Living in Bloomington

[gregkl]

Looking for some opinions, comments, etc on living in Bloomington. This week I turned down an interview for a potential job that could be a great fit for me. The reason: I will have to relocate from Lafayette to Bloomington. Now I am having second thoughts and I have contacted the guy and asked if we could still talk. If he decides I am not too wishy-washy and will talk to me, I would like to learn what I can about the area. I have been there for both personal and business reasons, but not enough to get a feel for the area.

Cost of living.
Ranges in the area.
Crime.
Housing.

Any feedback is appreciated. It would be tough to leave here. We like our home and finally have it set the way we want it. I have a great local range. Of course, friends and neighbors too.

 

[JeremiahJohnson]

Bloomington proper - because of IU - is relatively liberal. Don't know of any gun ranges in the area...Camp Atterbury is a nice range. I lived in Bloomington years ago and fled to Lawrence County to get away from the liberal mind set. I've never been shown the door for carrying in Bloomington, but I conceal. Cost of living is probably what you're used to. Crime is relatively low, though a good number of people I work with live in Bloomington and Im hearing more break-ins than I used to.

 

[Mr. Habib]

1) Not too bad especially if you live outside of Bloomington proper.
2) SCGC, Martinsville, Panther Ridge, Sycamore Valley, Atterbury.
3) Again not bad, especially if you ignore the drunken students.
4) Much cheaper outside of Bloomington. Even better outside Monroe county.
Generally speaking, it's a pretty good area to live in. Lots of stuff to do an see, with a pretty good range of places to eat.
I live about 10 minutes outside of town and have worked and lived in the area for almost 30 years. if you have any specific questions feel free to PM me.

 

[gregkl]

I just need to be within reasonable driving distance to the office where I will work. And not too far away from grocery stores and such for my wife. I probably wouldn't live in Bloomington proper but maybe a nice development if one exists in the area. Or a little bit out of town. I have to be careful because my wife is rather social. If I moved her to the country away from everyone, she would not be as happy as she is here.

 

[CountryBoy19]

I can't say much about living IN Bloomington... I live 20 minutes south, between Bloomington and Bedford. I will NEVER live in Monroe County out of principle alone (higher taxes, ridiculous laws etc). Bloomington may be the liberal mecca of Indiana but once you get out of town it gets conservative and rural pretty quickly. To be honest though, outside of the local laws and BS in Bloomington/Monroe County, you won't really notice how liberal it is except the bumper stickers.

Bloomington has a LOT to offer, especially if you like healthfood, natural food, ethnic stuff etc. Having a large university has brought a lot of diversity. IMHO diversity isn't necessarily a bad thing. My wife and I shop in Bloomington frequently.

Cost of living & housing: I'm not sure what cost of living you're inquiring about. Outside of housing the cost of living is pretty stable all across Indiana. As far as housing, if you get out of Monroe County it's super cheap. For example, I bought a nice new-build house for $40/sf when the market was in the dumps in 09. The closer you get to Bloomington the higher housing prices go. If you're looking to rent you will have a hard time. Bloomington seems to be very difficult to find a decent rental in for some reason. It can be done, but you may be in for surprise; it would be cheaper to pay a mortgage on a largish house out of town than to rent a modest apartment in-town.

Ranges: Martinsville Conservation Club, but good luck getting a membership there... other than that your options are limited. There is the private range that the local Appleseed Contingent shoots at in Lawrence County but I don't think the owner opens that up except for scheduled shoots etc. There are options though. The area has a LOT of firearms enthusiasts. You have to befriend one or two, and work your way into their connections and you can get out to some property somewhere to do shooting.

Crime: Fairly low... every town has it's crime-ridden parts, I don't really know where those are in Bloomington but I'm sure others can tell you... outside of town there will be the odd tweaker looking for easy targets for theft (unlocked cars etc) to get things to pawn for their next fix. But you'll have that everywhere you go. I've lived in my house for going on 5 years now and haven't had a single problem. I live in a nice neighborhood with a law-enforcement presence.

