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Hi everyone!!
I apologize in advance for the length of this post! lol
My husband is considering taking a job in downtown Milwaukee. We have 4 children ranging in age from 14 to 2 and I am a stay at home mom (my husband and I are both 35). We live in SC now but he is originally from NC and I'm from England. Culture is very important to us as is an area where we will have lots of activities (especially outdoors). I don't think that I want to move to the suburbs as I truly am a city girl at heart and we live in the suburbs now. I don't like having to drive to everything and I would like my children to experience the same kind of independence (not having to rely on us to drive them everywhere they want to go) that I got to enjoy growing up in a city. Anyway, I have a few questions...
1. Are there areas in the city that are better then others to raise kids?
2. How are the schools in the city?
3. Pros and cons of living in Milwaukee?
4. How is the racial and alternative lifestyle tolerance there?
I'm biracial (black and white) and my husband is black. We teach our children to accept people of all races and i have a lot of gay friends so living in a community that is very accepting and open and is a mix of races is very important to me and my family.
I know that that was kind of long and I apologize. I have done a lot of research on the area but wanted some input from people that are actually living there. I'd like to thank you ladies in advance for any help/advice that you could give me.
I apologize in advance for the length of this post! lol
My husband is considering taking a job in downtown Milwaukee. We have 4 children ranging in age from 14 to 2 and I am a stay at home mom (my husband and I are both 35). We live in SC now but he is originally from NC and I'm from England. Culture is very important to us as is an area where we will have lots of activities (especially outdoors). I don't think that I want to move to the suburbs as I truly am a city girl at heart and we live in the suburbs now. I don't like having to drive to everything and I would like my children to experience the same kind of independence (not having to rely on us to drive them everywhere they want to go) that I got to enjoy growing up in a city. Anyway, I have a few questions...
1. Are there areas in the city that are better then others to raise kids?
2. How are the schools in the city?
3. Pros and cons of living in Milwaukee?
4. How is the racial and alternative lifestyle tolerance there?
I'm biracial (black and white) and my husband is black. We teach our children to accept people of all races and i have a lot of gay friends so living in a community that is very accepting and open and is a mix of races is very important to me and my family.
I know that that was kind of long and I apologize. I have done a lot of research on the area but wanted some input from people that are actually living there. I'd like to thank you ladies in advance for any help/advice that you could give me.
16 Comments for "Considering moving to Milwaukee"
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Hi there! I've got some time to kill, so I don't mind answering your long post with a long post of my own.
1. Are there areas in the city that are better then others to raise kids?
Most people will tell you the suburbs are best for raising kids. They may be right. But downtown has really grown in the last ten years, with condos going up everywhere and more families moving in. If we could afford it, I'd love to raise my son downtown. Also, Bay View, a neighborhood about 10 minutes south of downtown, is full of families and a strong community feel. As far as suburbs go, the ones closer to the city (Wauwatosa, Shorewood, Greenfield, Greendale) aren't as "suburban feeling" as some of the further-out suburbs (Brookfield, Mequon, Germantown, Pewaukee). It's possible to live in a suburb like Wauwaotosa or Shorewood and enjoy the nicer neighborhood while still being a 10-15 drive from downtown.
2. How are the schools in the city?
The Milwaukee Public School system isn't great. I'm a product of it, so I'm proof that you can get a decent education through MPS, but I'm not sure I want to send my son there (he's one and a half). The suburban school systems are all pretty good, and there are plenty of private options.
3. Pros and cons of living in Milwaukee?
Pros: lots to do year-round (museums, theater, restaurants), but especially lots to do in the summer (festivals, parks, Lake Michigan).
Cons: cold in the winter, and see #4.
