Moving to Washington: Looking at Spokane (Seattle, Tacoma: RV park, apartment complex, crime)
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When looking at Spokane there are many areas around it. Which is the best: Schools. My daughter will be entering the 7th grade when we move. I live in Arizona so you wouldn't think I was picky, any school outside of AZ would be an improvement, but I have my wants: Teachers: not so fresh out of college and not still working towards their certificate, I have had 4 of those so far and my daughter has suffered. Extra curricular activities: Choir, swimming, drama, etc. I am originally an AZ native. I grew up in a small town, not a great experience but I did like that some (not all, but most) teachers cared not only about themselves or just their families but the school as a whole. I do want the small town feel but NOT the small town.
Which neighborhoods? I have noticed brand new housing and older (for lack of better word) housing. I like the full size greens. I currently live in well manicured neighborhoods with baby greens, my neighbors don't speak English, and although I haven't seen the crime the sirens are always blazing. A safe neighborhood is what I want. Pricing of homes in Spokane seem reasonable somewhat like Phoenix NOW, not two years ago.
Also, we ride ATV's any areas close to Spokane? We also snow ski, how far from the slopes?
One last question. How is the traffic?? In Phoenix the traffic depends on the which side of the valley you live in. Same for there?? How far from Seattle?? I know the mileage but what is the time frame.
When looking at Spokane there are many areas around it. Which is the best: Schools. My daughter will be entering the 7th grade when we move. I live in Arizona so you wouldn't think I was picky, any school outside of AZ would be an improvement, but I have my wants: Teachers: not so fresh out of college and not still working towards their certificate, I have had 4 of those so far and my daughter has suffered. Extra curricular activities: Choir, swimming, drama, etc. I am originally an AZ native. I grew up in a small town, not a great experience but I did like that some (not all, but most) teachers cared not only about themselves or just their families but the school as a whole. I do want the small town feel but NOT the small town.
Which neighborhoods? I have noticed brand new housing and older (for lack of better word) housing. I like the full size greens. I currently live in well manicured neighborhoods with baby greens, my neighbors don't speak English, and although I haven't seen the crime the sirens are always blazing. A safe neighborhood is what I want. Pricing of homes in Spokane seem reasonable somewhat like Phoenix NOW, not two years ago.
Also, we ride ATV's any areas close to Spokane? We also snow ski, how far from the slopes?
One last question. How is the traffic?? In Phoenix the traffic depends on the which side of the valley you live in. Same for there?? How far from Seattle?? I know the mileage but what is the time frame.
see my opnions/response to another above. i'm an AZ native (one of the few, the proud..oh, that's another commercial).
it's much mroe expensive in washington than AZ. not sure where you are coming from or what type of work you are looking for, but living in the seattle metro area (including the East Side of lake washington), will be mroe than phoenix. however, renton is the exception and not too bad of an area. if you want to ride ATVs and such, you ought to move to auburn or somewheres not close to civilization. washington doesn't have huge unoccupied dirt fields left open for 20 years with no development.
kent might be another place of interest for you, but unless you work there or renton, the drive to seattle sucks. you can look at mapquest and the distance might not be so bad, but the time is much worse than AZ for the same distance i feel.
spokane might be better for ATVs, but i've nto been there. i just havne't seen anywhere in the western part of the state to drive them, or not very good places anyways. i've actually not seen one single ATV in washington. i know you can find them all over AZ, texas, etc, but it's not part of their culture up here.
gas is like 30 cents more a gallon too, btw. electricty bills are significantly cheaper though.
When looking at Spokane there are many areas around it. Which is the best: Schools. My daughter will be entering the 7th grade when we move. I live in Arizona so you wouldn't think I was picky, any school outside of AZ would be an improvement, but I have my wants: Teachers: not so fresh out of college and not still working towards their certificate, I have had 4 of those so far and my daughter has suffered. Extra curricular activities: Choir, swimming, drama, etc. I am originally an AZ native. I grew up in a small town, not a great experience but I did like that some (not all, but most) teachers cared not only about themselves or just their families but the school as a whole. I do want the small town feel but NOT the small town.
Which neighborhoods? I have noticed brand new housing and older (for lack of better word) housing. I like the full size greens. I currently live in well manicured neighborhoods with baby greens, my neighbors don't speak English, and although I haven't seen the crime the sirens are always blazing. A safe neighborhood is what I want. Pricing of homes in Spokane seem reasonable somewhat like Phoenix NOW, not two years ago.
Also, we ride ATV's any areas close to Spokane? We also snow ski, how far from the slopes?
One last question. How is the traffic?? In Phoenix the traffic depends on the which side of the valley you live in. Same for there?? How far from Seattle?? I know the mileage but what is the time frame.
Spokane has an ORV park where you can ride your ATV's - it's just NW of town off of Seven Mile Rd. Lots of people here with ATV's.
What do you mean by full size greens? I think you're talking about a lawn... Most lot sizes here are decent sized -- the standard city lots avg. 6000 sq. ft., but it you get out into the outlying subdivisions, you can find larger lots 10,000-20,000 sq. ft. There are also neighborhoods with 1 acre standard lots.
Traffic is great - I just got back from a visit to Central FL and it reminded me why I love living in Spokane. Even when it's bad in Spokane, it's not as bad as the big cities.
Driving time to Seattle is about 5-6 hours - it's 300 miles and you usually take a break to stretch your legs or stop at one of the scenic lookouts. During the winter it may take longer driving through the passes, depending on snow.
Speaking of which, Spokane is having a record high snowfall this winter! We got another 6-8 inches last night and as I look outside, there's more starting to come down. I've got pics I'm going to resize and post on the picture thread.
