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Originally Posted by megonow
I used to live there and it was such a great little city....
...They have taken down lots of buildings in the Old Port
and put up brick monstrosities all out of proportion to
human scale...
...I thought I was going there to live for the rest of my life.
I got out after a week.
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Sadly, I have to agree with the Old Port problems. In addition to some of the newer constructions (read: post 1950) being entirely out of scale or disregarding the pedestrian, there are too many vacant lots at street level just used for parking. It's depressing. Thank God for the thriving sections of Fore St., Wharf St. and bits of Market, because the rest of the area needs lots of help help and many people don't even realize it.
The rest of your post, I don't really follow....
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I used to live there and it was such a great little city. It's now horrible. There is virtually no middle class.
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There's plenty of middle class in Portland. In fact, I'd say that's one area where Portland is much more successful than many other cities its size in the U.S. A couple can buy a nice single family home (or part of a multi-family for a bit less) in a town by the water for a lot less than you could expect to find in ANY coastal community South or West of here.
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Public transportation is nil. A bus every hour and a half!
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Of course public transit stinks... it's a city of (as of recent census estimates) below 63,000! How many cities of that size in our country (that aren't part of a larger metro-area a-la Somerville, MA) have great mass transit?! Portland is tiny, and for that reason, there are few Mass Transit options. Driving is easy to do here, as there is absolutely no traffic. If you don't want to drive, live downtown or move to a bigger city.
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Most restaurants are prententious and expensive or tourist traps.
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As far as restaurants being "pretentious," and expensive, again... I disagree. There are a few that are over-priced for what you get (Vignola, Cinque Terre, Fore Street), but the VAST majority are just blue-collar style pubs, diners, and family fare restaurants. In fact, most people that have visited me from out of state comment on the LACK of fine dining experiences in Portland (I can't name one place with a dress code or $40+ entrees). Tourism is one of the biggest (if not THE biggest) part of the economy so of course there will be tourist traps. Avoid them if you don't like them; there are plenty of other options.
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Alcoholics and druggies and the insane inhabit the public library and almost all of Congress Street.
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As far as crime goes, there's VERY little; and a LOT less than your typical town of Portland's size. As far as the crazies, homeless and junkies: Welcome to the recession! You can walk through the finest neighborhoods of any city in the U.S. and find the same thing during troubled times like these. I've personally experienced it recently in the exclusive East Side of Providence, and Boston's uber-wealthy Back Bay... Smaller cities? You name it, it's happening there too. That is certainly not unique to Portland.
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Oh, and they charge you a lot of money for a dump of an apartment, for the privilege of living in this hole.
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I cannot see how anyone can complain about apartment costs in Portland. They're CHEAP! Unless you're looking for an apartment in an extremely rural or depressed area, you won't find much cheaper rents than what you can find in Portland, especially if you're looking to live in an area that's the economic and cultural capital of a state. My friends who live in the New Bedford, Providence, and Boston areas are envious of what I pay for rent in Portland. It's much cheaper than pretty much any city its size or larger.
What did you expect out of Portland and where did you come from before you moved back? If it's been a while since you've lived here, inflation alone will bring rents up. You can't come to Portland, which while tiny, is the economic and cultural hub of Maine, and expect rents to be as cheap as they are in say, Lewiston, Bangor, or any other little town in Maine or elsewhere. I'm sorry you didn't like it here, but many of the things you cite as "negatives" either aren't true when put into proper perspective, or are the norm anywhere comparable. I hope you find somewhere that you're happy, but try to have realistic standards... if you don't you're going to hate it everywhere.
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Portland has gone downhill!!!
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....so you used to live there?.....and it was great?....
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