8 Places to Move If You Love St. Louis But Are Sick of Missouri

The Motor City is remaking itself as an arts hub, siphoning off talent from the coasts, as the creative masses realize you’re not going to do much painting if you have to tend bar, walk dogs, wait tables and serve as some rich developer’s personal shopper just to cover your rent on a two bedroom shared four ways.

Detroit is so hungry for artists, the city has begun poaching them from across the country. The non-profit Write A House is giving homes to writers willing to relocate. Galapogos, one of the jewels of Brooklyn’s art centers, announced at the end of 2014 it was dumping New York’s high prices and headed to Detroit. The owners told the New York Times they bought nine buildings with a total of 600,000 square feet for the price of “a small apartment in New York City.”

Photo courtesy of Flickr/ Ian Freimuth.

Detroit has a fairly serious crime problem. And living in a city that’s digging its way out of years of neglect isn’t easy. But hey, those are situations that St. Louisans are used to. 

Photo courtesy of Flickr/SJ Carey.

Photo by Steve Truesdell.

St. Louis is a majority minority city, with an estimated 46 percent of city residents who self-identify as white. And while that feels pretty damn diverse in largely white Missouri, it’s got nothing on L.A., which boasts just 29.3 non-Hispanic whites. Latinos outnumber everyone in southern California, but there are also a large number of Asians, African-Americans and even a sizable community of Persians. If you like a truly delicious melting pot, L.A. is the place to find it.

Photo courtesy of Flickr/Chris Goldberg.

Living in paradise isn’t cheap, and the wonderful affordability that makes St. Louis so attractive to immigrants and young people is nowhere to be found in Los Angeles. If you really want to move to California, prepare to work at least five jobs — and you’ll still have to hustle. 

Photo courtesy of Flickr/TD Lucas5000.

Photo courtesy of Flickr/ Laurie Chipps.

It’s a Mississippi River city founded by the French many, many decades before the rest of the country — and it shows in the glorious architecture. Today, it looks rundown in parts, but it’s still got style that newer municipalities could only dream of. Yes, we’re talking about St. Louis, but we could just as easily be talking about New Orleans. It can be muggy. It can be complicated. But it’s a city that knows how to let the good times roll — and if you like a good Mardi Gras party, well, we hear you can find that in New Orleans too.

Photo courtesy of Flickr/ Scott Johnson.

The Crescent City isn’t as cheap as it used to be — and there are definite disadvantages to living below sea level. Plus, do you really have the energy to the let les bons temps rouler every single day? We feel lucky we don’t have a Bourbon Street in St. Louis; our livers simply couldn’t take it.

Photo courtesy of Flickr/ Faungg’s Photos.

Photo by Jon Gitchoff.

Think of Tampa Bay as that cousin who could basically be your twin, but is just a little bit better looking than you. You have all the same things, but theirs somehow seem newer and prettier. We sit on a river, they sit on the Gulf of Mexico. We watch cargo boats float by, they watch cruise ships. We’re home of Anheuser, they’re home to Yuengling. And while we’ve got a free zoo, they’ve got a zoo/amusement park called Busch Gardens, and that’s even better. Plus the city is full of palm trees, and that makes every day seem like spring break.

Photo courtesy of Flickr/Visit St. Pete/Clearwater.

St. Louis may have finally gotten rid of the Rams, but Tampa residents are stuck with the hapless Buccaneers. Sundays with only a crappy football team to root for? Talk about deja vu! Plus, all that sunshine can’t be good for you. Isn’t life supposed to be a struggle?

Photo courtesy of Flickr/artctic_whirlwind.

Photo courtesy of Flickr/ Nan Palmero.

If you thought St. Louis was a bargain, get a load of this city on the edge of Lake Erie. In St. Louis, the median home price is roughly $140,000; in Cleveland, it’s just $121,800. And like St. Louis, the nightlife is shockingly reasonable in this Rust Belt town — thanks to an abundance of dive bars on the city’s west side, you can happily drink your weight in drafts for just a buck each (Jameson extra).

Best of all, Cleveland is situated within the ultimate swing state, a dark blue mecca in the middle of a true bellwether. So not only will you get a slightly more progressive statehouse, but your vote will REALLY count come November. 

Photo courtesy of Flickr/The Zender Agenda.

Winter. When the wind comes whipping off the lake, it’s brutal, and the sun basically never shines from November to March. But hey, small price to pay to help elect a reasonable candidate as President.

Photo courtesy of Flickr/ Mmm… Bacon.