Looking to find a town with a nice blend of outdoor and city living.

[Cloudy Dayz]

Originally Posted by StealthRabbit

Careers? That is essential info on determining correct location.
correct climate / outdoor activities?.

For the coast... (I would choose the coast if possible, commuting to the coast with 10 zillion others is not that great. Why not ENJOY the coast 7 days / week instead of 1.5 days a month. You can rent out your flat on Air B&B and get off the beach during crowds.
For the coast...II
Coos Bay, Lincoln City, Newport, or Astoria (All have services / big box, hospitals, access to community colleges)

Of those choices... I would do Astoria (get a job at Costco!!! free benefits and a great employer!!) so I could quickly escape to the ocean or to WA! More recreation outdoors, with St Helen's and Mt Rainier and the GREAT Olympic National Park all fairly close-by. Seattle is not far if you really want to party.(be safe... take the train from Longview, WA, very cheap, very EZ, free Wifi and a dining car. Vancouver BC is 5 hrs and REALLY a fun place!!! Once / yr just might be enough!
Portland ~ 1.2 hrs (quite ez when you need to go there)

Why Oregon?

5 minutes north is a state With NO INCOME TAX. That might be important since you are just starting careers and presumably will be getting income. The more you can keep, the better. (Retire / get FREE sooner)

Personally.... I would plan on moving a few times... When the kids are teenagers, WA is pretty sweet with FREE FT college instead of High School. Income tax free and high wage WA allowed me to retire 16 yrs early (on a single income hourly wage... nothing special, just 30+ yrs of grunt night shift) Homeschooled the kids and ran our farm by day.

Retire Early, retire often!
too much fun to do only once! What if you get it WRONG!

The OP is looking for city life, shopping, community events, night markets, festivals, and nightlife. I don't think there is any place on the coast that offers much of that. There is no city life anywhere on the coast. Shopping is mediocre at best. Community events are limited. Night markets are non-existent. Festivals happen, but infrequently, and nightlife is limited to drinking beer in bars, and not much else. I think the only place the OP can find what they are looking for is in Portland.

[oregon911]

How about Saint Helens? It's a small town, 1 hour drive to Portland, 1 hour drive to Astoria, 2,5 hour drive to Seattle, not to mention being right next to the Columbia river and being surrounded with mountains and beautiful nature. St. Helens might be the last standing small town in PDX.

[texasdiver]

If you want saltwater and urban civilization/amenities in the same location you'll have to look north to the cities in Washington along Puget Sound like Olympia, Bellingham, Tacoma, Everett, or the big one...Seattle. Although the sound is beautiful and has a few limited public beaches it isn't really the coast. Unlike Oregon, nearly all the waterfront in Puget Sound is in private hands with public access points few and far between. And driving out to actual ocean beaches from the Puget Sound cities is a much longer haul than from the Oregon cities like Portland and Eugene.

Most people in your situation with kids who are looking for jobs and decent schools and economic opportunity settle in the Willamette Valley between Eugene and Portland or along Puget Sound between Olympia and Bellingham. Because those places are where the opportunities are for both parents and kids. And then you just commute to beaches and mountains during the weekends.