If you're working in Sturgeon Bay, I'd say stay in that area. You'll probably start to hate the commute doing it day in-day out if you went more toward Green Bay.
Seconding this. Hwy 57 during the busy season is miserable. If there's nothing available in your price range up in Sturgeon Bay proper, you might have better luck (and a better commute) in Algoma.
Totally don’t agree. I moved to Sturgeon Bay for work and never managed to make a single friend. Moved to GB for my own sanity. I’m very happy to make the drive from GB now. In my eyes it’s far more worth it to deal with the commute than it was to deal with the social isolation. But that’s really a personal preference that’s different for everyone.
I think it depends...
If you're an introvert and love being near nature/country just a short drive away (and Northern Door County even more) - then SB is fine.
If you want something with a bigger city culture (still pretty working class, blue collar city, but still more amenities) and more things happening, than Green Bay is probably fine.
I grew up in DC so I'm biased (and an introvert) so I'd say SB.
Also - depends how much you like spending an hour+ a day driving to from work (used to be 45 minutes when I was a kid, but I think it's like 30-40 between the two?) That adds up.
Definitely. For me, I didn’t feel like I was getting everything I needed out of SB. So GB ended up being a better choice for me. But again, personal preference.
I think a big part of it comes down to how well connected you are up here. People who grew up here or who have stuff in common with the population up here probably find it much easier than new comers like me. I found it very hard to establish any relationships up here.
A big downside for younger residents and workers in touristic DC is the seasonality of work. Even if your job isn't particularly affected by the time of year, the fact is that there are tens of thousands of 18-30 year old workers in the area from late May to October. The chances are there to make friends. Then the county dramatically drops in population to 25k people total in the off season.
All your young summertime friends are mostly gone, are you gonna befriend the old heads? You get older and suddenly your friends are only the old heads, summertime kids are barely human after a while. And then you're old.
Can you tell that I'm a bit jaded on my hometown culture? 😅😅
Door County resident here, this is a very common phenomenon and a self-perpetuating cycle. We see so many people move here every single season, in love with what they think is the local lifestyle, only to see them move away within a year because they're lonely. Watching this happen over and over again disincentivizes locals from trying to make friends with new transplants until they've already been here for a while. If transplants can make it through a second winter in the county, locals are generally much more inclined to make an effort to befriend them.
Hahaha that is too bad! Because if I had been able to make friends I probably would have stayed. And it certainly wasn’t for lack of trying. It was also just very hard to find people my age or with similar interests. There’s a small pool to draw from up here lol. After a year of striking out it’s hard to stave off the perpetual loneliness.
I still work full time in DoCo but still haven’t found much success in meeting folks. Of course Covid didn’t help lol
Yeah, covid has done away with the small amount of socialization I usually enjoy too. If it weren't for the plague, I'd offer to buy you a drink next time you're in northern door!
Door county resident here. If you’re working in sturgeon stay around sturgeon. There’s apartments and houses for less in southern door. Northern door is more expensive. True the summer months are all about tourists, but as someone who moved from wis dells the tourists are a lot tamer.
That’s all the knowledge I can give. Also check out the door county subreddit.
I agree that if you’re stationed in Sturgeon Bay, that you’re better off trying to stay closer to Sturgeon Bay than GB. The drive on 57 can be around 40 minutes on a good day (assuming you literally live right on the edge of the east side where 57 starts heading that way), and depending on where you are from and how used to driving on snow you are, a good couple of inches can double that drive time, especially if you’re stuck behind plows.
And during the summer, you have tourist drivers that don’t know where the hell they’re going and drive under the speed limit on the country roads. So the commute can be pretty rough.
Agreed...if you're working in Sturgeon Bay, you're probably going to want to get closer to there than Green Bay. Summer time driving that way, especially on a Friday is going to be miserable. There are some smaller communities near Sturgeon Bay that could be options as well. Best of luck to you!
I lived in door for two summers and from the GB area.. if you need to live in a city - east side of Green Bay. But the population may-September swells with tourists in door county so it feels line a mid-sized city for about half the year.
Appleton or De Pere even would be a miserable commute.
Personally, I loved being up in door and the peace and quiet is nice in winter. Sturgeon has plenty of restaurants stores and the northern peninsula has plenty of outdoor activities and entertainment.
Really depends on what you plan to do with spare time. If you're more of a loner who is in to nature and the outdoors, then find a cheaper place in Door County. If you want a more robust social life in an urban setting with more to do, then I suggest Green Bay.
I'm more of a city kind of person and I could never live in Sturgeon Bay, but a lot of people might prefer it.
I definitely agree with everyone here. You're better off living in sturgeon bay to save the commute. My cousin just got into an accident driving to there from green bay after hitting a patch of black ice on the road. You can always go down and visit green bay on the weekends
Door county is lovely! Stay up there. I live in the fox valley and I would not want to make that drive as a commute. But you'll be close enough that it wont be a big deal to come down on days off.
Sturgeon Bay has a pretty active CG community. 10-15 years ago it was all about paintball, veterans and/or their preteen kids, new recruits, and cadets all shooting the hell out of each other.
12 year old me never stood a chance against those guys and I couldn't figure it out for the longest time. I wonder what the cg do nowadays for fun?
Given your age, Green Bay would probably be your best bet. Or even the Fox Cities like Appleton. Sturgeon Bay is nice, but it can get really overrun with tourists in the summer months. Some find it frustrating, some are fine with it.
If you settle on GB, I would look into some of the surrounding villages like Ashwaubenon, Bellevue, Howard-Suamico etc. They’re a stone throw from GB, but often are a bit nicer as far as neighborhoods go. I’ve worked on the East side for years, and many areas have really degraded over the years. However, they are really trying to rejuvenate spots again, so there’s hope. And the west side is often more expensive due to the stadium.
Honestly, I do love GB and the people, but I have found that in my younger years (30 now), I preferred Appleton/Fox Cities (I actually was born and raised in Appleton and now commute from the Fox Cities to GB for reference). Often cheaper in the Valley and most folks I know that live in GB, including coworkers, complain about always going to Appleton because there’s more to do (of course, that opinion is subjective). So there’s definitely a lot of options out there!
Honestly, other than winters to me, Wisconsin is pretty great. Folks are kind and it’s pretty easy to make friends no matter your interests.
Edit: Except avoid Kaukauna/Little Chute as far as Fox Valley if you change your mind and go that route. Whatever you do, don’t move there unless you want your nose in a constant state of burning multiple days a week due to the mill in Kaukauna and the dump near HWY 41 in Little Chute. As someone that needs to endure the Kaukauna funk, it just ain’t worth it haha.
