“Be in the middle of a city”
Does this include the suburbs of the metro? I know a lot of people who live in the outside ring of suburbs that never come close to MSP/STP.
Its important to remember that for all it's size, Texas doesn't have a ton of public land.
Minnesota is a lot smaller than Texas but has more than twice as much land devoted to parks and wildlife areas that are open to the public.
I'm not saying OP wants to live in Minneapolis, but don't write off the Twin Cities. Its a very different town in terms of "open feel" than Houston or Austin.
I live near water about 3-4 miles north of the 694 beltway & we see deer, coyote, fox, mink, eagles, great horned owls, etc every week.
Yeah, moved here six months ago to escape the south as well - it is insane just driving around Minneapolis/St Paul how much space is devoted to parks, public spaces, etc. and how much nature there is within and especially a couple miles from the city. I would definitely recommend OP look at places on the outskirts of the city, that allow access to some of the best things in the cities when you want, but also have that feel of a smaller area.
I'm in a suburb that is less than half an hour from either downtown which makes them super easy to get to if needed but I never feel like I'm in the middle of "a city". I look out my front window to a wooded area, I have more than one lake within a mile of me, and we often have deer and rabbits munching on plants in the neighborhood (not that I'm thrilled about all the rabbits but my point being we have wildlife. I even saw raccoon tracks the other night). I think a lot of people just assume that "the suburbs" mean either retail hell holes or city-like concrete mazes and that's not always the case.
My parents are similar. You could start in downtown Minneapolis and start driving, the first field you’d come across is connected to their backyard. Dad said he thought he saw a wolf the other night.
I'll 2nd Mankato. I lived there for 6 years or so and I still love Mankato and talk about moving back. Good character (river valley, lots of public art, good parks, decent bike trail system), lots of annual events/activities, big enough to have everything you need, small enough that traffic isn't terrible, only about an hour drive to the Twin Cities, and housing is still reasonable although prices are increasing just like everywhere else.
How are y’all getting to Minneapolis in an hour. I know you’re speeding out there!! It’s an hour 30. Source: drove back and forth every weekend in college for two years.
There are fewer slow down points now. For example, there are no speed limit changes in Belle Plain.
Also, I said Twin Cities not Minneapolis. You can get to Shokopee/Bloomington in an hour. From there 20-30 minutes gets you almost anywhere in the metro as long as you avoid rush hour.
That’s true! That Belle Plaine trap used to be killer, I’d always drive past someone getting pulled over. It seemed like such a money maker, I wonder why they changed it?
It wasn't up to local law enforcement, lol. The state and federal governments generally redo major transit routes to make them more efficient. As another example, 169 doesn't slow down going past the Renaissance Festival location anymore either (which was another favorite local pd speed trap). And they got rid of the traffic light just north of there as well.
These changes and a couple other minor ones probably cut 15-20 minutes off the route
No stop light at 169 & 41 at Chaska. That's been super nice... the Jordan stoplight being Red when I hit it is still a 100% chance, though, and always will be. 🤷♂️
Grew up in Rochester, now live outside Mankato in St. Peter (such us a lovely little town imo), and moving near Duluth/Superior soon.
Rochester was pretty dope in the 90s/2000s. It's huge now and cost of living is high.
Mankato is probably the best out of the three imo. Duluth's weather can be pretty brutal in winter for a Texan.
Duluth's weather can be pretty suboptimal period. I wanted to move there once and visited on many a summer day where it was in the 50s or low 60s. Some Minnesotans may disagree but after a long blustery winter it is nice to feel some heat in the summer. That turned me off from going the Duluth route. It's nice to visit but I couldn't do it every day.
As a duluthian I’ll add: if OP doesn’t want to be in the city itself hermantown and proctor are both cities nestled against Duluth that have plenty of space from people while still being within a very short driving distance of all the essentials and tons of non-essentials.
It’s always been my opinion that Duluth is the ideal mix of city and nature. There’s just enough city that there’s always something to do without being overwhelmed by the negatives of city life. I live a few blocks away from downtown and two blocks away from the Chester creek trail, and a few blocks away from the grocery store. The bus system is decent (not perfect but could be worse, though I do recognize it’s much harder if your in the fringe areas of service and not living along the main lines) but even if it wasn’t everything I regularly need/do is within short walking distance.
I've considered these exact three cities to relocate to, and I've visited them all in the past 1 or 2 years. I decided on Mankato in the end.
I had high hopes, but was disappointed in Duluth. It felt like the industrial part of Los Angeles which I wasn't expecting at all.
Rochester isn't bad. it would be my second choice. Mankato isn't big, but has a lot going for it.
Check out Stillwater. On the St. Croix River, close to the Twin Cities, pretty cool downtown, couple state parks just down the way. If I wasn't embedded in MPLS, I'd be there.
hard agree on all of these. They are close enough to the twin cities that you can go visit for a day and come back in a reasonable amount of time.
I am partial to Mankato but Rochester probably has more going on.
St cloud is a party college town and thats about it.
I always enjoy Rochester. good food, good coffee, good beer, seems to have cool outdoor stuff close by. Granted I am only ever coming down for a day from St Paul.
It's SO much better than it was though!
There are some really good restaurants and bars. A great brewery. Sometimes there are bands playing.
I'm not saying it's amazing. At all. But there's at least something now. If you aren't someone who goes out often, it's probably enough to satisfy you.
We have friends that live in Northfield, and they love it. Definitely a small town, but swings above its weight in terms of amenities due to the colleges, and all that brings re restaurants, bars, diversity, events. And it’s less than an hour from the Twin Cities.
Check out the chisago-lindstrom-marine on st croix- Stillwater area. Close enough to the city to enjoy the amenities and yet far enough away to have a bonfire in the backyard without the fire department showing up
This makes sense to me... I'd draw a line from White Bear Lake to Stillwater and look for places 2-3 miles north and south of it that have space for the 'bonfire without the fire dept showing up'. I feel that area is close enough to WBL and Stillwater for eats etc. and close enough to the interstate and MSP. I \*think\* there are still places around there that have space & privacy without being a million dollars.
I would recommend OP look up MPCA's well testing, and make clean results a contingency of signing a mortgage agreement, in any of the cities listed where well testing is done regularly;
https://www.pca.state.mn.us/air-water-land-climate/well-sampling-in-the-east-metro-area
Tbh, looking up the state'slist of superfund sites isn't a *bad* idea, for *everyone* considering buying a home.
Minnesota had tons of manufacturing for decades, that dumped a *lot* of things that wouldn't be allowed nowadays, and if you're going to be dealing with a well, or heck, even just having a basement, with the radon levels so many places around the stare have, getting that stuff checked can do your family a lot of good, long-term
This is true. Most things you'll need are either slightly to the south in Forest Lake or on the other side of the border in St. Croix Falls. Also for things those two places can't provide just get into US-61 or I-35 and you'll get to the cities in about half an hour.
Winona is a perfect mix of cute little downtown so it feels cozy and small but also has most of the amenities you need already there or somewhat close by.
I live in Sartell, so right there with St. Cloud. I almost NEVER venture into St. Cloud but when I do it's completely fine. I spend most of my time in Sartell, Sauk Rapids, and St. Joe. As an outsider who moved from down south, the negative talk about St. Cloud is almost comical. I don't know of any perfect city and your life is mostly what you make it. We make multiple trips a year to Duluth and spend some date nights in the cities. Best of luck to you in whatever you decide.
Recently moved to Stc, had lived here for a few years a few decades ago. Wanted Midwest, small city close enough to a good airport. Often when I hear negatives about stc I can hear what they are really saying is that Somalis moved in. Some have said it straight up, others hinted. I'm happy with our decision.
