You'll probably find most of what you're looking for in the Hopkins area -- lots to walk to, with a couple of bike trails that go through town. Many Hopkins houses are small, with small yards, so you may want to look at the "Hobby Acres" area of Hopkins -- between 5th Avenue and Highway 169. Another great option is the neighborhood just north of the Lunds grocery store shopping area at Highway 7 & Hopkins Crossroad (County Rd 73). Lots of nice houses, larger yards, walk to Lunds & coffee shops, bike trail right there, etc.
I live in the Hopkins-Minnetonka area, used to live in Golden Valley.

A few minutes ago

You'll probably find most of what you're looking for in the Hopkins area -- lots to walk to, with a couple of bike trails that go through town. Many Hopkins houses are small, with small yards, so you may want to look at the "Hobby Acres" area of Hopkins -- between 5th Avenue and Highway 169. Another great option is the neighborhood just north of the Lunds grocery store shopping area at Highway 7 & Hopkins Crossroad (County Rd 73). Lots of nice houses, larger yards, walk to Lunds & coffee shops, bike trail right there, etc.
I live in the Hopkins-Minnetonka area, used to live in Golden Valley.

A few minutes ago

If you're looking for biking/walking trails, then you will LOVE the Twin Cities. The biking trails in metro area ROCK!!!...check out the City of Minneapolis website to learn more about the Minneapolis area. Also, the SW LRT trail extends out west (see the Three Rivers District website).. Some cities like Golden Valley and my home town of Edina don't have as extensive of a trail system as Minneapolis does...but...if you're in the right spot in those cities it's easy enough to join up with the Minneapolis and SW Light Rail Trail systems....We love biking/running/walking in the Twin Cities...it's awesome...take a look at our website to see a couple of videos of some of our rides/walks through the trail system.

Tue May 13 2008, 07:09

Living in Golden Valley is an excellent option and value. This is especially true if you locate near Wirtth Parkway/Memorial Parkway. Robbinsdale is also a great small town in the middle of the big city. Lots of home for your money here.

Sat May 10 2008, 08:31

That was an excellent answer... thanks J Reul for the contribution!

Thu May 8 2008, 15:13

Chris,
I know Madison, and so I can describe Mpls in terms of similarities. For your needs, location and price range, your best bet is the West Calhoun./ Linden Hills area. You'll get a great, safe, neighborhood for the price, and can walk/bike etc. It would be like Madison's West High/Edgewood/Monroe Street area.

Nokomis has a mix of homes, some are very nice, but there is significant airport noise, and I would compare it more to the Williamson Street area. And it would not be an easy commute to Golden Valley,

If you're looking for something like Shorewood Hills, check out Cedar/Isles, Kenwood areas, but you'll pay more. "Old" Edina is nice but you'll pay a premium to be in that school district.

Golden Valley is going to be more ike the area between Hilldale and West Towne Mall.

Hope this helps.

Thu May 8 2008, 14:57

I've been a resident of Golden Valley for 7 years and enjoy the area, but there isn't a lot of things you can walk/bike to, other than the "downtown" at Winnetka & Hwy 55, because Golden Valley is more of a suburb than a urban city. If you're really looking for. Based on the price point your're talking and the amenities, I'd suggest you look at Minneapolis-Nokomis, Minneapolis-Southwest, Minneapolis-Calhoun/Ises, northern Edina and the east side of St. Louis Park.

As a licensed agent I cannot speak to "good" or "bad" neighborhoods but the crime reports online are a good step... although I really recommend walking/biking the neighborhoods to get a better feel.

Hope this helps.

Sun May 4 2008, 11:17

Hi Chris...

I'd love to tell you exactly myself of the cime statistics in Golden Valley, however, as a licensed agent, my license will not allow me to do so. Here is the best place to find all the stats, though!

http://www.ci.golden-valley.mn.us/publicsafety/crimemaps/'

Golden Valley is a great place to live!

I hope this helps!

Thanks, Todd Norsted

Fri May 2 2008, 20:22