4. How is the racial and alternative lifestyle tolerance there?
It depends on where you are in the area. Unfortunately, Milwaukee is pretty segregated. I'm going to generalize here, but if you get out to a lot of the suburbs, you don't find a lot of black people. The east side of Milwaukee, downtown, Bay View...those are the neighborhoods where you'll find diversity (racial and lifestyle) and a generally more accepting attitude of those who look different. Most of the suburbs...lots and lots of white folks, with varying degrees of racial tolerance. -
I second Bayview, kind of an eclectic, artsy, bohemian neighborhood. My daughter lives there, I live in Wauwatosa, which isn't too bad, schools here are better, (less fighting,bad behavior and such ) And hey, one of my friends around the corner is from England.
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Smoove D pretty much summed it up. MPS (public school system) in Milwaukee definitely has its issues. BUT, there are alternatives like school choice where you can send you child to a school outside the district.
There is a TON of fun stuff to do in Milwaukee. There is pretty much a festival every weekend in the summer and even in the Winter you can find some fun activities, inside and outside. -
Thank you so much for your responses. I had heard that it was a segregated city while reading so thanks for letting me know about the more diverse neighborhoods.
While looking at homes I had seen ones that I was interested in that were on the east side but I will have to check out Bayview as well.
Thanks again! -
I love Milwaukee - the arts here are truly on par with that of much bigger cities - the Milwaukee Art Museum, Milwaukee Ballet & The Milwaukee Youth Symphony Orchestra to name a few... not to mention all of the smaller galleries and live music. It's a very vibrant city without all of the stress of a huge city (very rare to be in a traffic jam for example).
Milwaukee Public Schools have a bad reputation though test scores of elementary schools are above average nationally but drop off sharply at the High School level. Which is sad.
Neighborhoods vary - you just have to check it out... I love the east side but moved after I had kids. You might check out Bayview, Washington Heights, Wauwatosa.
Good luck! -
We live on the northwest side of Milwaukee - right around 97th and Good Hope...VERY racially diverse in this particular area. Other pockets like this one exist, but yes, unfortunately Milwakee is pretty segregated overall. MPS has some great schools, people on here have been helpful in recommending the ones with a good rep once you peg down which area you live in. Wisconsin has open enrollment into other districts which is pretty unique so you don't have to choose where you live just so your kids can attend a certain school. Also lots of private and charter schools to choose from. I love the entertainment and stuff to do in Milwaukee. Lake Michigan is awesome, lots of free music events, we have a nice park system that is often overlooked, prof. baseball and basketball (although I'd rather go to a Marquette game than a Bucks game) and it's a pretty easy place to meet people and get around by car. I go crazy driving in some cities! Good luck with your transition!
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Stanyo mentioned something I forgot...sports! Brewers, Bucks, Marquette, Packers (two hours north), Badgers (90 minutes west). I don't know how I forgot about that—I'm a Brewers season ticket holder.
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bayview is nice, but does have some rough edges. but i think u will get that anywhere. i'm from st. francis, which is right next to bayview. my husband went to bayview hs and he isn't too proud of it, as it was/is considered a lower-class education. when i went to st. francis it was smaller (400 staff and students) and everyone got along with everyone. the yr after i graduated they granted open enrollment, which meant 200 students from all over the milwaukee area chose to come to school there. it definitely changed the dynamics of the school. i haven't been back in a couple of yrs but the school has adapted to all the changes in the last 10 yrs and still thrives as a "good" school.
my husband and i currently live in franklin, a suburb of milwaukee. we r still within 5 mins of downtown. we have access to everything that u would need. we live in a nice subdivision with a pond that we take our dog for walks around daily. we have a black and ukranian family across the street from us. there r also multiple families that r from the middle east. on a daily basis we have families of all nationalities walking in front of our house. it is actually very neat to c who actually lives in our subdivision. kids, dogs, elderly and young couples, etc. -
i would suggest as u r looking for places to live, look at the history of the cities. wauwatosa has an older vibe but u can find beautiful homes. brookfield is an up and coming area, but can be pricey. bayview, st. francis, and cudahy also have an older vibe to them but r working to update. downtown has great condos, but u have to include parking costs and noise level. west allis is also an older area and does have rough spots. franklin, new berlin, greenfield, greendale i think r basically the same and continuing to grow yearly and keeping up with the times. u can find great places to live all within 25 min of downtown and not feel ur missing out on anything or always driving to find what u need.