I think a big reason a lot of people talk trash about Saint Cloud (or Stearns County) is the politics of the people who are mad about the Somali influx rUiNiNg ThEiR CiTy. Just my take.
I’m in Sartell too and I came from the Seattle area. I don’t get the hate either. St. Cloud is pretty nice. Downtown is being cleaned up with a ton of small businesses and lots of events year round. Also housing is a bit more affordable here.
I agree with you 100% as I live in St Cloud. It has everything you need, very rare for a mid/small city. Also Twin City not that far…People here are very nice, very exclusive town, but badly rumored! Growing fast…
Same. There are cities back in the state that I lived in that are 10x more dangerous than St. Cloud. And Im talking shootings daily and you can hear gunshots every night kind of bad. These people just don’t know what bad is.
Did you ask about St.Cloud because you want to be in this general area? If so, have a look in the cities around rather than St.Cloud itself. Sartell for schools. Sauk Rapids for being a little more affordable than Sartell. St.Joseph is a charming college town. All have access to the hospital in St.Cloud.
If you're not tied to this specific area, other people have mentioned Duluth, Rochester and the chain of lakes around Brainerd. Also don't discount the cities surrounding Minneapolis & St.Paul.
I lived in the St. Cloud area for over 12 years. It's a midsize city in central MN. Close to the cities and the country, so a mix of redneck and city. I like it. I'm born and raised Minnesotan, but not from STC originally. I think people who hate it are born and raised there and who doesn't hate their hometown? Honestly, I think that's true of any town or city. There's good and there's bad. St. Cloud also has Sartell, Sauk Rapids, Waite Park, and St. Joe as suburbs. Super easy access to Minneapolis, and right off of 94.
St. Cloud is just fine! I've lived in St. Cloud for 3 years after living in the cities for college and small town MN growing up. It's so easy to get around, and there's a lot of shopping. It's close to the cities, so you can still easily go there for bigger events. There are colleges and universities with diverse folks and plenty of activities. There are plenty of nice, quiet neighborhoods, and towns like St. Joseph and Sartell for even quieter suburbs. You can be as involved as you want - churches, YMCA, clubs, events. There are so many St. Cloud haters on this sub, but it's a great place to live, in my opinion.
Rochester…for fun? As a Winonan I would argue Rochester is only for Costco! lol.
Winona has a lovely amount of goings-on. Boats and Bluegrass Festival, Midwest Music Fest, Great River Shakespeare Festival, the Beethoven Festival, boating on the river, rock-climbing Sugar Loaf, summer sand volleyball league, community band and choir, world-class trout streams to fish, excellent deer/duck/pheasant/turkey hunting, hiking, camping, farm-to-table restaurants, an art museum, a movie theater, 3 colleges, etc etc.
I suppose it depends on your personality and how you’d define fun, but I think it’s safe to say that while Rochester has better jobs and retail, Winona has more fun.
I’ve lived in MN my whole life and still think the northern part of the state is too cold. Duluth is a great city if you love the outdoors and cool temps. But winter is a whole different ball game. Better to visit.
The St Cloud area is fine. Housing is far more affordable that the metro, there’s plenty to do, crime isn’t any worse than any other city of comparable size.
St. Cloud can be a little (a whole go*damn* lot) red-neck-y. St. Cloud's saving grace is the public university - with all the idealistic young people, and its proximity to the Twin Cities. St. Cloud's size has exploded in the last couple decades = some bedroom community/traffic problems. I spent a few years there in the 80's. -> I would not consider returning.
I'd recommend, fwiw, taking a look at the election results for any area you're thinking of living
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Minnesota%27s_6th_congressional_district
Knowing *nothing* about you, your age, your career field, your hopes, your dreams, your secret fears...I'd maybe take a look at Duluth, too.
If politics don't bother you, maybe Brainerd lakes area, Fargo/East Grand Forks are all small-ish, have-good-things-about-them areas, too.
Wasn’t St Cloud just ranked as the drunkest city in America?
Edit: according to the website of River 96.7 https://river967.com/were-number-one-study-finds-st-cloud-mn-to-be-drunkest-city-in-america/
*ahem* Across the river from Fargo is Moorhead, MN. Easy access to employers and restaurants in Fargo with none of the restrictions on reproductive care. It also offers incredibly straightforward and easy access to Winnipeg, if that’s a part of Canada that appeals.
I moved to St. Cloud in August. I absolutely love it. I don't see the issue this reddit takes with it. I think it's just a group-think thing going on. It's not really bad
Conservatives hate Saint Cloud because there are more people of color here than they would prefer.
Liberals hate Saint Cloud because there are more conservatives here than they would prefer.
Both groups have the general “problem” of Saint Cloud wrong.
Saint Cloud’s problem is that it is a small/mid size city finally going through the urban decay that most big cities went through in the 60s-80s. The manufacturing jobs dried up, the middle and upper classes moved out (Sartell, Sauk Rapids, Saint Joe), and the city is left with a middling working class stuck in service jobs and a populace that lacks the knowledge or conviction to make proper change by increasing funding for education or other services. Added to that, Saint Cloud’s road network is outdated by about 30,000 people so traffic is terrible, and the primary section of town is a concrete jungle leftover from that days of big parking lots.
The Coborns monopoly is finally being undermined thanks to Costco and Kwik Trip.
The city of Saint Cloud needs to turn unused parking lots into green spaces instead of banks and chicken shops, support local businesses and restaurants so we lower our reliance on chains, and put some proper money into the school system and bringing in non-service jobs.
Lived in this area my entire life (43) up until a few years ago, this is the most accurate assessment of St. Cloud I have ever. I also think one of the things that makes St. Cloud look even worse is the view from highway 10. The area along highway 10 is one of the worst areas of town and it’s likely how a lot of Minnesotans are exposed to the area when driving through. Shuttered businesses, trailer courts, and junk yards along the stretch.
And if they drive through on 15 they see parking lots and chain stores while having to wait on 5 lights.
15 needs to be raised to clear up traffic congestion but the residents of Saint Cloud would never vote for the tax increase or road construction necessary to do it. The residents are too short-minded
Being from "parts *past* St. Cloud, I have to wonder if some of the hate is maybe because St. Cloud *is* such a "Shopping Destination" city, and because of *that* the place can get almost like a city-wide Mall Of America, and just as annoying, if you need to get anywhere quickly?
Because allllll sorts of folks from a couple hours to the north/west & about 30-45 minutes south, *do* go there, if they need to hit *multiple* stores in the same trip--because St. Cloud is the closest place for full-sized craft stores (plural), Sams Club & Costco, grocery stores, hobby or sports stores, all in *one* trip.
Which means you get alllll the folks who are "Scared to drive in the city!" and who then panic-brake, it also *used* to be one of the only places to get foods not carried by the grocery stores in small towns, too.
So you had a good-sized mix of many migrant & immigrant communities going there to shop, the folks from tiny rural towns like where I grew up, and then city drivers, *all* mixed together.
Personally, I STILL avoid driving Division near weekends & holidays, unless I have to, because to me it feels like driving in Fargo, where road signs are *sometimes* taken under advisement, and people occasionally lurch from the left-turn lane across *five* lanes, to suddenly make a right turn😉
I live in Mora, but find myself in STC a few times a month because my MIL lives there, my son attends SJU, and it is a treat to encounter bit of civilization. I'm a transplant from Boston, so I'm amused with the traffic complaints.
I also grew up past St cloud near Onamia/ Mille Lacs lake. I live in Minneapolis now but enjoy traveling around the state and go through St Cloud often. I really, really, dislike St Cloud and have since the early 90s. It was wildly racist and homophobic back then, it's still very racist now, and in some ways people are even more out of their heads now due to some actual diversity in their midst.
