Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
I'm a Nevada gal - born and raised in San Jose CA but left over 20 years ago. I've lived all over NV and rural parts of Montana for half my life now.
Friend of mine moved to Rome City IN. He sings its praises (not sure he is telling me everything though). He loves Sylvan lake etc. He tries to get me to move there or near there all the time saying how much cheaper it is to live and how much house I could buy, etc. I'm not looking for waterfront.
I have family in the Midwest, WI, IA etc. Some ND experience. But I need some honest input about the aforementioned areas of IN.
How bad are bugs? (I just got done treating a brand new house for a huge black widow infestation, also dealt with a great deal of other invasive pests in NV. What would I face in Indiana? Mice? Deer? Ticks? Do they just jump out of the trees/plants? )
Outdoor recreation. I can't stay inside all the time - I run and walk my dogs a lot. Are people out when it's hot or cold or is it too uncomfortable due to humidity? Or do you just "get used to it" like I hear in other places.
Are we talking feet of snow in the winter? Would I need a shovel? Does it stay on the ground a long time or melt off fairly quickly?
Are people standoffish to newcomers or friendly or just mixed in that regard? Do they hate outsiders? Is there an anti-transplant sentiment?
I'm single - would that be a strange occurrence for a single woman to move into a rural neighborhood? I'm not into city life at all.
Crime in rural areas - I assume it's like anywhere else in the country? More or less in IN?
I don't know much about Rome City but I will say that most people in Fort Wayne refer to Kendallville as Kendalltucky....just passing along the info....don't shoot, I'm just the messenger lol!
Seriously though: weather wise about the same as Fort Wayne (humid summers, coldish winters - snow is hit or miss but yes you will need a winter coat and a shovel). The humidity isn't as bad as the south and we get frequent breaks from "heat waves". I don't know much about crime up there or what the people are like...I don't know if I've ever gone into Kendallville other than passing through.
I can't talk much about either town having only driven through either of them.
Bugs - Ticks can be a problem in the summer, especially if you've been spending time in the woods/walking through tall grass. Either wear long pants and possibly long sleeves if you're going to be doing that or check your body afterward. Mosquitos are the biggest annoyance. They can carry West Nile and you hear about cases in Indiana every summer. But neither of those have ever stopped me from being outside. Some people have mice issues but I haven't. And deer certainly cause accidents if you're driving in rural areas. I know of multiple people that have hit deer, or even had a deer run into the side of their car. Even hear in the suburbs of Indianapolis I've seen deer crossing certain roads. Just be careful, especially at twilight and even more so after the fields have been harvested as the deer have to come closer to the roads to find food.
There's plenty of outdoor recreation around that area plus both Chain O' Lakes State Park and Pokagon State Park are less than 30 minutes away. Rome City as you know has Sylvan Lake. Kendalville has Bixler Lake which has some nature trails. During the summer when it is hot and humid, you'll want to get out early in the day if you plan to do outdoor stuff. But there are also several days in the summer that are nice and pleasant. Winter certainly has cold days but some days in the 40s are not unheard of at all.
Rome City and Kendalville are both out of the lake effect snow belt but still likely to get 2-3 feet of snow over an average winter. You'll likely want a shovel. Depending where you live some towns will fine homeowners that don't shovel their sidewalks of snow. The problem really becomes after the storm and as you drive over the snow on the driveway, it will turn to ice and be almost impossible to shovel off. It can stay on the ground for several days at a time.
Overall, Indiana is pretty welcoming place. But I would guess the smaller the town, the more standoffish people would be to outsiders. Rome City is quite small. Kendalville is definitely bigger. But general rule of thumb is that if you are friendly, others will be friendly back. Rome City does have a lot of lake cottages around Sylvan Lake. I'm guessing there are a lot of people that don't live there permanently that go back and forth between the lake and homes elsewhere. So they may be used to people they don't recognize.
Most likely the biggest crime issue in rural Indiana is meth labs. Some areas those are a huge problem. I honestly don't know if that's an issue in either Kendalville or Rome City.
My SIL grew up on Sylvan Lake. It was very much cliqueish. She loved it, but I know many others in the area were not as fond of it. The other things with how small Rome City is for any outdoor recreation not dealing with being on Sylvan Lake you will have to drive to get to it. I don't remember much parks or sidewalks in Rome City.
Kendalville is much larger and even if you don't live in town there are at least parks, trails, sidewalks, and other outdoor options that Rome City doesn't offer. My wife's family grew up with a Kendalville address, but were actually on a country road just outside the town. They seemed to not have much issue with making friends and such even though they were originally from Michigan (and this was before they had my wife and her siblings). Bixler Lake is much smaller than Sylvan Lake, but Sylvan was seen as the more party lake and Bixler more the fishing (ice and normal) and swimming lake. My wife always contended she was fine with swimming in Bixler, but felt that Sylvan was dirtier and not as apt to swim in Sylvan.
Kendalville is also much closer to other parks in Fort Wayne and the state parks mentioned in previous posts. Of the two I liked Kendalville better. Like I said visiting was like rural life with access to plenty of lakes or other outdoor recreation and town amenities like stores as needed.
In winter both get pretty equal amounts of snow. You'll definitely need a shovel. Neither was historically high amounts of snow where you are ever stuck inside your house for days on end. Again Kendalville will be closer to stores if you have to venture out in those conditions and get cleared more quickly than Rome City. Neither feels very city like, just small town. Crime is more related to Meth and other Drug issues and not usually a major concern.
