Minneapolis questions (I promise last post today) (St. Paul, Bloomington: apartment complexes, rentals)

[meow13mix7]

Right now we live in Raleigh and we are considering Minneapolis

1. We are a family of four; husband has job that he could get in any major metro area, I need a place with lots of universities/community colleges.

2. It doesn't matter to us whether we live in a suburban area or urban area. However, we would PREFER to live somewhere with good public transportation.

3. School for our kids is important. They don't need to be the creme de la creme schools but they have to be decent enough with an after school program. And they need to be consistent. Right now in Raleigh we are going through a potential rezoning. We've lived in our house for ten years and this is the third time we have been rezoned. I know people say wonderful things about Raleigh schools but things sure look different when you live here. The school board is crazy. There was one point when every Weds our schools released one hour early in addition to a ton of teacher workdays and half days. Different elementary schools start at different times. These things cause major havoc on our work schedules.

Our son has high functioning autism; he can get along just fine without special ed but he needs to be in a place where people have at least HEARD of autism so that they understand his high need for structure.

4. We want to be near enough to stuff to do with kids--zoo, kids museum, parks etc. We are very active. We would have no problem with snow tubing, skiing, ice skating. On the flip side my kids are just as happy canoeing, hiking, biking, swimming or doing warm weather activities as well. They also like to do yoga and ballet, boy/girl scouts.

My questions are as follows.......what are we in for if we move to MSP area?

1. What do people do with kids in the summer for childcare?
2. We will likely rent for a year before settling. What towns are an absolute NO?
3. Gang activity?
4. Variety of places to eat? We love to try new ethnic cuisines.

Thanks!

[Kebinminn]

I think you're going to have a hard time getting everything but I bet we can get you close.

1. They're all over the place. There's the U of course but there's also several community colleges spread around as well as several private schools.

2. Minneapolis proper has the best public transportation system but commuter rail does go out into some of the suburbs if you wish to use it to go downtown.

3. Schools depend on your kids age. Minneapolis schools have issues, they're losing a lot of students in some areas. There's some very good schools and some schools that are struggling. My concern if you have younger kids, and I'm assuming you do since you want childcare, is that there may be some changes to try to fix the schools that you would not anticipate. While that can happen anywhere I think it's more likely to happen with a struggling district.

As far as autism goes I have yet to hear about any negative experiences anywhere but of course my experience is limited. A friend of my son has Aspbergers and that school has been a great fit for him.

4. There's a lot of parks and museums in the area. I think you'll be in good shape wherever you land.

Childcare
After school programs are popular, some have a wait list. Other people use in house childcare, church childcare or centers.

Renting
There's no towns that are a clear no, there's neighborhoods which are within those towns. Minneapolis/St Paul/Brooklyn Park/Brooklyn Center all have some gorgeous neighborhoods and struggling neighborhoods.

Gang activity
I think it's the same as the neighborhoods to avoid.

Cuisine
Minneapolis has the best variety but there's ethnic places spread out throughout the suburbs.

Based on what I read I would consider the near suburbs like Roseville/Golden Valley/New Hope/Edina/Robbinsdale depending on your budget. They're call centrally located so you can be close to the urban places like museums and restaurants as well as the big parks and the experiences the more suburban areas offer. Some of these suburbs have smaller neighborhood parks with ice skating rinks and sledding hills and are close to bike trails and creeks as well. You won't get the public transportation you want in these areas but, as a compromise, with the trail system you can bike a lot of places.

[golfgal]

The unique thing about the Twin Cities is that you really can't go wrong with 99% of the metro area. We are lucky that no matter where you are you have great schools-HUGE plus, and then you can work from there for commute times, activities, etc. Most people I know with kids find a place to live based on the programs their kids are involved in. If your kids are really young, that is a little harder but for middle/high school aged kids, pretty easy. When we moved back here a big focus for us was a top quality band program so we focused on schools that had that.

It's pretty easy to spot the "bad" neighborhoods so that won't be an issue.

Your budget is really going to be the one factor that will help pinpoint a place to live. Start there and and we can get more specific from there. The next factor would be commute--but from your post it sounds like your husband may work from home??

[meow13mix7]

Originally Posted by golfgal

The unique thing about the Twin Cities is that you really can't go wrong with 99% of the metro area. We are lucky that no matter where you are you have great schools-HUGE plus, and then you can work from there for commute times, activities, etc. Most people I know with kids find a place to live based on the programs their kids are involved in. If your kids are really young, that is a little harder but for middle/high school aged kids, pretty easy. When we moved back here a big focus for us was a top quality band program so we focused on schools that had that.

It's pretty easy to spot the "bad" neighborhoods so that won't be an issue.