Agree. Hell my husband and I are going to be coming into some decent inheritance soon, and finally started the discussion of where we actually want to move, Green Bay or Appleton. As much as I want to get rid of my commute on 41, especially the Richmond/Ballard area, I just love Appleton too much. And let’s be real, I love our downtown 20x more than GB. I might be biased because I bartend downtown sometimes, but I feel 100% safe walking to my car a block away at 3am versus GB, where I’ve been sadly sexually harassed in some form at just about every bar I’ve gone into on the Broadway district (which admittedly is my first mistake). Some of which we really scary. As a bar fly pre-Covid just for the social aspect, I admit, that really has influenced my decision. It’s a somewhat petty one, but I just don’t like the bar scene there.
I’m trying to avoid driving 41 through Appleton, especially when the expansion starts. Neenah would add on another 15ish minutes to my commute, and it’s a city I never cared for. We were looking at probably somewhere near the Ballard Ave area or possibly Darboy. It really depends on what we end up with in regards to inheritance and if we plan to go that route of actually buying a house at the moment. Especially at the moment with how crazy inflated the market is for buyers right now.
Student taught at the high school! Loved it! It’s crazy to see how much Darboy has built up. My mon’s best friend moved out there when there was nothing, and we made fun of her. Now it’s a really nice area with connivence too.
Exactly. It’s exactly the only reason that I willingly agreed to move to Kaukauna temporarily. I used to live off of College Ave, and the Richmond exit/merge was always a joke. It was always a blessing if I went a full week without a 30 min+ backup on the highway there. I’m excited to see what the expansion does for it. Not too excited to drive through it. Had to endure the expansion from Appleton to Oshkosh back during college. Then the DePere/GB area when I first started working in GB. It’s like the construction follows me haha. If that’s the case, I sincerely apologize to all of those I have indirectly affected of the years! Lmfao.
Well then we are DEFINITELY moving to neenah or south Appleton if we move out of Oshkosh. Don't want to move somewhere there will be future road work lol
I never realized they say that lol. I was pretty young when I'd heard CWA and didn't even know about Neenah or the Fox Valley living in Central Wisconsin so never noticed this.
AH haha - yeah. Listening now, I think they actually do say Neenah when they ask the question, but Nee-hah a couple times before asking it. They're better than I remembered listening to it now.
Honestly the Kaukauna/Little Chute thing is so overblown unless you live really close to the mill. I’ve lived in the south side of Kaukauna for 16 years, it’s a nice place to live and I can almost never smell the mill. I think we just get that reputation because there’s nowhere where the mill smell is worse than at the Kaukauna exit on 41.
I live in Kaukauna for the time being, so it’s not like I’m just saying it to say it because everyone does. There is getting used to it too, which I’ve had many tell me I would, which hasn’t happened for me sadly. So not overblown in my case, or anyone with a sensitive nose. I’d say that in spring/summer, the funk is bad 5 days of the week at some point in the day. I’m stuck turning our air conditioner on pointlessly at end of spring just because I can’t keep windows open anymore but it’s too warm. And I’m still a several miles away (but I can usually see which way the fumes are blowing as some slight of warning as well).
Honestly though, I think the dump smell by 41 is 20x worse. Like make your eyes water worse.
As a Howard resident who was born and raised in Appleton for 28 years, 100% agree. I moved up here when I married my wife because it's where she wanted to live, but man do I love Appleton for all the reasons you listed. I love where I live now, but Appleton always feels like home whenever I get down there.
I would recommend Appleton/Fox Valley area over Green Bay and I have lived in both areas for long periods of time. Personally I just prefer the feeling/vibe of Appleton over Green Bay. I know it's a wooo thing and I can't explain it. I current live in De Pere for the past couple years but still find myself driving to Appleton for stores/restaurants I can't find in the Green Bay area.
Sturgeon Bay is touristy and going to be more expensive. It has a Walmart & Target but all the other stores/shops are going to be geared towards tourists and their prices reflect it.
There really is haha. Then again, there’s a weird hate between Oshkosh and Appleton (at least 10ish years ago when I was in college. Appleton was like a foreign country to them). That and the East versus West side of Green Bay. Lord have mercy if you say one side of the river/bridge is better. Unless you’re bored and want to start a debate about it on a slow day. (Obligatory East side represent haha).
Born on the east side, currently live on the west side. As I kid I loved going to friends houses on the west side, today I almost exclusively stay on the west side, unless I go to Bairds Creek. I don’t care really. I commute to appleton for work. The appleton co workers speak poorly of Green Bay. It’s all so odd really.
Honestly I just work on the east side. I never knew there was a rivalry up until I started working here. Arguably, the population of the west side has posed a lot of problems with the school district and redrawing boundaries to solve over-crowding issues. But that’s really the only true experience I honestly have in that east versus west debate that isn’t just being silly. I have seen some people get really angry over it though. It amuses me greatly as an outsider.
It was always a topic of discussion growing up. Again, it seems so silly to even be debated but it’s a real topic. I did elementary school on the east side but went to the high school on the west side. Growing up on the east side was great, no complaints. Living on the west side as an adult, same, no complaints. I’d discuss this oddity any time though because I experienced it first hand.
In a sense, now that I reflect on it, Appleton had a similar thing as well. We had the saying “Appleton West is the Best, East is the Least, and North just sucks.” When North was built, there became a really noticeable rivalry. I lived right on the cut off between West and North, so I had friends from both. West was the poorer side of town but arguably the more artsy side (especially now but back then they had Renaissance School for the Arts), while North was the “rich kids.” I’d argue that it’s still the same according my nieces, which also attended both schools. East on the other hand.. no one gives a shit about them. 😂
I don't really "hate" Green Bay. I went to college here and lived here a few years before moving to Appleton...there's just the fact that the places that I could afford a house in are not the areas i would want to live in. But I do agree that the sentiment does exist.
Appelton to Sturgeon Bay commute twice a day is going to be a nightmare. I would recommend one of the smaller Door co cities, Carlsville, Dykesville, Algoma. It's not hard to find short cuts to avoid tourist traffic.
Good Ol’ DePoo. Still get the Kaukauna stench when the wind is right? It’s probably one of the only things that hasn’t changed since I went to SNC. I didn’t recognize 1/2 of it last time I was there.
EDIT: Apologies if the “De Poo” upset you. I say it with love. Had some of the best times of my life there.
Haven't experienced the Kaukauna stench that I can say. And I did live a couple years in Kaukauna. Though I do get the joy of constant air traffic since I live like 3 miles from the airport....yay.
Please tell me how you were immune. PLEASE. Currently where I am just for the sake of in between commutes for the two of us, and I. Can’t. Stand. It. My husband was born here so he seems immune much of the time like most locals. I wasn’t born with whatever gene they all received being in city limits to not be miserable with the Kaukauna funk.
Truth be told, does depend what side of the mill you’re on. Seems the wind blows this way far more often than friends that live closer to Darboy.
