In search of Eugene Oregon

[Marko3]

[quote=QuintusCinna;5365] "We are the grass seed capital of the world. The willamette Valley grows 90% of the grass seed for the country. QUOTE]

Don't let people scare you. Linn county which is to the north of Lane county is actually known as the grass seed capital of the world, and where you'll find most of the flat farm like Willamette valley land. Eugene is south of all this in Lane county. I am a cronic allergy sufferer, and other than when the flowers first bloom in spring, I'm fine. I usually take allergy medications during that time as well, so it's not that big a deal. Google earth the Eugene area and you'll see that there aren't crops of grass within the city. It's not until you get north on I-5 probably 7-10 miles that you start seeing farm fields, or way out west by the airport...there are a few out there as well.

[reets4524]

I'm looking to leave Las Vegas, too. So if you visit Eugene, let me know because I'm interested in a normal life aslo.

[marronedjames]

Hello,

Just some thoughts on my experience in eugene. I lived there for a little more than a year...2003-2004. During that time most of my activities involved job hunting. I got two temp jobs totaling 17 weeks. I am an ASE certified mechanic with more than 20 yrs experience and three yrs as an airline mechanic. I also have a CDL(commercial drivers lic.), and am a college graduate. My point being that anyone who is considering moving there who has to earn a living should consider finding employment there first then move. The alternative might be to take your job with you...work for yourself, or create your own business opportunities.

As for the place as a place to live, I miss it a great deal. I have lived in Hawaii now for more than 35 years...came here for work and have never lacked for a job. Thats why I stayed this long. My point, Eugene felt more like home for me in that one year than Hawaii has ever felt. I retire in two years and will return to Eugene.

If you decide to try Eugene, I hope that it works out well for you.

[suncat]

Originally Posted by frenzied

For good desserts- try Sweet Life, and Cafe Xenon.

I wonder if the Excelsior Cafe is still there. I remember it being a really cozy place to have dessert.

[Ethirtysex]

Originally Posted by suncat

I wonder if the Excelsior Cafe is still there. I remember it being a really cozy place to have dessert.

It sure is.

[theog]

I have been thinking of retiring in Eugene. HMIL's last paragraph has absolutely decided it for me. Hopefully HMIL will find this Republican Utopia, (if that isn't an oxymoron.)

Originally Posted by HMIL

My perspective comes as one who was raised here, moved away for ten years, and has been back since 1991. I think I've seen it all. Eugene is a mixed bag.

If you're thinking of moving to Eugene, be aware that it's a pretty political town. The liberals are very vocal and the conservatives tend to be less so. If you're liberal/green/socialist, it's an easy place to live. If you're conservative/libertarian, you'll see a lot of frustrating things. No matter your leanings, or even if you don't have any, I encourage you to get involved. This is one of the things that truly "takes a village".

The city council is almost all liberal and, in my opinion, are wasteful with our tax dollars, funding study upon study to study the study they studied to try to prove why we really shouldn't have what the voters voted in (i.e. West Eugene Parkway has been put off for 20 years, but a dedicated bus lane from Eugene to Springfield is speeding along - go figure). Seems Eugene ends up on the news mostly for shameful or embarrassing things. (Remember City Manager Jim Jones - or whatever his name was - not letting City employees put Christmas trees up in their offices or decorations? That ended up on national news and used as examples in books)

As a student under 21, there was nothing to do unless you had fake ID. I didn't, so I went to the movies a lot. Now, there's a 17-screen, stadium-seating theater across I-5 in Springfield, and a new one is being built near Valley River Center in Eugene.

The restaurants range from the national chains to the regional, to the "very Eugene". If you want it, you can probably find it. There's even a delivery service that will get it (for about 35 places in town) and bring it to your door. But be careful - they charge the prices from the dinner menu even during the day, and there's a $3.95 fee, and the driver expects to be tipped generously.

Shopping is plentiful -Valley River Center is the nicest mall, but is starting to look a little "cookie cutter", Gateway Mall (Springfield), is not as nice, but gets a lot of traffic due to the theater and "restaurant row". A place, full of stuff from local/regional artisans is Fifth Street Market. It's being remodeled now, but should be well worth the wait.

