Tell me about Cedar Rapids

[RedRaider42]

I posted this on your scout board, but one of my Techsan buds said this is the ISU forum to post on.

Anyway, I'm getting out of the military soon and have a pretty good shot at a really good job in the Cedar Rapids area, and I'm looking for info on the area. I've never lived in Iowa and I was wondering what sort of a town is Cedar Rapids, good areas to live and what the schools are like.

I know it's closer to Iowa City than Ames, but I trust my Big XII brethren much more. Thanks for the help guys!

 

[19210]

I posted this on your scout board, but one of my Techsan buds said this is the ISU forum to post on.

Anyway, I'm getting out of the military soon and have a pretty good shot at a really good job in the Cedar Rapids area, and I'm looking for info on the area. I've never lived in Iowa and I was wondering what sort of a town is Cedar Rapids, good areas to live and what the schools are like.

I know it's closer to Iowa City than Ames, but I trust my Big XII brethren much more. Thanks for the help guys!

Thanks for serving this great country of ours! I wish I had some insight on Cedar Rapids, but I don't. I just wanted to thank you and all of those serving in the armed forces, including your families, thank you!

 

[Triggermv]

I live in Cedar Rapids (Marion specifically) and I like to describe the area as a mostly blue collar town with a ton of engineers (mostly from Rockwell and a few other) and a few financial professionals (mostly from TransAmerica). I wouldn't necessarily call it a super industrial town (I've seen way worse), but it is pretty strong industrial town with big plants from Quaker Oats, General Mills, Penford (ethanol plant), International Paper (recycling plant) and ADM (currently world's biggest ethanol plant). The nickname for Cedar Rapids is the City of 5 Seasons and those 5 plants have given it the backroom nickname of the City of 5 Smells.

As for Demographic, the town is mostly made up of middle class married families. If you are looking for a great town for young singles, it has a few of them, but probably isn't the greatest place on the earth. I had a couple single buddies who moved from Cedar Rapids due to the lack of options for singles. Cities like Kansas City, Des Moines, Omaha, and even Iowa City are much better for young singles.

As for good restaurants, the town is mostly loaded with a little behind the curve chain restaurants, but does have a few hidden gems. In particular, I think the town has some great Mexican restaurants and a couple of the best pizza joints I've ever been to (and I've been around the world to try a lot). Those two pizza restaurants are Tomassos (best) and Zoeys.

Entertainment wise, I'd say the town is somewhat lacking, but is comparable to most fairly blue collar towns its size. It has some decent movie theaters, has a nice Theater for performances downtown, and has a few good bars downtown, including a fun piano bar. The downtown got completely flooded out a few years ago, but I'd actually say it is finally coming out better than ever. They are finally doing some good development down there which should look nice. Lastly, the city has some great bike trails if that is what you are in to.

As for the schools, I don't have kids so I'm not positive. The metro area has pretty much 5 big public schools (Jefferson, Washington, Prairie, Linn Mar, and Kennedy), with one big private Catholic School (Xavier), and one smaller public school in Marion (Marion Public School). That's all I've really got for you on that.

Last but not least, the town is loaded with annoying Sqawk fans, but still has more Cyclone fans than people lead you to believe. The Hawk fans are the worst of the worst there too as they are mostly blue collar band wagon (tavern hawks) ones who never even went to school there. They are also the first to dog there teams and dog them bad. The decent Cyclone contingent mostly is fed by all the Engineers in town and are usually a great group people. They are all mostly all really level headed fans and are usually graduates of ISU.

 

[longtimeclone]

From my perspective Cedar Rapids is more of a family town. It seems that a lot of events in the community are more geared toward families than single people. So if you are raising a family that is great but if you want to do more adult things you might end up going to that other town which really isn't too far away either.

I would stay away from downtown because since the flooding there hasn't been as many businesses come back as before. Although there are nice places to live and good schools all over the city. Being in Iowa most of the schools are pretty good. I am more familiar with the NE side or Marion area and if I lived in the area I would probably live there. Linn-Mar which is a large school in the area has classes with 300+ and Marion which is smaller has classes around 120 to 160.

 

[Clonepackof1]

Trigger is pretty much right on (except that the flood was in 2008, but things are indeed recovering pretty well).