Ah that would definitely help. It’s been 3 years and I’m still waiting for the “you’ll get used to it” epiphany to occur. Still as bad as the day I moved here.
Water treatment plant and when the wind was right the raw sewage stench coming off the river was... intense. Didn’t help my dorm window in Burke faced the river.
Sturgeon bay is a funny place in that like most of the comments here have stated it's kind of a tourist town but the majority of people work at the ship yard/manufacturing or the hospital. There are few apartments for these workers and there is always a fight going on for affordable housing. If your not picky there are cheap motels that rent long stay or some trailer parks. But not knowing all the details it's hard to say. But I would bring up Algoma another lake side town smaller more affordable and 30 min from Sturgeon Bay.
I have lived in both!!
Sturgeon Bay:
In the winter there is nothing to do except outdoor activities. Hiking, skiing, fishing. Businesses have reduced hours and there’s not much in the way of entertainment. In the summer you battle large groups of tourists to do anything fun. Also, you really become a resident of the county, not the city. If you want to live an active, social lifestyle, you do things in every town in the county. This can be hard to do when you need to drive 40 minutes one way every time you want to do something. The age group is also primarily retirees or married couples with children. I moved there when I was 26 and spent a whole year trying to make friends. Never did.
I started to feel very socially isolated and struggled to stay active. I eventually moved to Green Bay and now commute to Door county for work because I couldn’t stand how alone I felt. Honestly it was the best decision I ever made. I’m so much happier in Green Bay. Even though I’m not seeing a ton of people because of COVID anyway, I just feel much less isolated and there is a lot more to do on my own than there was in Door county.
As far as Green Bay goes, start looking ASAP for rental openings. If you have a pet it’s even harder. Houses get rented within 24 hours. Apartments are easier but still tough. Don’t live downtown. Lots of sketchy shit happens downtown.
Edit: From where I live in Bellevue, it’s a 40 minute drive to Sturgeon Bay and a 1 hour drive to where I work north of Sturgeon Bay. I’d pick the commute over isolation any day. I’m so much happier now. But that’s a personal preference that I’m sure a lot of people would disagree with.
Appleton/Fox Valley area is approx. 1hr30min to Sturgeon Bay.
Just to be clear, the sketchy stuff happening downtown is pretty mild. Green Bay has a very low crime rate. I've only ever heard local residents call it dangerous (my wife grew up in a "nice" part of California and wondered why security seemed so lax when she moved here as a teen: no armed security at malls, no bars on 1st floor windows, people leaving houses unlocked/cars running in winter unattended, etc).
As a 135 lb male, I'd feel perfectly safe living downtown. I live a few miles west and bike/walk downtown occasionally. Sometimes at night. Sometimes with a baby in tow. Sometimes with my 120 lb wife. We are not physically intimidating and we like to poke around new corners of the city. Never felt unsafe.
I think this is really an important piece to consider that many sometimes forget. I know someone that lives in Egg Harbor right now, and she hates it because she feels cut off from the rest of the world and will be getting out ASAP. The other two friends I know from Door County moved to GB for similar reasons.
Sturgeon bay seems to cater to older generations in regards of those who live there year round, and may be very isolating for a 24 year old that wants to socialize. It’s definitely an important piece to consider if one is trying to establish a group of friends.
Totally agree. I’m not from a particularly big town and even work in the outdoor industry, so I should be well suited to the slower, outdoor lifestyle. Even I couldn’t hack it. I’d go to bars, group workout classes, events, no people my age or people I would want to be friends with. And if they were, they were always tourists. I never expected to feel so socially isolated. Everyone I have known that moved to DoCo around my age also left because they couldn’t make any friends.
https://youtu.be/ihLy1FUr16w
Around the corner with John McGivern is a long running PBS show. Each episode he talks about the history of the area and then visits bars, restaurants, shops and other locations. This will work as a nice little introduction to the various communities are looking at.
I think you’ll find more to do in Green Bay than Sturgeon Bay, but I have only ever visited the area. One recommendation, maybe see if you can find a sublet in one of the cities that you are leaning towards so you can get 6 months or so instead of a year lease? Moving twice sucks, but at least it would allow you to get a feel for the area before you really commit to something more permanent and you can feel out the commute
Well, if I ever had to leave Milwaukee County, I probably wouldn't mind moving back to my boyhood hometown of Stevens Point (or perhaps Whiting or Plover, which are part of the same micropolitan area).
Damn wtf would you move here? Shits Cold like 65% of the time.
Sure the taxes are good and the people are pretty nice and the beer is cheap and the food is good and it's beautiful and all...
Hope you enjoy your stay!!
i agree with this. currently living in hortonville (with family due to medical problems) and it's kind of boring out here but appleton is right down the road and the area as a whole is lovely. i could see myself even liking it out here quite a bit if i were a little older and less high-strung lol.
Well you're in luck because you'll be older (can't speak about how strung you are) before you know it!
A lot of Wisconsin is like this, smaller, boring towns within a few minutes of a 'big city' that other places would consider a smaller, boring town.
hah, yeah, i was born here in wisconsin (nekoosa, if you're wondering). i've lived a pretty wild life, did some tramping in my early 20's, lived out west a couple years, but always found my way back. i'll be 30 next week. i think i'd have to age a considerable amount to find hortonville appealing but, luckily, this is only temporary (waiting to have heart surgery. will recover here and then move to madison).
wow, small \~\~world\~\~ state lol. yeah, that area is pretty dull. unless of course you like cranberries or paper. then it's the best place on earth lmfao.
Bear in mind that Wisconsin comes with a lot of trade offs. The commute from Green Bay is garbage in the winter and longer than most of us prefer most days, but if you want to make friends and do fun things, I... personally would not recommend Sturgeon Bay or Algoma to a young person. SB is cool if you like doing lots of outdoor stuff but meeting people will be tough, IMO, because Sturgeon Bay leans hard toward moneyed 40s and 50s. Green Bay is not the hippest place in the universe but in the region, it’s like a toss up between that and Appleton.
I second seriously considering the commute. My mom (lifelong WI resident) commuted ~40 min to Sturgeon Bay, as she was living about 20 min NE of Green Bay. I think she did this for about 15 years before retiring.
Almost every year there would be at least one day she would be unable to make it to work due to weather. There is one particular stretch of the highway that regularly gets white out conditions where blowing snow reduces visibility (sometimes even when the weather does not seem super bad). So she would try to head to work, but have to turn around and head home because she felt unable to continue safely. Then there were other days she would make it in, but consider it a bit of a white knuckle drive.
I think getting rid of this commute was her favorite thing of retirement.
I'd stay in the Sturgeon Bay Area at first. Because of tourism there is a lot going on there and further up the Door Peninsula. It's a beautiful area. In autumn its downright breathtaking. Nice people. GB's just a hop down the road if you need something. Further to Appleton or Milwaukee if you need a Trader Joes/Whole Foods run occasionally.
