Moscow, ID Thoughts? (Boise: co-op, home, public school)

[Small and solar]

Hello all,

How about Moscow, ID? What do you think, what do you like, what would you change?

A good spot for a young family? (well mostly young )?

Renewable Energy friendly? Solar, wind, etc.

Costs, weather, or any musings you would like to share.

Thank you in advance.

[Trace_Rinaldi]

I'm thinking Moscow would be right up your alley.... I dont live there but have been there many times.

[twinprism]

I would guess you are not going to get much for solar power in Moscow, being a northern latitude with frequent cloud cover, but if it just to augment or passive solar it will help. I'd say in the right part of town wind could be decent. That's one things Idaho has is wind. People say that's because (insert closest surrounding state here) sucks but I don't believe it.

[mistyriverranch]

We live on solar power farther north and Moscow seems to be a bit sunnier. Most off-grid people here also have a genny backup for the grey months but solar power is terrific in the summer.

[stingraynm]

Well, when I was at the U of I, the engineering college was doing work on biodiesel. That area is actually a more politically liberal part of Idaho and has a well-entrenched movement within both academia and just local lobbies for green options in infrastructure and sustainable agriculture applications in farming, which is an economic foundation of the Palouse region (mid-Panhandle and Northeast WA).

Despite the "blue" leanings of Latah county, the area still maintains a firm family-oriented "red" ideology, so it's actually a great place to raise kids. Any college town has quite the party/underground element, but even the wildest factions are easy for the small-town police to keep in check and don't even compare to places like Seattle or LA. Most of that type are pretty much just mellow youth who enjoy letting loose on the weekend, though.

The University brings some great extra-curricular elements/options to the local public school system, too. That's something I wish I'd explored during my latter years in high school in Boise (I don't know if BSU is as cooperative with high schools as U of I), as it could've made college a lot cheaper and allowed me to apply for certain small scholarships earlier on.

Moscow also has many great local businesses. It's not ideal for shopaholics/fashionistas and the like, but for people who like a quaint, down-home, small business feel, the whole Idaho Panhandle can't be beat! Since you like green, sustainable options where you live, drop in at the local co-op and talk to any number of friendly patrons and co-owners about the region and locally tested/successful options for greener living. If you don't find a friendly, informative exchange with a local there, then you and I are existing in different dimensions that just happened to coincide on this forum.

Also, don't miss Mikey's Gyros for lunch (if you like Mediterranean fare) and The Alehouse (if you like microbrews) for friendly locals. If you like Chinese, Chinese Village is a locally-owned gem that I never went without for more than two weeks. Superb!

What would I change about it? Y'know, I could've told you something when I lived there, but too many good memories sort of whited out the bad ones. People are right when they say the winters get cloudy, though... and COLD for a stint in January. Not a bad thing, but some people couldn't stand it.

[Small and solar]

StingRay: I don't have the time right now to type a sufficient reply to your awesome post, but the short form is: THANKS!

More questions to come!

[stingraynm]

Thanks. I appreciate that. And glad to help.

[stingraynm]

Another item I forgot to note is Pullman, home of WSU. It's across the WA border about 8-9 mi away from Moscow. There is a trail along the highway commute that makes it an easy bike ride, too. WSU is a somewhat larger university with a few different offerings than U of I (though both are very cooperative in class exchange programs).

The nice thing is, both Pullman and especially Moscow get the benefits of being a small town with the combined populace and options of a formidably sizeable town. (Both have nice hospitals, for just one example from an ex-mountain biker who needed a few "repairs".) Moscow's population a few years ago was about 30,000 with academic year students and 15,000 in the summer. Combined with Pullman, the population becomes a well-dispersed 80,000-90,000 people in the academic year and 40,000-50,000 in the summer. You wouldn't know it, though. At any time except University events, weekend ruckus, or regional festivals, Moscow "feels" more like a town of about 5,000-10,000 people.

The Moscow summers are when I really fell in love with the town. The sparse summer population of locals and serious/working students (and a few legacy brats making up for flunked classes) makes the area very quaint, peaceful, and fun-loving. My first summer was post-sophomore year. I was reluctant to stay at first, but I wanted to hold on to a great job and also decided to get a statistics pre-req out of the way for a good dibs on my first upper-div classes in Fall.

This was summer of 2001, so my fond memories are amplified by the fact that America was still humming along behind rosey-colored goggles. The world still had problems and I was still young and insecure about my future, but there were no "real" problems relative to what ensued my third week of Fall semester. Everything seemed fine, really. No real instability or anxiety on the home front. Everyone just wanted to talk shop, recreate, and enjoy the light clothing and temperate nightlife.

The area climate alternates b/w 70s and 90s in summer, so you don't get extremes or excess. I just rode around on my bike in my free time and finally had the opportunity to immerse myself in what was priorly a scene of weekend/work-hour acquaintances. Nothing was too busy or too crowded and it was as though a myriad cornucopia of boats and cabins were popping out of the woodwork, begging for the abuse of a bunch of over-grown adolescents. The vibe and theme of the summer was genuinely "communal", and I was and forever will be spoiled beyond reconciliation and consolation in my understanding of that word.

Sorry for the long-windedness, but nostalgia is a lot funner when you can relay it to a recipient who is enthusiastic about the subject matter.

[DESERTRYDER]

Stingraynm I always love reading your posts.
Make me think about Moscow all over again.

[stingraynm]

Originally Posted by DESERTRYDER

Stingraynm I always love reading your posts.
Make me think about Moscow all over again.

Thanks. Glad to share in the nostalgia.