Albany for Retirement / Mennonite (Portland, Eugene: crime, neighborhoods, live)

[WeatherHappy]

I am looking at places to retire; I want to move to a milder climate than Chicago where I live. I have a distant acquaintance with Albany, and there is a retirement community there that looks nice (Mennonite Village).
I realize there may be something of a crime or homelessness problem along the I-5 corridor.
Anyway apologies for this open-ended query, but I'd welcome any thoughts / perspectives on this interest of mine.
Thanks in advance !

[texasdiver]

I have several relatives who are retired at the Mennonite Village and they seem to like it. The community very nice and tidy and well managed. The town itself is struggling due to mill closures and probably is the least attractive city in the Willamette Valley. Most of the homeless riff raff collect in Eugene, Corvallis, and Portland. You are going to get more of the local meth head types in Albany.

That said, Albany is still a reasonably decent place. It is by no means comparable to truly declining towns like you have in your region such as Gary or Rockford that are disaster zones. Albany has plenty of pleasant safe suburan neighborhoods and all your normal big box shopping. And the downtown area has a lot of potential if they get the investment. It's just not as vibrant or booming as Corvallis next door or the suburban boom towns around Portland.

[WeatherHappy]

Thank you for your informative reply.

[StealthRabbit]

Ditto;
Mennonite Village (Albany) is a very sweet spot to retire.

A Very nice facility / safe / good access to services, Many options for events / recreation in community and within 1 hr.

You will encounter very few potentially unsafe situations similar to Chicago / midwest cities.

[jjpop]

Albany is a nice town, but you have to be careful about where you live. Some neighborhoods are nicer than others. I've heard many good things about Mennonite Village.

Between Albany and Corvallis you can find about 90% of what you need for shopping, and the other 10% you can get in Salem or Eugene. The drive to Portland isn't bad either.

One thing I appreciate about Albany is the city's firm stance against panhandling. Here's an article from the local paper: https://democratherald.com/news/loca...5f8d5e982.html

[Nell Plotts]

My cousin's widow told me she is intending to move to Mennonite Village. I haven't heard from her for a couple years so I assume that is working well.

There are other retirement communities in the north Willamette Valley, don't limit your options unless you have family in the area.