When you think of moving to a new city, one of the first concerns is what kind of life you can enjoy. Finding a job and making money is up to you, but being able to work and spend in a pleasant environment means that the city has to take some responsibility. Quality of living is a very subjective thing, so most people will measure job availability, pollution, crime rates, school systems, and commutes as the main identifiers of how pleasant a city is to live in. Once determined, you can then start looking for a job on a pneumatic conveying belt or in some other type of work. So let's take a look at Milwaukee in these five areas.

In terms of job availability, Milwaukee has suffered in the past couple years, as has just about every other city in the United States. However, Milwaukee advocates will point out that the city is faring much better than other comparable mid Western cities in this regard. The diverse economy is what lies behind this claim. There are 15 Fortune 1000 companies headquartered in the city, a testament to the availability of white collar work. However, there are also many blue collar manufacturing jobs available; waterfront real estate listings include many commercial building conveniently located on the water for industry.

Despite the presence of a large manufacturing sector, Milwaukee is fairly free of pollution, at least when compared to other old industrial cities in the mid West. However, this does not mean that pollution is not a problem. In terms of visible pollution, the city is doing quite well. Smog is really not an issue, and the beach fronts appear clean and even pristine. But recent studies conducted on particles in the environment suggest that Milwaukee waters have been polluted by sewage, that there is significant concern about lead in the food, and that airborne pollutants may cause illness. Kitchener counselling firms specializing in environmental clean up have stated that these problems are being dealt with.

Crime rates in Milwaukee have been going down in recent years, but they did have a long way to fall. In fact, Milwaukee was once considered one of the most dangerous cities of its size as far as violent crime, and crime rates here in the violent category still rank higher than the national average. Gangs are at the heart of much of the problems; you are much safer heading to a Toronto gym than a Milwaukee one. A good anti gang task force is making significant reductions in this problem though.

Recent surveys have suggested that Milwaukee has one of the best post secondary attendance ratios in developed North America, so the school system is considered cutting edge. And commuting in Milwaukee takes an average of 22 minutes, a scintilla of time compared to other cities its size. There just aren't as many vacuum trucks and other vehicles on the road here.