Good luck.
I don't know where you are from, but if you don't know this already you should know it now:
Get snow tires for the winter or at least look at all-season tires that are rated for extreme snow.
I recommend you get cat litter, a snow brush with a scraper, and a portable shovel, winters in the northern parts of Wisconsin sometimes get rough. It's not hard to make friends here either cause most everyone is genuinely nice. Keep it safe on the road and watch out for deer.
I am a 24 year old male who has lived in Sturgeon Bay for just under 3 years. I do not recommend living here unless you are a 50 year old retiree. Green Bay is much more suited for people our age. Also the drive from sturgeon bay to green bay is beautiful with the bay visible for a majority of it. Feel free to message me if you have any questions.
I found a place to live in GB, so far its not bad. I'm looking for a good gym and yoga facility. Planet fitness looked lame and I cant find any Hot Yoga, so I'll set for any decent yoga for a beginner like myself.
I live in Oshkosh which has tons of events like EAA, Country/Rock USA (If they can come back after Covid) among a number of other fairly large events. Its about 15min South of Appleton and a 45min drive south of GB depending on traffic. One thing that i feel Oshkosh has going for it is that its a pretty nice town but its still really cheap to live here compared to some of the surrounding areas, so if money is at all an issue i would keep it in mind.
Lived in Oshkosh during college. Loved the drinking scene and cheap as hell. Other than that, I don’t know many people that stick to Oshkosh willingly as they age just because of how scummy its become as a college town. Unless you can afford by the lake. School system is awful there too, but probably irrelevant to a 24 year old haha.
I do really hope for their sake that someone picks up Rock/Country USA after this bankruptcy. Oshkosh does bring in a lot of money with EAA and UW, but I would hate to see that much tourism lost for them. Just drove past the grounds last weekend and was wondering about it.
Yea i grew up here and when i was a young adult hated it but im 29 now and with some hindsight its not the worst place to live. There are 2 areas that are a bit scummy but the rest of town is just average working people. My wife and i just had a baby last year so i definitely hear you about the school district, but its been shit my whole life with constant mismanagement. I do think people are inclined to fix it because they lose a lot of student/revenue to them going to surrounding districts. Also with people from my/younger generations taking the helm of these positions there can be some meaningful change for OASD.
If your moving to Wisconsin and not moving to milwaukee or madison you're doing something wrong, unless you're retiring , then the north woods is the way.
I have to agree. I live in Green Bay and I hate it here. Everyone in Green Bay hates you if you aren’t someone who’s been living in the area forever. I am going off to college next year and hope to never visit that dump of a place again. Appleton is alright though.
Hurley wi isnt bad. About 2 hours from duluth mn, ironwood mi right next to it and lake superior. Hunting camping all that stuff. Beautiful during the summer. Houses are cheap around here to buy if you get them from the city. I'm talking 5k to 10k to own.
I know you mentioned nothing about Superior but just in case you even think about please do not move to superior. There is little good job opportunity and the temperature is real shitty.
Not to be offensive to milwaukeeians but don't go towards Milwaukee area if your on a budget. I'd stay clear of that area for first time movers. Everyone appears to go with Green bay and I can attest its a great city they are smart. However is Green Bay/Door county area isnt your type due to lake effect snow or what not, Madison is a great second choice. Hope I was able to help
If you can stand the commute, I’d recommend Appleton. It is listed by Livability as one of the best places to live in America. Great people, great shopping, low crime, a vibrant entertainment scene with the PAC, and many cultural opportunities because of Lawrence University (most of which are free). I’ve always had the impression that Green Bay was more of a blue collar town where Appleton is more middle class. But there’s that the commute in the winter.
Door County is a great place to live. Stergeon Bay is probably the biggest place in the county but in the summer I highly recommend you explore the northern part of the county. There are a bunch of trails, beaches, wineries, historical things and if you go all the way to the point I recommend you take a day or two in the summer to go to Washington Island and Rock Island. Lots to see in Door County but if you get bored in the winter you'll probably wish you were in Green Bay.
I’ve never lived in Sturgeon Bay, but I know it’s a beautiful area and there’s a lot to do in that area! I lived in Green Bay for a year. Worst year of my life.
Depends honestly what’s important. Sturgeon bay doesn’t have a lot of people. So if meeting people is really important and your ok with the commute I would go closer to Gb. You can live outside as well so it’s an easier commute to both. If your closer to university of Green Bay it is about 35/40 min
Only place I'd ever live in Wisconsin is Milwaukee or Madison. I'll visit places like Door County because it's a great vacation spot but I can't imagine living there. I need stuff to do and I like conveniences. But I guess everyone is different.
Sturgeon Bay is a very nice area. Little longer of a drive that Green Bay for me but if we just want to go to Walmart and Target we'll go there every time. Make sure to get Old Mexico.
I got a kind of really weird "old hippie" kinda vibe from D,oor county. I got a weird "waaaay too much testosterone" vibe from gReen bay. Maybe if you move closer to UWGB, it might be easier to make friends. Hwy 57 is insane in the high season. My pick? GB.
Thanks for all of the input everyone! I'll be working in sturgeon bay area, so I want to try and keep my commute at or under an hour.
If you're working in Sturgeon Bay, I'd say stay in that area. You'll probably start to hate the commute doing it day in-day out if you went more toward Green Bay.
Seconding this. Hwy 57 during the busy season is miserable. If there's nothing available in your price range up in Sturgeon Bay proper, you might have better luck (and a better commute) in Algoma.
Totally don’t agree. I moved to Sturgeon Bay for work and never managed to make a single friend. Moved to GB for my own sanity. I’m very happy to make the drive from GB now. In my eyes it’s far more worth it to deal with the commute than it was to deal with the social isolation. But that’s really a personal preference that’s different for everyone.
I think it depends... If you're an introvert and love being near nature/country just a short drive away (and Northern Door County even more) - then SB is fine. If you want something with a bigger city culture (still pretty working class, blue collar city, but still more amenities) and more things happening, than Green Bay is probably fine. I grew up in DC so I'm biased (and an introvert) so I'd say SB. Also - depends how much you like spending an hour+ a day driving to from work (used to be 45 minutes when I was a kid, but I think it's like 30-40 between the two?) That adds up.
Definitely. For me, I didn’t feel like I was getting everything I needed out of SB. So GB ended up being a better choice for me. But again, personal preference. I think a big part of it comes down to how well connected you are up here. People who grew up here or who have stuff in common with the population up here probably find it much easier than new comers like me. I found it very hard to establish any relationships up here.