Schools here are all pretty good, with Linn-Mar and Prairie (College Community) growing the fastest. If you've got a family, this is a great place to be. Good schools enough stuff to do, lots of housing options and a reasonable drive to places with "real" shopping and entertainment (~4.5 hours to Chicago, Minneapolis, St. Louis, Kansas City, Milwaukee).

If you're young and single, it is just ok but the good news is that Iowa City is only half an hour away for that kind of fun.

 

[3TrueFans]

It smells funny.

 

[00clone]

Good areas to live: There aren't too many 'bad' places to live, other than just southeast of downtown. Other than that, it kind of depends on what you're looking for/where you're working.

Schools, none of them are bad, that I know of, Washington/Jefferson/Kennedy are the Cedar Rapids "in town" schools, Marion has it's own, Linn-Mar and Prairie are part in town, part surrounding rural areas.

There's plenty of CR folks on here, any more specific questions? You mentioned "Cedar Rapids area", if you're south of Cedar Rapids, or even on the south side, the 'corridor' towns (Swisher, Shueyville, North Liberty) are all growing pretty quickly due to the ability to get to CR or Iowa City quickly. Heck, even to drive from Iowa City to Cedar Rapids for work isn't out of the realm of possibility compare to what a lot of people do. About a half hour drive by interstate. If you're young (20's) and single, Iowa City's going to have a better night life, I'd say Cedar Rapids is more traditional family friendly. Nothing wrong with Iowa City there, it's just that the university dominates the town. Kind of a mix of students, professors/doctors, 60's hippies that never left.

 

[longtimeclone]

It smells funny.

Those are to deter people from leaving. It is the city of five smells...I mean seasons, seasons!

 

[Triggermv]

Trigger is pretty much right on (except that the flood was in 2008, but things are indeed recovering pretty well).

Schools here are all pretty good, with Linn-Mar and Prairie (College Community) growing the fastest. If you've got a family, this is a great place to be. Good schools enough stuff to do, lots of housing options and a reasonable drive to places with "real" shopping and entertainment (~4.5 hours to Chicago, Minneapolis, St. Louis, Kansas City, Milwaukee).

If you're young and single, it is just ok but the good news is that Iowa City is only half an hour away for that kind of fun.

Not sure why I typed last year on the flood vs a few years ago (what I was thinking). Good catch and I've changed it.

 

[00clone]

It smells funny.

Hey, crunch berry day ain't too bad!

 

[Triggermv]

Good areas to live: There aren't too many 'bad' places to live, other than just southeast of downtown. Other than that, it kind of depends on what you're looking for/where you're working.

Schools, none of them are bad, that I know of, Washington/Jefferson/Kennedy are the Cedar Rapids "in town" schools, Marion has it's own, Linn-Mar and Prairie are part in town, part surrounding rural areas.

There's plenty of CR folks on here, any more specific questions? You mentioned "Cedar Rapids area", if you're south of Cedar Rapids, or even on the south side, the 'corridor' towns (Swisher, Shueyville, North Liberty) are all growing pretty quickly due to the ability to get to CR or Iowa City quickly. Heck, even to drive from Iowa City to Cedar Rapids for work isn't out of the realm of possibility compare to what a lot of people do. About a half hour drive by interstate. If you're young (20's) and single, Iowa City's going to have a better night life, I'd say Cedar Rapids is more traditional family friendly. Nothing wrong with Iowa City there, it's just that the university dominates the town. Kind of a mix of students, professors/doctors, 60's hippies that never left.

Lots of hippies for sure in Iowa City, but yeah, still has some fun stuff to do and good nightlife.

 

[ISpyCy]

I lived there for a year, attending Kirkwood Comm. College and enjoyed my time there. It's a nice City that occazionally smells like oatmeal, pancakes, puke, popcorn, cap'n crunch and paper (sometimes all rolled into one). Anywhere on the Southern or Western areas of the City are nice places to live (so are Marion and Hiawatha). Some things to experience while in CR:

1. The Five-Seasons Tree (which has been described as a giant steel toilet brush).
2. Westdale Mall (if you ever want to see what a dying mall looks like).
3. The Vault (one of the best piano bars i've ever been to).
4. Palisades-Kepler State Park (nice area).

