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I would have still moved to Portland in 1978 when I did but I would have moved away sooner than 2014 when I moved to my present location on Ohio. The high COL in Portland drove me away. That and the fact that for me it was becoming a more difficult place to live.
I got my engineering degree ‘94 from a top ten university. In ‘98 my employer sent me to Taiwan to open an engineering and sourcing office and in 2000 I started an engineering and manufacturing business with two Taiwanese partners. I returned to the U.S. in 2015 for my son’s education and bought a house in the Portland area. During the sixteen years I ran a business in Taiwan I acquired a dozen iU.S. patents and many more non-US patents. I lheaded the engineering design and manufacturing launch of dozens of successful, mass produced products and became fluent in Mandarin Chinese in the process. I did business solo on factory floors throughout Taiwan and China. When we returned to the U.S. in 2015 I didn’t need to work so I spent the year brushing up on engineering skills in GD&T and finite elements analysis. By 2016 I was ready to return to work and put out dozens of resumes, which I continued to do through 2017. After applying to nearly every company in the Portland area in my field I have yet to land a single interview. Fortunately I don’t need to work but if my experience is any indication the job market for engineers in a Portland is skewed in a way I have yet to understand. In 2018 I gave up on the Portland job market and returned to working remotely with my extensive supplier base in Taiwan developing new products. I’d still land in Portland if I had to do it over because my son loves his school but when he’s done I’m outta here.
That top ten university forget to teach you about paragraphs ?
I would have still moved to Portland in 1978 when I did but I would have moved away sooner than 2014 when I moved to my present location on Ohio. The high COL in Portland drove me away. That and the fact that for me it was becoming a more difficult place to live.
I actually visit a part of Cleveland from time to time (ironically to see bands from Portland)! How does Lakewood and the greater Cleveland area compare to Portland?
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Originally Posted by texasdiver
To answer the question. Yes. We would move here again. In fact we just did two years ago. I grew up in Oregon and went to college in Portland. I moved away in 1986 to join the Peace Corps and wound up in grad school in Seattle after I returned to the US so haven’t lived here since 1986 but still visited on occasion. So I had lots of college years memories of Portland from the early to mid 1980s and still have family around here. The Place has REALLY changed since the mid 1980s.
When my wife and I left Texas two years ago we had the option of moving anywhere we wanted in the country and we chose to move back to the Portland area. We ended up both landing jobs in Vancouver so we live across the river in Camas. But it is still Portland metro area. Over a two year period we explored Denver, SLC, Minneapolis, Fort Collins, Albuquerque, Boise, Spokane, Olympia, Bellingham, and my old home town of Eugene before settling on the Portland area.
Great place to live if you can afford it and have employment. But for young people starting out in many careers I think there are easier places to make a start, especially in a lot of careers. You hear lots of whining here about the homeless and such. But frankly it doesn’t affect us. We frequently bike on the Springwater Trail and other trails around town and are never hassled. My youngest daughter and I like to walk for fitness so weekends we park and do walking tours all over Portland and never get hassled. Last weekend we parked near Powell’s in the Pearl and did a big walking tour through the Pearl and up into the NW Portland Nob Hill and Goose Hollow areas. Only saw one homeless guy crossing the freeway. Other than that it was a perfectly enjoyable urban walk. Was just in Seattle two weeks ago. That city seems more ragged than Portland frankly. At least around the Roosevelt area where we were.
At our age most of our friends are work colleagues or parents of our kids friends that we have bonded with. But that is pretty much the case anywhere you live when you reach mid life. So I can’t really say what it is like to make friends if you are young and single. Get involved with stuff is probably the best way to do that rather than hanging out in bars and cafes hoping to meet people.
Thanks for sharing! I love how walkable it sounds. Surprised to hear that Seattle was the more ragged looking city. I figured with that Seattle, with all its formidable corporate might, would be dandier.
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Originally Posted by EasyBeezy
I wouldn't look to online forums to get a clear impression of Portland. Online comments skew negative, while Portland skews positive. Portland is a unique place that is not for everyone. The only way you can really know if you'd like to live here would be to come for even a short weekend visit (preferably in winter, so you can see the predominant weather pattern).
I'd love to visit as soon as I can, although that might be a long ways away. It definitely sounds like a binary- people either love Portland or hate it. I try to resist over-fantisizing the city (as many have likened it to a clone of Kansas City on the west coast???), but when I hear "a unique place that is not for everyone", it only sounds more fantastic.
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Originally Posted by SumTingy
What are you looking for? Looking for a Social life or the arts? Go to Denver. Or would rather go hiking, biking, and take nice weekend trips to coast or mountains? Then, this is the area for you.
The ultimate question. I wish I could have it all, hehe. The original draw to Portland for me was the arts scene actually. A lot of incredible sound comes from the city, and some of my favorite music is just small time musicians in the area, even at just the house-show level stuff (I have a growing collection of PNW music merch). The scenery is a really wonderful addition to it all. You're right though, there are probably tons of other cities that outclass Portland in the arts department. The other city I'm torn between Portland with is my hometown of Philly, and in recent years it has really emerged as a hip hub of its own. The more I consider Philly though, the more Portland's weather and beautiful surroundings become important.
Soppy ramble: I have my parents, a couple friends, and some old classmates in the Philly burbs, but truth is that I never really fit in anywhere I've lived (all throughout suburban PA). I guess I idolized Portland as the place where odd people can get a refresh on life, but maybe, deep down, it's really me who must change. I don't know.
............ I'm curious: would you move to Portland as it is now? ........ Thanks.
Disclaimer: I would never move to Portland because I am not a city person.