Biggest bug issue is mosquitoes in the summer. Otherwise I never really noticed other bugs being a major annoyance.
Again most of this is from my wife and In-laws experiences and not necessarily my own. I only visited Rome City a few times and it left me underwhelmed. Kendalville and that area is where I spent most of my time. In my opinion it really wasn't a bad place and I liked it more than Rome City.
I don't know much about Rome City but I will say that most people in Fort Wayne refer to Kendallville as Kendalltucky....just passing along the info....don't shoot, I'm just the messenger lol!
Seriously though: weather wise about the same as Fort Wayne (humid summers, coldish winters - snow is hit or miss but yes you will need a winter coat and a shovel). The humidity isn't as bad as the south and we get frequent breaks from "heat waves". I don't know much about crime up there or what the people are like...I don't know if I've ever gone into Kendallville other than passing through.
Thanks. That's funny however, - I lived in Fernley NV and people called it Ferntucky. Which I feel probably isn't fair until I visit Kentucky. I refuse to have a negative outlook on the state unless I've been there.
I can't talk much about either town having only driven through either of them.
Bugs - Ticks can be a problem in the summer, especially if you've been spending time in the woods/walking through tall grass. Either wear long pants and possibly long sleeves if you're going to be doing that or check your body afterward. Mosquitos are the biggest annoyance. They can carry West Nile and you hear about cases in Indiana every summer. But neither of those have ever stopped me from being outside. Some people have mice issues but I haven't. And deer certainly cause accidents if you're driving in rural areas. I know of multiple people that have hit deer, or even had a deer run into the side of their car. Even hear in the suburbs of Indianapolis I've seen deer crossing certain roads. Just be careful, especially at twilight and even more so after the fields have been harvested as the deer have to come closer to the roads to find food.
There's plenty of outdoor recreation around that area plus both Chain O' Lakes State Park and Pokagon State Park are less than 30 minutes away. Rome City as you know has Sylvan Lake. Kendalville has Bixler Lake which has some nature trails. During the summer when it is hot and humid, you'll want to get out early in the day if you plan to do outdoor stuff. But there are also several days in the summer that are nice and pleasant. Winter certainly has cold days but some days in the 40s are not unheard of at all.
Rome City and Kendalville are both out of the lake effect snow belt but still likely to get 2-3 feet of snow over an average winter. You'll likely want a shovel. Depending where you live some towns will fine homeowners that don't shovel their sidewalks of snow. The problem really becomes after the storm and as you drive over the snow on the driveway, it will turn to ice and be almost impossible to shovel off. It can stay on the ground for several days at a time.
Overall, Indiana is pretty welcoming place. But I would guess the smaller the town, the more standoffish people would be to outsiders. Rome City is quite small. Kendalville is definitely bigger. But general rule of thumb is that if you are friendly, others will be friendly back. Rome City does have a lot of lake cottages around Sylvan Lake. I'm guessing there are a lot of people that don't live there permanently that go back and forth between the lake and homes elsewhere. So they may be used to people they don't recognize.
Most likely the biggest crime issue in rural Indiana is meth labs. Some areas those are a huge problem. I honestly don't know if that's an issue in either Kendalville or Rome City.
Not sure why Ticks freak me out so badly when I've had black widow infestations, mice in the HVAC and scorpions in the garage... Okay so I've been through the scenario you are talking about...not shoveling snow and turning to compact ice. It is not fun. Thanks so much for the insight on all!!
My SIL grew up on Sylvan Lake. It was very much cliqueish. She loved it, but I know many others in the area were not as fond of it. The other things with how small Rome City is for any outdoor recreation not dealing with being on Sylvan Lake you will have to drive to get to it. I don't remember much parks or sidewalks in Rome City.
Kendalville is much larger and even if you don't live in town there are at least parks, trails, sidewalks, and other outdoor options that Rome City doesn't offer. My wife's family grew up with a Kendalville address, but were actually on a country road just outside the town. They seemed to not have much issue with making friends and such even though they were originally from Michigan (and this was before they had my wife and her siblings). Bixler Lake is much smaller than Sylvan Lake, but Sylvan was seen as the more party lake and Bixler more the fishing (ice and normal) and swimming lake. My wife always contended she was fine with swimming in Bixler, but felt that Sylvan was dirtier and not as apt to swim in Sylvan.
Kendalville is also much closer to other parks in Fort Wayne and the state parks mentioned in previous posts. Of the two I liked Kendalville better. Like I said visiting was like rural life with access to plenty of lakes or other outdoor recreation and town amenities like stores as needed.
In winter both get pretty equal amounts of snow. You'll definitely need a shovel. Neither was historically high amounts of snow where you are ever stuck inside your house for days on end. Again Kendalville will be closer to stores if you have to venture out in those conditions and get cleared more quickly than Rome City. Neither feels very city like, just small town. Crime is more related to Meth and other Drug issues and not usually a major concern.
Biggest bug issue is mosquitoes in the summer. Otherwise I never really noticed other bugs being a major annoyance.
Again most of this is from my wife and In-laws experiences and not necessarily my own. I only visited Rome City a few times and it left me underwhelmed. Kendalville and that area is where I spent most of my time. In my opinion it really wasn't a bad place and I liked it more than Rome City.
That gives me a very good overall picture. Thanks so much! I wondered about the party aspect of Sylvan. I'm not a big power boater etc. and would prefer quiet over busy. I appreciate the thorough description of everything.
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
