work out, save gas and get to work....all at the same time!
Personally, I would avoid Woodbury if you have to drive into Minneapolis. The commute going home can be awful. The backup starts about before Snelling and creeps thru St Paul until you get past the downtown exits/35E. I know you don't commute during typical rush hours, but it backs up if there are Wild games or other events in St Paul too. I used to work with someone who lived on the East side of St Paul and he talked about getting an apartment in Mpls because the commute was so maddening for him. I can tell you from experience, that the commute between St Paul and Mpls has gotten significantly worse in the last decade- so expect that trend to continue.
[quote=golfgal;14033923]
Your commute from Woodbury at off peak hours would be very easy. You wouldn't have to drive on 494 at all. You could take 94 to the East Bank. It would be easier than coming from Golden Valley by quite a bit. I am not a fan of Woodbury personally but a lot of people like it there.
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Sorry-- I meant that 494 would be part of your commute from Plymouth. Woodbury I really didn't know, but assumed 94.
And there's no way that Woodbury is closer to the East Bank than Golden Valley via car, at any hour. No way no how. Unless there's some Autobahn style highway sans speedlimits between the East Bank and Woodbury that also doesn't have any on-offramps. It literally takes less than ten minutes to do that commute from Golden Valley in off-peak hours.
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