School districts - I know I have a post on here somewhere with a link to all the different districts....I'll try to track it down and re-post the districts. If you don't want small town, you'll want to stick with Mead, Spokane Dist. 81, Central Valley as the largest districts. THere are several other smaller districts that are good, too. Mead might be a good fir for you so you could live in a quiet neighborhood but still be close to the extra curricular activites you want your daughter to have nearby.
Here is the school info:
This is the best link to all the area school districts websites that you can browse.
For Spokane check out: Central Valley, Deer Park, East Valley, Freeman, Liberty, Mead, Medical Lake, Nine Mile Falls, Reardan-Edwall, Riverside, Spokane Public Schools.
Spokane is about 280 miles east from Seattle -about a 4 1/2 hour freeway drive. The cost of living in Spokane is lower then the greater Seattle area. I can't compare it to Arizona because I'm not familiar with Arizona. I lived in Spokane many many years ago and am moving back there from Woodinville, WA this summer. There are several school districts within the greater Spokane area. The only district I've heard negative things about is Spokane Public Schools (district 81). Hopefully some of the locals will chime in with more school info, neighborhood info, etc. Renton is 20 miles from Seattle, so not close to Spokane at all. The Spokane areas that are consistently viewed as desireable include the UPPER south hill (not lower), the southeast portion of the valley, and north north Spokane.
I'm not overly familiar with the pricing of Phoenix homes (other than occasionally visiting friends/visiting for work) but you'll likely find Spokane pretty reasonable. There are areas of newer construction as well as more established neighborhoods (some very nice, some not so much) but you won't find endless new developments like you do in Phoenix. The majority of homes in Spokane have decent sized green yards, even most in the newer developments though they tend to be somewhat smaller. Traffic in Spokane is a non-factor if you're from a large metro area and compared to Phoenix, you'll be in great shape. There are numerous ski areas within an easy drive from Spokane, Mt. Spokane is only about a 40 minute drive from downtown, closer if you live on the north side. This link has information about outdoor activities in the area: Spokane Area Sports & Recreation - The Spokane EDC
Schools have been discussed at some length in other Spokane threads. In terms of the district 81 comment below, just be aware that district 81 is a large district and has both outstanding and marginal schools, depending on where you're located.
I have lived here for a total of 9 years and I have to say I love it! It's the only place I have been where there is city, and only a couple miles away is all the nature you could ask for. There are many places to take your ATV. I have been to the ORV park the person above me mentioned, it's OK, but in my opinion expensive. There are so many places you can go that you can ride for free just within 20 miles of Spokane. I personally like going to Mt. Spokane more and Liberty Lake is pretty cool as well. Here is a link to present parks and amenities:
These are just what's around here. If you like weekend trips, the possibilities are endless!
About the schools, District 81 isn't all bad. There are always a few bad apples in a bunch. My daughter is going to Ridgeview Elementary and is in a Combo class of 1'st and 2nd graders. I have to say her teacher is one of the best I have ever seen. She loves his teaching and he is capable of being firm all the while patient, understanding and creative. My daughter is in the entered the first grade reading and writing at a middle of the year kindergarten student and is now ahead of the second graders. It just shows you that it doesn't matter what district your child is in, it's the teacher that makes all the difference.
As far as traffic, every city has it. The thing about Spokane is people that live here think rush hour is bad....honestly, compared to other major cities, it's a cake walk.
The housing is getting better and better. I myself like the older houses with all the character and charm, but if you like newer ones one great place to start is Five Mile Prairie. I currently live up here and it's amazing. Great views and only 2-3 miles miles the grocery store at the bottom of the hill.
The one thing that is bad and I will tell you the truth now before you move here and find out on your own, the roads are horrible. It's the city of potholes and ruts. If I can change anything, that's what it would be.
There's tons of stuff on this forum and in the city-data site itself. Go to greatschools.com for a rating of 1-10 on Spokane schools based on test scores. There's also another site someone recently mentioned that you can compare different schools in different districts. You can easily find out the average time teachers in that area have been there and what their degrees are.
I live north of Seattle and am looking to move to the Spokane area this summer. Have done tons of research. You can get an average home for about $250K (3-4 bed, 2-3 bath) the older homes (1950's-1980's) definately have the bigger lots. We looked at some that needed minor cosmetics for around $225K, but we were looking at ramblers and they seem to run a bit more then something like a split-level. :~) D
I grew up in the Southwest and relocated to Tacoma, and decided to go to school in Spokane on a whim after driving through and deciding Tacoma is the worst place on the planet. I fell in love with Spokane quickly, and although I found the population slightly xenophobic, it became my home over the 3 years I went to college there. As I write this, I am in Denver surrounded by suburban sprawl in a grafitti decorated apartment complex.
The one thing I wish I could be doing right now is kicking it in Spokane with your local, home grown xenophobic population.
The rest of the country is going down the tubes, and I plan to head to the Inland Northwest as soon as possible. I hate Denver. Wish I could be buying a build your own six pack of beer at Huckleberry's.
I never felt in danger there, and having grown up in a gang infested part of the US, I cant believe I moved back to another SW city. If, sometime around mid october, you see a guy with a better tan than a native Washingtonian should have, buying sheaf stout so he can drink it after a midnight movie at the Garland theater, say hello.
I didnt appreciate Spokane enough while I was there. I want to go back.
The one thing I wish I could be doing right now is kicking it in Spokane with your local, home grown xenophobic population.
Lol. That made me laugh. Hey, if you head back on over and want to kick it sometime with some xeno's, hit me up.
I went to huckleberry's once. It was pretty cool, but I don't buy that much cheese or vitamins so I pretty much stick to my local grocery store
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