 

[CYCLNST8]

My fiance's family if from Cedar Rapids. Other than all the tavern hawks, I love the town. I particularly love the smell from Quaker Oats when they're making crunch berries. Her father has a boat dock at the Cedar River harbor, so we spend a lot of weekends in the summer cruising up river to sandbar parties. There's a good biking trail along the river if you're into that kinda thing. The biking culture differs from Des Moines in that it's more party-oriented. A lot of Des Moines bikers are more serious about it as a sport or commute to work daily. I think the downtown scene is terrific; probably because I grew up white trash tho, so I fit in pretty well with a blue collar community. There's a new bohemia district growing up around Chrome Horse, Parlor City, & Capones on 3rd Street downtown. They usually have decent cover bands every weekend. I'd also recommend Cedar River Landing and Leonardo's. Uptown Friday nights usually has a great turnout and the farmer's market is one of the biggest around.

 

[RedRaider42]

I like the sound of a family town. I'm 30 with a wife and a 4 1/2 month old girl, which is why I'm getting out of the military. I'm hoping to work at the Duane Arnold Energy Center, which I believe is to the NW of CR. I also think it's not too far from CR, so distance won't be a problem.

Anyway, I am hoping to be able to see some Tech -ISU games up there in Ames in the near future.

 

[Triggermv]

I lived there for a year, attending Kirkwood Comm. College and enjoyed my time there. It's a nice City that occazionally smells like oatmeal, pancakes, puke, popcorn, cap'n crunch and paper (sometimes all rolled into one). Anywhere on the Southern or Western areas of the City are nice places to live (so are Marion and Hiawatha). Some things to experience while in CR:

1. The Five-Seasons Tree (which has been described as a giant steel toilet brush).
2. Westdale Mall (if you ever want to see what a dying mall looks like).
3. The Vault (one of the best piano bars i've ever been to).
4. Palisades-Kepler State Park (nice area).

ISpyCy has touched on something else that is good and hasn't bene talked about. From an outdoorsman perspective, Cedar Rapids is surprisingly really pretty solid. Like I said above, there is some great paved/not paved bike trails through the city and in the surrounding area. There is quite a few super close great state parks including 2 decent sized lakes very close by. Lake McBride is more the low-key no-wake peaceful lake to swim, canoe and fish, while Corallville is the big Reservoir with big boats, skiing, wakeboarding and beaches. If you are in to dirt biking/ four-wheeling, there is a great play area for those called 1,000 acres (I believe that is what it is called) near Lake McBride.

While most of Iowa is fairly flat and agricultural with very few trees, the area between Iowa City and Cedar Rapids is quite the opposite. It has lots of trees, lakes, rolling hills, and great scenery. Arguably, Cedar Rapids is the best or one of the best cities in the state for people who like the outdoors.

 

[wxman1]

I grew up in the CR area (Marion). In my completely biased opinion Marion, Hiawatha, Robins or the NE side are the best areas to live in, much closer to a lot more than you are on the south or west side. In terms of night life it isn't Chicago or a college town but it's all what you make of it. If you want the college town atmosphere Iowa City is only 30 minutes away. I would agree with Trigger that the Piano bar (newly named The Vault for some reason) is my favorite bar, if you go with some friends it's a lot of fun, if not there are always people to talk with. When my friends and I go back we either go there or to Bills in Marion for more of a chill sit around and talk atmosphere.

They are also in the process of renovating and adding on to the U.S. Cellular Center/Convention Center. There are also plans to build an riverfront amphitheatre so it will be interesting to see what they bring in for entertainment at those. The Paramount theatere is also reopening after renovations after the flood in November, they have a VERY solid lineup STOMP, Bill Cosby, Blue Man Group, B.B. King, among other plays, musicals and the orchestra. There is also Theatere Cedar Rapids which puts on some VERY good plays and musicals.

For sports there are six area high schools, Kirkwood C.C., Coe, and Mount Mercy for high school and college sports (Iowa is 30 minutes away in Iowa City and Ames is only two hours down 30, UNI is an hour north on 380). There is also a minor league baseball team, hockey team and an indoor football team.

IMO CR has a bad rap but has more to offer than people are willing to admit, it is all what you make of it.

