Moving to Minneapolis/St. Paul
Parent Q&A
We just moved here from St. Paul, MN. It's pretty liberal, quite diverse (my kids went to our neighborhood public school where students of color comprised about 50% of the children), and really green (we lived by Como Park, which has a lake, zoo, conservatory, and a small amusement park). We loved our neighborhood but I will tell you, once you go outside of the blue bubble of the Twin Cities, not even 10 minutes out you will encounter Trump signs, racist folks (yes, I am a POC and my POC friends/family and I regularly encountered it inside and outside the cities), bigotry and many, many small-minded people who have never been outside of MN. Just being real.
The Midwest covers a pretty big region but since you don't specify I'll put in a word for the Twin Cities in MN. It's still majority white--that's going to be true for most midwestern cities--but as these cities go they're pretty diverse, especially St. Paul. There's are Hmong, Somali, Mexican, AA, and NA communities. Lots of outdoor activities and a strong arts culture. Nice people too!. Winter sucks but they have it all worked out. Good luck. I'll be interested to see what others recommend.
Archived Q&A and Reviews
- Moving to Twin Cities - where to live?
- Relocating to Minneapolis/St. Paul
- Considering a move to the Twin Cities, Minnesota
- Considering moving to St. Paul
- Moving to St. Paul/Minneapolis to be closer to family
Moving to Twin Cities - where to live?
Sept 2015
I am a single Mom thinking of moving to Minneapolis or St Paul to be nearer to family. Are there Berkeley-ish neighborhoods? BPN networks? Anything else? Thank you! Midwest Mama?
The Twin Cities has a lot of great neighborhoods and is one of the few vibrant and liberal cities where you can still afford to buy a nice house and raise a family. Unfortunately, the long, cold winter can be brutal. Although traffic in the Twin Cities is nothing compared to the Bay Area, you may want to limit your neighborhood search to areas in relative proximity to your family there. Also, like most other big cities, the schools (especially junior and high school) are not as good in the more interesting urban neighborhoods. Not knowing your situation, I would suggest looking at the Grand Ave area in Saint Paul (especially around Macalester College) and Uptown or around the lakes in Minneapolis for urban neighborhoods. The suburb of Roseville has great schools and is only a 10 min drive to either St. Paul or Mpls. I grew up in the Twin Cities (Roseville), went to college at the U of MN, lived there until age 25, and go back to visit my parents every other year. MN Native
Greetings,
I moved from Minneapolis to the Bay Area. I live in Berkeley and while I was single and childless when I lived in Minneapolis, now I'm a single parent of one here in Berkeley so I feel that I can speak from experience about the two cities. But I must say that your quest for a Berkely like setting (in my opinion) will be hard to find. In addition if you're looking for an integrated community, the Twin Cities offers a little, but not much. But a positive feature is that the Twin Cities overall is big on families. A large percentage of people were born there and never left so Minneapolis and the family circle is tight.
As for neighborhoods to live I would suggest is the Uptown area which includes Lowry Hill East, and Carag, especially if you will be renting. Public transit is good, very walkable, and plenty of services. Lake of the Isles is close for walking, running, or biking. Plenty of families live in and around Uptown. Lots of parks scattered around the neighborhoods. It's also one of the 'hip and young' areas of the city.
St. Paul has a different vibe. Even more family oriented than Minneapolis.the neighborhood there I'd recommend is the Macalester-Groveland neighborhood because of its proximity to Macalester College. Lots of Macalester grads remain in St.Paul when they graduate and live within 5-6 miles of the campus. This is similar to being in Berkeley.
I wish you good luck if you do move and as with any new opportunity you have to make it what you want and make sure you go out and find ' your peeps..' Former Twin Cities resident
Relocating to Minneapolis/St. Paul
July 2010
Does anyone have recent experience living in the Minneapolis/St. Paul area as a family? We have three young children and no family here. We have cousins in the Twin Cities and friends in other areas of the Midwest. And we are quickly outgrowing our home in Oakland. Aside from the horrible winters, how conservative is it? I have read about many bilingual schools in the St. Paul area (we speak Spanish at home) and heard that the Minneapolis art scene is quite vibrant. Midwest OK?
We recently moved from Alameda to Saint Paul; my husband got a job here, and we wanted to be (somewhat) closer to family out east. We're very happy here so far: our neighborhood is beautiful and full of friendly, educated, liberal people; our kids' public school is at least as good as, and probably better than our Alameda school, because there are more specialists (science, art, gym, computer, and choral music teachers); and so far, we're really enjoying the seasons.
Yes, winter is cold, but our kids have learned to ice skate, can sled with the best of them, and have even tried snowboarding! Kids LOVE winter, and that season here is very sunny; you just have to buy the right 'gear' and make sure you get out every day. Spring is just incredible, and everyone's outside all the time in summer. Fall, it goes without saying, is lovely.
People bike to work here, are politically active, and really truly seem to love children. Our kids can walk and bike around our neighborhood unsupervised: something they could not have done until they were quite a bit older in our former city.
