Is Portland starting to lose it's allure? (crime, credit card)
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For what it's worth, Portland certainly hasn't lost any allure to us...the more research we do and the more exposure we have to the city, the more we want to move there (been planning to for a couple years now). In fact I'm excited to be planing a trip out there again next month!
Technology companies tend to be software, hardware, and bio-tech. Each needs a critical mass to grow.
Even within bio-tech there are subgroups - largely basic science and health science. Basic science bio-tech needs a large bio science academic institution nearby. UC Berkley is the reason why biotech clusters around San Francisco. The same condition exists in San Diego. The reason I know this is that I have worked with HR staff in that industry, their scientists insist on working within commuting distance from the University. It is not cost effective for Oregon to develop that industry, because UW is in the city Seattle has tried and in my observation it hasn't caught fire.
Portland's technology firms are generally hardware. A decision was made some years ago to move Tektronix's in-house professional development program into what became Oregon Graduate Center.
I am delighted that there are people who don't want to live in Oregon. Just as Kansas, Iowa, Missouri and Tennessee are wonderful states, but not for me. I don't feel the need to justify my decision not to live there by smearing their attributes.
I can see the many good points about Orgeon even though it is no longer the place for me. Times change, people change and even places change. If I were a young person just starting out and had the security of a good job, I would probably be happy here.
Portland is a very different place from the time when I moved here so I look at it with "old eyes." For a first timer, it probably holds a lot of allure. So I think the OP's question basically hinges upon a person's age, place in life and point of view. As far as a reputation, no matter how good something sounds from afar, it's always a good idea to come close and see for one's self.
I wonder how seriously white major European cities feel about the fact that their lack of diversity places them at a cultural disadvantage. I suspect the fact that they sit at the top of international rankings of success and achievement eases the blow somewhat.
Good point. One thing people repeatedly criticize Portland for is its "lack of diversity," but how many of the world's cities (especially the smaller ones) are ethnically and culturally diverse? Go to Florence, Italy, for instance, and you'll find that it's overwhelmingly Italian in terms of its population, food, and cultural activities. (Portland has far more diversity, but of course Florence has a culture and history unlike anything in Portland.) Tokyo is overwhelmingly Japanese. Scandinavian cities have mostly Scandinavian people. Whether that's good, bad, or indifferent depends on your point of view. One complaint I've heard from people who have moved to most Italian cities is that it's hard to find non-Italian cuisine -- but, of course, most people who move to Italy from the US do so because they want to live the Italian lifestyle. Portland, as "white" as it might be, has pretty much every type of cuisine imaginable. I've lived in Atlanta and Seattle, and there was nothing I found culturally there that I couldn't find here. I've been to many medium-sized cities in the South, and most were far less diverse than Portland. I can understand having a preference for US cities with more of a melting-pot feel, especially if you're a member of a group that is under-represented here in Portland, but for the most part, I don't understand the complaint about Portland's lack of diversity.
Another, maybe better example is transportation in Portland. Traffic is horrendous at rush hour. I agree that parking is bad--it's limited and where you can find it it's expensive. You really can't expect to park right next to the Rose Garden or anywhere in the city for that matter. Successfully getting around town requires planning and a willingness to use public transportation.
True, but do you know of any cities of Portland's size or larger where this isn't the case? I used to live in Atlanta and Seattle, and their traffic was much worse than Portland's. Although bumper-to-bumper is slow no matter where you are, I typically had to drive longer distances in Atlanta and Seattle because they're spread out much farther, so I spent more time in traffic because of it. When I moved from Seattle to Portland, I was surprised at how much easier and cheaper it was to find parking here. But nothing will ever compare to when I visited New York City in 1987 and announced my shock at the parking garage sign: "$30 per day -- that's ridiculous!" I said to my New York friend. "Read the sign again," he said. I did. It was $30 per hour.
Nell, some of the things I did not like might be very attractive for someone else. The climate with months of clouds, rain, freezing ice and dizzle heads the list. In order to compensate, I need more than just sort of average, but as I said, I also found much I did not like:
Old, expensive housing in crowded neighborhoods
Hipsters, freaks, people with signs and causes, and bums everywhere
Too laid back, I am used to people with more ambition and intensity
Green liberalism turned fanatic beyond common sense.
High level of regulations.
Near absense of OLLI (lifelong learning) activities.
Crowding - there was literally no parking at the zoo or most areas in the park.