Your budget is really going to be the one factor that will help pinpoint a place to live. Start there and and we can get more specific from there. The next factor would be commute--but from your post it sounds like your husband may work from home??

Thank you all so much for your input!

I have tons of school loans to pay off.....so budget for a rental house or apt would be $1200-$1500k My husband is in property management--as long as we are in a place with lots of apartment complexes he can find something. I would totally sacrifice public transp for good park/trail systems. The public transp is not a make or break. It'd be nice, but I can live without it for the time being while we rent.

[golfgal]

Originally Posted by meow13mix7

Thank you all so much for your input!

I have tons of school loans to pay off.....so budget for a rental house or apt would be $1200-$1500k My husband is in property management--as long as we are in a place with lots of apartment complexes he can find something. I would totally sacrifice public transp for good park/trail systems. The public transp is not a make or break. It'd be nice, but I can live without it for the time being while we rent.

I would look at Eagan--lots of "complexes" there (apartments, townhomes, etc.) HUGE transit station so easy transportation into the U of M or St. Paul to hit campuses there, FANTASTIC trail system with lots of city and county parks. Some of the best schools in the nation too. . The trails connect through most of the southern suburbs. You could EASILY bike from Eagan to the Minnesota Zoo, for example. Lebanon Hills County park has some nice hiking trails, a nice beach/lake (NO ALLIGATORS ), cross country ski trails in the winter (and ski and snowshoe rentals too). They have a really fun New Years Eve Party for younger kids too with ice skating, a huge bonfire, luminaries along the ski trails so you can ski at night, etc.

I frequently see ads for property managers too. Your budget might be tight if you want a 3 bedroom but for a 2 bedroom you should be ok, especially if you get a place that gives free or reduced rent for property managers.

[Glenfield]

Originally Posted by meow13mix7

Thank you all so much for your input!

I have tons of school loans to pay off.....so budget for a rental house or apt would be $1200-$1500k My husband is in property management--as long as we are in a place with lots of apartment complexes he can find something. I would totally sacrifice public transp for good park/trail systems. The public transp is not a make or break. It'd be nice, but I can live without it for the time being while we rent.

You will find many apartments within your budget, an excellent transportation system (without the need to drive to park and rides, or transportation hubs, BTW), a fantastic trail system, high quality schools, a number of beaches, and you'll never be more than a few blocks from a full service city park, all within the city of Minneapolis.

[meow13mix7]

Thanks y'all. You are so nice to help me out with this info! I think I"m in love with Minnesota already!

[Radical_Car]

Warm Welcome(if you do indeed move here!)

Originally Posted by meow13mix7

I need a place with lots of universities/community colleges.

Is there anything specific your looking for? The Twin Cities have a huge variety of schools, from the University of Minnesota to places like St. Olaf and St. Thomas, and of course plenty of community colleges as well. Tons of Community colleges as well, from Minneapolis Technical and Community right in downtown, to suburban ones like Normandale in Bloomington(I'm going here in January 2012!) and Dakota County Technical in Rosemount.
Washington Monthly in 2010 did a list of the top 50 community colleges in the country, and 6 of them are in Minnesota, including St. Paul college as number 1! I was going to go to St Paul College though had a change of plans, but when I was at the school, they had signs all over the place and on their brochures, etc. saying they were ranked number 1 by Washington Monthly. It's just a magazine ranking, but it is an honor to be ranked number one and the school took a lot of pride in it. In fact if you go to St. Paul college's website they still have a little spot on the front page saying they're ranked number one
Community College Rankings 2010 | Washington Monthly
Whatever your after, you won't have any problem finding a college or university that's right for you

Originally Posted by meow13mix7

1. What do people do with kids in the summer for childcare?
2. We will likely rent for a year before settling. What towns are an absolute NO?
3. Gang activity?
4. Variety of places to eat? We love to try new ethnic cuisines.

Thanks!

1)Well, I suppose friends and family watch them, or you go to daycare. I'm not a parent and am ridiculously young(one of the youngest here on the Minnesota forum) so I don't have any good suggestions.
2)You're fine pretty much anywhere. Theres a few specific neighborhoods in certain places that, are less desirable, people with more experience can provide more info.
3)Not much to worry about, again people with more experience then me can provide further info.
4)Lots and lots of places to eat. What do you like?

Originally Posted by meow13mix7

Different elementary schools start at different times.

A lot of districts indeed have different hours in from their schools. Where Im at some schools would get out at 2:15 and others at 3:45. I guess if you have any districts in mind, or if you decide to move here, then someone here can help you and verify their hours. You can also try checking the district sites too, they usually list their hours. When I was in a small town(about 3000 people) the only elementary, middle, and high school got out at the same time. So it varies.