Corvallis/Eugene vegetarians (Portland: college, living in, restaurants)

[vegcook]

I was born and raised in Portland but left after college (Willamette grad.) My husband and I are long time vegans and we want to return to Oregon. Due to family complications in Portland, we are thinking of moving to Corvallis or Eugene. Which of those two would be best as far as good coops/health food stores, vegetarian restaurants, and an active vegetarian society? We also love to walk and hike, and we love clean air. Is there a smog problem in either of these towns?

Our other favorite things are good libraries, continuing education, liberal politics, and independent and foreign films (NetFlix would work). My husband loves sports. We have always lived in big cities (Portland, Seattle, London, Honolulu) except for our current situation in St. George, Utah. It has been nice living in a smaller town with 80,000 population and less traffic, but this place is just too conservative for us.

Thanks so much for any tips to help us make our decision!

[Waterlily]

You'll find plenty of vegans in Eugene and it is a larger city. It does have smog though. Air gets trapped in the valley.

Corvallis probably has less smog but I haven't checked on the air quality there. They have vegans there as well.

[vegcook]

Thanks for the info about air quality in Eugene, Waterlily. Does anybody know about air quality in Corvallis? Could I assume that the Oregon rain keeps the air clean most of the year but it gets smoggy in the summer?