If you don't mind a 20 min. drive to Bloomington, I'm think one of the houses in my sub-division is for rent right now. I may be able to get you contact info. Nice, quiet little area with easy highway access for a quick drive.

 

[gregkl]

I can't say much about living IN Bloomington... I live 20 minutes south, between Bloomington and Bedford. I will NEVER live in Monroe County out of principle alone (higher taxes, ridiculous laws etc). Bloomington may be the liberal mecca of Indiana but once you get out of town it gets conservative and rural pretty quickly. To be honest though, outside of the local laws and BS in Bloomington/Monroe County, you won't really notice how liberal it is except the bumper stickers.

Bloomington has a LOT to offer, especially if you like healthfood, natural food, ethnic stuff etc. Having a large university has brought a lot of diversity. IMHO diversity isn't necessarily a bad thing. My wife and I shop in Bloomington frequently.

Cost of living & housing: I'm not sure what cost of living you're inquiring about. Outside of housing the cost of living is pretty stable all across Indiana. As far as housing, if you get out of Monroe County it's super cheap. For example, I bought a nice new-build house for $40/sf when the market was in the dumps in 09. The closer you get to Bloomington the higher housing prices go. If you're looking to rent you will have a hard time. Bloomington seems to be very difficult to find a decent rental in for some reason. It can be done, but you may be in for surprise; it would be cheaper to pay a mortgage on a largish house out of town than to rent a modest apartment in-town.

Ranges: Martinsville Conservation Club, but good luck getting a membership there... other than that your options are limited. There is the private range that the local Appleseed Contingent shoots at in Lawrence County but I don't think the owner opens that up except for scheduled shoots etc. There are options though. The area has a LOT of firearms enthusiasts. You have to befriend one or two, and work your way into their connections and you can get out to some property somewhere to do shooting.

Crime: Fairly low... every town has it's crime-ridden parts, I don't really know where those are in Bloomington but I'm sure others can tell you... outside of town there will be the odd tweaker looking for easy targets for theft (unlocked cars etc) to get things to pawn for their next fix. But you'll have that everywhere you go. I've lived in my house for going on 5 years now and haven't had a single problem. I live in a nice neighborhood with a law-enforcement presence.

If you don't mind a 20 min. drive to Bloomington, I'm think one of the houses in my sub-division is for rent right now. I may be able to get you contact info. Nice, quiet little area with easy highway access for a quick drive.

I drive 40 minutes each way now for my job so 45 minutes or less is acceptable. We would be looking to buy, but it may take a little while to find the right place. I will be looking for a diamond in the rough that I can buy under market and then fix up.

 

[cook5oh]

I've lived in Bloomington most of my life and cant imagine living somewhere else. Low crime, friendly people, great food and plenty to do. You always here about how B-town is this liberal wasteland, but thats misleading. It's more of a nice mix of diversity. Yeah, there are plenty of whack jobs too, but you'll find most of the people are good. Cost of living is very high in the city but if you move out into the county it becomes much cheaper. Closest range would be panther ridge on the west side.

 

[JeremiahJohnson]

Forgot to mention that if you're interested in living just inside Lawrence County and just outside of Monroe County - about 20 minutes from downtown Bloomington - There's a nice development that just opened a new section with only three lots sold so far. The lots are about 2 acres, just off Hwy 37, 10 minutes from Bedford, 25 minutes from Crane, 20 minutes from Bloomington. Nice homes. PM me if you're interested I can give you better directions.

 

[DoggyDaddy]

Martinsville might be an option for you too. It's roughly halfway between Bloomington and Indy... about 30 minutes south of Indy and about 20 minutes north of Bloomington. Might give you (and your wife) some of the benefits you're looking for. It's also in Morgan County as opposed to Monroe. Speaking of Monroe, you'd have Lake Monroe close by too, for boating, camping, some hunting. Morgan-Monroe state forest is just south of Martinsville too for additional hiking, camping, hunting.

 

[Landon]

Great topic Greg!

