Eden Prairie, Minnesota

8wanderlust8
2y ago
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I can’t speak to the others, because I haven’t lived there, but we live in Eden Prairie and your wish list sounds like Eden Prairie.

We live on the north end (about a mile from EPHS/Community Ctr/Round Lake) and we have a city bike path literally across the street from us. From there, we can connect all across EP, or hit the LRT one block away and it’s an easy bike ride into Hopkins. We are members at the community center and it’s a great value.

Fat Pants is good for a local brewery, we’re close to Unmapped in Minnetonka, and there are a few others between EP, Chan, and even over in Shakopee.

Schools are great (we have kids in HS, MS, and elementary) and really diverse - kind of unexpected for a suburb. The park system is amazing - we have 4 parks within a mile of us, including one right across the street. I read somewhere that EP’s goal was to make sure every residence was within a half mile of at least one park, and they seem to have accomplished that. Staring Lake is my favorite park to run - especially the back side - it’s wooded and very pretty.

We have some swimming beaches, but Round Lake is gross (really nice park in general - just don’t swim there) - we enjoy Riley and Bryant, or Lake Ann or Minnewashta in Chanhassen for swimming. I personally really like the city-managed conservation areas. We have something like a half dozen with some nice nature/hiking trails - they’re gems and right here in town.

adspecialistmn
2y ago
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I've had kids at Minnetonka and Eden Prairie schools within the past two years. I also have strong friend and family connections at Wayzata and Hopkins.

You couldn't go wrong with any of the cities you've listed (plus Edina), though there are some distinct differences.

As a state known for good education, many of our metro's "average" schools are better than what you see in other cities. That said, there's a difference between good schools and great schools in the area. Minnetonka, Eden Prairie, Edina and Wayzata are one or more steps above the others.

Roughly half of the city of Minnetonka is in the Minnetonka School District, with the other half being part of the Hopkins school district. Hopkins is a relatively smaller, more diverse, and less competitive district. Despite being called the Hopkins school district, a majority of their schools are in the city of Minnetonka.

The Minnetonka district also includes parts of neighboring cities like Chanhassen and Eden Prairie.

A similar situation occurs in the Plymouth/Wayzata area. Wayzata, the largest district in the state, has a majority of students and schools in parts of Plymouth. The other half of Plymouth is in the Robbinsdale district, a significant step down in quality.

The Edina and Eden Prairie districts are similar in that their boundaries are close to their respective city boundaries.

In case you haven't heard, Minnesota has an open enrollment program where people can enroll their kids outside of their home school district on a space available basis. Roughly 40-50% of Minnetonka district students hail from neighboring suburbs. The others are much lower.

ineed3cupsofcoffee
2y ago
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I think Eden Prairie would be a great community for you based on what you’re looking for. Maple Grove is nice, but the southwest suburbs are really hard to beat. Champlin, Osseo and even parts of Plymouth seem further out from the city for me. Eden Prairie is pretty centrally located and easy to commute to many different parts of the Twin Cities. EP has a great park system, lots of trails, beaches, etc. my favorite beach is Shady Oak which is actually located in Minnetonka but it’s right on the border of EP/Minnetonka. There’s also Bryant Park which has a good beach and Round Lake. It’s a very family friendly area and their schools are great, good for sports and clubs, there’s a fantastic community center. Honestly it checks all your boxes. The area by the Eden Prairie Mall has a ton of activity and restaurants. I would definitely see if you can find anything in that area.

Insider SECRETS about Living in Eden Prairie, MN