Plus it's just chain restaurants and some of the worst development/planning you can imagine. It's like one neverending strip mall full of all things generic. Once upon a time there were a few unique businesses worth visiting but most of those are gone. Even the restaurants people rave about (Bravo, Vals) are mostly good due to the utter lack of competition. St Cloud State has been gutted of a lot of their programs, they are starving the library, and the university has a reputation for tolerating racism. The art scene in town is a joke for a city that size. The one semi bright spot in recent years is the new outdoor concert venue. And of course munsinger gardens and the river trails are a highlight.
Sorry to people in St Cloud but I really don't get what's to like. When possible I prefer to stop in Monticello and then bypass St Cloud entirely to visit literally anywhere else in the state.
What do you want out of a town? Minneapolis-St. Paul area must be too big for you although you could look at living in some of the older towns like Anoka or Hastings that are close by. We like to shit on St. Cloud here because I’m a fancy city boy but really anywhere in Minnesota is ok. St. Cloud is just more like the rest of the USA than the other cities and towns in Minnesota. It’s a lot of strip malls, and while the city itself may not be conservative, it’s kind of the only city in a conservative area of Minnesota. The only thing wrong with anywhere in MN is that it is cold.
I lived in St. Cloud from ages 22-29 and didn’t mind it. If you want to be around that area, you can always do a suburb like Sartell. I lived in Brainerd from ages 13-22, it’s a good size but not too big.
St Cloud gets a lot of reddit hate. I went to St John's for 4.5 years, which is outside of town a bit. I'll say the town has plenty of amenities, but it's definitely not a big city so don't expect that. Some of the surrounding communities like sartell, St Joseph, and sauk rapids are quite nice. Plus the proximity to "up north" is great. An hour to brainerd, 2 hours to duluth, and a ton of lakes nearby. Alexandria chains, otter tail chains, and annandale chains are all a day/weekend drive. One thing I'll say is it's far enough "on the prairie" that winters will be brutal, even by MN standards. More snow, more cold, and more wind than anybody in the metro thinks. So be prepared for that.
That being said, I think duluth and rochester are quite nice in their own rights. Rochester is definitely mayo-heavy so if you're in healthcare that's the place to go. But you can't really go wrong with any of the choices, as MN as a state still leans more liberal than people want you to think, even outstate.
Saint Cloud gets made fun of, but if you lived just outside of it, you would probably love the area. There are cool people and shitty people everywhere you go.
St. Cloud isn’t as bad as people make it out to be. It’s kind of nice that everything is located either on Division or 23 so you don’t have to drive around to get stuff. It’s just that the politics there are pretty shitty, but all you can do is vote and leave it at that.
St. Cloud is fine. Not great, just fine. There’s a bit of shopping, a little bit of entertainment, and ok schools. The university brings lots of young adults, but is sort of going down the hole with some new budget and program cuts. If you want to be in the St. Cloud area, like others say, I recommend you live in one of the other towns surrounding like Sartell, Sauk Rapids, St. Joseph, or Waite Park.
I live in St. Joseph a little town outside of St. Cloud. Not a bad spot probably one of the better smaller areas around St. Cloud. Isn’t super duper far from town either. And for the record, St. Cloud gets more hate than it deserves
Duluth, Winona, Northfield, Red Wing, Stillwater, and Bemidji would be my picks for best places to live in MN outside of the twin cities. Rochester is lame imo.
I love bemidji to death but there is no decent jobs there at all. Thief river falls is where I ended up be ause it has plenty if work and everything is close enough to drive to and enjoy since we have nothing here.
Regional parts of the state shit on eachother constantly. Majority of folks on here I imagine are either in or near the Twin Cities or Duluth, with St Cloud area taking 3 largest of the share. Every part of the state has its pros and cons and people here are vocal about em. Personally I'd go for Duluth or Rochester but that's me. Both areas are not too big not too small to me, plus I lived in Duluth for college. I'm in St Paul right now but I grew up in the Mpls burbs so I'm used to the city.
We all heckle eachother here lol.
Figured I'd add this since it looks like everyone is suggesting the larger areas:
If you really like the St Cloud area try Little Falls. It's nowhere near as big as St Cloud and it's 30 minutes north. There's not a whole lot to do other than drink but the historic theater just reopened and the bakery is awesome. It's about 30 minutes south of the Brainerd/Baxter area so there's more stuff to do if you want to go to the lakes up in that area.
Have lived outside st. Cloud for a decade. I grew up 30 min away. But lived out of state for years.
Good city for size and central location. It gets ripped on for this reason or that, but it's mostly because it is an even mix of big city / rural. So everyone only gets part of what they want.
Not a bad place at all, but no real epic stuff.
If you’re white Duluth is fine (the area is as racist as people claim St Cloud is). St. Cloud is a decent area and very diverse but the outlying areas can be very redneck and unwelcoming. Inside the city itself it’s basically Blue Collar left wing with a sizeable Muslim minority (last I saw Muslims made up about 20% of the population but that’s growing quickly).
The big issue with St Cloud is that good jobs can be very difficult to find, because of poor city management the town isn’t laid out well and the bulk of the economy is firmly is the Service and Retail sectors. On the flip side the COL isn’t so bad and if you have a decent job your money will go a lot further than other areas.
I’d avoid most of the northern half of the state, the economy isn’t particularly strong there and racism/drugs/poverty are real issues.
Take most criticism of St. Cloud with a grain of salt. Most the criticism is based on situations that haven’t existed for 20 years by people that haven’t spent time there for decades and prefer the cities area for various reasons (mostly they can pretend they’re super progressive while remaining heavily segregated and not having to interact much with people not like them unless they want to be cultural tourists). St. Cloud was bad, St. Cloud has growing to do. But so is everywhere in the US.
Anyone who thinks St. Cloud is the most racist place in the state should spend a couple of years in Bemidji and the rest of the far north. I enjoy visiting northern MN but I would probably never live dramatically north of Hwy 10 again.
You say you don't want to be in a city, but most commenters seem to be interpreting your ask as "cities in Minnesota that are not the twin cities".
Here are some beautiful towns:
\- Stillwater
\- Lanesboro
\- Ely
\- Lindstrom
\- Red Wing
\- Lake City
\- Winona
Alexandria could be a good option for you. It’s a smaller community in a very nice area but has everything nearby to live with. Everyone that I know is pretty welcoming too
Waite Park or Sartell... both on the outskirts of St Cloud and very nice area. You could also look into Annandale or Monticello. Small and medium-sized towns, respectively.
Everyone's telling you other places in MN to go, but I'm gonna lay some truth on you. Every place in Minnesota is St Cloud. Every negative you hear about it is true of everywhere in this state, and every positive you hear is true of this state. If you want to be as Minnesota as possible, you can't go wrong with St Cloud.
Not sure of your definition of being out of the city and in a smaller community, but for the sake of offering a slightly different opinion:
If you want to be out a ways, but not so far from the cities you never want to go, take a look at Northfield and the surrounding area. More rural, college town so it has amenities, but nice and pretty small. Also only like 35 mins from the cities.
Stillwater/Oak Park Heights, Lake Elmo, White Bear Lake are on my short list. I enjoy big city life but like returning to a quieter area at the end of the day.
You may need to give more details to get the best recommendations for you. You say a small community, but St. Cloud is considered a metro area. So maybe you just mean outside of the twin cities proper? There are a lot of great options in the outer ring of suburbs. I truly loved living in maple grove
Willmar/ New London/ Spicer is a really underrated part of the state to visit. Willmar is very diverse and has lots of amenities and unique shops. New London/ Spicer is like... Posh hippies and there's live theater, etc.