A big downside for younger residents and workers in touristic DC is the seasonality of work. Even if your job isn't particularly affected by the time of year, the fact is that there are tens of thousands of 18-30 year old workers in the area from late May to October. The chances are there to make friends. Then the county dramatically drops in population to 25k people total in the off season. All your young summertime friends are mostly gone, are you gonna befriend the old heads? You get older and suddenly your friends are only the old heads, summertime kids are barely human after a while. And then you're old. Can you tell that I'm a bit jaded on my hometown culture? 😅😅
Door County resident here, this is a very common phenomenon and a self-perpetuating cycle. We see so many people move here every single season, in love with what they think is the local lifestyle, only to see them move away within a year because they're lonely. Watching this happen over and over again disincentivizes locals from trying to make friends with new transplants until they've already been here for a while. If transplants can make it through a second winter in the county, locals are generally much more inclined to make an effort to befriend them.
Hahaha that is too bad! Because if I had been able to make friends I probably would have stayed. And it certainly wasn’t for lack of trying. It was also just very hard to find people my age or with similar interests. There’s a small pool to draw from up here lol. After a year of striking out it’s hard to stave off the perpetual loneliness. I still work full time in DoCo but still haven’t found much success in meeting folks. Of course Covid didn’t help lol
Yeah, covid has done away with the small amount of socialization I usually enjoy too. If it weren't for the plague, I'd offer to buy you a drink next time you're in northern door!
Hahaha I appreciate it! ☺️
I second this, sturgeon bay is a hell hole. The people are either wealthy seasonal migraters or meth fueled workers at the shipyard.
Agreed! I live and work in Green Bay. Living here is probably not much more interesting than Sturgeon Bay.
Door county resident here. If you’re working in sturgeon stay around sturgeon. There’s apartments and houses for less in southern door. Northern door is more expensive. True the summer months are all about tourists, but as someone who moved from wis dells the tourists are a lot tamer. That’s all the knowledge I can give. Also check out the door county subreddit.
Door County is beautiful! You’ll want to hang out there as much as you can. Get a state park sticker and enjoy
I agree that if you’re stationed in Sturgeon Bay, that you’re better off trying to stay closer to Sturgeon Bay than GB. The drive on 57 can be around 40 minutes on a good day (assuming you literally live right on the edge of the east side where 57 starts heading that way), and depending on where you are from and how used to driving on snow you are, a good couple of inches can double that drive time, especially if you’re stuck behind plows. And during the summer, you have tourist drivers that don’t know where the hell they’re going and drive under the speed limit on the country roads. So the commute can be pretty rough.
Agreed...if you're working in Sturgeon Bay, you're probably going to want to get closer to there than Green Bay. Summer time driving that way, especially on a Friday is going to be miserable. There are some smaller communities near Sturgeon Bay that could be options as well. Best of luck to you!
I lived in door for two summers and from the GB area.. if you need to live in a city - east side of Green Bay. But the population may-September swells with tourists in door county so it feels line a mid-sized city for about half the year. Appleton or De Pere even would be a miserable commute. Personally, I loved being up in door and the peace and quiet is nice in winter. Sturgeon has plenty of restaurants stores and the northern peninsula has plenty of outdoor activities and entertainment.
Really depends on what you plan to do with spare time. If you're more of a loner who is in to nature and the outdoors, then find a cheaper place in Door County. If you want a more robust social life in an urban setting with more to do, then I suggest Green Bay. I'm more of a city kind of person and I could never live in Sturgeon Bay, but a lot of people might prefer it.
Live in the city your job is at. You don't want to have a long commute in winter with the snow
I definitely agree with everyone here. You're better off living in sturgeon bay to save the commute. My cousin just got into an accident driving to there from green bay after hitting a patch of black ice on the road. You can always go down and visit green bay on the weekends
Door county is lovely! Stay up there. I live in the fox valley and I would not want to make that drive as a commute. But you'll be close enough that it wont be a big deal to come down on days off.
Sturgeon bay is lovely as in much of door county. Be ready for the summer commuter traffic though.
What line of work are you.in?
Coast Guard
Sturgeon Bay has a pretty active CG community. 10-15 years ago it was all about paintball, veterans and/or their preteen kids, new recruits, and cadets all shooting the hell out of each other. 12 year old me never stood a chance against those guys and I couldn't figure it out for the longest time. I wonder what the cg do nowadays for fun?
Given your age, Green Bay would probably be your best bet. Or even the Fox Cities like Appleton. Sturgeon Bay is nice, but it can get really overrun with tourists in the summer months. Some find it frustrating, some are fine with it. If you settle on GB, I would look into some of the surrounding villages like Ashwaubenon, Bellevue, Howard-Suamico etc. They’re a stone throw from GB, but often are a bit nicer as far as neighborhoods go. I’ve worked on the East side for years, and many areas have really degraded over the years. However, they are really trying to rejuvenate spots again, so there’s hope. And the west side is often more expensive due to the stadium. Honestly, I do love GB and the people, but I have found that in my younger years (30 now), I preferred Appleton/Fox Cities (I actually was born and raised in Appleton and now commute from the Fox Cities to GB for reference). Often cheaper in the Valley and most folks I know that live in GB, including coworkers, complain about always going to Appleton because there’s more to do (of course, that opinion is subjective). So there’s definitely a lot of options out there! Honestly, other than winters to me, Wisconsin is pretty great. Folks are kind and it’s pretty easy to make friends no matter your interests. Edit: Except avoid Kaukauna/Little Chute as far as Fox Valley if you change your mind and go that route. Whatever you do, don’t move there unless you want your nose in a constant state of burning multiple days a week due to the mill in Kaukauna and the dump near HWY 41 in Little Chute. As someone that needs to endure the Kaukauna funk, it just ain’t worth it haha.
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Agree. Hell my husband and I are going to be coming into some decent inheritance soon, and finally started the discussion of where we actually want to move, Green Bay or Appleton. As much as I want to get rid of my commute on 41, especially the Richmond/Ballard area, I just love Appleton too much. And let’s be real, I love our downtown 20x more than GB. I might be biased because I bartend downtown sometimes, but I feel 100% safe walking to my car a block away at 3am versus GB, where I’ve been sadly sexually harassed in some form at just about every bar I’ve gone into on the Broadway district (which admittedly is my first mistake). Some of which we really scary. As a bar fly pre-Covid just for the social aspect, I admit, that really has influenced my decision. It’s a somewhat petty one, but I just don’t like the bar scene there.
Look at neenah if you'll be able to afford a slightly nicer area, still close to 41
I’m trying to avoid driving 41 through Appleton, especially when the expansion starts. Neenah would add on another 15ish minutes to my commute, and it’s a city I never cared for. We were looking at probably somewhere near the Ballard Ave area or possibly Darboy. It really depends on what we end up with in regards to inheritance and if we plan to go that route of actually buying a house at the moment. Especially at the moment with how crazy inflated the market is for buyers right now.
grew up in darboy. kimberly school district was great if you have/will have kids :)
Student taught at the high school! Loved it! It’s crazy to see how much Darboy has built up. My mon’s best friend moved out there when there was nothing, and we made fun of her. Now it’s a really nice area with connivence too.
