Eastern Oregon - Good place to live? (Pendleton, La Grande: homes, high school)

[kbbhere]

We are thinking of moving over to the eastern part of Oregon somewhere along the Snake river....Ontario, Nyssa, Vale. We're tired of the wet and wind of the Oregon coast. We want 4 seasons and some hot weather in the summer. Is the water clean and plentiful? We like to fish and swim, have no kids and are in our low 50's. We like to garden also. One of the main reasons we are moving over there also is the low cost of housing. I know we will have to give up the green timber, but we like the desert if there's enough water to not have to worry about watering the lawn and garden. Can anyone say that they like this area, or are homes cheap because it's not a great area? Would love to hear your comments please. Thanks, kbbhere.

[Larry Caldwell]

I wouldn't mind living in LaGrande. I'm not that familiar with the Ontario area, but I love the Wallowa Mountain area. Jobs are scarce, but people live there, so you can too.

[jufrbo]

Not from Ontario, actually from the Idaho side of the border, you definatly have to water your lawn, it can go for several weeks in the summer without rain and temperature ranges from the high 90s to 100s

[iammarby]

Hello from Nyssa

There are winds out here on occasion that can get down right blustery. There are definetly 4 seasons which is nice.
Water... well... what are you asking here? Plentiful for playing in,
drinking or what?
The snake, of course, is a river & is not clear...but has a lot of water flowing through it.
Here is a page you can check up a little on the areas you have asked about... Home Page of Nyssa, The Gateway to the Oregon Trail
City of Vale,*Oregon (broken link)
City of Ontario, Oregon

Good luck to you!

Originally Posted by kbbhere

We are thinking of moving over to the eastern part of Oregon somewhere along the Snake river....Ontario, Nyssa, Vale. We're tired of the wet and wind of the Oregon coast. We want 4 seasons and some hot weather in the summer. Is the water clean and plentiful? We like to fish and swim, have no kids and are in our low 50's. We like to garden also. One of the main reasons we are moving over there also is the low cost of housing. I know we will have to give up the green timber, but we like the desert if there's enough water to not have to worry about watering the lawn and garden. Can anyone say that they like this area, or are homes cheap because it's not a great area? Would love to hear your comments please. Thanks, kbbhere.

[CarolynSue]

I'd be very cautious about the Ontario Oregon area: Gangs from Boise are migrating out to this area. Most of the newbes socialize with each other because the locals grew up together and are not open to new people. They are friendly on the surface - reminds me a lot of the Southeastern part of the US. Another consideration when moving to a rural area; how do you feel about living next door to a farmer who uses pesticides?

[TribalCat]

Gangs in Ontario???? That boggles the mind and makes me sad. I lived there for a year and a half and graduated from high school there in 1980. There wasn't a lot to do, but we didn't have anyone causing any problems. My uncle and his family lived there for about 30 years, he was a State Trooper there, and it was a just a quiet town of about 10k people. I know they've grown and added that prison out there, maybe some of the bad element is connected to that. The most excitement we got up to was "cruisin' the boulevard" on Friday and Saturday nights or driving out to the Butte. There was a lot of drinking going on in the high school population, but not many drug users at all during the time I was there.

[chrisruns2far]

Originally Posted by kbbhere

We are thinking of moving over to the eastern part of Oregon somewhere along the Snake river....Ontario, Nyssa, Vale. We're tired of the wet and wind of the Oregon coast. We want 4 seasons and some hot weather in the summer. Is the water clean and plentiful? We like to fish and swim, have no kids and are in our low 50's. We like to garden also. One of the main reasons we are moving over there also is the low cost of housing. I know we will have to give up the green timber, but we like the desert if there's enough water to not have to worry about watering the lawn and garden. Can anyone say that they like this area, or are homes cheap because it's not a great area? Would love to hear your comments please. Thanks, kbbhere.

Hello, there are much better areas of Eastern Oregon than the Ontario, Nyssa and Vale area. I would recommend La Grande and Union County much, much more. If you don't garden out here, you would be on of the few you don't. Most everyone has a backyard garden and the growing season here is longer than one would think being up at 3,000 feet. The last frost ends around the first week of May and the first freeze comes around mid-October. I'm partial to La Grande and Union County, but also check out Baker City, Wallowa County and Pendleton and Umatilla County. IMO, all are nicer than Ontario, Nyssa and Vale. Homes are probably more costly than you would expect (way more in Wallowa County), but still much cheaper than the west-side. Also, no matter what your political/religious leanings.....people are of the live and let live mindset, so there is no single opressive element. I would strongly encourage you to check out this whole region of the state before you decide.

[tiffela74]

good heavens.....my grandparents lived almost their entire lives in Ontario, my dad and aunts were all born there, my dad is the only one to have left. out of all my cousins and 2nd cousins, only 3 have left, and thats just for college, they may be back....anyhow, thats quite baffling to think gangs are going to Ontario...I must ask....FOR WHAT!?!?!? Man, theres just not that much there!!!
I could never live there, for one, I adore living by the ocean, and for two, as much as i love them (well, MOST of them) I dont think i could tolerate living within the "family fold" now....I know they all enjoy living there (they must, they never left. lol) and my grandparents had a bountiful garden out back, and an enviable rose garden out front. It always did feel like a pretty laid back kinda town to me......
Go visit first though before making any decisions!!
best of luck!
Tiffany

[Timelordnot]

I spent a night in La Grande on the way to central Washington earlier this month. It is impossible to really get to know a place over night, but the jolly genius loci certainly seemed to reside there. It snowed in the night and I-84 was ice and hard pack nearly all the way to Pendleton. The drive through the Blue Mts was nifty in blustery conditions. If the religion and the politics are not overbearingly right-wing, it looks like a place worthy of consideration.

[chrisruns2far]

Originally Posted by Timelordnot

I spent a night in La Grande on the way to central Washington earlier this month. It is impossible to really get to know a place over night, but the jolly genius loci certainly seemed to reside there. It snowed in the night and I-84 was ice and hard pack nearly all the way to Pendleton. The drive through the Blue Mts was nifty in blustery conditions. If the religion and the politics are not overbearingly right-wing, it looks like a place worthy of consideration.

I live in Union County and whereas the potical majority is Republican/Conservative, they are not of the far-right, christian fundamentalist mindset that you find more prevelant in Southern Oregon. Northeast Oregon is more a live and let live social climate and religion does not dominate the populace, but is important to many, but not in the evangelical, enforce my agenda on everyone else way of acting or thinking. A cross-section of people get togerther on community projects more than one would think.

For the last 4-5 years our snowfall levels have been only 50-60% of normal, which has resulted in serious drought conditions and water supply issues. So far this year we are off to a good snow-pack start and we are hopeful to at least have a normal snowfall year. Normal is approx. 30-35 inches in La Grande, we have had less than that total for the last two years combined.

Northeast Oregon is a great place to live!!!! I'm just concerned about future water allocation needs and supply.