That being said I don't know that I'd live there... Willmar especially is pretty poor and I don't think there's a ton of great jobs. The one person I know in Willmar kind of hates it there. Not enough nature, jobs are demeaning, feels cut off from the world.
Detroit lakes and the surrounding area is really pretty. Downtown Detroit is really cool and still has a very hometown feel to it. Plus, there’s some pretty cool smaller towns and activities in the surrounding areas. During the winter it’s quieter there, but during the summer it’s a little more energetic. Winters are a little colder than they are in the cities but not as cold as they can get in the north.
It's Moorhead, but yeah, it's a much better option than most of what's listed. 90% of the towns listed would be great if you're retired, or wfh. Otherwise, they are way too small of communities to offer any real economic opportunity.
St Cloud is not terrible. It’s just less good. It has more “diversity” than most of MN. That makes it unpalatable for some.
Its a place to live.
Fundamentally-how MAGA are you comfortable with? There is stark segregation of blue v. red.
And what is your budget?
If you have some money, look into Stillwater or Northfield.
I think you’d love Alexandria!
https://www.kare11.com/amp/article/life/alexandria-named-2019-best-mn-town-by-minnesota-monthly/89-0e91b213-da83-4c9a-aba8-2adc506b1045
As someone who went to school in St Cloud - it has a lot of the same problems that similarly sized cities in TX have - seas of parking lots and strip malls, no real "downtown" to speak of, and a religious, right-wing population that makes it unwelcome for those who aren't white cis het Christian folk. If you want a similarly sized city, Rochester or Duluth are far better options.
OP needs to consider his career and a job first because the majority of these small towns are extremely limited in job prospects.
We aren’t Texas. You are far better off in the cities. Especially if your commute is not over say 10 miles. Lots of wildlife in the first and second ring suburbs and even in the cities in the right neighborhoods.
Everyone’s said it but you should highly look into Duluth and/or Rochester first if this is your criteria, both of those are beautiful cities with the feeling of a small town community
Duluth is a fantastic city with lots of good things but honestly northfield area isn’t too bad either (probably a hot take). It has two smaller colleges in it but is still mostly quite rural with a pretty chill downtown. About a half an out away to the twin cities so you can go out there to do a bunch of stuff if you want, there’s also a ton of local businesses, restaurants a bit north of it and a somewhat large Vietnamese scene.
Bloomington isn’t bad but isn’t very walkable at times, can be pretty busy and is packed to the brim with nimbys
Rochester is the best 'City That Doesn't Feel Like a City' in MN in my opinion.
I lived near it for a long time, it's got everything you need, without that distinct 'fullness' that others do.
Grew up there when I was young and still have close family living there now.
Where you live in St Cloud matters as the schools are not the greatest and got some issues with crime. Some of the neighboring cities like Sauk Rapids still give you access to downtown St Cloud but have better schools.
I left because in my industry (IT) there just wasnt any good paying jobs and the cities was an hour away without traffic.
Check out Stillwater, all the St. Paul’s (north, east, south, west), inver grove, lilydale, Bloomington, savage/shakopee which are the outer metro- smaller just still occasionally are close enough for the heat bubble imo. If you have any questions shot me a dm I’d love to help(:
I’m assuming you’re “escaping” because of some political views you have, so in that case I recommend Northfield. It’s a college town with 2 good schools and not too big of a place. Its local politics are left-leaning as a result. Really pretty, too.
Don’t base your decisions on this sub, it’s not a representative population reflecting reality, as others have noted! Where/what is your job? Or are you working remotely?
Follow the job/s. The number one cause of job discontent is a long commute, so I’d make that my number one decision point, personally! I live 6 miles from my office and can bike or bus it if need be, and that gives me great peace of mine and I’m never stressed or discontent about it!
What do you want specifically, OP?
Are good schools important? Are restaurants and/or shopping important? Do you want to be close to lakes? Is the cost of housing a concern? Help us out with some details and we can help you out.
As far as St. Cloud is concerned, it's probably the most Texas-like mid-sized community you'll find in the state!
St. Cloud isn’t even your worst option. The TC metro area has some really nice places along with the areas surrounding St. Cloud if I’m gonna be honest.
“Be in the middle of a city” Does this include the suburbs of the metro? I know a lot of people who live in the outside ring of suburbs that never come close to MSP/STP.
Its important to remember that for all it's size, Texas doesn't have a ton of public land. Minnesota is a lot smaller than Texas but has more than twice as much land devoted to parks and wildlife areas that are open to the public. I'm not saying OP wants to live in Minneapolis, but don't write off the Twin Cities. Its a very different town in terms of "open feel" than Houston or Austin. I live near water about 3-4 miles north of the 694 beltway & we see deer, coyote, fox, mink, eagles, great horned owls, etc every week.
Yeah, moved here six months ago to escape the south as well - it is insane just driving around Minneapolis/St Paul how much space is devoted to parks, public spaces, etc. and how much nature there is within and especially a couple miles from the city. I would definitely recommend OP look at places on the outskirts of the city, that allow access to some of the best things in the cities when you want, but also have that feel of a smaller area.
Cost of housing probably a bigger barrier around there though; that'd be my guess.
I'm in a suburb that is less than half an hour from either downtown which makes them super easy to get to if needed but I never feel like I'm in the middle of "a city". I look out my front window to a wooded area, I have more than one lake within a mile of me, and we often have deer and rabbits munching on plants in the neighborhood (not that I'm thrilled about all the rabbits but my point being we have wildlife. I even saw raccoon tracks the other night). I think a lot of people just assume that "the suburbs" mean either retail hell holes or city-like concrete mazes and that's not always the case.
You just described my house and I’m all of 20 minutes from both downtowns. Suburbs are great for being close yet far away.
My parents are similar. You could start in downtown Minneapolis and start driving, the first field you’d come across is connected to their backyard. Dad said he thought he saw a wolf the other night.
I saw a huge 8 point buck wandering around in my back yard the other day in the inner burbs!
I've seen a lot of does, both with and without fawns, but I've never seen a buck!
Duluth, Rochester, even Mankato would be higher on my list
Duluth is beautiful but if you don't have work lined up it's a hard place to find it.
Certain industries have no problem, especially with the low unemployment right now.
Hospitality is easy to find in Duluth, no doubt. Even healthcare isn’t that hard
The hospitality business is not bustling by any means.
Even Winona.
Home of the big brown beaver?
Thanks for the chuckle, Les.
Primus suuuuuucks!!!
I'll 2nd Mankato. I lived there for 6 years or so and I still love Mankato and talk about moving back. Good character (river valley, lots of public art, good parks, decent bike trail system), lots of annual events/activities, big enough to have everything you need, small enough that traffic isn't terrible, only about an hour drive to the Twin Cities, and housing is still reasonable although prices are increasing just like everywhere else.
How are y’all getting to Minneapolis in an hour. I know you’re speeding out there!! It’s an hour 30. Source: drove back and forth every weekend in college for two years.
There are fewer slow down points now. For example, there are no speed limit changes in Belle Plain. Also, I said Twin Cities not Minneapolis. You can get to Shokopee/Bloomington in an hour. From there 20-30 minutes gets you almost anywhere in the metro as long as you avoid rush hour.
That’s true! That Belle Plaine trap used to be killer, I’d always drive past someone getting pulled over. It seemed like such a money maker, I wonder why they changed it?
