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Portland, Oregon (1 Viewer)

kface

Footballguy
Have a really good job offer which would move the family to Portland.  Anyone live there that can give me some in depth analysis?  We are actually already on the west coast but I'm wondering about really good neighborhoods for family.  We have been there a number of times but mostly we hang out in the all the typical places.  Is traffic a nightmare in any particular direction?  Areas to avoid?  Any other helpful tips?  

The offer is great but I'm on the fence.  I also have another offer that would take us to Vancouver Canada but the cost of living is off the charts

 
@urbanhack is one of a few good sources here. 
 

I’d move there just for Tulip Shop burgers  :wub:

Personally I love Portland, so much easy access to great outdoor activities 

 
@urbanhack is one of a few good sources here. 
 

I’d move there just for Tulip Shop burgers  :wub:

Personally I love Portland, so much easy access to great outdoor activities 
I'm a big fan of the small town feel.   A bunch of livable nieghborhoods and not just a huge dense core...

 
From a guy who's never been there....

Heroin, strippers, left leaning politics, beautiful nature, GM and urbanhack, etc. That's what I've heard.

 
From a guy who's never been there....

Heroin, strippers, left leaning politics, beautiful nature, GM and urbanhack, etc. That's what I've heard.
Craft beer, mandatory beards, mushrooms, and everyone rides those old timey bikes with the really big front wheel and tiny back wheel.


Homeless camps on every street and their denizens pooping in full view of children.

 
From a guy who's never been there....

Heroin, strippers, left leaning politics, beautiful nature, GM and urbanhack, etc. That's what I've heard.
You undersold the strippers. Portland has vegan strip clubs, tattoo strip clubs, delivery strippers, and great steak dinners while watching strippers. And Mary’s Club. 

 
The offer is great but I'm on the fence.  I also have another offer that would take us to Vancouver Canada but the cost of living is off the charts
Do you have to work in an office, or can you telecommute? If you have to work in an office is it anywhere near a light rail line? Portland is a completely different city if your can work from home and live anywhere you want OR you can ride MAX to work. Not saying that you shouldn't own a car but if you don't have to drive to work everyday it makes a big difference.

My info on neighborhoods is probably pretty dated but for what I loved and miss about Portland you can't really go wrong living near Forest Park. I accessed the park most often at Lower Macleay Park and really enjoyed the neighborhoods nearby but those could be prohibitively expensive now.

Vancouver B.C. is expensive, but it's amazing. 

 
Used to live across the river in Vancouver WA.  Was back two years ago for a visit and the traffic and homeless is a major negative.  Saying the traffic isn't as bad as Seattle is not a badge of pride.  The homeless always was an issue but it has exploded over the years.  Its bad.  If you don't like 300+ days of clouds or suffer from SAD then its not the place for you.  Otherwise you get used to cloud muted gloom.

Positives.  Good coffee shops/stands virtually every corner.  Powells Bookstore.  Temperate weather for the most part.  Access to mountains and the coast within fifty miles either direction.  Beautiful greenery everywhere.  Great bakery/bagel shops, tons of brew pubs, some really cool areas like 23rd street or movie houses like the Bagdad or the Mission Theater. 

It is a great city in certain areas and for specific things.  The public transportation is clean and roomy and if you live or work on the line it is a huge advantage.  I absolutely hated the traffic but forgot till I visited and got stuck in a six hour jam trying to go over the bridge.  Complete stop that is less than a fifteen minute commute, maddening.  Sitting stuck in Portland for six hours not moving you really notice the homeless issue.  

I moved from Colorado where their is over 300 days of the year of sunshine and dry arid landscape so the first thing I noticed was how green everything was but those clouds are gloomy.  The kicker was the traffic, forgot how much I despised that gawd awful traffic.  Not for me but I can see how it would be a fit if you settle in the right area and don't have to daily deal with traffic or homeless.

 
As an aside, I haven't been to Portland, but a few years ago I was in Seattle and Vancouver (BC) where homeless was pretty rampant. From comments in this thread, it seems like Portland has a high degree of homelessness. It's an issue in probably every large city, but are there any theories why homeless appears to be particularly pronounced in the Pacific Northwest?

 
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As an aside, I haven't been to Portland, but a few years ago I was in Seattle and Vancouver (BC) where homeless was pretty rampant. From comments in this thread, it seems like Portland has a high degree of homelessness. It's an issue in probably every large city, but are there any theories why homeless appears to be particularly pronounced in the Pacific Northwest?
Governors in Oregon and Washington are awful

 
As an aside, I haven't been to Portland, but a few years ago I was in Seattle and Vancouver (BC) where homeless was pretty rampant. From comments in this thread, it seems like Portland has a high degree of homelessness. It's an issue in probably every large city, but are there any theories why homeless appears to be particularly pronounced in the Pacific Northwest?
Temperate weather has made it a haven long before it became the issue it is today.

 
Used to live across the river in Vancouver WA.  Was back two years ago for a visit and the traffic and homeless is a major negative.  Saying the traffic isn't as bad as Seattle is not a badge of pride.  The homeless always was an issue but it has exploded over the years.  Its bad.  If you don't like 300+ days of clouds or suffer from SAD then its not the place for you.  Otherwise you get used to cloud muted gloom.

Positives.  Good coffee shops/stands virtually every corner.  Powells Bookstore.  Temperate weather for the most part.  Access to mountains and the coast within fifty miles either direction.  Beautiful greenery everywhere.  Great bakery/bagel shops, tons of brew pubs, some really cool areas like 23rd street or movie houses like the Bagdad or the Mission Theater. 