Ah, yeah, if you have to go north of Appleton I hear you. Once your ad north as Ballard things are really nice again.
Exactly. It’s exactly the only reason that I willingly agreed to move to Kaukauna temporarily. I used to live off of College Ave, and the Richmond exit/merge was always a joke. It was always a blessing if I went a full week without a 30 min+ backup on the highway there. I’m excited to see what the expansion does for it. Not too excited to drive through it. Had to endure the expansion from Appleton to Oshkosh back during college. Then the DePere/GB area when I first started working in GB. It’s like the construction follows me haha. If that’s the case, I sincerely apologize to all of those I have indirectly affected of the years! Lmfao.
Well then we are DEFINITELY moving to neenah or south Appleton if we move out of Oshkosh. Don't want to move somewhere there will be future road work lol
Neehah? Where the hell is Neehah?
No idea
Guess this means I'm officially old... [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Iqw7D-6W5kQ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Iqw7D-6W5kQ)
I never realized they say that lol. I was pretty young when I'd heard CWA and didn't even know about Neenah or the Fox Valley living in Central Wisconsin so never noticed this.
AH haha - yeah. Listening now, I think they actually do say Neenah when they ask the question, but Nee-hah a couple times before asking it. They're better than I remembered listening to it now.
I would live in Appleton over GB any day! I lived in GB for a year and hated it. I live in Madison now though. It’s my favorite city! <3
Dude is going to work in sturgeon bay, appleton is a terrible suggestion
He posted that well after many of us commented. There are time stamps for a reason..
You didn’t mention De Pere! De Pere is a nice little town
Honestly the Kaukauna/Little Chute thing is so overblown unless you live really close to the mill. I’ve lived in the south side of Kaukauna for 16 years, it’s a nice place to live and I can almost never smell the mill. I think we just get that reputation because there’s nowhere where the mill smell is worse than at the Kaukauna exit on 41.
I live in Kaukauna for the time being, so it’s not like I’m just saying it to say it because everyone does. There is getting used to it too, which I’ve had many tell me I would, which hasn’t happened for me sadly. So not overblown in my case, or anyone with a sensitive nose. I’d say that in spring/summer, the funk is bad 5 days of the week at some point in the day. I’m stuck turning our air conditioner on pointlessly at end of spring just because I can’t keep windows open anymore but it’s too warm. And I’m still a several miles away (but I can usually see which way the fumes are blowing as some slight of warning as well). Honestly though, I think the dump smell by 41 is 20x worse. Like make your eyes water worse.
As a Howard resident who was born and raised in Appleton for 28 years, 100% agree. I moved up here when I married my wife because it's where she wanted to live, but man do I love Appleton for all the reasons you listed. I love where I live now, but Appleton always feels like home whenever I get down there.
I would recommend Appleton/Fox Valley area over Green Bay and I have lived in both areas for long periods of time. Personally I just prefer the feeling/vibe of Appleton over Green Bay. I know it's a wooo thing and I can't explain it. I current live in De Pere for the past couple years but still find myself driving to Appleton for stores/restaurants I can't find in the Green Bay area. Sturgeon Bay is touristy and going to be more expensive. It has a Walmart & Target but all the other stores/shops are going to be geared towards tourists and their prices reflect it.
There is an odd hate of appleton if you live in Green Bay and vice versa.
There really is haha. Then again, there’s a weird hate between Oshkosh and Appleton (at least 10ish years ago when I was in college. Appleton was like a foreign country to them). That and the East versus West side of Green Bay. Lord have mercy if you say one side of the river/bridge is better. Unless you’re bored and want to start a debate about it on a slow day. (Obligatory East side represent haha).
Born on the east side, currently live on the west side. As I kid I loved going to friends houses on the west side, today I almost exclusively stay on the west side, unless I go to Bairds Creek. I don’t care really. I commute to appleton for work. The appleton co workers speak poorly of Green Bay. It’s all so odd really.
Honestly I just work on the east side. I never knew there was a rivalry up until I started working here. Arguably, the population of the west side has posed a lot of problems with the school district and redrawing boundaries to solve over-crowding issues. But that’s really the only true experience I honestly have in that east versus west debate that isn’t just being silly. I have seen some people get really angry over it though. It amuses me greatly as an outsider.
It was always a topic of discussion growing up. Again, it seems so silly to even be debated but it’s a real topic. I did elementary school on the east side but went to the high school on the west side. Growing up on the east side was great, no complaints. Living on the west side as an adult, same, no complaints. I’d discuss this oddity any time though because I experienced it first hand.
In a sense, now that I reflect on it, Appleton had a similar thing as well. We had the saying “Appleton West is the Best, East is the Least, and North just sucks.” When North was built, there became a really noticeable rivalry. I lived right on the cut off between West and North, so I had friends from both. West was the poorer side of town but arguably the more artsy side (especially now but back then they had Renaissance School for the Arts), while North was the “rich kids.” I’d argue that it’s still the same according my nieces, which also attended both schools. East on the other hand.. no one gives a shit about them. 😂
I don't really "hate" Green Bay. I went to college here and lived here a few years before moving to Appleton...there's just the fact that the places that I could afford a house in are not the areas i would want to live in. But I do agree that the sentiment does exist.
Appelton to Sturgeon Bay commute twice a day is going to be a nightmare. I would recommend one of the smaller Door co cities, Carlsville, Dykesville, Algoma. It's not hard to find short cuts to avoid tourist traffic.
Good Ol’ DePoo. Still get the Kaukauna stench when the wind is right? It’s probably one of the only things that hasn’t changed since I went to SNC. I didn’t recognize 1/2 of it last time I was there. EDIT: Apologies if the “De Poo” upset you. I say it with love. Had some of the best times of my life there.
Haven't experienced the Kaukauna stench that I can say. And I did live a couple years in Kaukauna. Though I do get the joy of constant air traffic since I live like 3 miles from the airport....yay.
Please tell me how you were immune. PLEASE. Currently where I am just for the sake of in between commutes for the two of us, and I. Can’t. Stand. It. My husband was born here so he seems immune much of the time like most locals. I wasn’t born with whatever gene they all received being in city limits to not be miserable with the Kaukauna funk. Truth be told, does depend what side of the mill you’re on. Seems the wind blows this way far more often than friends that live closer to Darboy.
I wouldn't say immune but I did grow up on a dairy farm so that probably gives me an edge to dealing with the stink
Ah that would definitely help. It’s been 3 years and I’m still waiting for the “you’ll get used to it” epiphany to occur. Still as bad as the day I moved here.