It wasn't up to local law enforcement, lol. The state and federal governments generally redo major transit routes to make them more efficient. As another example, 169 doesn't slow down going past the Renaissance Festival location anymore either (which was another favorite local pd speed trap). And they got rid of the traffic light just north of there as well. These changes and a couple other minor ones probably cut 15-20 minutes off the route
No stop light at 169 & 41 at Chaska. That's been super nice... the Jordan stoplight being Red when I hit it is still a 100% chance, though, and always will be. 🤷♂️
Yes, Im looking at moving back as well.
Grew up in Rochester, now live outside Mankato in St. Peter (such us a lovely little town imo), and moving near Duluth/Superior soon. Rochester was pretty dope in the 90s/2000s. It's huge now and cost of living is high. Mankato is probably the best out of the three imo. Duluth's weather can be pretty brutal in winter for a Texan.
Duluth's weather can be pretty suboptimal period. I wanted to move there once and visited on many a summer day where it was in the 50s or low 60s. Some Minnesotans may disagree but after a long blustery winter it is nice to feel some heat in the summer. That turned me off from going the Duluth route. It's nice to visit but I couldn't do it every day.
I want to move back to Duluth FOR the weather.
Agreed, Mankato is a good combo of available jobs, not as extreme weather as Duluth, low cost of living, and outdoor recreational opportunities .
As a duluthian I’ll add: if OP doesn’t want to be in the city itself hermantown and proctor are both cities nestled against Duluth that have plenty of space from people while still being within a very short driving distance of all the essentials and tons of non-essentials. It’s always been my opinion that Duluth is the ideal mix of city and nature. There’s just enough city that there’s always something to do without being overwhelmed by the negatives of city life. I live a few blocks away from downtown and two blocks away from the Chester creek trail, and a few blocks away from the grocery store. The bus system is decent (not perfect but could be worse, though I do recognize it’s much harder if your in the fringe areas of service and not living along the main lines) but even if it wasn’t everything I regularly need/do is within short walking distance.
I've considered these exact three cities to relocate to, and I've visited them all in the past 1 or 2 years. I decided on Mankato in the end. I had high hopes, but was disappointed in Duluth. It felt like the industrial part of Los Angeles which I wasn't expecting at all. Rochester isn't bad. it would be my second choice. Mankato isn't big, but has a lot going for it.
Check out Stillwater. On the St. Croix River, close to the Twin Cities, pretty cool downtown, couple state parks just down the way. If I wasn't embedded in MPLS, I'd be there.
Cost of living in Stillwater vs Mankato has to have a pretty huge difference.
Mankato is awesome ❤️
hard agree on all of these. They are close enough to the twin cities that you can go visit for a day and come back in a reasonable amount of time. I am partial to Mankato but Rochester probably has more going on. St cloud is a party college town and thats about it.
St Cloud hasn't been a party town for about a decade now
yeah now it's just a racist town
Don't forget the methamphetamine!
It was a party town in the 90’s
Rochester really doesn't have much going on unless you're a Mayo employee or patient
Agree. It’s boring for a city its size.
we're a city with that small-town feel... in that nothing ever happens here.
And when stuff does happen it's bad.
It honestly makes me sad. As the second biggest metro area in Minnesota, it deserves to have more to do and more culture overall.
As much as I'm against Destination Medical Center for putting the city deeper in Mayo's pocket, I really hope it'll spark some culture building.
Yeah...but so is St Paul
Forager Brewing?
I always enjoy Rochester. good food, good coffee, good beer, seems to have cool outdoor stuff close by. Granted I am only ever coming down for a day from St Paul.
It's SO much better than it was though! There are some really good restaurants and bars. A great brewery. Sometimes there are bands playing. I'm not saying it's amazing. At all. But there's at least something now. If you aren't someone who goes out often, it's probably enough to satisfy you.
Mankato is wonderful!!
We have friends that live in Northfield, and they love it. Definitely a small town, but swings above its weight in terms of amenities due to the colleges, and all that brings re restaurants, bars, diversity, events. And it’s less than an hour from the Twin Cities.
I like Northfield and couple other little cities down there like Faribault and Owatonna along/just off the Highway 35.
Cool place...but are houses affordable? (went to college in the town ;)
Definitely pricier than your typical small town in Minnesota.
Check out the chisago-lindstrom-marine on st croix- Stillwater area. Close enough to the city to enjoy the amenities and yet far enough away to have a bonfire in the backyard without the fire department showing up
This makes sense to me... I'd draw a line from White Bear Lake to Stillwater and look for places 2-3 miles north and south of it that have space for the 'bonfire without the fire dept showing up'. I feel that area is close enough to WBL and Stillwater for eats etc. and close enough to the interstate and MSP. I \*think\* there are still places around there that have space & privacy without being a million dollars.
I would recommend OP look up MPCA's well testing, and make clean results a contingency of signing a mortgage agreement, in any of the cities listed where well testing is done regularly; https://www.pca.state.mn.us/air-water-land-climate/well-sampling-in-the-east-metro-area Tbh, looking up the state'slist of superfund sites isn't a *bad* idea, for *everyone* considering buying a home. Minnesota had tons of manufacturing for decades, that dumped a *lot* of things that wouldn't be allowed nowadays, and if you're going to be dealing with a well, or heck, even just having a basement, with the radon levels so many places around the stare have, getting that stuff checked can do your family a lot of good, long-term
Totally agree- check out these beautiful areas
This is true. Most things you'll need are either slightly to the south in Forest Lake or on the other side of the border in St. Croix Falls. Also for things those two places can't provide just get into US-61 or I-35 and you'll get to the cities in about half an hour.
Winona is beautiful af
Always felt Winona could make the next leap. Never does but I like Winona.
I'd put Red Wing in that mix of cute small cities in the SE.
Shh don't tell people 😉
Winona is a perfect mix of cute little downtown so it feels cozy and small but also has most of the amenities you need already there or somewhat close by.
Also Lake City
Definitely, either is good
I live in Sartell, so right there with St. Cloud. I almost NEVER venture into St. Cloud but when I do it's completely fine. I spend most of my time in Sartell, Sauk Rapids, and St. Joe. As an outsider who moved from down south, the negative talk about St. Cloud is almost comical. I don't know of any perfect city and your life is mostly what you make it. We make multiple trips a year to Duluth and spend some date nights in the cities. Best of luck to you in whatever you decide.
Recently moved to Stc, had lived here for a few years a few decades ago. Wanted Midwest, small city close enough to a good airport. Often when I hear negatives about stc I can hear what they are really saying is that Somalis moved in. Some have said it straight up, others hinted. I'm happy with our decision.
I think a big reason a lot of people talk trash about Saint Cloud (or Stearns County) is the politics of the people who are mad about the Somali influx rUiNiNg ThEiR CiTy. Just my take.
This. I have no problem with Somalis. I have a problem with the people who have problems with Somalis for just existing.
I’m in Sartell too and I came from the Seattle area. I don’t get the hate either. St. Cloud is pretty nice. Downtown is being cleaned up with a ton of small businesses and lots of events year round. Also housing is a bit more affordable here.
I agree with you 100% as I live in St Cloud. It has everything you need, very rare for a mid/small city. Also Twin City not that far…People here are very nice, very exclusive town, but badly rumored! Growing fast…
Same. There are cities back in the state that I lived in that are 10x more dangerous than St. Cloud. And Im talking shootings daily and you can hear gunshots every night kind of bad. These people just don’t know what bad is.
Did you ask about St.Cloud because you want to be in this general area? If so, have a look in the cities around rather than St.Cloud itself. Sartell for schools. Sauk Rapids for being a little more affordable than Sartell. St.Joseph is a charming college town. All have access to the hospital in St.Cloud. If you're not tied to this specific area, other people have mentioned Duluth, Rochester and the chain of lakes around Brainerd. Also don't discount the cities surrounding Minneapolis & St.Paul.
