Fargo, North Dakota

It's a tough call between the highly educated workforce and excellent schools and the amazing health care. Those two qualities are the most cited characteristics locals note for things they think are great about the city. North Dakota State and four other colleges/universities are all in the Fargo area, a city of just north of 100k people. As a result the rate of higher ed among the population is extremely high for a smaller city. Sanford Health, the largest, rural, not-for-profit health-care system in the U.S. is here and it has a trauma center, newborn/pediatric intensive care services and women’s, orthopedics, heart and cancer centers. Sanford also has an excellent Children’s Hospital so locals have amazing care throughout their lives.

Here's a pov on Fargo from a recent transplant:
I just moved here about 5-6 months ago and I'm actually very impressed with the amount of activities there are to do in Fargo even during covid. For sure, there's a lot less content out there-- and a lot of restrictions for businesses, but heck even I have found stuff to do without relying on university activities.

I believe right now there's still ceramics classes, the art museum is open, art galleries, plenty of tiny little shops to explore, an excessive amount of food options, local zoom yoga, the new skate rink, the traditional arcade, replay arcade, etc.

Growth is controversial to locals. Many have benefitted from that economic and population growth and love that the downtown area has become more vibrant supported by the newbies. Many locals also though decry the traffic, extra crime and "out-of-state attitudes" that have moved into what was at one point a fairly homogenous place. So, depending on your point of view, growth may be the best thing to have happened to Macon or the worst.

Here's a locals pov on the worst aspects of living in Fargo:
Worst: We are at least 3-4 hours by car from anywhere else you might want to be. Flights to most places you might want to go are rarely direct, so there’s added expense and time. Passenger trains are inconveniently scheduled around commercial train schedules.

Even though the core neighborhood areas are close together and you don’t have to spend a lot of time in the car, we are car dependent. Public transportation is limited and underused. Bike lanes are ignored by many drivers, so the are also underused.

Fargo has a ton going on for a small city. There is an active theater scene with several community and college groups. There’s live music, comedy clubs, museums, and plenty of adult sport and clubs to join for those looking to enjoy a passion or just hang/meet with new friends. There is also an excellent restaurant scene and tons of microbrewery and bar options for a night out. Not surprisingly it is also extremely family friendly with tons of parks and outdoor play options for you and the kiddos.