Moving to Portland oregon
#16
Re: Moving to Portland oregon
If the OP had mentioned living in eastern Oregon I would have pointed out in places it is ultra right wing and several sheriffs are not opposed to refusing to enforce those laws they don't agree with. Some of those areas the county commissioners refuse to pay for 24 hour police cover so they have quite high gun ownership.
It is partly why I live in the Portland Metro area, and not the City of Portland or eastern Oregon.
I post what I think is helpful to people asking a question, I really don't give a toss what you think should or should not be posted.
#17
BE Enthusiast
Joined: Feb 2013
Posts: 946
Re: Moving to Portland oregon
For the OP: Portland, OR is one of the only other places I'd live in the US. And I'd definitely consider moving there although as others have noted you'll need to be careful about your 17 year old.
Ignore the trolls: what is considered to be 'anarchist left wing' in the US basically means that people are demanding normal, decent things like, gasp, healthcare for all and free/lower cost higher education.
Truth is though, that outside of Portland, Eugene and Bend, the rest of Oregon is rightwing-Trump-supportin'-gun-toting-hicksville. But this is pretty much the same in every single state outside of the big left-leaning cities.
Ignore the trolls: what is considered to be 'anarchist left wing' in the US basically means that people are demanding normal, decent things like, gasp, healthcare for all and free/lower cost higher education.
Truth is though, that outside of Portland, Eugene and Bend, the rest of Oregon is rightwing-Trump-supportin'-gun-toting-hicksville. But this is pretty much the same in every single state outside of the big left-leaning cities.
#18
Re: Moving to Portland oregon
Why, it is factual information about one part of the area the OP was considering living in. I guess you think anything that offends your sensibilities shouldn't be posted. As the councils policies can effect standard of living and taxes paid I think it is quite relevant.
If the OP had mentioned living in eastern Oregon I would have pointed out in places it is ultra right wing and several sheriffs are not opposed to refusing to enforce those laws they don't agree with. Some of those areas the county commissioners refuse to pay for 24 hour police cover so they have quite high gun ownership.
It is partly why I live in the Portland Metro area, and not the City of Portland or eastern Oregon.
I post what I think is helpful to people asking a question, I really don't give a toss what you think should or should not be posted.
If the OP had mentioned living in eastern Oregon I would have pointed out in places it is ultra right wing and several sheriffs are not opposed to refusing to enforce those laws they don't agree with. Some of those areas the county commissioners refuse to pay for 24 hour police cover so they have quite high gun ownership.
It is partly why I live in the Portland Metro area, and not the City of Portland or eastern Oregon.
I post what I think is helpful to people asking a question, I really don't give a toss what you think should or should not be posted.
And Portland (city) is full of highly-paid software engineers and cops on bikes eating sushi and buses that run on donut fat It considers itself progressive, but radical it is not. My OH lived there for 20 years (yes, he was in software). You and Boiler are unnecessarily putting off the OP. There are undesirable events there for sure, but the same goes for any city anywhere. As a city, it is becoming a lot richer and lot less "alternative" by the week.
Last edited by Lion in Winter; Jul 8th 2019 at 8:41 pm.
#19
Re: Moving to Portland oregon
For the OP: Portland, OR is one of the only other places I'd live in the US. And I'd definitely consider moving there although as others have noted you'll need to be careful about your 17 year old.
Ignore the trolls: what is considered to be 'anarchist left wing' in the US basically means that people are demanding normal, decent things like, gasp, healthcare for all and free/lower cost higher education.
Truth is though, that outside of Portland, Eugene and Bend, the rest of Oregon is rightwing-Trump-supportin'-gun-toting-hicksville. But this is pretty much the same in every single state outside of the big left-leaning cities.
Ignore the trolls: what is considered to be 'anarchist left wing' in the US basically means that people are demanding normal, decent things like, gasp, healthcare for all and free/lower cost higher education.
Truth is though, that outside of Portland, Eugene and Bend, the rest of Oregon is rightwing-Trump-supportin'-gun-toting-hicksville. But this is pretty much the same in every single state outside of the big left-leaning cities.
It is one of the most liveable places in the US imo.
#20
Lost in BE Cyberspace
Joined: Jan 2006
Location: San Francisco
Posts: 12,865
Re: Moving to Portland oregon
While in general I would agree in Portland's case I think it should be considered, as the council policies can have an effect on the quality of life.
For example in order to reduce green house gases they discourage car ownership. One way they do this is to allow developers to buy up single family homes and build apartment blocks in their place. These blocks are built without parking spaces resulting not as the council wishes in people not having cars, but in blocking the street with their parked cars. Now that policy suits most of the people who live in the City of Portland, but it might be something someone coming to live here might want to consider. Other parts of the metro area don't have such a policy and require a certain amount of parking spaces for new developments.
For example in order to reduce green house gases they discourage car ownership. One way they do this is to allow developers to buy up single family homes and build apartment blocks in their place. These blocks are built without parking spaces resulting not as the council wishes in people not having cars, but in blocking the street with their parked cars. Now that policy suits most of the people who live in the City of Portland, but it might be something someone coming to live here might want to consider. Other parts of the metro area don't have such a policy and require a certain amount of parking spaces for new developments.
#21
Re: Moving to Portland oregon
Having lived in Portland for the last 8 years, I am somewhat qualified to hold an opinion. Portland is OK, but as Lansbury has pointed out, the council is very left leaning and is totally anti-car. I literally heard a city official on NPR/OPB state the other day that their transportation policy is to "force people out of their cars and onto public transport." Upshot is massive development (vertical as growth is restricted by the urban growth boundary) with no parking and no vehicular infrastructure development of any measurable amount in 20+ years. The result is absolutely gridlocked traffic, not just during rush hour but seeminly at any hour of the day. I came inbound from the airport on 84 at 11:00 on a Thursday morning this week, and crawled all the way from I205 to I5. 8 miles. No accidents, just miserable bumper to bumper traffic. The problem is that there are very few river crossings and although there is talk of another Columbia river crossing, it's been talked about for 30 years and nothing has happened. We also have a huge influx of residents, mainly from CA (and bringing their driving 'abilities' with them....). Homelessness and the problems they bring are a very big problem in the city, and the school system is somewhat patchy in terms of quality. I live in Tigard, which is a suburb for the SW of Portland and it is nice, but going anywhere in this city is a real trial.
On the plus side the scenery is nice, Mt Hood offers skiing year round and the coast is beautiful for the 10 days of the year when it isn't blowing a howling gale, cold and foggy but don't even think about going in the water, it is freezing! If you are a foodie or beer drinker then Portland has you very well covered, the music scene is OK, but not great. The weather is to my liking, although a lot of people find an 8 month winter to be a bit too long. The property taxes are high, state income tax is very high, but on a positive note, there is no sales tax.
In summary, I like Portland but I don't think I will be retiring here...
On the plus side the scenery is nice, Mt Hood offers skiing year round and the coast is beautiful for the 10 days of the year when it isn't blowing a howling gale, cold and foggy but don't even think about going in the water, it is freezing! If you are a foodie or beer drinker then Portland has you very well covered, the music scene is OK, but not great. The weather is to my liking, although a lot of people find an 8 month winter to be a bit too long. The property taxes are high, state income tax is very high, but on a positive note, there is no sales tax.
In summary, I like Portland but I don't think I will be retiring here...