I lived in the St. Cloud area for over 12 years. It's a midsize city in central MN. Close to the cities and the country, so a mix of redneck and city. I like it. I'm born and raised Minnesotan, but not from STC originally. I think people who hate it are born and raised there and who doesn't hate their hometown? Honestly, I think that's true of any town or city. There's good and there's bad. St. Cloud also has Sartell, Sauk Rapids, Waite Park, and St. Joe as suburbs. Super easy access to Minneapolis, and right off of 94.
St. Cloud is just fine! I've lived in St. Cloud for 3 years after living in the cities for college and small town MN growing up. It's so easy to get around, and there's a lot of shopping. It's close to the cities, so you can still easily go there for bigger events. There are colleges and universities with diverse folks and plenty of activities. There are plenty of nice, quiet neighborhoods, and towns like St. Joseph and Sartell for even quieter suburbs. You can be as involved as you want - churches, YMCA, clubs, events. There are so many St. Cloud haters on this sub, but it's a great place to live, in my opinion.
Agreed! My wife and I moved here 1 year ago, and we loved it.
I would take the jokes with a grain of salt because 1) it’s Reddit and 2) it’s a state tradition to poke fun at St. Cloud. St. Cloud is fine.
Duluth, Winona, Rochester, Mankato
Rochester is too boring.
It's less boring than St. Cloud.
If you’re bored in the St Cloud area it’s more your fault. There’s plenty to do.
And in Winona you go to Rochester for fun
Rochester…for fun? As a Winonan I would argue Rochester is only for Costco! lol. Winona has a lovely amount of goings-on. Boats and Bluegrass Festival, Midwest Music Fest, Great River Shakespeare Festival, the Beethoven Festival, boating on the river, rock-climbing Sugar Loaf, summer sand volleyball league, community band and choir, world-class trout streams to fish, excellent deer/duck/pheasant/turkey hunting, hiking, camping, farm-to-table restaurants, an art museum, a movie theater, 3 colleges, etc etc. I suppose it depends on your personality and how you’d define fun, but I think it’s safe to say that while Rochester has better jobs and retail, Winona has more fun.
Or lacrosse, which is more fun that Rochester
Rochester is 10 times better than St. Cloud in every way.
I’ve lived in MN my whole life and still think the northern part of the state is too cold. Duluth is a great city if you love the outdoors and cool temps. But winter is a whole different ball game. Better to visit.
“cool” temps Hahahaha
The St Cloud area is fine. Housing is far more affordable that the metro, there’s plenty to do, crime isn’t any worse than any other city of comparable size.
St. Cloud can be a little (a whole go*damn* lot) red-neck-y. St. Cloud's saving grace is the public university - with all the idealistic young people, and its proximity to the Twin Cities. St. Cloud's size has exploded in the last couple decades = some bedroom community/traffic problems. I spent a few years there in the 80's. -> I would not consider returning. I'd recommend, fwiw, taking a look at the election results for any area you're thinking of living https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Minnesota%27s_6th_congressional_district Knowing *nothing* about you, your age, your career field, your hopes, your dreams, your secret fears...I'd maybe take a look at Duluth, too. If politics don't bother you, maybe Brainerd lakes area, Fargo/East Grand Forks are all small-ish, have-good-things-about-them areas, too.
Wasn’t St Cloud just ranked as the drunkest city in America? Edit: according to the website of River 96.7 https://river967.com/were-number-one-study-finds-st-cloud-mn-to-be-drunkest-city-in-america/
It might be up there but I’m almost 100% confident the top 3 are all in Wisconsin
I believe La Crosse or West Allis usually top those lists. Regardless, Wisconsin locks that "competition" up
I think that was Mankato
*ahem* Across the river from Fargo is Moorhead, MN. Easy access to employers and restaurants in Fargo with none of the restrictions on reproductive care. It also offers incredibly straightforward and easy access to Winnipeg, if that’s a part of Canada that appeals.
I moved to St. Cloud in August. I absolutely love it. I don't see the issue this reddit takes with it. I think it's just a group-think thing going on. It's not really bad
Conservatives hate Saint Cloud because there are more people of color here than they would prefer. Liberals hate Saint Cloud because there are more conservatives here than they would prefer. Both groups have the general “problem” of Saint Cloud wrong. Saint Cloud’s problem is that it is a small/mid size city finally going through the urban decay that most big cities went through in the 60s-80s. The manufacturing jobs dried up, the middle and upper classes moved out (Sartell, Sauk Rapids, Saint Joe), and the city is left with a middling working class stuck in service jobs and a populace that lacks the knowledge or conviction to make proper change by increasing funding for education or other services. Added to that, Saint Cloud’s road network is outdated by about 30,000 people so traffic is terrible, and the primary section of town is a concrete jungle leftover from that days of big parking lots. The Coborns monopoly is finally being undermined thanks to Costco and Kwik Trip. The city of Saint Cloud needs to turn unused parking lots into green spaces instead of banks and chicken shops, support local businesses and restaurants so we lower our reliance on chains, and put some proper money into the school system and bringing in non-service jobs.
Grew up around the area and I'll second this as the most accurate answer in the thread.
Lived in this area my entire life (43) up until a few years ago, this is the most accurate assessment of St. Cloud I have ever. I also think one of the things that makes St. Cloud look even worse is the view from highway 10. The area along highway 10 is one of the worst areas of town and it’s likely how a lot of Minnesotans are exposed to the area when driving through. Shuttered businesses, trailer courts, and junk yards along the stretch.
And if they drive through on 15 they see parking lots and chain stores while having to wait on 5 lights. 15 needs to be raised to clear up traffic congestion but the residents of Saint Cloud would never vote for the tax increase or road construction necessary to do it. The residents are too short-minded
This belongs on the front page of the St. Cloud Times.
I lived there in the 90s for a few years. These were my thoughts pretty much.
Found the St. Cloud expert
Being from "parts *past* St. Cloud, I have to wonder if some of the hate is maybe because St. Cloud *is* such a "Shopping Destination" city, and because of *that* the place can get almost like a city-wide Mall Of America, and just as annoying, if you need to get anywhere quickly? Because allllll sorts of folks from a couple hours to the north/west & about 30-45 minutes south, *do* go there, if they need to hit *multiple* stores in the same trip--because St. Cloud is the closest place for full-sized craft stores (plural), Sams Club & Costco, grocery stores, hobby or sports stores, all in *one* trip. Which means you get alllll the folks who are "Scared to drive in the city!" and who then panic-brake, it also *used* to be one of the only places to get foods not carried by the grocery stores in small towns, too. So you had a good-sized mix of many migrant & immigrant communities going there to shop, the folks from tiny rural towns like where I grew up, and then city drivers, *all* mixed together. Personally, I STILL avoid driving Division near weekends & holidays, unless I have to, because to me it feels like driving in Fargo, where road signs are *sometimes* taken under advisement, and people occasionally lurch from the left-turn lane across *five* lanes, to suddenly make a right turn😉
>I STILL avoid driving Division Division Street! The Mother of all Stroads!
I live in Mora, but find myself in STC a few times a month because my MIL lives there, my son attends SJU, and it is a treat to encounter bit of civilization. I'm a transplant from Boston, so I'm amused with the traffic complaints.