 

[Triggermv]

I grew up in the CR area (Marion). In my completely biased opinion Marion, Hiawatha, Robins or the NE side are the best areas to live in, much closer to a lot more than you are on the south or west side. In terms of night life it isn't Chicago or a college town but it's all what you make of it. If you want the college town atmosphere Iowa City is only 30 minutes away. I would agree with Trigger that the Piano bar (newly named The Vault for some reason) is my favorite bar, if you go with some friends it's a lot of fun, if not there are always people to talk with. When my friends and I go back we either go there or to Bills in Marion for more of a chill sit around and talk atmosphere.

They are also in the process of renovating and adding on to the U.S. Cellular Center/Convention Center. There are also plans to build an riverfront amphitheatre so it will be interesting to see what they bring in for entertainment at those. The Paramount theatere is also reopening after renovations after the flood in November, they have a VERY solid lineup STOMP, Bill Cosby, Blue Man Group, B.B. King, among other plays, musicals and the orchestra. There is also Theatere Cedar Rapids which puts on some VERY good plays and musicals.

For sports there are six area high schools, Kirkwood C.C., Coe, and Mount Mercy for high school and college sports (Iowa is 30 minutes away in Iowa City and Ames is only two hours down 30, UNI is an hour north on 380). There is also a minor league baseball team, hockey team and an indoor football team.

IMO CR has a bad rap but has more to offer than people are willing to admit, it is all what you make of it.

Fair assessment in my opinion with some valid new points.

 

[agrabes]

I like the sound of a family town. I'm 30 with a wife and a 4 1/2 month old girl, which is why I'm getting out of the military. I'm hoping to work at the Duane Arnold Energy Center, which I believe is to the NW of CR. I also think it's not too far from CR, so distance won't be a problem.

Anyway, I am hoping to be able to see some Tech -ISU games up there in Ames in the near future.

I know several people who have worked out at DAEC in the past and I currently work at a utility now. Whether you're looking for specifically nuclear or just utility in general you've got lots of options. Alliant, ITC, and CIPCO are all headquartered here in CR. I live on the north side of town (Hiawatha technically) and it's probably a 15-20 min drive over there from where I live.

I like to say that CR is the Utility and Cereal capital of the state, whatever that is worth.

 

[Vicarious]

I am a non-Iowan who has lived in Cedar Rapids for over 26 years now. The only thing I would disagree with the above posters on is the "blue collar" town label. I live on the SE side where both the richest and the poorest live in close proximity to each other. And let me tell you the rich are pretty rich. I've done a lot of volunteer work over the years and most of the "movers and shakers" live on the southeast side. If you are thinking of owning your own business one day or want to be connected consider moving to this side of town.

We have been very happy with the schools. Wash and Kennedy are consistenty rated some of the top schools in Iowa and the country. Linn Mar and Marion are fine but I would stay out of the College Community (Prairie) district. My son recently graduated from Wash. He was able to start at ISU in engineering with 55 AP credits and he found his college physics class so much of a review from HS that he never even took the wrapper off the book.

I agree with others that the restaurants are lacking compared to other towns but we do have a solid performing arts community. There is a sympthony, a Theater company, one of the best regional art museums in the country (lots of works by Grant Wood, Marvin Cone, even Andy Warhol) and the newly invigorated Bohemian District downtown. If you have a chance to catch one of the SPT's Tales from the Writers Room go. It's a local comedy/musical show and a lot of fun. Brucemore has a lot of outdoor events in the summer, everything from Shakespear to Bluesfests. There really is a lot to do if you are into music and the arts.

We have a USHL hockey team in town (Roughriders have a loyal following here) in a very nice arena and strong adult and womens hockey leagues. Arena football just started last year so there is that option too.

The shopping is not very good here and we easily have some of the worst street planning in the country. The city govt is a little screwed up and there is an above average amount of cronyism but flood recovery is going very well. I can't speak to the singles scene at all but it has always been easy to meet people here and everyone is very friendly and helpful.

Thanks for your service and good luck with you future career!

 

[Triggermv]

Oh, by the way, try to avoid getting in a Big 12 vs Big 10 argument with all the Tavern-Hawks in the city. You can display all the facts in the world as to how terrible the Big 10 has been over the past decade and how solid the Big 12 has performed, and all you'll get as a counter-argument is that the Big 10 is better just because it is. Again, they aren't the most educated bunch.