Family of 6 looking at Salem with a few questions (Portland: renting, crime)

[MovingToOregonSoon]

Hi everyone. I was hoping I could get some input/advice from some of the Salem natives. My family and I will most likely be moving out to Salem in the next few months for work, and we are looking for some information. We come from a pretty sleepy area, and safety and schools are our biggest concern. We have heard south and south west Salem are the best bets, and we will be renting most likely for the first year.


So here are my questions:

Which schools are considered "the best" and which ones should be avoided?


South and southwest the best bet for a large family?


What is the political climate like in Salem? I know Oregon is one of the most liberal states, but how does the city of Salem compare to the state?

How is the public/mass transit?

[Silverfall]

I think you mean south and northwest Salem. Northwest is on the other side of the river.

The "best" schools by test scores for elementary down south are Schirle, Candalaria and Sumpter, but generally south schools are considered good except for Liberty. Out west Chapman Hill gets the best test scores.

For middle schools Jane Goodall (charter school), Judson, and Howard Street (charter school) get the best test scores.

For high schools it is Sprague then West.

Not sure what you mean best bet for a large family?? You can live anywhere that works for you.

Salem is a moderate city politically. While the county votes blue in elections, I think we are barely blue.

The mass transit is ok, not great.

[Steve Pickering]

Originally Posted by MovingToOregonSoon

... ...

What is the political climate like in Salem? I know Oregon is one of the most liberal states, but how does the city of Salem compare to the state?

... ...

Only about 2/3 of Portland and Eugene are liberal. Most of the rest of the state is conservitive to ultra conservitive.

[Jumauslo]

I hope you like it here. My family and I moved here a little over a year ago from northeastern California and feel at home. We live in south Salem and the schools seem good. I'd recommend you look at the Salem-Keizer SD website and compare where you're thinking of renting to the school reports for that neighborhood. They have all the boundary maps and school reports on the website. Good luck.

[MovingToOregonSoon]

This is great advice everyone, thanks! Hope the people here are indicative of the people we will meet there.


Silverfall, when I asked about those areas and being a good fit for a family I was asking about the safety and state of the parks. Going back I see my question was way too vague.



Thanks again.

[Silverfall]

Originally Posted by MovingToOregonSoon

This is great advice everyone, thanks! Hope the people here are indicative of the people we will meet there.


Silverfall, when I asked about those areas and being a good fit for a family I was asking about the safety and state of the parks. Going back I see my question was way too vague.



Thanks again.

Ah...Salem PD puts all of their crime stats on crimereports.com so you can do and see live crime data anytime. Safety is a subjective thing, but I personally feel totally safe in Salem, anywhere. I'm originally from Chicago area though so my definition of "bad area" is much different than Oregon's definition. From my perspective we don't have any bad areas of town.

We have maintenance issues with our parks due to the poor economy, but many of the neighborhood associations have organized cleanups and park improvement drives. Generally, they are in good shape considering the state of the economy though.

[Steve Pickering]

There are drug issues with almost 100% of the Salem parks.