Schools are better-funded here than most would have you believe, but there's still an amazing amount of waste - notably due to rididulous requirements put in place back in the late 90s for the CIM/CAM program. I recommend the Bethel School District, with more approachable administration.

If you're looking for a church, they range from the mega-sized Faith Center to smaller home churches, from Baptist and Methodist to Unitarian and Ba'hai. Might even be satanist congregation or two - I'm sure there are also plenty of Wiccan groups and pagan gatherings. Eugene's got it all.

It's true that unemployment is a problem. I'm a highly qualified administrative assistant, but it took me six months to find another job when my old company closed up. However, there is a great resource sponsored by the OR Employment Div., Lane County, and many of the employers in the region. If you're not coming to a job waiting for you, you'd be doing yourself a favor by checking out the Lane Workforce Network. But a word to the wise - the Lane Workforce Network office on Oakmont is a depressing, unfriendly place. I found that the staff there seemed to be made up of "burn-out cases" who were waiting to retire and looked at me with suspicion. On the other hand, the office at Lane Community College was much more inviting and the people far friendlier.

The climate is perfect - for me. It does rain a lot here, but that's what makes it so very green! I prefer to think of it as liquid sunshine. (Plus, the rainier the season, the lower the chance of nasty forest fires in the summer - look up the Biscuit Fire on Google!)

The temperatures don't get dramatically low in the winter and summer high temps happen but not often and not for sustained periods of time. Most houses and apartments built before 1990 don't have air conditioning, but if you have a house with a decent cross breeze and a few fans, you can manage quite nicely.

All things considered, the good and the bad, the happy and sad and embarassing, I love it here. (Although I've given serious consideration to moving to a more conservative town - maybe Springfield? - because it's a very tough place to be a conservative, Christian, Republican straight woman.)

So, if you come to town, welcome. Make yourself a home!

[justinschmidt85]

I was born and raised in the Eugene/Springfield Metro area and I can say that I never had the slightest thought of moving somewhere else. I have asthma and it was not very bad in Eugene at all! The only bone I have to pick with Eugene is that sometimes in August it gets humid. Other than that, Eugene's the best place in the country.

PS- my asthma is much worse here in Arizona [phoenix metro]

[LyzonLightheart]

I would not move to Eugene. Most of the elected officials in Eugene, Oregon are very corrupt and heavily influence the Lane County Elections officials to keep people that don't fit their profile off of the election ballots (i. e. anything other than affluent white). The State of Oregon is currently investigating election fraud in Eugene.

The current elected officials and the University of Oregon also are very anti-veteran, especially disabled veterans. The city of Eugene for the most part absolutely refuses to let any American Veteran, Arab American, African American organizations be included in parades and job fairs. The University of Oregon and most of the city of Eugene also does not recognize the national holiday, Veteran's Day.

In my humble opinion, I also believe that the police in Eugene are very corrupt too. Auto Theft, Buglaries, Drugs, and Gang activity is alarmingly higher than most big cities in the US. By the time anyone calls for the police, the need for them has usually long past if they even show up at all, an average of 5 to 11 hours for 911 calls is not uncommon. The City of Eugene does very little other than lip service to keep criminals in jail. It is not uncommon for people who are arrested to be let back out on the street for crimes like car theft 3 hours later only to get arrested for car theft again in the same day. The City of Eugene, Lane County, and senior State of Oregon officials are pushing to give themselves a 54% raise with no accountability, while they claim there isn't enough money for jail beds or to help senior citizens, the disabled, the homeless, and keep animal shelters open. Furthermore, the City of Eugene does everything but invite adult book stores and strip clubs on major city streets. In addition, most employers in Eugene will find reasons not to employ you if you are disabled. I know this first hand as a disabled veteran.

However, all is not lost in Eugene or Lane County, if you live outside the major city limits, the Lane County Sheriff's department is doing an outstanding job with the extremely limited resources it gets allocated to it. The K thru 12 educational system for the most part is very good in Eugene. Lane Community College is one of the best in the entire country too. However, the University of Oregon is more concerned about their sports teams than they are standards of education for their students. Also, the general population of Eugene is polite and unbiased. I would also stay far away from slum lords like Umbrella Properties.