I am in the process myself of relocating to Bloomington. I am relocating to run a project for my current employer. I however will be renting as the project will be completed in 2 years and at that point I don't know where the future may take me with the company. If you do end up having to rent for a period of time, I can tell you its very difficult to find something decent. If you do fine one you better jump on it ASAP as it will be rented in a couple of days. As someone else mention, you can easily pay a mortgage for the price of rent in Bloomington. I think that has a lot to do with it being a college town. That's about all I can say about Bloomington at this point.

Interested to hear all the responses though.

 

[Dr.Midnight]

I was born and raised in Monroe County, and there isn't much I can add to this discussion that hasn't already been said. Everyone's assessments are pretty much spot on. I enjoy living and working here, and I think it's a great place to raise a family. We would welcome you with open arms if you do decide to relocate.

 

[gregkl]

Thanks all for the comments so far! I am going to talk to the HR guy tomorrow and we will see if it leads to an interview with the hiring manager. I am not too worried about the liberals. We have our fair share across the river in West Lafayette to.

I'll post the results of my interview once I have one with the hiring manager.

My wife and I will most likely take a day trip down there on Saturday.

 

[gregkl]

My wife and I are going to at least spend the day there. We were going to stay overnight in a BnB, but decided one full day is good for now. It's not like I have an offer yet.

Can any of you recommend some places to eat lunch and then dinner later on? Not too expensive but something that will give us a bit of the local flavor. We are not into pubs and bars.

 

[Mr. Habib]

Aside from the usual chain restaurants on third street on the east side near the mall and on the west side near Hwy 37 you'll find a lot of choices downtown around the square. Nick's, on Kirkwood near the IU Sample gates is a local legend, but it doesn't meet the 'not a bar' criteria. The Trojan Horse on the corner of Kirkwood and Walnut is good, especially if you're into Greek food. Opie Taylor's just north on Walnut is pretty good also.
you might also look into the Irish Lion west or the square or Macri's deli on Morton. Lots of choices in that general area from pizza to Italian to Tibetan.

 

[GodFearinGunTotin]

I lived in Bloomington for about 15 years. I grew tired of crowded, narrow streets, that made it difficult to get from one side of town to another. The city is run by extremely liberal democrats, so if you don't mind your tax money being spent on rails-to-trails, propping up old, decaying movie theaters, and things of that sort; forcing people into recycling programs; and rude people Bloomington will be great. In fairness, most of the local natives are good people but the students can be maddening--June-August is great when they're gone. "Diversity" is not that important to me but many people value it so if that's you, there's plenty of it in Bloomington. Housing can be on the high side. My step kids are in the process of selling a old, not-so-special home, fairly near the campus and they've got an offer for it in the $250K range.

If you're job is near 37, as others have mentioned, you may want to look for housing away from the university and downtown. To a certain extent, the west side of town is almost like being in a different town. Driving from 37 into that downtown area can be a challenge to your patience.

 

[shibumiseeker]

I've lived in Bloomington most of my life and cant imagine living somewhere else. Low crime, friendly people, great food and plenty to do. You always here about how B-town is this liberal wasteland, but thats misleading. It's more of a nice mix of diversity. Yeah, there are plenty of whack jobs too, but you'll find most of the people are good. Cost of living is very high in the city but if you move out into the county it becomes much cheaper. Closest range would be panther ridge on the west side.

This.

I was born and raised in Bloomington, and while I moved one county away, that was for the cheap land more than anything (at the time I bought, REALLY cheap). I still spend a lot of time there, more now that I am working a "real" job (I sold my business last year and am semi-retired at the tender age of 44, working part time doing something I love).

Bloomington, while more liberal than many other places, really is a very middle of the road place politically. Which of course means that people on the far right or left think the place is ultraliberal or ultraconservative. There are extremists on both sides, but you can find people of similar mind to you (whatever that mind is), pretty readily.

If you like big city amenities but hate a big city it's a really great place.

Cost of living is a little higher than surrounding counties, but unless you are going to live in town, rents and housing prices are not horrible. Crime is low to moderate. I've never been hassled about OC by the cops.

It is a diverse and colorful culture and it's a pretty decent place overall unless you are the type of person who thinks Rush Limbaugh is too liberal.

