The strikelist - which 5 towns would you AVOID in Oregon? (Portland: live, shop)

[vnodak]

This whole issue and most of the comments are unproductive and very judgemental ---- hope this gets shut down as their is not a point to this at all. Having live in Oregon for over 25 years I totally disagree with some of the comments and I have live else where and Oregon is not at the bottom of the hole. Their is good and bad every where and Oregon is not my favorite place in the US.

[pdxqt]

I was born and raised in Grants Pass, it has no more racism than any other town in Oregon! What you witness must have been an isoalted incident.

[wannabe1]

Originally Posted by karlsch

They must have been Californians!!

What a sad attitude.

[ConeyIsBabe]

Throwing in my two-cents worth of comment before this thread gets locked-down: Having lived in the Grants Pass area for the last 5 years I've observed the full spectrum of humanity - but doesn't every city/county with a pop of over 30k have that?

IMHO it's a very friendly, retiree-dominated, middle-class area, very affordable and little stress. Most people are respectful. Most children are polite. Most drivers are very courteous. I have not witnessed any crime, acts of violence, or racism. Just drive carefully at night (outside of town) to avoid hitting Bambi

[tiffela74]

I would avoid living in Ontario because i have too much family there, theyd drive me batty...even though I love some of the smells around there, and how up in the hills, it can seem as youve traveled back 150yrs and in a more innocent and hopeful time..
Id avoid living in Hermiston because its not green enough for my taste, even though I know of some welcoming and warm people there, and I think the remoteness of it can be beautiful in itself
Id avoid living in a certain area of hillsboro because my exhusband lives there
Id avoid living in Joseph because as incredibly beautiful as it is, they dont have my line of work there (if they did, Id love to live there, its stunning)
Id avoid living in Forest Grove, as terrific of a town as it is, because I went to high school there and Im afraid if i went back, id revert back to that mind set. lol

Im of the firm opinion that each and every place in Oregon has someone living there that thinks theyve found paradise. That EVERYWHERE has something special, unique and beautiful about it. And that anywhere can be home, wonderful and comforting, stunning and inspiring, it just depends on the person and their mindset.
Im very disappointed in the OP for starting this thread. It seems to be a rather mean spirited thing to do....Kinda like saying "Lets all say something we hate about so-and-so."
hummmm.....

[Harry Penders]

I have late age onset of Asthma which has worsened here in Portland (Oregon) I haven't had it for 40 years! I'd like to stay in Oregon as the air was horrible in Arizona and Southern California. Is there any cities in the Northwest that are good for Asthmatics. I heard Bend was a lot drier and the air was good. If anyone knows of good places away from the molds & pollen w/o landing in Death Valley could you post a reply.

[Yahuchannon]

Originally Posted by Imperial1904

In my opinion, the whole state of Oregon lacks culture.

I can't really list 5 towns since I've only actually lived in 2. From my own experience, Klamath Falls. It's too isolated, backwards, too rural, lots of weird people, ugly, roads suck because they don't know or don't have any workers with enough experience to build or fix them. One intersection constantly has lanes closed. You can tell that they messed up and are trying to cover it up by doing something with it, can't tell what they're trying to do. You can tell which drivers are native to Klamath because they can't merge, can't change lanes, can't keep up with the flow of traffic... it's irritating. I even talked with an ex-cop here who said most (local) drivers here can't drive. No culture, no nightlife, no jobs unless you work in healthcare.

How can you say that Oregon lacks culture? One of the most fascinating things about Oregon to me is it's culture. Sure, times are changing and cultural diversity is getting more and more diverse no matter where you live but Oregon has some of the deepest roots in America and it's history is very interesting. I moved up here from Louisiana, I'm 100% cajun French, and I loooooove Oregon! Exclamation point! One can search Oregon's history and just keep on searching, never finishing. You MUST be from California. Just a wild guess. Also, coincidentally, I've just arrived in Klamath Falls today because I've finally found a job after a year and a half long job search and it brought me here to my new job. I don't have an opinion on it yet of course but so far, so good.

