Grants Pass - I have some questions (Medford, Ashland: violent crime, Home Depot)

[redwhiteblue]

My family and I are on the hunt for our next town. I have visited Grants Pass once back in 2004 but don't really know too much about it.

If someone can please answer my questions below I would greatly appreciate it.

Politics
I understand that Oregon is a liberal state but from what I see Josephine County looks pretty conservative, is this an accurate statement?

Guns
How difficult is it to obtain a concealed weapon permit?
Do you find the state overall is pro second amendment?

Weather
Realistically how many months of the year is it really rainy?
Are there many sunny days?

Crime
Do you see a lot of reports of violent crime in the media?
How safe do you feel living in Grants Pass?

Shopping
Do you find that you can get all you need right there in town or do you rely on the internet?

What is your overall opinion of the area?

Thanks!

[Random_Walk]

Politics? You're fairly dead-on, though there are pockets of the leftward slant in-town.

Guns? Not as open/liberal about it as, say, Utah, but overall still far easier and more pro-2nd Amendment than, say, Washington. Usually I have no problems at all purchasing/procuring firearms out here in Tillamook County, and I suspect that Josephine County is not much different according to my in-laws (who live in GP). Even the 3-day waiting period is compressed to just a few hours due to the rapidity of the background checks.

Weather? Grants Pass isn't the damp rain-a-thon that we experience up here in the NW corner of the state. Usually quite warm and somewhat dry in the summer.

Crime, I suspect would be about the usual, but I honestly am not sure offhand.

Shopping is actually easy to do in-town there. They have most of the big-brand stores (Wal-Mart, Home Depot just opened there, etc), and nearly all of the essential and ordinary bits and services are available. Anything really specialized you may have to get from Medford or via the Internet and UPS, but otherwise you should be good to go in this department.

[Larry Caldwell]

There's a Costco and Harbor Freight in Medford, a short drive from Grants Pass.

Oregon is a "must issue" state for concealed carry. Open carry is legal without a permit. Getting a permit requires passing an NRA certified handgun safety class and a clean criminal record on your FBI background check. You will have to be fingerprinted for the background check, and they will run your prints through the system. The background check for purchase is just a phone call with your ID info. For me, it typically takes less than 10 minutes.

Plan on 9 months of rainy weather. Grants Pass gets more snow because of the altitude, so there will be snow several times during a typical winter. Storm fronts are dense and dark, followed by 2-5 days of "cold, moist, unstable atmosphere." There will be holes in the clouds following the front.

There will be the occasional murder, and fairly frequent thefts. Stay out of bars, away from druggies and get a dog. You will be pretty safe.

Grants Pass politics are small town politics. They recalled the whole City Council a couple years back. Mostly people ignore it until somebody does something nobody likes.

[Hawk J]

Shoppin- thar is a Fred Meyer next to Wally World...

webcams... Grants Pass Daily Courier -- Downtown Web Cam

There are many beautiful days during the year, in Grants Pass.

[pw72]

Grants Pass is in that zone between the wet, cloudy NW Oregon, and the drier, sunnier SW Oregon. You get a little of both here, but it tends to lean toward the SW Oregon climate. The elevation is higher than Medford, so snow in the winter is somewhat more likely than the former.

Politics, I agree. Mostly conservative but pockets of liberalism.

Shopping, I think Wal-Mart is there, if that is what you are looking for. Otherwise, Medford isn't that far away, where you can find Macy's, etc.

[Terryj]

There are a number of chain store in Grants Pass, Bi-Mart, Walmart, Fred Meyer and Home Depot, Grants Pass does lack a mall.
The weather in GP isn't that wet when compaired with the NW section of the state, temps in the summer range from 80's to 100 with a few days of 100+.
Crime is Josephine County is above average for the area this is due to poor county funding of law enforcement.
You'll find most of Southern Oregon to lean conservative and as posted about there are pocket of liberalism scattered about.
Oregon is very much a pro 2nd amendment state, however, you'll find those people that wish handguns were a thing of the past.

[redwhiteblue]

Thank you all so much for the replies. The information you have provided as been helpful.

[rtg143]

Actually, Medford is a higher elevation than Grants Pass. I thought that at first due to the drive from Medford giving that impression. The Rogue River runs from the Medford area to Grants Pass so that proves it's a lower elevation by itself. Medford is 1380ft above sea level and Grants Pass is 960 Ft.

[backdrifter]

Originally Posted by redwhiteblue

My family and I are on the hunt for our next town. I have visited Grants Pass once back in 2004 but don't really know too much about it.

If someone can please answer my questions below I would greatly appreciate it.

Politics
I understand that Oregon is a liberal state but from what I see Josephine County looks pretty conservative, is this an accurate statement?

Guns
How difficult is it to obtain a concealed weapon permit?
Do you find the state overall is pro second amendment?

Weather
Realistically how many months of the year is it really rainy?
Are there many sunny days?

Crime
Do you see a lot of reports of violent crime in the media?
How safe do you feel living in Grants Pass?

Shopping
Do you find that you can get all you need right there in town or do you rely on the internet?

What is your overall opinion of the area?

Thanks!

I wouldn't say it's a conservative area. Leans conservative, yes, but not in-your-face. More center-right. Libertarianism (little l), however, is the dominant political philosophy you'll find in the area, along with some pockets of liberalism as mentioned (it is "Oregon" after all...). It is worth mentioning that the Oregon chapter of the Constitution Party is headquartered in Grants Pass, but Obama got more of the vote than you might expect in JoCo. Of course the city of GP voted in higher %ages for him.

Sunny days *usually* come reliably and steadily in May, though they start to mix in around March and April. Some La Niña years break late, short summers and late frosts and snow (like this year). Then at the tail end of October it starts to be steady grey. About 26-30" of rain per year, at least 90% during the rainy season.

I don't feel as safe when I visit now as I did when I was growing up there. Crime has definitely increased (both violent and property), as have the visibility of gangs and drugs, but that all comes hand in hand with a growing city, and it HAS grown significantly in the past 20 years. Someone was stabbed downtown in broad daylight a year or so back, but that is not too typical.

Everything you need you can get in Grants Pass (it is about 35,000 people after all), and if you can't find it there you can find it 20 minutes away in Medford (75,000 people) or 30 minutes away in Ashland (for more cultured persons and their tastes--but I sated my yuppy liberal desires just fine in GP mostly).

My dad is a firearm enthusiast and he does just fine in Oregon (especially in Southern Oregon). Very gun-friendly environment down there.

Overall, very beautiful area, with average people. If I were independently wealthy I'd be happy to live in the woods outside of town down there. It was a great place to grow up, for sure.

[pw72]

Originally Posted by rtg143

Actually, Medford is a higher elevation than Grants Pass. I thought that at first due to the drive from Medford giving that impression. The Rogue River runs from the Medford area to Grants Pass so that proves it's a lower elevation by itself. Medford is 1380ft above sea level and Grants Pass is 960 Ft.

Thanks for the correction. It is a geographic oddity, because as you drive north from Medford to Grants Pass, it "feels" like you are climbing in elevation.