Inconvenient parking downtown, but mainly I spent a lot of time walking in the city and did not see anything which would cause me to want to return.
Interesting, as much as I love Portland and it will always have a special place in my heart, your post is dead on.
LOL...in Italy, there are mostly Italians living there, Italian food, etc, Tokyo is predominently Japanese...and you find that strange? If I went to Tokyo and found mostly Australians living there, now I think that would be strange. The world is truly upside down.
LOL...in Italy, there are mostly Italians living there, Italian food, etc, Tokyo is predominently Japanese...and you find that strange? If I went to Tokyo and found mostly Australians living there, now I think that would be strange. The world is truly upside down.
You misunderstood what I was trying to say. I'm not talking about nationality (the US has mostly Americans living here), but ethnicity and culture. When people criticize Portland for its lack of diversity, they mean "there's an inordinately high percentage of Causcasians living here as compared to other American cities of similar size." I'm pointing out that people generally don't criticize cities like Florence, Tokyo, and Stockholm for their lack of ethnic diversity, so why is it a negative in the case of Portland? And Portland has more cultural diversity than many other ethnically homogenous cities. If the Portland white folks in question were primarily white-supremacist bigots, I could see the point, but Portlanders are known for being progressive-liberal. I'm perfectly fine with more people from different ethnic groups and cultures moving to Portland, but the high percentage of white people doesn't bother me, and I don't consider it a drawback to living here. If the only restaurants available here were steak houses, country buffets, and hamburger joints, and if all the radio stations played either country or Top 40 music, and if "art" was understood to mean only Norman Rockwell and Thomas Kincaid, then I'd say that Portland lacked diversity, and it wouldn't be the right place for me.
Good point. One thing people repeatedly criticize Portland for is its "lack of diversity," but how many of the world's cities (especially the smaller ones) are ethnically and culturally diverse? Go to Florence, Italy, for instance, and you'll find that it's overwhelmingly Italian in terms of its population, food, and cultural activities. (Portland has far more diversity, but of course Florence has a culture and history unlike anything in Portland.) Tokyo is overwhelmingly Japanese. Scandinavian cities have mostly Scandinavian people. Whether that's good, bad, or indifferent depends on your point of view. One complaint I've heard from people who have moved to most Italian cities is that it's hard to find non-Italian cuisine -- but, of course, most people who move to Italy from the US do so because they want to live the Italian lifestyle. Portland, as "white" as it might be, has pretty much every type of cuisine imaginable. I've lived in Atlanta and Seattle, and there was nothing I found culturally there that I couldn't find here. I've been to many medium-sized cities in the South, and most were far less diverse than Portland. I can understand having a preference for US cities with more of a melting-pot feel, especially if you're a member of a group that is under-represented here in Portland, but for the most part, I don't understand the complaint about Portland's lack of diversity.
I agree, It has more to do with a person's frame of reference...
Oakland CA is often named the most diverse large city in the United States... Portland has it's own type of Diversity... very different from Oakland.
It's seems to me that Portland residents celebrate their "diversity" while out-of-towners critisize Portland's lackof "diversity".
I am a lifelong resident of Portland, born here in the early 1950's.
I remember Portland of my youth being a pretty much white, somewhat working class town, where you stuck to your own friends and family, absolutely enjoyed the outdoors (The "woods" were a lot closer then than now, and the fishing was phenomenal) and you really didn't venture into inner "NorthEast" Portland unless you had one heck of an absolute need to. And if you did, you rolled up the windows and locked the doors if you were headed North on Union Avenue. (That was it's name before MLK)
Tom McCall was my hero, Rip City Baby! and Bud Clark, well, "Whoop, Whoop"!
And for all that PNW ignorance growing up, I do notice that my family and most people I grew up with here really don't care what race or ethnicity you are as long as you are a decent HUMAN.
My, how things have changed.
You newcomers don't even have an iota of a percentage of an inkling on how much Portland has changed in 50 years.
It ain't done to bad for itself.
And the thing about Portland, if it was concerned about what everybody though about it, it wouldn't be the Portland of today.
IMHO, if Portland could be what it is right now with one-third less people, it would be paradise.
So maybe Portland is "diverse" in it's acceptance of different lifestyles, cultures and races, but not so "diverse" in it's populations of the same.
If the situation was reversed, and Portland was initially more "diverse" in population, how do you think Portland's ideal of preaching diversity without actually practicing it in all aspects hold up ?
Last edited by pdxMIKEpdx; 02-04-2010 at 07:15 PM..
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