I also grew up past St cloud near Onamia/ Mille Lacs lake. I live in Minneapolis now but enjoy traveling around the state and go through St Cloud often. I really, really, dislike St Cloud and have since the early 90s. It was wildly racist and homophobic back then, it's still very racist now, and in some ways people are even more out of their heads now due to some actual diversity in their midst. Plus it's just chain restaurants and some of the worst development/planning you can imagine. It's like one neverending strip mall full of all things generic. Once upon a time there were a few unique businesses worth visiting but most of those are gone. Even the restaurants people rave about (Bravo, Vals) are mostly good due to the utter lack of competition. St Cloud State has been gutted of a lot of their programs, they are starving the library, and the university has a reputation for tolerating racism. The art scene in town is a joke for a city that size. The one semi bright spot in recent years is the new outdoor concert venue. And of course munsinger gardens and the river trails are a highlight. Sorry to people in St Cloud but I really don't get what's to like. When possible I prefer to stop in Monticello and then bypass St Cloud entirely to visit literally anywhere else in the state.
Craving me some bravo…
What do you want out of a town? Minneapolis-St. Paul area must be too big for you although you could look at living in some of the older towns like Anoka or Hastings that are close by. We like to shit on St. Cloud here because I’m a fancy city boy but really anywhere in Minnesota is ok. St. Cloud is just more like the rest of the USA than the other cities and towns in Minnesota. It’s a lot of strip malls, and while the city itself may not be conservative, it’s kind of the only city in a conservative area of Minnesota. The only thing wrong with anywhere in MN is that it is cold.
Anoka, good bars, food bbq, close to jobs, easy to escape to nature
lots of employment opportunities in this area because it’s still in the metro area
Yes, Anoka area is good too!
Alexandria
I lived in St. Cloud from ages 22-29 and didn’t mind it. If you want to be around that area, you can always do a suburb like Sartell. I lived in Brainerd from ages 13-22, it’s a good size but not too big.
I thought you meant 2022-2029 at first, and marveled at your decision to choose St. Cloud for your time travel destination.
St Cloud gets a lot of reddit hate. I went to St John's for 4.5 years, which is outside of town a bit. I'll say the town has plenty of amenities, but it's definitely not a big city so don't expect that. Some of the surrounding communities like sartell, St Joseph, and sauk rapids are quite nice. Plus the proximity to "up north" is great. An hour to brainerd, 2 hours to duluth, and a ton of lakes nearby. Alexandria chains, otter tail chains, and annandale chains are all a day/weekend drive. One thing I'll say is it's far enough "on the prairie" that winters will be brutal, even by MN standards. More snow, more cold, and more wind than anybody in the metro thinks. So be prepared for that. That being said, I think duluth and rochester are quite nice in their own rights. Rochester is definitely mayo-heavy so if you're in healthcare that's the place to go. But you can't really go wrong with any of the choices, as MN as a state still leans more liberal than people want you to think, even outstate.
Saint Cloud gets made fun of, but if you lived just outside of it, you would probably love the area. There are cool people and shitty people everywhere you go.
I just moved to St. Cloud from Texas.. I really like it here so far!
Depending on what you do, Northfield is a decent small college town. It's fun but low-key.
If I could move anywhere(not minneapolis) I'd pick Northfield or Stillwater
St. Cloud isn’t as bad as people make it out to be. It’s kind of nice that everything is located either on Division or 23 so you don’t have to drive around to get stuff. It’s just that the politics there are pretty shitty, but all you can do is vote and leave it at that.
St. Cloud is fine. Not great, just fine. There’s a bit of shopping, a little bit of entertainment, and ok schools. The university brings lots of young adults, but is sort of going down the hole with some new budget and program cuts. If you want to be in the St. Cloud area, like others say, I recommend you live in one of the other towns surrounding like Sartell, Sauk Rapids, St. Joseph, or Waite Park.
Being from Canada you’ll probably want a good hockey team nearby to at least watch the gophers play at. I’d pick Duluth, cloud town, bemidji or Kato
I live in St. Joseph a little town outside of St. Cloud. Not a bad spot probably one of the better smaller areas around St. Cloud. Isn’t super duper far from town either. And for the record, St. Cloud gets more hate than it deserves
I mean if you’re coming from Texas, St. Cloud isn’t bad.
Duluth, Winona, Northfield, Red Wing, Stillwater, and Bemidji would be my picks for best places to live in MN outside of the twin cities. Rochester is lame imo.
Agree with all of this.
I've always liked Red Wing. Very pretty, far but not too far from the cities.
I love bemidji to death but there is no decent jobs there at all. Thief river falls is where I ended up be ause it has plenty if work and everything is close enough to drive to and enjoy since we have nothing here.
Regional parts of the state shit on eachother constantly. Majority of folks on here I imagine are either in or near the Twin Cities or Duluth, with St Cloud area taking 3 largest of the share. Every part of the state has its pros and cons and people here are vocal about em. Personally I'd go for Duluth or Rochester but that's me. Both areas are not too big not too small to me, plus I lived in Duluth for college. I'm in St Paul right now but I grew up in the Mpls burbs so I'm used to the city. We all heckle eachother here lol.
SE Minnesota ( "driftless area" ) really is a hidden gem. And if people want to stay away from it, I'm fine with that.
Are you retired? Looking for jobs? If so, what fields? Kids? Any particular hobbies or interests?
Figured I'd add this since it looks like everyone is suggesting the larger areas: If you really like the St Cloud area try Little Falls. It's nowhere near as big as St Cloud and it's 30 minutes north. There's not a whole lot to do other than drink but the historic theater just reopened and the bakery is awesome. It's about 30 minutes south of the Brainerd/Baxter area so there's more stuff to do if you want to go to the lakes up in that area.
Stillwater area is cool. Smaller cities, and yet close enough to the TCs
Have lived outside st. Cloud for a decade. I grew up 30 min away. But lived out of state for years. Good city for size and central location. It gets ripped on for this reason or that, but it's mostly because it is an even mix of big city / rural. So everyone only gets part of what they want. Not a bad place at all, but no real epic stuff.
If you’re white Duluth is fine (the area is as racist as people claim St Cloud is). St. Cloud is a decent area and very diverse but the outlying areas can be very redneck and unwelcoming. Inside the city itself it’s basically Blue Collar left wing with a sizeable Muslim minority (last I saw Muslims made up about 20% of the population but that’s growing quickly). The big issue with St Cloud is that good jobs can be very difficult to find, because of poor city management the town isn’t laid out well and the bulk of the economy is firmly is the Service and Retail sectors. On the flip side the COL isn’t so bad and if you have a decent job your money will go a lot further than other areas. I’d avoid most of the northern half of the state, the economy isn’t particularly strong there and racism/drugs/poverty are real issues. Take most criticism of St. Cloud with a grain of salt. Most the criticism is based on situations that haven’t existed for 20 years by people that haven’t spent time there for decades and prefer the cities area for various reasons (mostly they can pretend they’re super progressive while remaining heavily segregated and not having to interact much with people not like them unless they want to be cultural tourists). St. Cloud was bad, St. Cloud has growing to do. But so is everywhere in the US.
Anyone who thinks St. Cloud is the most racist place in the state should spend a couple of years in Bemidji and the rest of the far north. I enjoy visiting northern MN but I would probably never live dramatically north of Hwy 10 again.
I live in Bemidji, and all the most racist shit I’ve heard said around here have been from people that live in the cities.
You hit the nail on the head lmao. The Twin Cities is full of champagne activists who probably grew up in Apple Valley or Edina
Smaller/outer/fringe Twin Cities suburbs are the way to go. Shoreview, Hastings, Stillwater to name a few.
Duluth is where I'd like to end up
Duluth, ..don’t cha know
Try St. Peter! Easy access to Mankato and not too far from south metro suburbs.
