Job market in Portland (Union: crime rate, neighborhood, public school)

[jakemullick]

Hello, my wife and I are planning to move to Porltand Oregon. We are currently living in Iowa. She just finished her college and got her license as a RN. I am wondering how the job market is in Potland area. What are the main industries there that keep people occupied? As a newcomer to the city, what will be a good, safe, and relatively cheaper place to get an appartment? Is Portland a culturally and ethnically diverse city? Iowa is one of the least diverse cities in the Union. I will appreciate some helpful information .... thanks alot!

[oldtintype]

As an RN she won't have problems finding a job! Whether or not you will depends on your field.

Safe and relatively cheap is different from person to person. Describing what you're looking for in a neighborhood, in terms of cost, commute, public transport, parking, biking, etc. helps narrow it down.

Portland is less culturally and ethnically diverse than most of the major US cities, but compared to Iowa, it will probably feel very diverse!

[jakemullick]

Thank you for the information. It is well appreciated. I will work in service industry to begin with; maybe serving tables, etc. You said it right. Iowa is very less diversed and what makes a bit difficult here is lack of diversity tolerance. I mean diveristy is one something and having diversity tolerance is something quite different. However, there are some good points about Iowa. For example, crime rate is very low. Cost of living is lower compared to other surrounding major cities. Educational standard is very high. The public school system is in the top rank. I should not forget to mention that bad weather (summer and winter) is a major negative point here. To make things worse, public transportation system in Des Moines Iowa is very underdeveloped....You could be left stranded in the middle of a snow storms for an hour until the bus arrives!

[John Shaft]

I imagine you will be pleasantly surprised by public transportation here, compared to Iowa. You will also be UNpleasantly surprised by cost of living compared to Iowa.

"Diversity" is a pretty relative term. Portland is a pretty darn white city. It absolutely leans left politically, so if you're using "diversity" as a code word for left-leaning, then it's diverse. Otherwise, not so much (it's just a different set of "you must think this" than Iowa).

RNs are in huge demand here as they are everywhere else. Huge. Your wife should be able to find a job very easily. The service sector seems to be pretty active, too...although the economic decline is hitting that industry here just like elsewhere.

[Leisesturm]

This question is directed at no one person in particular but I have to ask the question: at what point does a city become "diverse"? If Portland is not 'diverse' with every third person being Hispanic and East Asains also fairly well represented what is 'diverse'? Does, must a city only have a high population of African American's to qualify as diverse? Just asking sorry for the hijack but I think the question(s) relevant as the original poster was answered along those lines.

H

[SeattlitefromNC]

Originally Posted by Leisesturm

This question is directed at no one person in particular but I have to ask the question: at what point does a city become "diverse"? If Portland is not 'diverse' with every third person being Hispanic and East Asains also fairly well represented what is 'diverse'? Does, must a city only have a high population of African American's to qualify as diverse? Just asking sorry for the hijack but I think the question(s) relevant as the original poster was answered along those lines.

H

With all due respect ...

"Diversity" can mean many things, and as John Shaft mentioned, the meaning of the word changes depending on who says it and what is really being said. As many people use code words -- and "diversity", along with all of its incarnations, tends to be used in that manner -- it is nearly impossible to give an all-encompassing definition.

However, this much can be said:

I consider "diversity" to refer not to the people, but to the relations BETWEEN differing groups of people. And to that end, Portland has a way to go. There is definitely a tension between different groups (bike riders and car drivers, young and old, rich and poor, hipster and non-hipster, etc.), and a lot of that is the inevitable residue of Portland having grown so much so fast. I think that as long as Portlanders work on keeping lines of communication open between different groups of people, things can get better. There is always room for improvement.

[oldtintype]

I think when you look at the diversity stats on paper it looks a lot whiter here than it actually is at this point. Portland is supposedly 78% white but I don't think that's accurate anymore.

[jakemullick]

I am sorry for causing the ambiguity in using the word "diversity" will less specifity. What I really meant was "the cultural and ethnic tolerance" of the people in Portland. It didn't necessarity have to be "racial" diversity. I am a middle eastern and have lived most of my life in America; however, my dark eyes and dark hair serve as an easy marker to my Iowan commerads to brand me a "bad guy". They never come short of calling us "evil-doers" or making inappropriate comments such as, "which building is next"? God knows that I have served these people with whole my heart and honestly for the past 20 years, but still it seems like racism flourishes in their DNA. I just wanted to know if people of Portland exercise such type of treatments....

[John Shaft]

Play up the middle eastern bit and say you're part of a plot to take down George Bush...and they'll roll out the red carpet for you in Portland.

Seriously, though, you might be mistaken as one of those dangerous Spanish/Mexican/illegals (the terms get intermingled here frequently), but that won't cause any problems beyond a wary look or two. There isn't really a lot of overt racism here...although there is definitely...something...(hard to describe) behind the scenes toward the influx of Hispanics.

[jakemullick]

You took everything so well into perspective John Shaft. Thanks alot! If I play that part here in Iowa, I guarantee I will get beheaded shortly. G. W. Bush is an icon of bravery, piety, and strong christian values here; not to mention that he is revered as the Second George of America; (the First George was George Washington, the first president). Majority of people here strongly wish he could run for the president for the third time. If you leave it upto Iowans and South Dakotans, they would amend the constitution so the Bush family could run for president indefinitely!!!