The Saint Paul schools' resources have not been cut, at least not yet, in the way that Califronia schools' have. And there are so many choices (charter schools, like the language immersion programs you mentioned, and magnet schools)! LIfe just seems a little easier here, a little less hectic.
All this is not to say we don't miss the Bay Area; my husband in particular misses the grandeur of the Bay landscapes and the feeling that stuff is really 'happening' in the Bay Area. I miss the walkability and density of our old neighborhood. Oh--as far as politics go, I think as long as you stay in the cities here, it's quite liberal; the suburbs are definitely more conservative. In short, it's been a terrific place to live so far. Good luck! Enjoying the Twin Cities
Considering a move to the Twin Cities, Minnesota
July 2008
My husband is going to interview for a job in St. Paul, Minnesota in a couple of weeks. Although I lived there as a young child, we now have only a few acquaintances there, and know very little about the area. If you are familiar with the Twin Cities, can you advise us as to which neighborhoods my husband should check out while visiting? Right now, we thoroughly enjoy our community in Alameda, where we live in a house built around the turn of the century and can walk to parks, friends' houses, grocery stores, medical appointments, etc. etc. If he's offered the job and we decide to move, we'd be looking for a pedestrian-friendly neighborhood with older homes, excellent schools, and liberal politics. Although we love the Bay Area and it feels terrifying to consider leaving, we're wondering whether Minnesota might be a more affordable place to raise our kids (3 sons under 8), with better schools, bigger yards, and a slightly slower pace of life. So any more general thoughts to help us evaluate the Twin Cities area would be appreciated, too! (We're both from out East and so don't need warnings about Minnesota weather.) Thank you. --Considering a BIG move
Two thumbs up for relocating to the Twin Cities. I grew up there and we moved out here recently for grad school, but fully intend to return when we're done here in a year or so. It's magnitudes more affordable (although not cheap, unfortunately.) But has so much to love -- good schools, great and numerous city parks, easy to get to and gorgeous state parks/wild areas, lots of water, great restaurants, theater, music scene, substantial diversity (but not quite like here,) snow (yay!) and, well, people are pretty nice there. Schools are a little better in St. Paul (my mother is a public school teacher in Mpls and I went to St. Paul schools, so I'd like to think I'm unbiased.) Neighborhoods to check out (there are many, but a few to get started): Mac-Groveland (St. Paul,) St. Anthony Park (St. Paul,) Seward (Mpls.) And go eat at the Birchwood Cafe (in Seward) it's the BEST and very kid friendly. We are still searching for something similar here... Julia
Try the Lake Harriet region. It's south of downtown, next to Lake Calhoun, Edina, etc. I lived there in the late '70's and loved it. The lake is 3 miles around...perfect for a walk/jog, and there's a bandshell that has music in the summer. Don't know where your husband's job is, but I would check it out. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lake_Harriet. Urban nature lover
Considering moving to St. Paul, MN
Jan 2008
Like many of our friends living here with families, we are contemplating moving out of the Bay Area because of the high cost of living. I love it here, but am tired of the rat race and paying for a very expensive small home in a ''transitional'' neighborhood in one of the worst school districts in Oakland. There seems to be no end in sight - paying for a nanny, private school in the future, second child, etc. I grew up in Hawaii which is very expensive as well so it's nothing new to me, but I don't know if I want to raise my kids the way I was raised. We lived in a very nice area and my brother and I attended private schools, but we never went on family vacations and didn't have nice things to the point where I thought we were poor growing up! I'm not asking for an extravagant living, but just to be comfortable and not have to worry each month about finances. We have a couple of good friends who live in Minneapolis/St. Paul. They have given us their two cents, but I'm looking for other opinions as well - the good, bad, and the ugly. Are the winters and mosquitos as bad as they say? Tiffany
I grew up in the St. Paul MN area and still have family there. The winters can be harsh, but thanks to global warming, they aren't as bad as they were 20 years ago. While it takes some getting used to - believe it or not, you will acclimate to the winter weather. In some ways, I have been colder out here in SF because the temperatures vary so much during the day, it's hard to know what/how much to wear - and its damper out here. At least in MN, if it's 35 degrees in the morning, it pretty much stays that temp. for the day. The summers can be fairly humid and mosquitos can be a bother if you're out in the country or near standing water, but a small price to pay for the beautiful lake country and open space that still exists in the state. For raising a family, Minn is a good bet. Relatively good public schools and the real estate market is a dream compared to out here. My brother and sister-in-law bought a 3bd/2 ba. house in the suburbs on a half acre lot for about what it cost me to remodel my kitchen last year! That said, 18 years of winter was enough for me - and keep in mind that while most MN retirees spend their summers at the lake, they spend their winters in Arizona! Kelly
I grew up in the Twin Cities, so can give you the perspective of someone who lived there until age 18. I think its a great place to grow up overall. The combination of nature and city, and culture and small townness is just great. It's pretty darn liberal (MPLS more than SP). Winter was not a problem - of course, I was a kid and loved to play in the snow, but I did drive to school every day as a teen and deal with digging cars out of the snow too. Summer IS muggy. There are bugs. But you can get air conditioning and learn when you need bug spray. So that being said, if I love it so much, why haven't I moved back? Well, 25 years ago, Minnesota was a very white, very Lutheran place, and while there was diversity and there is even more diversity now, I always felt a bit like an outsider growing up, given that my family wasn't in that demographic and we weren't Minnesota natives. Its unbelievable how many families have DEEP DEEP roots in Minnesota and all seem to know each other that way. Definitely different than California in that sense. As I said, it really may be quite different now, but that gives me pause right now when I consider whether I would move back.
