Iowa City has great aspects. New Pioneer Co-Op: having spent more life afterwards in Boulder, CO, I can safely say IC still holds the prize for ideal progressive food grocery option in the US (admittedly I haven’t been to Portland, and imagine they might compete). Prairie Lights is cool and all but I’d rather be at The Strand. Or Goblin Market or Samdmeyer’s in Chicago. Or Old Town in Stockholm.

Iowa City starts feeling small VERY quickly. The winters are cold. There are no amazing natural areas for activity. Downtown is getting more sterile every year (circa 20 years ago).

University of Iowa is a great example of a University scene, but if you are not a student or professor, you’ll quickly bump up against the guardrails of small town US economics.