The situation in Springfield is much better than that of Eugene, the City of Springfield is proactive and not corrupt in trying to stop crime and cleaning up run down areas of Springfield. Springfield is also trying to get rid of the adult book stores and strip clubs allowed within the city limits by previous administrations. Their worst area is car theft around Gateway Mall. I would put any valuables in your trunk site unseen if you happen to go there.

There are lots of churches throughout Eugene and Springfield for Christians like myself. But, most of Eugene and parts of Springfield is very liberal.

I am a disabled US Navy Veteran, Electronics Engineer, Computer Programmer, and have lived in the Eugene area for 8 years. I have attended both LCC and U of O, and stay in Eugene so that I can live close to my kids that live with my adulterous exwife.

[haggardhouseelf]

Originally Posted by LyzonLightheart

I would not move to Eugene. Most of the elected officials in Eugene, Oregon are very corrupt and heavily influence the Lane County Elections officials to keep people that don't fit their profile off of the election ballots (i. e. anything other than affluent white). The State of Oregon is currently investigating election fraud in Eugene.

The current elected officials and the University of Oregon also are very anti-veteran, especially disabled veterans. The city of Eugene for the most part absolutely refuses to let any American Veteran, Arab American, African American organizations be included in parades and job fairs. The University of Oregon and most of the city of Eugene also does not recognize the national holiday, Veteran's Day.

In my humble opinion, I also believe that the police in Eugene are very corrupt too. Auto Theft, Buglaries, Drugs, and Gang activity is alarmingly higher than most big cities in the US. By the time anyone calls for the police, the need for them has usually long past if they even show up at all, an average of 5 to 11 hours for 911 calls is not uncommon. The City of Eugene does very little other than lip service to keep criminals in jail. It is not uncommon for people who are arrested to be let back out on the street for crimes like car theft 3 hours later only to get arrested for car theft again in the same day. The City of Eugene, Lane County, and senior State of Oregon officials are pushing to give themselves a 54% raise with no accountability, while they claim there isn't enough money for jail beds or to help senior citizens, the disabled, the homeless, and keep animal shelters open. Furthermore, the City of Eugene does everything but invite adult book stores and strip clubs on major city streets. In addition, most employers in Eugene will find reasons not to employ you if you are disabled. I know this first hand as a disabled veteran.

However, all is not lost in Eugene or Lane County, if you live outside the major city limits, the Lane County Sheriff's department is doing an outstanding job with the extremely limited resources it gets allocated to it. The K thru 12 educational system for the most part is very good in Eugene. Lane Community College is one of the best in the entire country too. However, the University of Oregon is more concerned about their sports teams than they are standards of education for their students. Also, the general population of Eugene is polite and unbiased. I would also stay far away from slum lords like Umbrella Properties.

The situation in Springfield is much better than that of Eugene, the City of Springfield is proactive and not corrupt in trying to stop crime and cleaning up run down areas of Springfield. Springfield is also trying to get rid of the adult book stores and strip clubs allowed within the city limits by previous administrations. Their worst area is car theft around Gateway Mall. I would put any valuables in your trunk site unseen if you happen to go there.

There are lots of churches throughout Eugene and Springfield for Christians like myself. But, most of Eugene and parts of Springfield is very liberal.

I am a disabled US Navy Veteran, Electronics Engineer, Computer Programmer, and have lived in the Eugene area for 8 years. I have attended both LCC and U of O, and stay in Eugene so that I can live close to my kids that live with my adulterous exwife.

This has been posted - this same thing - in several different places on the Eugene/Oregon boards. Is this a bot or what they call a troll or whatever? I'm not net-lingo-savvy...

Anyway, mr. LL man, if you're real... you shouldn't use your kids as an excuse to stay anywhere especially if you're miserable. I'm sure they'd rather have a happy dad who is living his life the way he wants than a miserable dad who feels trapped and bitter inside. With your career experience that you stated, maybe try the Bellevue/Redmond area or even Portland. Plenty of jobs there, and maybe you'll meet somebody a little less adulterous to enjoy your life with. It's also not too far a drive for child visits. Good luck to you!