In the 70's, Portland was a very clean city with no bums, lots to do, great restaurants, an art and music scene, great access to mountain sports and the ocean. It rained often, which washed the buildings and sidewalks and Oregonians were very environment conscious and kept trash picked up. Real estate was cheap. In the 80's, Portland was still clean, but there were a few panhandler right downtown, a few of them agressively unpleasant, but they weren't living downtown.
Now, Portland is a dirty city, a favorite destination for the homeless by choice. There is garbage and human feces everywhere. There are tent camps on the sidewalks and homeless set up camp in residential areas. Rents are through the roof. But there are still great restaurants and there is still great access to mountain sports and the ocean, although they are getting crowded.
So, in answer to one part of your question, yes, there have been major changes in Portland over the last few decades. People moving in now, tell me that the homeless and filth are simply typical cityscape. So a lot of people aren't bothered by it.
Lots of people aren't bothered by it to judge by the numbers moving in.
Adding this: Portland has never had an adequate road system and it doesn't get improved as the population grows. It just becomes more inadequate each year.
I actually visit a part of Cleveland from time to time (ironically to see bands from Portland)! How does Lakewood and the greater Cleveland area compare to Portland?
First of all, I don't hate Portland but I am very disappointment in what it has become. I blame bad city government management for that. I won't go into it here, that dead horse has been beaten enough but you can do a search of you really want to read my opinions regarding Portland's evolution.
So comparing it to Lakewood. We are a community of 50,000 and growing right across the street from Cleveland which you probably already know.
People here talk about the changes just as they do in Portland and well, just about everywhere. Since I only moved to Lakewood two years ago (Cleveland Heights for two before that) I haven't seen what went on before but I have seen a few since.
Lakewood has become a popular place for young people. House sales are booming. The usual popular venues like music, restaurants, shopping etc are moving in. But what I like a lot Lakewood and Cleveland in general is they don't bulldoze the old to replace it with the new. Many times old buildings are repurposed for new uses of they can be saved.
Also, we still have many ma and pa shops. Lots of one of a kind places.
I love the way that twice in the summer the downtown main street is closed for a mile stretch for street fairs. Portland used to do that for Artquake before it grew too big. Every Friday there are concerts in the park. Sometimes Shakespeare sometimes movies on the weekend. Friday night concerts on the steps of the library. Lots of great music all around.
I am an old lady of 72 so I am not really up on it but from what I read in our local newspaper which depends upon Lakewood citizens for its articles, there is a strong music scene regarding the most popular. An entire page, sometimes more is devoted to reporting it.
I think the main difference between Portland and Lakewood besides the size of course is that Lakewood is more diverse. Not just in ethnic or racial diversity but also because it's a place where people of diverse ages and income can find a place to live. As mentioned, I could no longer afford Portland but here in Lakewood I have a very nice affordable apartment just a mile from a beautiful large park on Lake Erie. There is nothing like it in Portland.
There is still a sense of community here as I used to feel in Portland. something I've never seen before is on given Sunday anyone can walk into a church for a nice lunch and meet their neighbors just because. It's a real old fashioned custom they still do here.
And in case you are wondering, like Portland, Lakewood is blue. However no one gets in someone's face of they're not. Well, unless they want to make a debate of it.
I don't believe Portland has much of these things. Some yes, but many, not or not any longer. I think as Lakewood is changing and growing it might tend towards being like all the other cookie cutter cities like Portland that all strive to look alike. But right now it's still unique enough to be different.
I realize I didn't say anything about Cleveland. It has great museums, concert halls, theater second only to New York, huge library system, beautiful park system that encompasses the city and suburbs called "The Emerald Necklace" and beaches. There's an ever growing night life and music scene. You would never want for entertainment and great restaurants.
Yes there is crime, decay and the usual city problems. It's an old city trying to pull itself out of the doldrums of the rust belt image. But to me as a former long time Portland resident, that's a big difference between Portland and Cleveland. Cleveland recognizes the need for affordable housing and the need for jobs in all levels. It seems to be trying to to bring along its incumbent citizens with the changes while trying to attract new people. Portland, IMO, was always willing to throw out the old for the new, including its citizens. I think that's where the love/hate thing you mentioned might come in or at least a part of it.
Well that's Minerva's lecture for the day.
My advice to you would be to check out every place possible. Don't go by hype. When I chose Portland to move to from Chicago in '78 no one was moving there. It was a great place with a unique personality all its own. Today if I were a young person looking to relocate I would again chose a place for its uniqueness and not just because it was getting the most hype from The Media.
The most important thing of course is spend time in a place whenever you can and see for yourself if it could be a good fit.
Just a quibble. And I’m not trying to pick on Stealth. But why do people keep saying that Portland has the largest urban park in the US? Forest Park is big but it’s not even close to being the largest park in a US city. That myth has seeped deep into the Portland collective memory because I hear and read it all the time. But it’s not even in the top 10.
In addition, it's a bit more temperate than Alaska or Texas, or stuck on an island most can't reach..............so maybe it may be the BEST city park?
Location: We_tside PNW (Columbia Gorge) / CO / SA TX / Thailand
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Forest Park just might be ... the best city park (within a 'temperate' / enabling city) to hide out homeless / or just to 'get lost' in...
Nice city view... with out need to pay taxes!
I will admit, I was really surprised last week by the great city parks in Chicago, but I didn't find them inhabited by the homeless.
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I wish I could have it all, hehe. The original draw to Portland for me was the arts scene actually. A lot of incredible sound comes from the city, and some of my favorite music is just small time musicians in the area, even at just the house-show level stuff (I have a growing collection of PNW music merch). The scenery is a really wonderful addition to it all. You're right though, there are probably tons of other cities that outclass Portland in the arts department. The other city I'm torn between Portland with is my hometown of Philly, and in recent years it has really emerged as a hip hub of its own. The more I consider Philly though, the more Portland's weather and beautiful surroundings become important. 