feel free to contact me if u want: nellzbell@yahoo.com. -
i would suggest as u r looking for places to live, look at the history of the cities. wauwatosa has an older vibe but u can find beautiful homes. brookfield is an up and coming area, but can be pricey. bayview, st. francis, & cudahy also have an older vibe to them but r working to update. downtown has great condos, but u have to include parking costs and noise level. west allis is also an older area and does have rough spots. franklin, new berlin, greenfield, greendale i think r basically the same and continuing to grow yearly and keeping up with the times. u can find great places to live all within 25 min of downtown and not feel ur missing out on anything or always driving to find what u need. feel free to contact me if u want: nellzbellz@yahoo.com.
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i would suggest as u r looking for places to live, look at the history of the cities. wauwatosa has an older vibe but u can find beautiful homes. brookfield is an up & coming area, but can be pricey. bayview, st. francis, & cudahy also have an older vibe to them but r working to update. downtown has great condos, but u have to include parking costs & noise level. west allis is also an older area & does have rough spots. franklin, new berlin, greenfield, greendale i think r basically the same & continuing to grow yearly and keeping up with the times. u can find great places to live all within 25 min of downtown & not feel ur missing out on anything or always driving to find what u need. feel free to contact me if u want: nellzbellz@yahoo.com.
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Come to the city for a visit before you make a decision. Mu husband and I were both born and raised here and have traveled extensively in the US. We agree that we like Mke best. If cold weather is difficult for you, this may not be the place. But if you like variance of weather and lots of family activities, Milwaukee has it. Sports are big in this area and the arts scene is on par with any major city in the country. Sometimes we get caught up living in Chicago's shadow. My husband and I are caucasian and adopted to african american children from Milwaukee. We live 10 miles outside of the city. We have not had any significant problems. MPS is a school system in crisis, HOWEVER, the system has a few jewels. We choose to drive our daugther to Milwaukee German Immersion School (w/in MPS) every day for a great education in a classroom that is diverse. Shorewood has been recommended to me as a community that embraces cultural and sexual diversity. Good luck.
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I'll put in a shout out from the northern 'burbs- Shorewood and Whitefish Bay anyway. We live in the 5100 block north in Whitefish Bay, the Art Museum is around 800N so obviously it's not too far. Bus line, cab ride about $15, 5-15 minutes drive. Great schools. Not a lot of ethnic diversity in WB (more in SW) but you know I think it's pretty open to it- lots of educated people, SW is more liberal politically but I think WB is socially liberal- we voted overwhelmingly for marriage equality in 2006 anyway (although it failed in the state overall, sadly). The schools here have a 220 program which means there are about 20% seats reserved for Milwaukee residents who are wanting to go to a better public school. Many fo those kids are African American so it's not like yours would stick out for having brown skin or anything.
Like 'Tosa, these are walking suburbs. Many homes are walking distance from the schools and shops. You see a lot of burleys around, lots of moms even use the burley to grocery shop. Low crime, better schools than Bay View. Bay View has a lot going for it but with 4 kids schools are going to be a big issue for you I presume.
Good luck with your decision! -
We're an interracial family (I'm white and my husband is black) and we lived in Riverwest for our first 3 years here which was great. Riverwest is supposed to be the most ethnically diverse neighborhood in the city and it's full of students, some older people, families and singles. There's gay and straight, strange and boring, artists, lawyers, teachers, etc. It's also got some crime that was a little tough so when we bought, we bought in Washington Heights. We're still in the city, still conveniently located, still in a racially mixed neighborhood but all with a much lower crime rate. Both neighborhoods are worth checking out.
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Just wanted to add that Brown Deer (close to where Stanyo is) is also racially diverse! Probably too far out of the city though (even though we are technically walking distance to the city of Milw)
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