Wanting to move to Portland (sales, city hall, crime)

[WesA]

I'm not expecting relocation expenses to be paid by prospective employers. I've already got my money set aside for the move, and my bonus at the end of my job should be enough that I could pay rent at a small apartment for half a year or more jobless so I just need promise of work to be had.

[catharsis]

Originally Posted by JimBaker488

My very strong impression is that many, many Oregonians don't want you in thier midst ? It's not necessarily personal, they just aren't a welcoming populace when it comes to outsiders, as they seem to be very clannish, very exlusive, even elitist.

spot on! I must agree with that, at least here on CD. In person, however, people there were so friendly and hospitable to me. I loved being able to walk around any hour in the central district and never once felt threatened on the rail. It's no wonder that those of us who have lived in gang ridden cities flock to Portland. It's a different world.

[Minervah]

I think that if you are able to get a transfer to your company's office in Umatila, you would actually have a better chance of finding work in Portland. Although they are not close, you would be able to travel to Portland for job interviews while having steady work. The fact that you have an address in Oregon will carry some weight with prospective employers and you will not have to go through your savings.

It isn't so much that there are no jobs available here as there is a great deal of competition for those that exist and the closer you are to them the better your chances of getting one.

I think you have a good shot at Portland by going this route.

[JimBaker488]

Originally Posted by Nell Plotts

JimBaker488, you are misinformed.

"Growth management", "Urban Growth Boundary" is all about preventing skip land development around urban areas with the goal not only of protecting prime agricultural land but making the provision of publicly provided utilities (water, sewer, roads) less expensive in the long term. Periodically there are hearings and analysis of land utilization to assure that there is enough land available to meet economic needs. Do we want to be another Los Angeles, no.

I will not deny that there is a significant, and vocal, segment of the community who wishes to assure that human activities do not damage the environment. For policy makers there are trade-offs to be made balancing economic activities with environmental issues. The decision that actually has had the biggest impact on our economy wasn't ours.. the Spotted Owl decision that virtually shut down timber harvest in areas with old growth. The Spotted Owl numbers have been diminishing even after many years of this protection, scientists are now concluding that it is competition from an owl species migrating from the eastern US that is the Spotted Owl's problem. Nevertheless a major portion of our forests cannot be harvested and forest fires intensify because they cannot be economically thinned.

Oh, about that welcoming part. It stemmed from a comment made by a governor in the 60s while the State was putting together growth management legislation. 'Visit but don't stay' resulted from a fear that we were being loved too much. Oregonians are welcoming people but we are realistic about the current level of unemployment (which is actually almost everywhere) and fear that new arrivals will have difficulty finding a job.

Thanks for a great post with gobs of info on a variety of subjects.
But the issue that caught my attention more than anything else in your comments was your remarks about the "Spotted Owl's problem".
I knew it was a big problem back in the day, but aren't we talking 1980s-90s here ? I remember the first time I visited the Pacific NW back in 1989 when my wife and I stopping at a cafe in a rural area of Wasington state for breakfast and having a conversation with our waitress about how her husband was losing his job because of the Spotted Owl decision. Now you seem to be speaking in terms of the Owl decision creating profound and destructive damage to the local economy not just back then but also
having a lingering and significant effect opon the current Portland/regional economy ?

[davemess10]

Originally Posted by WesA

Possibly one of the smaller surrounding communities like West Linn or Beaverton. Just looking for potential friends in the area that wouldn't mind lending their knowledge to me.
-Wes

I would recommend staying away from those type of suburban areas if you're both single and 32. They're pretty heavily family oriented and not really similar to what most people think of when they think of "Portland". There are tons of great neighborhoods actually in the city, so I wouldn't just direct your search to the 'burbs.

Also I'm not quite as pessimistic on the jobs issue as most on the site (maybe because I'm a bit younger than most on this site). Yes there is competition here, but if you are motivated and a good worker you can make something work within a few months (especially if it sounds like you are open to all kinds of employment opportunities). My wife moved here with me with no job lined up, within 3 weeks she had two offers, yes they were lower paying hourly jobs, but they're still work, and within 8 months we had made enough connections for her to get a much better, steady job. (Knowing people is key to employment in this town). Yes there is "high" unemployment, in actuality we're only a percentage or two above the US mean. I just don't think it's the apocalyptic job market most will tell you about on this site.
So keep your head up and good luck.

[hamellr]

Originally Posted by JimBaker488

Now you seem to be speaking in terms of the Owl decision creating profound and destructive damage to the local economy not just back then but also having a lingering and significant effect opon the current Portland/regional economy ?

I don't know about significant, but definitely lingering.

On the other hand, with family as loggers, I don't think the Spotted Owl problem was as big of a deal as it was made out to be. At that time Oregon shipped a large percentage of it's lumber to Japan. When the Japanese economy tanked that had a bigger effect on the industry then the Spotted Owl issue.

But both events happened right about the same time, and a lot of the frustrations in the Timber industry were directed towards the Spotted Owl and the environmentalists.

Without doing a direct comparison on numbers, it seems like the Timber Industry is even worse right now then it was back in those days. That is all economy, and not helped by cheap lumber from Canada.

I have a few acres of timber land that was appraised in 06. It's only a few truck loads of timber, but now a full truck load is only worth what a few full trees were back then. It'll actually cost more to cut then I'd make off of selling the trees right now.

[ramedud]

Originally Posted by davemess10

I would recommend staying away from those type of suburban areas if you're both single and 32. They're pretty heavily family oriented and not really similar to what most people think of when they think of "Portland". There are tons of great neighborhoods actually in the city, so I wouldn't just direct your search to the 'burbs.

Also I'm not quite as pessimistic on the jobs issue as most on the site (maybe because I'm a bit younger than most on this site). Yes there is competition here, but if you are motivated and a good worker you can make something work within a few months (especially if it sounds like you are open to all kinds of employment opportunities). My wife moved here with me with no job lined up, within 3 weeks she had two offers, yes they were lower paying hourly jobs, but they're still work, and within 8 months we had made enough connections for her to get a much better, steady job. (Knowing people is key to employment in this town). Yes there is "high" unemployment, in actuality we're only a percentage or two above the US mean. I just don't think it's the apocalyptic job market most will tell you about on this site.
So keep your head up and good luck.

Exactly. I'm in CA right now and I had a couple interviews lined up in Portland. The only reason why I didn't interview or get hired is because I wasn't physically there in person. It really isn't the apocalyptic job market like you said. From the way people described employment in Portland, I even became a little depressed and discouraged by its negative portrayal. I no longer listen to that noise and I know I can land a job.

As for housing, my bro lives in a neighborhood full of retired folks. It's nice and quiet, and since Portland is so easily accessible it's not hard to hit the fun spots like food carts and restaurants.

[WesA]

I appreciate the helpful insight you all have been offering. It's amusing that the longer I go the more seemingly random coincidences happen that make me think Portland is a great choice for my future home. I had to hire an electrician this week and turned out he had moved from Oregon earlier in the year. His family was originally from here and when they moved to Oregon they actually found several other families who were also from Arkansas and said that they were greeted warmly by most of the people they came across. Also I'm a huge Lovecraft fan and I just recently discovered there is a bar dedicated to Lovecraft horror that hosts a Lovecraft fair every month. I don't drink or do the bar scene, but I still find that awesome, lol.

[Rob Allen]

You'll want to be here for H.P. Lovecraft Film Festival and CthulhuCon | The only festival that understands.

[Minervah]

You may also want to check this out:

PorSFiS - the Portland Science Fiction Society

A good group of people.