Why Move to Des Moines?
By Rabbi David Kaufman
Young
adults seem to have this idea that living on the coasts in big cities is the
thing to do. They flock to New York, where they pay $3,000-5,000 per month for
a small apartment or pay $1,000-1,500 a month for a share of one. Often, they
have to commute for an hour or more each way to and from work by train. Do you
realize that that is 520 hours of commuting time or more during the course of a
year. 260 work days times 2 hours a day equals 520 hours. That comes out to
almost 22 full days and if you subtract eight hours of sleep per night and look
at 16 hour functional days, it comes out to over 32. You are spending a full
month commuting! If I were to simply say that this was true in New York, I
would be mistaken. Hour plus commutes are the norm for many young adults in Los
Angeles, Atlanta, Chicago, and many of those other “highly desirable” coastal
cities.
In the Des
Moines Metro area, a commute of under ten minutes is the norm. For quite a bit
less than half of the rent payment in one of those coastal cities you could get
a $200,000 house , 3000 plus square feet with a two car garage and in an excellent
neighborhood with great public schools, some of the best in the nation. Take a
look at Central Academy, a Des Moines Public School
which is an international baccalaureate world school and ranked one of the best
schools in the nation. Sending your kids to good public schools can save you
tens of thousands of dollars each year.
Your yard,
yes you can have one here, may even have a multitude of trees! For you New
Yorkers, trees are those green things that you see in Central Park. Even young
couples starting out their careers can afford a nice house here! $40,000-60,000
salary in Des Moines will get you a nice place to live, some spending money,
and pay off your student loans quicker than $80,000-100,000 in New York. For
those of you who are working 80-100 hours a week to get that $80,000-100,000
salary, not including your 10 hours per week of commuting time, what good is it
living in a place where you can do so much in your free time. What free time?
And can you afford all the things you could do?
In Des
Moines, you can go to business breakfasts and lunches with friends and
associates. Why? Because it takes less than ten minutes to get just about anywhere
and while we do not have thousands of restaurants for you to choose from, those
we do have are quite good. We have Thai, Indian, Vietnamese, Korean, Mexican,
Tex-Mex and numerous other ethnic food restaurants. Here you can get a superb
meal for less than $10, even for dinner. Urbanspoon lists just a few of the best
places to go.
Of course,
our meals are better because we have the best meat, Iowa raised, and extremely
fresh farm produce. There are also wonderful vegetarian and sea food
restaurants in town. Plus, we have some coffee houses that would easily rival
the best on the coasts. Check out Zanzibars and Java Joes among others.
The Des Moines Arts Festival downtown is ranked in the top
ten nationally. The Des Moines Metro Opera is renowned for its excellence
and we have a great civic center housing our symphony orchestra
and hosting numerous Broadway Plays as well as concerts. Drake
University, Simpson
College, Grandview College and Des Moines University are based in Des Moines and Iowa State, in Ames, is only 25 minutes
away so for those of you who like a collegiate atmosphere, you can get it here.
We have some
of the best air quality in the nation, many long and beautiful bicycle trails not to mention one of the best
public long distance rides anywhere, Ragbrai, great parks and hiking trails, the Iowa State Fair, one of the nation’s best, a top notch art museum, Blank Park Zoo, the Botanical Center, a superb science center, the Des Moines Playhouse and a real downtown that you can actually walk around in and not
feel afraid. There is even a skywalk, cooled in the summer and heated
in the winter, connecting almost all of the buildings. For those who like mall
shopping, we’ve got Jordan Creek Towne Center and Valley West Mall. We even have a Trader Joes and a Whole Foods Market within a
five minute drive from anywhere on the west side of town.
We also have Des Moines’ Farmers’ Market, Valley Junction’s shops, and the newly reborn East Village!
Others have
noticed that this is a pretty good place to live too.
Des Moines ranks #1 "Best Cities for Families" - Kiplinger, July 2012
Des Moines ranks #4 "Best Places for Business and Careers." - Forbes, June 2012
Des Moines-West Des Moines ranks #2 " Best Cities for Jobs this Summer." - Forbes, June 2012
Des Moines #2 strongest local economy. - Tech Journal, June 2012
Des Moines ranks #10 "Most Educated Young Workforce." - The Business Journals, May 2012
Des Moines ranks #4 "Best Places for Business and Careers." - Forbes, June 2012
Des Moines-West Des Moines ranks #2 " Best Cities for Jobs this Summer." - Forbes, June 2012
Des Moines #2 strongest local economy. - Tech Journal, June 2012
Des Moines ranks #10 "Most Educated Young Workforce." - The Business Journals, May 2012
Downtown Des Moines Farmers' Market recognized as
"One of America's Best." - Country Living Magazine, March 2012.
Greater Des Moines Ranks #1 Best City for Young Professionals - Forbes, July 2011
Des Moines is the #1 Richest Metro in the Nation. - US News & World Report, June 2011
Des Moines is the #1 City in the US for Home Renters. - Time Magazine, June 2011
Greater Des Moines Ranks #1 Best City for Young Professionals - Forbes, July 2011
Des Moines is the #1 Richest Metro in the Nation. - US News & World Report, June 2011
Des Moines is the #1 City in the US for Home Renters. - Time Magazine, June 2011
Iowa ranks #9 for Best State for Business. - CNBC, June 2011
Des Moines is the #3 Best City for Business. - MarketWatch
Des Moines is the #3 Best City for Business. - MarketWatch
Des Moines ranks #5 for best cities for families. Based on
great schools, affordable homes, low crime rates, jobs, and parkland. - Parenting Magazine, June 2011
Des Moines is one of the 20 strongest-performing metro
areas. - Brookings
Des Moines living costs are 10 percent below the national average.
- The Council for Community and Economic Research
Des Moines living costs are 10 percent below the national average.
- The Council for Community and Economic Research
If you’re
Jewish, there is Jewish life here too. The Des Moines Metro Area has Orthodox,
Conservative, and Reform Congregations, including my own, Temple B’nai Jeshurun which has one of the most beautiful sanctuaries of any synagogue
anywhere.
You’re right
though, if you want to live in a hovel and travel for an hour to get to your job,
much less to your social life, somewhere on the coast “where everyone is,” you’re
not going to like living here. Here your life is only a few minutes away and
it’s a great life.
Come to Des
Moines.
-Rabbi David Jay Kaufman
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