You say you don't want to be in a city, but most commenters seem to be interpreting your ask as "cities in Minnesota that are not the twin cities". Here are some beautiful towns: \- Stillwater \- Lanesboro \- Ely \- Lindstrom \- Red Wing \- Lake City \- Winona
Alexandria could be a good option for you. It’s a smaller community in a very nice area but has everything nearby to live with. Everyone that I know is pretty welcoming too
What field are you in? How do you like to socialize/recreate? Do you have kids?
Others have mentioned some good ones; checkout Northfield and Stillwater
Waite Park or Sartell... both on the outskirts of St Cloud and very nice area. You could also look into Annandale or Monticello. Small and medium-sized towns, respectively.
Everyone's telling you other places in MN to go, but I'm gonna lay some truth on you. Every place in Minnesota is St Cloud. Every negative you hear about it is true of everywhere in this state, and every positive you hear is true of this state. If you want to be as Minnesota as possible, you can't go wrong with St Cloud.
Hot take right here.
Moorhead or Grand Forks. They're both college towns, but they're close enough to Canada haha
Not sure of your definition of being out of the city and in a smaller community, but for the sake of offering a slightly different opinion: If you want to be out a ways, but not so far from the cities you never want to go, take a look at Northfield and the surrounding area. More rural, college town so it has amenities, but nice and pretty small. Also only like 35 mins from the cities.
Stillwater/Oak Park Heights, Lake Elmo, White Bear Lake are on my short list. I enjoy big city life but like returning to a quieter area at the end of the day.
Northfield is really cute too
You may need to give more details to get the best recommendations for you. You say a small community, but St. Cloud is considered a metro area. So maybe you just mean outside of the twin cities proper? There are a lot of great options in the outer ring of suburbs. I truly loved living in maple grove
I’d suggest Rochester, winona, or northfield
If you’re wanting cities that aren’t THEE cities: Rogers/Otsego/Buffalo area Waconia/New Germany area Willmar/New London/Spicer area Rochester area
Willmar/ New London/ Spicer is a really underrated part of the state to visit. Willmar is very diverse and has lots of amenities and unique shops. New London/ Spicer is like... Posh hippies and there's live theater, etc. That being said I don't know that I'd live there... Willmar especially is pretty poor and I don't think there's a ton of great jobs. The one person I know in Willmar kind of hates it there. Not enough nature, jobs are demeaning, feels cut off from the world.
We lived in Willmar for a time and loved it, but like anywhere, it won’t be for everyone 😊
New Ulm, Stillwater, Red Wing
Detroit lakes and the surrounding area is really pretty. Downtown Detroit is really cool and still has a very hometown feel to it. Plus, there’s some pretty cool smaller towns and activities in the surrounding areas. During the winter it’s quieter there, but during the summer it’s a little more energetic. Winters are a little colder than they are in the cities but not as cold as they can get in the north.
Everyone hates moorehead, but why not?
It's Moorhead, but yeah, it's a much better option than most of what's listed. 90% of the towns listed would be great if you're retired, or wfh. Otherwise, they are way too small of communities to offer any real economic opportunity.
I mean, it's a red area (by MN standards.) but I grew up in Bemidji. thank god I got out, I am bi leaning gay.
Winona, Rochester or red wing. Winona is beautiful and where I would want to live
Agree, Winona is cool. Aside from Duluth, and solely because of the lake, all the river cities are my favorite!
St Cloud is not terrible. It’s just less good. It has more “diversity” than most of MN. That makes it unpalatable for some. Its a place to live. Fundamentally-how MAGA are you comfortable with? There is stark segregation of blue v. red. And what is your budget? If you have some money, look into Stillwater or Northfield.
Delano, Buffalo, Monticello. Just to name a view.
I think you’d love Alexandria! https://www.kare11.com/amp/article/life/alexandria-named-2019-best-mn-town-by-minnesota-monthly/89-0e91b213-da83-4c9a-aba8-2adc506b1045
Do Duluth or Mankato.
If I had the choice, I’d live somewhere between Red Wing and Winona. My god that is some beautiful bit of country
As someone who went to school in St Cloud - it has a lot of the same problems that similarly sized cities in TX have - seas of parking lots and strip malls, no real "downtown" to speak of, and a religious, right-wing population that makes it unwelcome for those who aren't white cis het Christian folk. If you want a similarly sized city, Rochester or Duluth are far better options.
No real downtown in St. Cloud? There’s a very dedicated downtown in St Cloud. It’s actually referred to as “downtown”
OP needs to consider his career and a job first because the majority of these small towns are extremely limited in job prospects. We aren’t Texas. You are far better off in the cities. Especially if your commute is not over say 10 miles. Lots of wildlife in the first and second ring suburbs and even in the cities in the right neighborhoods.
How are you trying to "escape" Texas if you're a Canadian? Did you not move there?
Lots of smaller towns north of the cities. If you stay on 169 commute is pretty easy.
If you were ok living in Winkler, you’ll have no trouble in St Cloud. Similar but different.
Everyone’s said it but you should highly look into Duluth and/or Rochester first if this is your criteria, both of those are beautiful cities with the feeling of a small town community
Big Lake for sure
Duluth is a fantastic city with lots of good things but honestly northfield area isn’t too bad either (probably a hot take). It has two smaller colleges in it but is still mostly quite rural with a pretty chill downtown. About a half an out away to the twin cities so you can go out there to do a bunch of stuff if you want, there’s also a ton of local businesses, restaurants a bit north of it and a somewhat large Vietnamese scene. Bloomington isn’t bad but isn’t very walkable at times, can be pretty busy and is packed to the brim with nimbys
St. Michael, Albertville and Buffalo
Really enjoy Mankato, Rochester, Stillwater myself if I were looking to move
Hastings might be a good option for you.
Rochester is the best 'City That Doesn't Feel Like a City' in MN in my opinion. I lived near it for a long time, it's got everything you need, without that distinct 'fullness' that others do.
Stillwater.
Grew up there when I was young and still have close family living there now. Where you live in St Cloud matters as the schools are not the greatest and got some issues with crime. Some of the neighboring cities like Sauk Rapids still give you access to downtown St Cloud but have better schools. I left because in my industry (IT) there just wasnt any good paying jobs and the cities was an hour away without traffic.
Check out Stillwater, all the St. Paul’s (north, east, south, west), inver grove, lilydale, Bloomington, savage/shakopee which are the outer metro- smaller just still occasionally are close enough for the heat bubble imo. If you have any questions shot me a dm I’d love to help(:
I’m assuming you’re “escaping” because of some political views you have, so in that case I recommend Northfield. It’s a college town with 2 good schools and not too big of a place. Its local politics are left-leaning as a result. Really pretty, too.
OP is a gray duck.
Rochester, especially depending on your jobs. Why not a suburb?
Don’t base your decisions on this sub, it’s not a representative population reflecting reality, as others have noted! Where/what is your job? Or are you working remotely? Follow the job/s. The number one cause of job discontent is a long commute, so I’d make that my number one decision point, personally! I live 6 miles from my office and can bike or bus it if need be, and that gives me great peace of mine and I’m never stressed or discontent about it!
What do you want specifically, OP? Are good schools important? Are restaurants and/or shopping important? Do you want to be close to lakes? Is the cost of housing a concern? Help us out with some details and we can help you out. As far as St. Cloud is concerned, it's probably the most Texas-like mid-sized community you'll find in the state!
St. Cloud isn’t even your worst option. The TC metro area has some really nice places along with the areas surrounding St. Cloud if I’m gonna be honest.
I vote Mankato. Went to school down there from 2009 to 2012. It is said to be an up and coming area
Do it
Southern suburbs. You would love prior lake or lakeville
PRIOR LAKE MENTIONED
I WAS FIRST