Which road to Lewiston? (Boise, Potlatch: homes, to buy, schools)

[jetboat]

I am taking my family to Lewiston... Not for the smell! We might be moving there and want to check it out before making the final decision. We should fit right in w/ the big diesel truck, flannels, and holes in my jeans. We might stand out with the Washington plates and we are not missing any teeth....yet! just kidding.. We live in the Seattle area and would like some advice on a decent route. Should we take I-90 all the way up to Spokane and drop down or hang a right at the gorge? Probably in the early part of February

Heres another question.. Has anyone heard of any events that might be coming up that might hurt the economy around that area.. such as the pulp mill "Potlatch" closing down or anything like that? I have been doing alot of searching for any signs of these things but nothing yet.

Any info about Lewiston would be great. Especially where to live and not smell it! Reminds me of "The Tacoma Aroma".

Thanks guys!

[Idaho_Vandal]

Directions - To get to Lewiston from Seattle take I-90 to Vantange, exit onto Highway 26 (to Pullman, exit on East Side of freeway), stay on 26 until you get to Colfax and turn South on 195, take 195 until it merges with US-95 and head down the big hill.

Economy - So far so good here, ATK and Regence have been hiring and Potlatch is holding steady minus a few accountants that they sent up to Spokane. Before moving to Lewiston I was worried about Potlatch closing (I grew up in Western Oregon and saw many mills close). I think the clean up cost for that site would be so great that they will keep it open for many years to come. I could be wrong about this. I would guess they will sell the facility to investers within the next 10 years because Potlatch wants to concentrate on timber land.

You will not stand out with Washington plates. Lewiston is accross the river from Clarkston, WA so there are many WA plates.

Where to live and not small it - Orchards or Elks/Country Club area. We live in the orchards and rarely mess anything. Also many times people might think they are smelling potlatch, but they really are smelling Eko (composing facility located in North Lewiston). In the orchards where I live I can not smell either.

[Syringaloid]

Here is some interesting news regarding Lewiston from a Boise news source.
KTVB Boise
Waterfront property values explode | KTVB.COM | Boise Idaho News, Weather, Sports & Traffic | Road Wizard

LEWISTON - People heading to north-central Idaho for homes with waterfront views should expect to shell out a lot of money.

Spectacular views and easy access to nature are reasons why more people are flocking to buy waterfront property in north-central Idaho, but that has inflated prices.

[jetboat]

Thanks for the replies. Those are great directions and a positive outlook on the economy. I would hate to start a business out there and see the jobs disapear. Home prices out there are very low in comparison. My worn out 1950sqft home is worth 400k+. In Lewiston I can save a 100k and get 3700sqft and enough garage to park all the toys. We live very close to Microsoft and all the other hi-tech industries. I wont miss the 10 mile drive that takes 45 mins or more, or the rain all summer long every weekend. I might miss the trees.

How are the schools in Lewiston? I have a 10yr old boy who has some adhd issues and needing the little extra programs to keep him advancing. We looked at the school websites and most of them looked trashed. There was 1 school w/ a great site and loaded with info. We will probably check that one out. When I was in school we moved from a large school to a school out on the Olympic Penninsula. It was a huge step backwards in learning. In the city we were learning to write code for the apple pcs, and pre-calc, etc... Out on the Penninsula the only pc was in the office and the whole school was 3yrs behind. The classes you took in 6th grade were 9th grade classes on th OP.

Either way if things go as planned we will be there in 2 months or less. Usually not much goes as planned. Maybe we will be neighbors, do you like to fish?

Thanks,
anymore info or whatever would be great!