Quality Of Life In Portland, Oregon Metro Area? (Beaverton, Aloha: 2010, power lines)

[ColinM]

We are considering moving to the Portland metro area, possibly Beaverton? Unsure really. We're still investigating our options. We have been living in Phoenix, AZ for the past 7 years, after having come to live in the US from Birmingham, England.
Arriving in Phoenix was a bit of a shock. Luckily it was mid October and only in the mid-upper 80's. After a recent trip home for 5 weeks, my wife and our eldest child became really fed up with the heat here upon their return. As a family, we have come to the conclusion that Portland Oregon has the closest climate to England without actually going back to live in England. If anything, Portland has a slightly milder winter and a better summer than most anywhere in the UK, without being (usually) too hot.
From everything that we've read, the Portland metro area seems to have more pluses than minuses. The only big minus seems to be the grey and wet winters. We were used to similar in England, so that doesn't really deter us, although I suppose we'll have to adjust from 300+ days of sunshine.

I think that fundamentally people are the same everywhere. We have friendly neighbours here in Phoenix and I work with loads of people, all of different dispositions. People usually treat others as they find them.

Phoenix has had the hottest July on record and August is forecast to be above the seasonal norm too. We have had endless days of 110+, many 115+, with night-time lows in the upper 80's, sometimes above. It is always 4 months at least of 100F+ day-time highs. It isn't possible to comfortably go for a walk in the middle of the day, or spend much time out of the house at any time of the day. Kids can't go outdoors - they spend their summers cooped up inside, unless we can take them somewhere else that's indoors and air conditioned.

I think we would have a better quality of life living in the Portland metro area. Obviously in a decent, reasonably safe and affordable neighbourhood. So we're finding out all we can right now. Our anticipated move is end of May, early June, ideally, next summer (2010). After the kids have finished school for the summer.
I would be interested in reading the opinions of people that live in the Portland Metro area and throughout Oregon, about what their quality of life is like? What advice would you have for us?

[Aylalou]

Have you visited Portland? I have to assume you already have a job or have tons of savings while looking, or are needed in some industry there as unemployment is about the highest in the nation.

I plan on moving there myself next year after visiting many times to, coincidentally, Beaverton but am leaving my options open. People are attracted to places for individual reasons. I have acquaintances who would not care to live there because of its ultra liberal mentality. My daughter, who is liberal-minded, didn't care for it. I have a feeling of coming home when I'm there and shed a tear or two when I leave.

I can't be of much help on advising you since I don't live there but I know it's the place for me. Perhaps my response is helpful in that I've visited and view it from an outsider's perspective.

Forgot to mention I am an Anglophile, and I think this is part of the reason I'm attracted to the Pacific NW.

[Neal2009]

Quality of life in Portland, Oregon is among the best I have experienced, and I have lived in several major cities and in Germany as well.

I am a fairly recent arrival and I also came from 300 days of sunshine(Texas) Before that I lived in Germany and Chicago, so I guess you could say we have similar experiences as far as going from little sun to a whole lot of sun to little sun. Portland winter shouldnt be a problem for you, as you mentioned. Expect little sunshine from about October til April or May and temperatures ranging from the lower 40s to mid 50s. I have talked to a couple of people from England here who say the summers are way better here than there. From about mid June til late September you can expect wall to wall sunshine, daytime temps of 80 degrees, some of the best weather in the country during this time. I know people who do not like the rest of the year here, but stay because the summers are so perfect.

I guess quality of life could also be defined by what you like. For me, I was attracted to Oregon because of the outdoor possibilities. I am more active here than I ever was living in Texas or any other location. The easy access to such activities as skiing, hiking, kayaking, rock climbing, wind surfing, biking etc and places like the mountains, a river gorge, the coast, the high desert, beautiful waterfalls is the defining factor why the quality of life so high for me. However, its not the only one.

All that stuff is somewhat outside of the city, so lets talk about Portland itself. Staying on the subject of recreation and sport, Portland has an absolutely superb bike culture and several bike lanes which make Portland arguably the road bike capital of North America. There are an endless number of wonderful parks, many of which have some of the best views in North America. On a clear day you can see 4 major volcanoes from Portland, which other city can make that claim? The greenery in Portland never ceases to amaze me, even after all these years. Portland is basically a city built around a forest, in pretty much every direction you drive you will be sitting under beautiful 100 to 200 foot douglas fir trees, which sparkle and smell wonderfully on a hot sunny day. I take a walk almost every night and am still astounded by the endlessness of the greenery here.

As you can tell by reading, if you are into nature you will be in paradise here. Of course what makes Portland even greater is the blend of nature, culture, food, transportation etc.

Transportation system is superb with bus lines, several max lines and a street car running all throughout the city. Many people live car free in Portland. Alot of major cities could learn from Portland in this regard.

Restaurants are excellent here, lots of organic possiblities, very vegetarian friendly and lots of non chain, mom and pop places which serve some pretty darn good cuisine. Some great coffee places as well. Doesnt need to be said that Seattle and Portland are very well known for their coffee.