It is a great city in certain areas and for specific things.  The public transportation is clean and roomy and if you live or work on the line it is a huge advantage.  I absolutely hated the traffic but forgot till I visited and got stuck in a six hour jam trying to go over the bridge.  Complete stop that is less than a fifteen minute commute, maddening.  Sitting stuck in Portland for six hours not moving you really notice the homeless issue.  

I moved from Colorado where their is over 300 days of the year of sunshine and dry arid landscape so the first thing I noticed was how green everything was but those clouds are gloomy.  The kicker was the traffic, forgot how much I despised that gawd awful traffic.  Not for me but I can see how it would be a fit if you settle in the right area and don't have to daily deal with traffic or homeless.
This is pretty much how I feel.  I live a lil ways down I5 from Portland.  I'm def more of drier, sunnier climate kinda guy, but my wife is from over here so here we are...

Stayed several days in Portland couple weeks ago in an Air b'nb right near PSU.  First time goin up there since the 'rona.  We used public trans and went around to brew pubs essentially....I don't know Portland well, but one neighborhood we were in was in NE I believe where Little Beast Brewing is....wasnt too bad....seemed like a trendy area.  I'm sure homes are crazy expensive, but that's to be expected everywhere I guess.

I'm an OR native and I've seen the traffic on I-5/205 get worse and worse.  The homeless sitch is pretty horrendous.  I wouldn't live in Portland for all the money in the world......but I guess if ur coming from a bigger, dirtier city, it's all relative.

An aside....

My new favorite place in Portland is Backwoods.....place has amazing beer, good food, and great service......also we made a day trip to Hood River, which is much more my style....Pfriem is a must stop.

 
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Little Beast is in Richmond. I was right near there last Sunday. Never been to Backwoods, but their tap list looks solid. 

 
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Hasn't rained for 53 days and counting.
That's western OR for ya......the winters are wet and gloomy and you can't wait for summer.....then everything dries up and we wish for rain!  All I know is, the winters get to me.......I like the green and temperate climate where you can grow damn near anything.....the really wet winters just kinda blow imo

 
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That's western OR for ya......the winters are wet and gloomy and you can't wait for summer.....then everything dries up and we wish for rain!  All I know is, the winters get to me.......I like the green and temperate climate where you can grow damn near anything.....the really wet winters just get to me....
It's all relative I guess. I'm really looking forward to a wet winter after having spent the past 20-plus frozen winters in Minnesota.

 
It's all relative I guess. I'm really looking forward to a wet winter after having spent the past 20-plus frozen winters in Minnesota.
Dude I'll take wet and gloomy over deep freeze any day! 

Reno NV has the best climate of any place I've lived

 
I can hopefully help answer any questions you may have. My wife and I moved here about a year ago from California. We love the city. The food scene is amazing.  We can’t get over how green it is. A 15 minute drive from our house has us in a forest or along the Columbia gorge. 

From what you describe, it sounds like you’d want to live east of the river. It has distinct neighborhoods with their own feel. Sort of like a little suburbia within the big city. House prices also differ by neighborhood, but there are beautiful homes here. 

Downtown has had a bit of a depressed feel until recently due to a combination of the pandemic and protests causing businesses to shutter. It’s slowly coming back to life though. 

No sales tax is pretty cool too. 

 
You undersold the strippers. Portland has vegan strip clubs, tattoo strip clubs, delivery strippers, and great steak dinners while watching strippers. And Mary’s Club. 
There’s one right up the street from me that advertises gluten free lap dances. 

 
Lived there, in downtown, for about a year 20 years ago. So I don’t have a ton of current to offer. But my time there I enjoyed and the people were super nice. I was running a craft brewery at the time and that was certainly the spot to be in for that industry. But being a native southern California the constant gray and rainy really really wore on me. While the gray and rainy wasn’t as bad as Seattle, which I also lived in for a year, it was bad.  The juxtaposition of that though is that when the sun comes out I don’t know if I’ve seen happier or more friendly people.

 
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Do you have to work in an office, or can you telecommute? If you have to work in an office is it anywhere near a light rail line? Portland is a completely different city if your can work from home and live anywhere you want OR you can ride MAX to work. Not saying that you shouldn't own a car but if you don't have to drive to work everyday it makes a big difference.

My info on neighborhoods is probably pretty dated but for what I loved and miss about Portland you can't really go wrong living near Forest Park. I accessed the park most often at Lower Macleay Park and really enjoyed the neighborhoods nearby but those could be prohibitively expensive now.

Vancouver B.C. is expensive, but it's amazing. 
4 days at home and 1 day in the office so pretty good work situation

 
I can hopefully help answer any questions you may have. My wife and I moved here about a year ago from California. We love the city. The food scene is amazing.  We can’t get over how green it is. A 15 minute drive from our house has us in a forest or along the Columbia gorge. 

From what you describe, it sounds like you’d want to live east of the river. It has distinct neighborhoods with their own feel. Sort of like a little suburbia within the big city. House prices also differ by neighborhood, but there are beautiful homes here. 

Downtown has had a bit of a depressed feel until recently due to a combination of the pandemic and protests causing businesses to shutter. It’s slowly coming back to life though. 

No sales tax is pretty cool too. 


thanks for this....a new comer too so your information is valuable.  Where did you guys settle?

 
thanks for this....a new comer too so your information is valuable.  Where did you guys settle?
We are in the Southeast near the Woodstock neighborhood. What’s funny is that we are literally surrounded by neighbors who have all recently transplanted to Portland. 

I will echo other people’s complaints about traffic and homeless but neither make me not want to live here. Maybe it’s because where I came from in the SF Bay Area, we had the same issues. 

 

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