Thoughts on Yamhill County (Portland, Salem: home, movie theater, high school)

[salamander1978]

From what I've read about McMinnville, it sounds like a place my family (my husband, mother and I) would like to relocate to. Im also curious about the surrounding cities like Dundee, Carlton, Sheridan. Are they TOO SMALL? Ideally a town with 30,000 or so would be nice but if the smaller cities are driving distance from a town we'd consider.

We're from Southern California, and in dire need of a slower paced life. My mom (in her 60's) is originally from Astoria but can't do that rain. Ever. Is McMinnville weather comparable? Yikes, Im a little scared to know.

Essentially, any help or feedback on the pro's and con's of McMinnville and surrounding areas would be helpful. I am a licensed social worker and I've worked in both non and for profit settings, mainly in medical social work at hospitals, but am open to other work. Being somewhat close to Portland is nice since there seems to be a lot of work in social service positions. My husband teaches history (high school-college) but really would like to do interpretive park ranger work or something outdoors.

We tend to lean pretty liberal, but are completely ok with co-habitating with different political leanings. Our must haves include a bookstore (nearby at least) for my mom, I'd like a good yoga studio, healthy/tasty food, non-denominational church, and movie theater. Having most of those near by would help our quality of life.

If you can think of any places that would also work for us, your thoughts are much appreciated!

[gray horse]

I like McMinnville because it has a cute historic Main St. that has some great restaurants, wine tasting rooms and shops. You can dine on the sidewalk in the summer which is quite nice. They have a very good farmer's market, and of course you are in the wine country...and the tourists that come with that. The tourism has helped with development of some good places to dine.

The rest of the city on 99 is just strip malls, but I think you would have everything you need there. It's a pretty area.
Now if you had to commute into Portland daily, it would be brutal.

Dundee is closer in, but still in my opinion a LONG commute into PDX. Not much to Dundee, just some restaurants and wine tasting rooms...you have to go into Newberg for groceries, etc. Newberg is a nice little town, kind of a city for the surrounding farm community though it's getting tourism due to the Alice Inn, an upscale resort that is a destination for wine tourists.

All in all, pretty areas. You might also consider Sherwood just a little bit more east on 99, it's a bit closer into PDX.

Best of luck in your search.

[salamander1978]

Thank you- this was very helpful. Now- one question. When you say "Brutal" commute, I am from LA and sit in traffic every single day. To work, to visit friends (who theoretically like 12 miles but takes us 45 minutes to get to East LA from our area), so Im trying to compare the two commutes. Is the highway two lane? Is the commute pretty (are there tree's, things to look at) Are people generally pretty polite? I don't mind an hour each way. Are there are commuting options- carpool, train, etc?

[gray horse]

It's two lanes until you get to Newberg. I'm a former Californian and left because one day I had spent 7.5 hours commuting in the Bay Area to make 2 meetings, one in San Francisco then one in San Jose. It was time for a lifestyle change.

Traffic around PDX can be horrible during commute hours, especially in the afternoon. If you can get out of PDX by 3:00 you are OK. You are talking about well over an hour McMinnville - PDX. One thing to keep in mind is that the winter days are very short, so you will be commuting in the dark for a portion of the year. Although I live 20 minutes from PDX on a Friday afternoon it can take me 1 1/4 hour to get home from PDX, something I didn't expect when I moved here. Portland Metro does have a traffic problem.

There is the light rail that goes to the Hillsboro area and Wilsonville, but nothing that heads out towards the area you are considering. I'm not sure about carpools, but you don't see vans / shuttles like you do in CA.

Salem area would maybe be a better area to work?

[PNW-type-gal]

I see this a lot: "I wouldn't mind more than an hour both ways, it's what I have now" - you might not mind it now, but after you move here and find that a commute that length is way out of the norm, you eventually will mind it.

Astoria gets about 65" of rain a year (depending on where it is being measured, it can be between 60-90"), the general Portland area gets 42" of rain. Most of that falls between October-June, with a relatively dry summer.

Also, have you looked into what it will take to be licensed in Oregon?
Oregon.gov: Home

[salamander1978]

You are right- Traffic stinks regardless! I was hoping for at least a "pretty" commute.

Ideally we could find work locally. We can feasibly live on one income, so Im hoping I can find something either in the county or perhaps private practice. In regards to licensing, looks like I just need to sit for exams since Im already licensed. I kind of expected that since most states don't have reciprocity.

[Larry Caldwell]

They are finally building the Dundee bypass, which should help the commute to and from Portland a lot. I don't think it's supposed to be open until 2016.

The closest towns to McMinnville are Amity and Lafayette.

[scottinpdx]

Originally Posted by Larry Caldwell

They are finally building the Dundee bypass, which should help the commute to and from Portland a lot. I don't think it's supposed to be open until 2016.

The closest towns to McMinnville are Amity and Lafayette.

I wish the bypass was there when I used to commute from McMinnville to Vancouver 6 days a week.