Back to the subject - five of my least favorite places to live in Oregon:

Well, I've only spent enough time in a few places to say much about them. I've visited a few others and some I got bad vibes right off the bat. These places in order with the worst first would be:

1. Astoria
2. Salem
3. Bend
4. Canyonville/Azalea

Not so sure about Salem or Bend though. These two really make me curious and I really don't know if they're all that bad. I got some pretty mean looks in Salem and Bend seems to be God forsaken. Salem can't be all that bad I'm sure though.

Favorites are:

Portland was the most vibrant! There's nothing like a Saturday in Portland.

Eugene is a very culture filled city and very tolerant of different types of people. Very well organized community. The only thing I don't like about it is the anti-government attitude that is sometimes found there, but the people there normally are peacefull and eat extremely healthy. They also love to stand up for the enviroment.

Grants Pass is a very special place to me along with Southwest Oregon as a whole. Great weather. People are people. At times we've struggled with leadership but I think were making a comeback. Hopefully.

*edit - haha, I just read the other comments on this thread and noticed Grants Pass made headlines...lol. Well, the truth is I haven't lived there in the last five years or so and part of the reason is because it has gotten worse. That is fact. The city and county officials have been strugling and at one time the entire sherrifs department was in jeapordy. I helped sheriff Gil in his campaign by passing out flyers and voted for him. I think it may be getting better, but it has definitely changed for the worse since 96 when I first moved there. The street kids have gotten pretty rough at times and even killed one of my old friends, who was a fairly decent kid. Anyway, I do plan on witnessing there more in the near future and I'll be praying for that city now.

www.myspace.com/yumpac

[pdxMIKEpdx]

Hey Folks, let's realize this thread started in July of 2007, and that's a lifetime ago as far as Oregon and The City of Portland is concerned.

That was when Oregon (and the whole PNW) was really beginning to get popular and show up on the national map, not just California's map.

IMHO, that time period was one of Portland's heydays, when it was falling all over itself on congratulating itself on what a hip cool place it had become.

2000 through 2009 were actually pretty fun years around here. They formed the Portland of today.

It was a time when the Oregon of 1950 on -- the old-fashioned Oregon, as far as we are concerned -- had to remake itself to stay viable.

I think the newcomers around here are looking for the excitement of that Portland, and that Oregon, not today's Portland, Salem, Eugene/Sprinfield, and points south and east.
And west too.
The oregon coast of past years was a hundred times better within the last 50 years, even ten years ago, with tons less commercialism, crowds, and chaos than it has now.
The coast towns had to change from real life fishing/logging and working ports to fake magnets of tourism.

You guys just missed it. Should have been here yesterday!
Things have changed around here--alot--since that 2007 date.
Portland is now on a plateau and then it's gonna take a downhill slide. Mirroring Seattle. Just watch.



As far as Asthma goes, I would think that quite a bit of eastern Oregon might suit your needs as long as you lived kinda of upwind from the pollen producing small towns and cities, only being exposed to the natural stuff. It certainly is dry there compared to Portland.
But I don't have asthma so I might be talking out my snoot.

[ditchlights]

The wife and I have lived here for five years, so I have limited experience in calling certain areas. But there are two that I would avoid. Take it as it is!

As the OP stated - Sweet Home is a drug cesspool. It is the most backwards place I have lived/worked/visited since in this state. It is hard to find a full set of teeth in this town.

Klammath Falls - Quite similar to Sweet Home, just a lot more recreational activities to enjoy. Many bikers. Lot's of meth.

Most other areas of Oregon have been quite enjoyable. I love this state much more than California, or any other place I have ever lived.

[Yahuchannon]

Well, I guess the only way to change a city is for more of the right people to move there and be a positive influence. If all the right people moved out of a city then that wouldn't be too nice would it. Hey, there's an idea! If anyone cares about Oregon's culture and history, your not a drug user, family oriented, and a hard worker, then we need you to move to one of these troubled towns were talking about. Hey, if I have to do it then someone else should too... lol.