I am sure you are also interested in hearing about schools, but unfortunately I do not have any information regarding that as I do not have kids. As far as neighborhoods go, I would advise you check out hillsdale, it is very family friendly and is located in the west hills of Portland, which in my opinion is one of the most beautiful parts of town. I couldnt tell you many other places unfortunately. I am not a big fan of Beaverton, too much urban sprawl in my opinion.

I could go on and on, but those are some of the reasons why I believe Portland boasts a high quality of life. There will be a few people who will state the negatives of Portland and there are some, some as the homeless problem, the economy and some others, but the positives FAR outweigh them, as long as you have a job.

Best of luck on your search!

[PeacePlease]

+1 to what Neal said. We also moved from Texas about a year and a half ago and so far we are amazed and love being here. Like the above two posts said, "as long as you have a job".

Being able to walk outside without the intense heat is one of the primary reasons we moved here. We now love to open the windows too :-)

[sayulita]

I absolutely agree with Neal, especially about Hillsdale. I love Portland and all the lovely things about her. Sure, we have some negatives but all in all, it's a great place to live.

[Aylalou]

I'd be in Portland proper if I could afford it, so I settle for Beaverton or environs that are on the MAX.

[ColinM]

Thanks to you all for your very valuable insights. We are committed to moving and are looking into how we are going to do this. I am continuing to research the possibilities and together with my family, we hope to have a plan of action ready to commence in January. I continue to read about people's experiences of living in Portland and the surrounding areas. Some of the comments are negative, but the vast majority sing Portland's praises.
Beaverton cropped up as a possibility because of it's proximity to Portland and yet the house prices seem more affordable and the schools apparently are better. My wife in particular will miss our ranch style home, but I believe there are ranch style homes to be found in Beaverton and maybe we can find something similar?
It's an exciting time for us. I'm sure that many of you who have moved there have had similar feelings. I too am looking forward to opening our windows!

[HonuMan]

ColinM, I agree with everything the previous posters said. I moved to Portland 12 years ago from Atlanta and love it. We just had a week of Phoenix-like summer weather (it reached 106 degrees F!), but that's rare. My wife and I live in Beaverton, and I can fully recommend it. I bought a house here 10 years ago because I worked in the high-tech industry at the time, and most high-tech companies are located on the Westside, and also because the best house in my price range turned out to be here. The worst I heard about Beaverton was from Portland city dwellers who made fun of it as being "the epitome of soulless suburbia." If you have no philosophical problem with suburbs, you'll be fine. The worst I can say about our neighborhood, which is inexpensive but safe, is that people are polite but tend to keep to themselves. There's no sense of community as there is in some of the older Eastside neighborhoods where we have friends. But I've heard that it's truly a neighborhood-by-neighborhood thing, and you really can't predict.

Be aware that Beaverton covers a fairly large area, so you'll find a wide variety of neighborhoods, from impoverished areas to McMansions, and everything in between. You'll have no trouble finding ranch-style homes. We live in Aloha, on the SW side of Beaverton, in a neighborhood of smaller "starter homes" built in the 1980s. Older houses near downtown Beaverton look to date from the 1940s and 1950s (there are some older than that), and as you get farther from the town center, you'll find every age through brand-new construction. There are some good deals on new homes, because they overbuilt during the housing boom a couple years ago. Most houses from the 1970s onward are built on 5,000 square-foot lots. If you want a bigger yard, you'll need to get something built in the 1960s or 1970s. Some of our favorites neighborhoods are east of Beaverton but west of I-5, still in Washington County, where property taxes are low. You'll find midcentury homes on larger lots with established trees and lanscaping. Check out Raleigh Hills, Hillsdale, Cedar Hills, and that area. I recommend renting a house for a while and doing a lot of exploring, because you'll discover little gems of neighborhoods among okay but unspectacular neighborhoods. (Naturally, what constitutes a "gem" depends on your tastes.)

Because of the presence of Intel and other high-tech companies, this area is usually among the first to get such goodies as DSL, cable Internet, and now fiber-optic (FiOS) Internet and TV service. Our electric utilities are underground, so we rarely have power outages (no trees falling on power lines). The schools are some of the best in the state. The population has become more diverse in recent years, so there are a variety of ethnic restaurants, although not as many as in Portland and on the Eastside. There are good healthcare facilities, and downtown Portland is close.

Good luck to you!

[Rob Allen]

Originally Posted by HonuMan

We live in Aloha, on the SW side of Beaverton, in a neighborhood of smaller "starter homes" built in the 1980s.

Hmm.. so do I. HonuMan, are you by chance in the Burns Ridge neighborhood? We might be neighbors.

ColinM, there are definitely ranch-style houses in Beaverton. Some of them were built by a builder named Robert Rummer, who was inspired by a California architect named Joe Eichler. Here's an article about Rummer and his houses:

Eichler Network: Eichler Modern: Rummer Homes

I've lived in New Jersey, Massachusetts and southern California before coming to Oregon 15 years ago. Like the others who've posted here, I love it and plan to stay. Best of luck with your move to the Portland area!

[HonuMan]

Originally Posted by Rob Allen

Hmm.. so do I. HonuMan, are you by chance in the Burns Ridge neighborhood? We might be neighbors.

I live in the Granada Park/Berryhill neighborhood. Burns Ridge sounds familiar. Is that on 170th between Farmington and Bany?