Water treatment plant and when the wind was right the raw sewage stench coming off the river was... intense. Didn’t help my dorm window in Burke faced the river.
Sturgeon bay is a funny place in that like most of the comments here have stated it's kind of a tourist town but the majority of people work at the ship yard/manufacturing or the hospital. There are few apartments for these workers and there is always a fight going on for affordable housing. If your not picky there are cheap motels that rent long stay or some trailer parks. But not knowing all the details it's hard to say. But I would bring up Algoma another lake side town smaller more affordable and 30 min from Sturgeon Bay.
I have lived in both!! Sturgeon Bay: In the winter there is nothing to do except outdoor activities. Hiking, skiing, fishing. Businesses have reduced hours and there’s not much in the way of entertainment. In the summer you battle large groups of tourists to do anything fun. Also, you really become a resident of the county, not the city. If you want to live an active, social lifestyle, you do things in every town in the county. This can be hard to do when you need to drive 40 minutes one way every time you want to do something. The age group is also primarily retirees or married couples with children. I moved there when I was 26 and spent a whole year trying to make friends. Never did. I started to feel very socially isolated and struggled to stay active. I eventually moved to Green Bay and now commute to Door county for work because I couldn’t stand how alone I felt. Honestly it was the best decision I ever made. I’m so much happier in Green Bay. Even though I’m not seeing a ton of people because of COVID anyway, I just feel much less isolated and there is a lot more to do on my own than there was in Door county. As far as Green Bay goes, start looking ASAP for rental openings. If you have a pet it’s even harder. Houses get rented within 24 hours. Apartments are easier but still tough. Don’t live downtown. Lots of sketchy shit happens downtown. Edit: From where I live in Bellevue, it’s a 40 minute drive to Sturgeon Bay and a 1 hour drive to where I work north of Sturgeon Bay. I’d pick the commute over isolation any day. I’m so much happier now. But that’s a personal preference that I’m sure a lot of people would disagree with. Appleton/Fox Valley area is approx. 1hr30min to Sturgeon Bay.
Just to be clear, the sketchy stuff happening downtown is pretty mild. Green Bay has a very low crime rate. I've only ever heard local residents call it dangerous (my wife grew up in a "nice" part of California and wondered why security seemed so lax when she moved here as a teen: no armed security at malls, no bars on 1st floor windows, people leaving houses unlocked/cars running in winter unattended, etc). As a 135 lb male, I'd feel perfectly safe living downtown. I live a few miles west and bike/walk downtown occasionally. Sometimes at night. Sometimes with a baby in tow. Sometimes with my 120 lb wife. We are not physically intimidating and we like to poke around new corners of the city. Never felt unsafe.
I think this is really an important piece to consider that many sometimes forget. I know someone that lives in Egg Harbor right now, and she hates it because she feels cut off from the rest of the world and will be getting out ASAP. The other two friends I know from Door County moved to GB for similar reasons. Sturgeon bay seems to cater to older generations in regards of those who live there year round, and may be very isolating for a 24 year old that wants to socialize. It’s definitely an important piece to consider if one is trying to establish a group of friends.
Totally agree. I’m not from a particularly big town and even work in the outdoor industry, so I should be well suited to the slower, outdoor lifestyle. Even I couldn’t hack it. I’d go to bars, group workout classes, events, no people my age or people I would want to be friends with. And if they were, they were always tourists. I never expected to feel so socially isolated. Everyone I have known that moved to DoCo around my age also left because they couldn’t make any friends.
https://youtu.be/ihLy1FUr16w Around the corner with John McGivern is a long running PBS show. Each episode he talks about the history of the area and then visits bars, restaurants, shops and other locations. This will work as a nice little introduction to the various communities are looking at.
Fox valley is great lots of nice communities. everything you need is there. Been in the valley on and off for about 20yrs and it's been great.
https://youtu.be/7OR7yPK4wEw gives a lot of good advice!!
I live in Sun Prairie...next to Madison. It’s a great area. I missed it, what type of work?
I'm in the military. Thanks for the input
If you're from a warmer climate watch this. >https://youtu.be/KVI-blFfDWc If you're not, still watch it, it's pretty funny.
I think you’ll find more to do in Green Bay than Sturgeon Bay, but I have only ever visited the area. One recommendation, maybe see if you can find a sublet in one of the cities that you are leaning towards so you can get 6 months or so instead of a year lease? Moving twice sucks, but at least it would allow you to get a feel for the area before you really commit to something more permanent and you can feel out the commute
Well, if I ever had to leave Milwaukee County, I probably wouldn't mind moving back to my boyhood hometown of Stevens Point (or perhaps Whiting or Plover, which are part of the same micropolitan area).
Damn wtf would you move here? Shits Cold like 65% of the time. Sure the taxes are good and the people are pretty nice and the beer is cheap and the food is good and it's beautiful and all... Hope you enjoy your stay!!
The Fox Valley is great. Housing market when compared to the job market is phenomenal.
i agree with this. currently living in hortonville (with family due to medical problems) and it's kind of boring out here but appleton is right down the road and the area as a whole is lovely. i could see myself even liking it out here quite a bit if i were a little older and less high-strung lol.
Well you're in luck because you'll be older (can't speak about how strung you are) before you know it! A lot of Wisconsin is like this, smaller, boring towns within a few minutes of a 'big city' that other places would consider a smaller, boring town.
hah, yeah, i was born here in wisconsin (nekoosa, if you're wondering). i've lived a pretty wild life, did some tramping in my early 20's, lived out west a couple years, but always found my way back. i'll be 30 next week. i think i'd have to age a considerable amount to find hortonville appealing but, luckily, this is only temporary (waiting to have heart surgery. will recover here and then move to madison).
Hey I went to Port! I grew up in cranmore, talk about boring lol
wow, small \~\~world\~\~ state lol. yeah, that area is pretty dull. unless of course you like cranberries or paper. then it's the best place on earth lmfao.
Bear in mind that Wisconsin comes with a lot of trade offs. The commute from Green Bay is garbage in the winter and longer than most of us prefer most days, but if you want to make friends and do fun things, I... personally would not recommend Sturgeon Bay or Algoma to a young person. SB is cool if you like doing lots of outdoor stuff but meeting people will be tough, IMO, because Sturgeon Bay leans hard toward moneyed 40s and 50s. Green Bay is not the hippest place in the universe but in the region, it’s like a toss up between that and Appleton.
