Is Bangor what I'm looking for? (Portland, Ellsworth: real estate, homes, college)

[beautyprevails]

My wife and I live near Providence, RI and were wanting to move out of this immediate area. We are going to take a trip up to Bangor sometime soon, but before we do, I was just checking to see if people think it would be a good fit for me. We are trying to plan a trip based on what we think we would like so we can narrow it down. I have been to Portland before, but never to Bangor. What I am looking for in a town/small city is this:

A clean downtown...my wife and I like to go downtown to get coffee, eat, etc.

A picturesque city...I know every town and city have dumpy parts, but overall, I need to live in a "pretty" city. Not much blight.

A safe city...I know Bangor is relatively safe.

4 seasons. I love cold, so I don't think it would be a problem.

Inexpensive real estate...RI is expensive and where I am originally from, CA is really expensive!

Outdoors...hiking, sailing, boating, the ocean, etc.

Culture...the arts, music, etc.

I am sure that fits a lot of people's description of what they want, so if anyone can help, that would be great.

There are a lot of places like that in southern New England...they are just outrageous to live in. Starter homes for 300-500K in places like Narragansett, Bristol, Newport, etc.

Oh, and friendly people. Some of the people down here are okay, but a lot seem rude. I have dealt with some small business owners that will ********* as soon as they can. I love down to earth and friendly people.

Thanks for the help. I greatly appreciate it.

[mollysmiles]

I think Bangor sounds like what you're looking for, but so do some other areas! Ellsworth and Belfast are smaller than Bangor, and both very nice. (although traffic in Ellsworth can be difficult in the summer due to people traveling to Mount Desert Island and Downeast).....what do you do for work? That may also impact where you need to look

[beautyprevails]

my wife is a nurse at a hospital in Providence and I work with Juvenile offenders at a group home. I know my wife and work anywhere. I would imagine I could too, but I'm not 100% about that. I think I like the size of Bangor more than really small towns. The Providence MSA is over 1 million and that is too big for me. But something around 100,000 or less is good for me. Maybe around 50K. So that is why I thought Bangor would be a good size.

[mollysmiles]

It does sound like Bangor is the size city you're looking for, and it's good that you know you don't want to go smaller, that will save you some time and narrow the search

I think you and your wife will find good opportunities for work too, it's sounding like Bangor is a good fit! I lived in the Bangor area for 15 years--while in college, and then after....and I loved it. All (4) of my kids were born there, and I just felt like it was a great place to raise children--plenty of opportunities for them, and safe too. We moved to Downeast when I inherited a house, and had the chance to live just 2 blocks away from my parents. It was a good move for us, but it was hard to leave too!

[beautyprevails]

thank you for your time and words. we'll have to make a trip within the next few weeks up to bangor. i am excited. how far from the ocean is bangor? and where are the best spots to go? bar harbor? any more?

thanks

[msina]

I'm quite familiar with Rhode Island and South Coast Massachusetts. I think you would love Bangor, particularly if you were to work there and live in one of the small towns in the area. You can find Gaspars linguica in a lot of stores in the area but chourico is harder to come by. Shopping in Bangor is easy as most everything is right in the mall area. Downtown is clean and has some wonderful shops and restaraunts. People are friendly and roads are well marked. Quahogs are something I miss (stuffies) but when I got to visit I bring some back and make them here for friends. Chowder is white here, don't even think you'll find the red kind

[bigchuckie]

Winner Winner Chicken Dinner ding ding ding. Sounds like what you are looking for

[beautyprevails]

bleck. i don't like the red kind. i'm all about the white chowder.

[msina]

then I guess you're ready to move up here and make it home

[beautyprevails]

just gotta figure it out with the wife. she wants to move back to CA and I want ME. BIG difference. to me, Maine is much more beautiful than California. less blight, crime, worse weather in my book. we'll see. we'll definetely take a trip up there. maybe that will convince.

plus, CA doesn't have chowder in a bread bowl the way new england does.