Fern Hill - Saint Louis Park, MN

Fern Hill was subdivided in the early 1900s to take advantage of the streetcar line on Minnetonka Boulevard. Streetcars created a building boom that lasted until 1938. In the days before automobiles, those who worked in town depended on streetcars to get to work. Buses replaced streetcars in 1938. Half of the neighborhood's homes were built before 1945. Fern Hill was a somnolent country village before World War II.

There are not any annual festivals specific to the neighborhood, nor any museums, but residents can visit the nearby metro of Minneapolis for these activities. Two facilities provide kids' performing arts. The Minneapolis Performing Arts Center supplies studio dance instruction, and hula-hoop classes provide a unique method for stretching and cultivating a light-hearted attitude. StageCoach Theater Arts encourages children to attend classes relating to all facets of theater and performing arts.

ShowPlace ICON movie Theater serves Fern Hill residents. Go ahead, choose real butter on your freshly popped popcorn, and enjoy your show.

Restaurants can be found along Minnetonka. For night time entertainment or music venues, locals go to nearby neighborhoods or into Minneapolis.

A cafe and from-scratch bakery, Yum offers tasty treats any time of the day. Kids love their mac and cheese, while others crave the fish and chips. That fresh-baked smell near the Bakery case pulls you in, tempting with caramel pull-apart sweet rolls and raspberry-chocolate cupcakes. Treat yourself, and take some home. The fun packaging makes carryout look like a gift.

Fern hill residents claim Vitali's Bistro serves the best breakfast in the area. At Vitali's, crepes come filled with an assortment of savory or sweet fillings. The apple-and-feta crepe offers the best of both worlds. It combines Granny Smith apples with maple syrup, then adds plenty of feta cheese. Be sure to order one of the organic coffees or teas to go with it for the full experience.

An auto-centric neighborhood, Fern Hill also makes room for walkers and bicyclists by providing sidewalks and trails. Fern Hill has a walk score of 71. Walking to stores isn't particularly easy, but the neighborhood provides convenient access to recreational trails. Greenways connect to parks for use by bicyclists.

The Metro Transit bus system provides public transportation from the neighborhood to downtown Minneapolis and other places throughout the area. About a dozen taxi companies serve Fern Hill. Taxis are available for door-to-door service with a phone call and run services 24 hours a day, seven days a week. Uber's availability in the community provides another option.

For those getting around in their own ride, there is on-street metered and non-metered parking. Minnesota State Route 100 provides easy access to and from the neighborhood.

Fern Hill houses several parks for residents to enjoy. Fern Hill Park takes its place in the center of the neighborhood, becoming the gathering spot for recreation. Kids love the 5-acre recreation space with a popular playground and ball fields, and adults get their exercise on basketball and horseshoe courts.

With the Twin Lakes near the northern edge of the neighborhood, residents enjoy Twin Lakes Park for active outdoor recreation. Features include a play structure and soccer field. A shelter provides a fine spot for a picnic. Neither park charges admission fees, and the parks allow dogs to walk on-leash. To allow Fido some freedom, visit the off-leash dog park within Oak Hill Park, about 2 miles from the neighborhood.

The cost of living in Fern Hill is about 7.8 percent greater than the Minnesota average and 11.2 percent greater than the national average.

A one-way bus fare to downtown varies from 75 cents to $3, depending on the time of day and type of ticket.

The median rent for a one-bedroom apartment hovers at $939 a month, about 117 percent of the Minnesota average.

You can enjoy a beer for about $5 in nearby pubs.

Gas prices currently run about 95 percent of the national average.

For the most part, residents look to adjacent neighborhoods for shopping due to the overall residential area of Fern Hill. Shopping opportunities, such as Whole Foods or Barnes and Noble, await residents just minutes away in nearby St Louis Park neighborhoods. However, a few small, speciality shops line Minnetonka Boulevard in Fern Hill.

Elijah's Cup on Minnetonka celebrates Jewish heritage. Small but overflowing with books written in both Hebrew and English, it also carries items for Jewish holidays and celebrations. This shop also carries many styles of dreidels in December. The Kosher Spot, also on Minnetonka, specializes in Jewish groceries. It carries a great selection of food items, including savory beef jerky.

Rodeo Drive Designer Consignment Boutique features a collection of upscale women's clothing, authentic designer handbags and accessories. The first resale shop of its kind in the Twin City area, Rodeo offers a wide selection at affordable prices. You never know what you might find. Recently spotted were a pair of Ferragamo velvet peep-toe pumps made in Italy. Treasures such as a sleek Armani suit cost only a small percentage of the original price.

There are two Farmer's Markets within 2 miles of Fern Hill. St Louis Park Farmers Market brings locally produced goods to the northwest side of St. Louis Park as well as a market on Recreation Center Plaza.The markets present assorted seasonal produce and tempting baked goods weekly during the summer months.