still proud to say I'm from MN
I just wanted to echo a previous poster and say that yes, the Twin Cities are very white, homogenous and Lutheran. I grew up there, went to college there, and lived for about 10 years as a working adult. We moved to the bay area about 10 years ago, and while people assume we love it here for the weather, the truth is I don't think we could go back there because of the culture. In many ways it's a very lovely place. It's physically beautiful - lots of trees and parks and paths along rivers, lakes, creeks, etc... And you can get a beautiful, good-sized house for under $500k. The schools are great, health care will blow your mind after being here. The people are decent and good. But there's also a strong passive aggressive current that penalizes people for being ever so slightly different. I'll admit I haven't lived there in a decade, and allegedly there is more ''diversity'' there now, but I still sense an us vs. them mentality. One more thing the previous poster mentioned, people have strong roots there. That can make it pretty tough to break in as an outsider. There are certainly days where I wish I were blonde and sensible so we could live the high quality of life there and not be bothered. But as it is I'm dark-haired and a little bit wild, so I'll stay safely on the west coast. Ex-Minneapolitan
Moving to St. Paul/Minneapolis to be closer to family
Jan 2005
We have finally decided to make the big move back to the Midwest in order to be closer to our family and would love any recommendations on where to live in St. Paul or Minneapolis. My father lives in a suburb north of Minneapolis and while we haven't completely ruled out living in the suburbs, we're more interested in living in the city. We like the feel of the neighborhoods around Grand Ave in St. Paul as they remind us somewhat of Berkeley. We are completely clueless though on how family friendly these areas are (we have two boys, 5 & 2) and would love any inside info on the schools. Does everyone move out to the suburbs once they have children? If so, are there any out there that have a more urban or small town feel, we don't want to live somewhere dominated by cul-de-sacs and strip malls. Thanks in advance for any information you can offer! Jackie
My husband and I are from St. Paul and Minneapolis respectively. I think you'll find it's a wonderful place to raise children - no need to move to the suburbs! There are some great neighborhoods off Grand Avenue in St. Paul, particularly around Macalester College, referred to as the Mac/Groveland area. Highland Park in St. Paul, which is closer to the river and between St. Thomas and the St. Catherine is another excellent location.
Minneapolis is also just sprawling with fantastic neighborhoods. The park system there is phenomenal, with most houses within a short distance of a trail system that connects the Mississippi, Minneahaha Creek and the Lakes. Kenwood, near Lake of the Isles, and Linden Hills, near Lake Harriet, are probably the nicest areas - and certainly affordable by bay area standards! The areas around Lake Calhoun are oriented towards young singles, but not exclusively. Northeast Minneapolis has undergone considerable revitalization, while still maintaining its small-town feel.
You'll find LOTS of young families raising children in the two cities. In fact, if you're coming from Berkeley, it's probably the only place you'll find like-minded families. I'm not fond of the suburbs there. Having grown up in one, and now, returning as an adult to visit family in them, they arenít the kind of places I like to spend much time. The culture is very white, and very Scandinavian; deviation from that is pretty suspect. Oh yes, and lots of strip malls!
Good luck - it's a great place to live! Ruth
My family lived in St. Paul for a year when my kids were freshmen in high school. (K-8 in Berkeley schools and now back at Berkeley High.) They went to St. Paul Central High School and were enrolled in the IB program there. Central was a terrific school in pretty much every respect. The community was tight-knit and caring. The physical plant was good. The teachers my kids had were almost uniformly superb. Central offered advanced classes for freshmen (so there was Biology and also Advanced Bio, World History and Advanced World History, etc.). which was a great experience for my kids. The school is diverse (my kids had sections in World History on Hmong culture and Karen culture, for example, in part because those two communities are a key part of the community.) There's a health clinic/nurse on-site, which offered my kids physicals for sports and flu shots. Central has about 1600 kids, so it's a lot smaller than BHS, but it was big enough to have robust sports teams and really good elective classes. (And if your children like to sing, Minnesota is maybe the choral capital of the US. Central had four separate choirs, including an 80-person beginner soprano/alto choir!)
People also raved about Highland Park High School, though I swear that every adult I met in St. Paul had graduated from Central. (It really felt, well, central to the city.)
The district and city were also excellent in their support for students. For example. SPPS gives every middle and high school students an iPad and keyboard for schoolwork and pays for any AP exam students want to take. A free school bus picked up any kids, including middle and high schoolers, who live more than a mile from their school (this was an amazing perk, especially in the snowy winter months). And while we didn't stay long enough to use it, I knew students who took advantage of a program that encourages them to take classes at the University of Minnesota as juniors and seniors. The local YMCA offers free admission for students in the summer and students get a super-cheap transit pass for all buses and local trains.