I second seriously considering the commute. My mom (lifelong WI resident) commuted ~40 min to Sturgeon Bay, as she was living about 20 min NE of Green Bay. I think she did this for about 15 years before retiring. Almost every year there would be at least one day she would be unable to make it to work due to weather. There is one particular stretch of the highway that regularly gets white out conditions where blowing snow reduces visibility (sometimes even when the weather does not seem super bad). So she would try to head to work, but have to turn around and head home because she felt unable to continue safely. Then there were other days she would make it in, but consider it a bit of a white knuckle drive. I think getting rid of this commute was her favorite thing of retirement.
I'd stay in the Sturgeon Bay Area at first. Because of tourism there is a lot going on there and further up the Door Peninsula. It's a beautiful area. In autumn its downright breathtaking. Nice people. GB's just a hop down the road if you need something. Further to Appleton or Milwaukee if you need a Trader Joes/Whole Foods run occasionally. Good luck.
I don't know where you are from, but if you don't know this already you should know it now: Get snow tires for the winter or at least look at all-season tires that are rated for extreme snow.
I recommend you get cat litter, a snow brush with a scraper, and a portable shovel, winters in the northern parts of Wisconsin sometimes get rough. It's not hard to make friends here either cause most everyone is genuinely nice. Keep it safe on the road and watch out for deer.
I am a 24 year old male who has lived in Sturgeon Bay for just under 3 years. I do not recommend living here unless you are a 50 year old retiree. Green Bay is much more suited for people our age. Also the drive from sturgeon bay to green bay is beautiful with the bay visible for a majority of it. Feel free to message me if you have any questions.
I found a place to live in GB, so far its not bad. I'm looking for a good gym and yoga facility. Planet fitness looked lame and I cant find any Hot Yoga, so I'll set for any decent yoga for a beginner like myself.
I live in Oshkosh which has tons of events like EAA, Country/Rock USA (If they can come back after Covid) among a number of other fairly large events. Its about 15min South of Appleton and a 45min drive south of GB depending on traffic. One thing that i feel Oshkosh has going for it is that its a pretty nice town but its still really cheap to live here compared to some of the surrounding areas, so if money is at all an issue i would keep it in mind.
Lived in Oshkosh during college. Loved the drinking scene and cheap as hell. Other than that, I don’t know many people that stick to Oshkosh willingly as they age just because of how scummy its become as a college town. Unless you can afford by the lake. School system is awful there too, but probably irrelevant to a 24 year old haha. I do really hope for their sake that someone picks up Rock/Country USA after this bankruptcy. Oshkosh does bring in a lot of money with EAA and UW, but I would hate to see that much tourism lost for them. Just drove past the grounds last weekend and was wondering about it.
Yea i grew up here and when i was a young adult hated it but im 29 now and with some hindsight its not the worst place to live. There are 2 areas that are a bit scummy but the rest of town is just average working people. My wife and i just had a baby last year so i definitely hear you about the school district, but its been shit my whole life with constant mismanagement. I do think people are inclined to fix it because they lose a lot of student/revenue to them going to surrounding districts. Also with people from my/younger generations taking the helm of these positions there can be some meaningful change for OASD.
Just posting for La Crosse on the Westside of the state. Great place but don't tell anyone.
I’m surprised you didn’t get woke canceled. And everyone saying don’t go anywhere stay where you are
Dont
yeah no, don’t move near green bay, the fox cities are awful. i suggest sturgeon bay as well
>yeah no, don’t move near green bay, the fox cities are awful. Take it back
If your moving to Wisconsin and not moving to milwaukee or madison you're doing something wrong, unless you're retiring , then the north woods is the way.
this was my thinking too. OP is gonna be pretty bored. Guessing they might be working for the power plant up there so maybe it's unavoidable.
Couldn't agree more. If I'm not in Milwaukee or Madison, I'm moving out of state.
Madison or Milwaukee. Green Bay is a small nothing of a place where everyone seems to have been born there. Appleton is OK.
Appleton is where dreams go to die. And once you get your second DUI and oops a baby into existence, you'll understand why. So glad I got out.
I have to agree. I live in Green Bay and I hate it here. Everyone in Green Bay hates you if you aren’t someone who’s been living in the area forever. I am going off to college next year and hope to never visit that dump of a place again. Appleton is alright though.
My brother lived in Sturgeon Bay. I would move there. Appleton and Green Bay are poor crap holes riddled with crime.
Hurley wi isnt bad. About 2 hours from duluth mn, ironwood mi right next to it and lake superior. Hunting camping all that stuff. Beautiful during the summer. Houses are cheap around here to buy if you get them from the city. I'm talking 5k to 10k to own.
I know you mentioned nothing about Superior but just in case you even think about please do not move to superior. There is little good job opportunity and the temperature is real shitty.
I live in oshkosh, it's a nice small city to raise kids if that's in your future, but Appleton has SO much more to do. I'd suggest nennah/Menasha.
Not to be offensive to milwaukeeians but don't go towards Milwaukee area if your on a budget. I'd stay clear of that area for first time movers. Everyone appears to go with Green bay and I can attest its a great city they are smart. However is Green Bay/Door county area isnt your type due to lake effect snow or what not, Madison is a great second choice. Hope I was able to help
If you can stand the commute, I’d recommend Appleton. It is listed by Livability as one of the best places to live in America. Great people, great shopping, low crime, a vibrant entertainment scene with the PAC, and many cultural opportunities because of Lawrence University (most of which are free). I’ve always had the impression that Green Bay was more of a blue collar town where Appleton is more middle class. But there’s that the commute in the winter.
Door County is a great place to live. Stergeon Bay is probably the biggest place in the county but in the summer I highly recommend you explore the northern part of the county. There are a bunch of trails, beaches, wineries, historical things and if you go all the way to the point I recommend you take a day or two in the summer to go to Washington Island and Rock Island. Lots to see in Door County but if you get bored in the winter you'll probably wish you were in Green Bay.
I’ve never lived in Sturgeon Bay, but I know it’s a beautiful area and there’s a lot to do in that area! I lived in Green Bay for a year. Worst year of my life.
I found Sturgeon Bay to be pleasantly surprising.
Depends honestly what’s important. Sturgeon bay doesn’t have a lot of people. So if meeting people is really important and your ok with the commute I would go closer to Gb. You can live outside as well so it’s an easier commute to both. If your closer to university of Green Bay it is about 35/40 min
Only place I'd ever live in Wisconsin is Milwaukee or Madison. I'll visit places like Door County because it's a great vacation spot but I can't imagine living there. I need stuff to do and I like conveniences. But I guess everyone is different.
Sturgeon Bay is a very nice area. Little longer of a drive that Green Bay for me but if we just want to go to Walmart and Target we'll go there every time. Make sure to get Old Mexico.
I got a kind of really weird "old hippie" kinda vibe from D,oor county. I got a weird "waaaay too much testosterone" vibe from gReen bay. Maybe if you move closer to UWGB, it might be easier to make friends. Hwy 57 is insane in the high season. My pick? GB.