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Old 12-12-2013, 08:19 AM
 
Location: Redmond, OR
740 posts, read 1,243,111 times
Reputation: 472

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I moved to Denver in March 1971 and finally moved to Redmond 42 years later. The growth of the Denver area was just amazing. Prairie to the north, south and east were swallowed up by housing and strip malls. Highlands Ranch alone grew from 0 to 93,000, bigger than Bend. Most of the time this also helped create plenty of employment opportunities, but also big increases in traffic and crime. If you need a world class international airport and still see mountains, it's wonderful. For those with asthma, not so great. For my taste, it just got too big.
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Old 12-16-2013, 04:16 PM
 
Location: Bend, Oregon
4 posts, read 5,917 times
Reputation: 12
My wife and I work from home, and we have a pre-schooler and a 1-year old. We moved here 3 years ago, and it's probably the best place we've been to raise young kids, considering our personal priorities.

However, there are some concerns that you need to determine priority-weighting to: cultural diversity, walkability, education, and health care.

Cultural Diversity is limited. My wife's family is from Taiwan. And it seems we know many (most?) of the Chinese in the area. A few of our company's staff are Japanese, and it sounds like their network is close, as well.

Walkability: While Bend is very health and commuter-friendly, it is quite spread out for a city of <100k. A rough approximation, and I'd say half the houses are close to the main hubs of markets, entertainment, etc. We live close to the college, and while we can walk to campus, trails, parks, and the nearby shops of Northwest Crossing, walking to a market is a bit further than other cities I've lived in (~3mi. round trip, maybe we're just lazy). The benefit to this is that it is absolutely great for cycling, running, and walking/hiking for fun (aside from walk-to-commute). Some people are used to walking to school, market, etc.
Education: We are getting OSU Cascades to become a full 4 year University soon. This brings professors/families, students, and conferences to the area. I think this is much-needed, as right now, all ambitious students get shipped elsewhere. Plus, there is a shift in mindset that occurs in a "University Town" that I think is also going to be valuable.

Health Care: We had our second child here. And, while the facilities took care of the pregnancy just fine, it was a very easy pregnancy. I have had some challenges finding competing specialists for certain health areas. But, fortunately, Portland is not far away, and they have some of the best health facilities (OHSU) in the nation.


There are lots of young families that move to the area. At my daughter's pre-school, we were the second-most veteran family last year, having lived here 2 years already. PM me if you want specific recommendations for anything, considering our kids are close in age.

Good luck!
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Old 12-16-2013, 10:18 PM
 
9 posts, read 16,595 times
Reputation: 17
I didn't realize I had gotten more responses. My mistake, and thank you! Our search continues, but Bend is still at the top of our list. I truly appreciate everyone taking the time to address my concerns so thoughtfully.

We spent a couple of days in Bend last month and loved the feel of the place. We were pleasantly surprised by how many mixed-race couples/mixed kids we saw - not what we were expecting. It is mostly white, yes, but it was at least more ethnically diverse than we had thought. And the few restaurants we ate at were GOOD. Truly, legitimately, delish.

Parents (or people that know parents), any favorite elementary schools? Mtnracer, thank you for the offer to write you directly: when I feel focused enough that I won't be wasting your time, I certainly will!

Happy holidays, everyone.
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Old 12-18-2013, 11:57 AM
 
Location: North Idaho
32,509 posts, read 47,530,478 times
Reputation: 77829
Quote:
Originally Posted by sunsandski View Post
.............Parents (or people that know parents), any favorite elementary schools?.........
Tumalo Elementary is by far the best elementary school. It is more like a private school than a public school. Tumalo school district is very small and the houses are expensive, for the most part. There are a few houses right in the village of Tumalo that are small, old, and reasonable price (but not cheap). They are probably listed as located in Laidlaw.

Unfortunately, if you are in the Tumalo Elementary District, your high school kids go to Redmond.

If is possible that Whispering Pines is in the Tumalo school district, and that is less expensive, but verify that. It's Redmond High School, but might or might not be Tumalo Elementary.
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Old 12-18-2013, 02:15 PM
 
2,542 posts, read 3,981,186 times
Reputation: 3615
Highland Elementary is considered by many to be the best elementary school in Bend.
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Old 01-08-2014, 10:51 PM
 
Location: Eugene, OR
8 posts, read 12,776 times
Reputation: 19
We are also an interracial family thinking of moving from Eugene (been here 4 years) to Bend. My husband is from India and I'm from the east coast . One of my main concerns was lack of diversity, especially for our kids. It is nice to hear of other families with the same concerns .
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Old 01-08-2014, 11:22 PM
 
Location: Bend, OR
1,337 posts, read 3,265,984 times
Reputation: 857
Quote:
Originally Posted by SteenochkaLaRue View Post
We are also an interracial family thinking of moving from Eugene (been here 4 years) to Bend. My husband is from India and I'm from the east coast . One of my main concerns was lack of diversity, especially for our kids. It is nice to hear of other families with the same concerns .
It's definitely a concern, but coming from a town like Corvallis I wouldn't let it be a major one, tbh. If you're moving from a major metro, it will be a pretty stark contrast depending on the metro, but Corvallis is very homogeneous and even smaller than Bend. Though, the major university brings in more diversity for sure!

The comments about Bend being spread out are interesting to me, too. Bend is one of the more sprawling Oregon towns, but that's not saying much. Oregon has very strict UGBs and Bend is fairly dense. Take a drive N, S, E or W...after 10mins in any direction you'll be in the middle of nowhere. Now, again, if you compare it to a major metro and you live right downtown...
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Old 01-10-2014, 12:13 AM
 
Location: Bend
24 posts, read 45,704 times
Reputation: 26
Our kids all went to Lava Ridge on the NE side of Bend and it is an amazing School. The teachers are amazing and it would be hard to find a better principle and vice principal. It is also highly regarded in Bend.

Check out http://www.greatschools.org/oregon/b...l/?tab=reviews

Last edited by pkooistra; 01-10-2014 at 12:24 AM..
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Old 01-11-2014, 12:23 AM
 
2,542 posts, read 3,981,186 times
Reputation: 3615
Quote:
Originally Posted by SteenochkaLaRue View Post
We are also an interracial family thinking of moving from Eugene (been here 4 years) to Bend.
Quote:
Originally Posted by kapetrich View Post
If you're moving from a major metro, it will be a pretty stark contrast depending on the metro, but Corvallis is very homogeneous and even smaller than Bend.
Something is mixed up there. They are coming from Eugene which is like 2x bigger than Bend and feels about 10x bigger!
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Old 01-11-2014, 12:56 AM
 
Location: Bend, OR
1,337 posts, read 3,265,984 times
Reputation: 857
Quote:
Originally Posted by BendLocal View Post
Something is mixed up there. They are coming from Eugene which is like 2x bigger than Bend and feels about 10x bigger!
Yeah, not sure why I read Eugene as Corvallis. My fault.

Eugene is definitely bigger than Bend. Though, Eugene isn't very diverse.
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