 

[gregkl]

I lived in Bloomington for about 15 years. I grew tired of crowded, narrow streets, that made it difficult to get from one side of town to another. The city is run by extremely liberal democrats, so if you don't mind your tax money being spent on rails-to-trails, propping up old, decaying movie theaters, and things of that sort; forcing people into recycling programs; and rude people Bloomington will be great. In fairness, most of the local natives are good people but the students can be maddening--June-August is great when they're gone. "Diversity" is not that important to me but many people value it so if that's you, there's plenty of it in Bloomington. Housing can be on the high side. My step kids are in the process of selling a old, not-so-special home, fairly near the campus and they've got an offer for it in the $250K range.

If you're job is near 37, as others have mentioned, you may want to look for housing away from the university and downtown. To a certain extent, the west side of town is almost like being in a different town. Driving from 37 into that downtown area can be a challenge to your patience.

I think the job is just west of 37 off 3rd street near the Ivy Tech campus. I do remember the traffic being a problem the times I was there. As far as the campus we would treat it much the way we do West Lafayette. We go to it when the kids are gone. My wife and I are homebodies. We don't go into Lafayette much at all. We live at the edge actually out in the county out of the city limits. I would probably look for a similar set up.

Rails-to-Trails would be fine. I will probably use them. Recycling; my wife does that now. We pay our trash pickup extra, put it in separate bins and have to hang on to it for two weeks and then they probably just throw it in the landfill with the other trash. Rudeness. Well I will find out. I have a hard time thinking of mid westerner's being rude. I don't even think New Yorkers are rude. That's just the way they act.

$250K for a house doesn't sound so good. My house is worth $170 tops and I want to buy for less, much less if possible if I have to move.

 

[shibumiseeker]

$250K for a house doesn't sound so good. My house is worth $170 tops and I want to buy for less, much less if possible if I have to move.

Near campus is the key. Out in the county you can readily find $60k for something in need of serious love to $150k for a pretty nice place.

 

[GodFearinGunTotin]

I think the job is just west of 37 off 3rd street near the Ivy Tech campus. I do remember the traffic being a problem the times I was there. As far as the campus we would treat it much the way we do West Lafayette. We go to it when the kids are gone. My wife and I are homebodies. We don't go into Lafayette much at all. We live at the edge actually out in the county out of the city limits. I would probably look for a similar set up.

Rails-to-Trails would be fine. I will probably use them. Recycling; my wife does that now. We pay our trash pickup extra, put it in separate bins and have to hang on to it for two weeks and then they probably just throw it in the landfill with the other trash. Rudeness. Well I will find out. I have a hard time thinking of mid westerner's being rude. I don't even think New Yorkers are rude. That's just the way they act.

$250K for a house doesn't sound so good. My house is worth $170 tops and I want to buy for less, much less if possible if I have to move.

Just by reading this thread, you can see people perceive things differently. if you're used to college towns, (I guess Lafayette ~ West Lafayette....dunno), you'll probably be ok with Bloomington. I-69 is just now starting to hit Bloomington. The area you're talking about will be affected by the interstate construction for probably the next 2-3 years. I'm sure, while you're down, you'll see one of those real estate ad-books laying around. You can get an idea of housing prices--you can find all ranges. It mainly depends on what location you're looking in.

We go up there 3-4 times per year. We're homebodies as well. Thanks to Dish Network Satellite internet service, Amazon.com, Midway USA, etc., there's just not much reason to get up there and fight that silliness.

 

[gregkl]

Just by reading this thread, you can see people perceive things differently. if you're used to college towns, (I guess Lafayette ~ West Lafayette....dunno), you'll probably be ok with Bloomington. I-69 is just now starting to hit Bloomington. The area you're talking about will be affected by the interstate construction for probably the next 2-3 years. I'm sure, while you're down, you'll see one of those real estate ad-books laying around. You can get an idea of housing prices--you can find all ranges. It mainly depends on what location you're looking in.

We go up there 3-4 times per year. We're homebodies as well. Thanks to Dish Network Satellite internet service, Amazon.com, Midway USA, etc., there's just not much reason to get up there and fight that silliness.

A couple of my favorite "places" to shop!