Vancouver (and Portland) vs. Bellingham vs. Spokane (Seattle, Tacoma: where to live, military)

[Blindtom]

Originally Posted by Taiwanhellokitty

Virginia gets all these "accolades" on how great it is doing compared to the rest of the country,

Isn't all of the "greatness" due to the large amount of government spending and expansion in the area?

[StealthRabbit]

Originally Posted by Taiwanhellokitty

I was also curious what are the best areas that you would NEVER hear air traffic around Vancouver or Portland? Thanks!

Away from the river you seldom hear airplane noise, tho there is a National Guard base there and the fighter jets can be plenty loud (usually within a couple mile of airport, and approaches (which are usually industrial areas along the river) as they use a very steep flight path. About 1 week / yr the smaller jets use NS runway which can bother SE Vancouver and NE Portland.

Bellingham is not short on usual amenities. (pretty broad offering and large continguent of retired academians)

[Taiwanhellokitty]

So, would NW and SW Vancouver be a good bet to be away from any air traffic noise? And, are those parts of the city good places to live? Or, what about towns/suburbs in those areas? Thanks all!

[cdelena]

Originally Posted by Taiwanhellokitty

So, would NW and SW Vancouver be a good bet to be away from any air traffic noise? And, are those parts of the city good places to live? Or, what about towns/suburbs in those areas? Thanks all!

The air traffic patterns change with the wind so half the time you are OK... both SW and NW get plenty of air noise. I would thing NE would be better... or go further north if noise is an issue.

[Mclaurin]

I can only speak for the Portland area. You will always hear the sound in the backgroud. If you go for neighborhoods in the hills with big trees you are insulated from noise. You might want to be a distance from freeways and downtown. The west side is where this is available. Not really walkable neighborhoods much. Multnohmah is one.

Vancouver has treed areas. We considered it but due to working in Portland would have been taxed doubly, plus the nightmare communte. The river is wide culturally too.

Sorry.....just realized you were concerned about air noise. Stay away from the airport and it's not bad. The flight patterns change from time to time too.

[musicaldogs]

I've lived Salem, OR, and in Vancouver and Everett, WA. All up and down the Northwest coast the skies are gloomy all year long (except for a couple of months in the summer, if you are lucky). The farther south you go, the more sunshine you'll experience.

Almost the entire western part of the Northwest is overcast 9-10 months of the year, and also often very economically depressed. Of these three towns I liked Vancouver best, but I had to move away from Western Washington because I couldn't handle the gloomy climate due to my extreme seasonal effective disorder (S.A.D.).

As with any part of the country, the more money you have the better choice of places you can live, but for the most part, even many of the lower-class neighborhoods in Vancouver are fairly friendly, and Vancouver certainly has much lower housing costs than Portland or Seattle. In addition, I find people in the Northwest to be more courteous than in many other areas, which means more careful drivers, among other things. Although, when it comes to jobs, there has been pretty fierce competition for a long time due to the economic situation. Both WA and OR are more politically progressive than most U.S. states. I would say to first really give the climate a lot of thought before deciding to actually move anywhere in the Northwest.

[wlw2009]

Im from St. Louis Missouri and I moved to the Tri-Cities (for just 10 weeks) and I will be trying to pursue a full time job after graduation in Seattle.

There are a couple of things I can say I like between being 2000 miles east or in the Seattle area.

1) I got really hot (high blood pressure issues, genetics) and 75 degree weather + humidity in Missouri is miserable to me.
2)The cloudy skies in Seattle take away the glare off every thing you can imagine in the city-area (cars buildings, etc) and that was a huge relief on my eyes.

3) The weather further east really sucks in reality. In Missouri from May-September its over 85 degrees PLUS humidity, so miserable you can go outside for maybe an hour or so without burning up...so the summers really arent that great. October-Beginning of November much more mild 70 degree weather November-March super cold, 35 degrees every day + the glaring sun. March-April nice 60-70 degree weather.

What you dont have in the East/Midwest?

-Mountains, forward politically thinking (man, who knew that putting calories on a menu would make me change my mind about food choices here in the SEA) and the bible belt........which is always fantastic with their great ideals.

Then again, its up to you.

Maybe you like being in 90 degree weather or having a bible-thumper every which way you look.

But seriously, Im not from SEA and I have not been in the cloudiness for 8 months, but all I know is....I was there for a month and it was cloudy almost every day and I loved it to death. I could finally walk around without sweating my insides out.

Oh and for those of you who say the economy in WA is bad...

Go to St. Louis or Kansas City Missouri... then count your "blessings". haha
Those are some rough towns.

[Taiwanhellokitty]

Thanks again for all the replies/insight! I originally was going to visit Vancouver, WA in the summer, but now it's going to have to be the middle of September... does anyone have any opinion about Battle Ground or Ridgefield in comparison to living in Vancouver?

[Inkpoe]

Originally Posted by Taiwanhellokitty

Thanks again for all the replies/insight! I originally was going to visit Vancouver, WA in the summer, but now it's going to have to be the middle of September... does anyone have any opinion about Battle Ground or Ridgefield in comparison to living in Vancouver?

They're boring and bland suburbs. Both has been growing a lot the last few decades-- BG being the faster one, lots of affordable homes (and foreclosures). BG can now easily access i5 with the new rt 502. Ridgefield is much smaller in terms of population and not as built out. It has the wildlife refuge "next door" which is pretty awesome.

Originally Posted by wlw2009

Oh and for those of you who say the economy in WA is bad...

Go to St. Louis or Kansas City Missouri... then count your "blessings". haha
Those are some rough towns.

I don't understand this comment; no one said hey, it's all "Detroit" here. What was mentioned was Vancouver/Clark County was hard-hit by the economy-- which it was and still is. And traditionally Western Wa (not counting the i5 corridor) has economically depressed for a long time... look to Forks, for example-- way worse than KCMO or STL. Just because there's some other place in the US that's worse off doesn't change the fact that Vancouver/Clark County and other places are some of Washington's hard-hit cities/counties.

[StealthRabbit]

Originally Posted by Taiwanhellokitty

Thanks again for all the replies/insight! I originally was going to visit Vancouver, WA in the summer, but now it's going to have to be the middle of September... does anyone have any opinion about Battle Ground or Ridgefield in comparison to living in Vancouver?

For your desires, I would stay in closer proximity to Portland. (or the north edge of Vancouver (check out the Glenwood area). VERY nice spot to garden / spend some outdoor time, yet VERY close to services / shopping transit.


I would add Bellingham to your preview, especially if you are a HelloKitty.

It is a 5 hr drive (oneway), but you can take the train / bus. Having Vancouver BC so close is a definite benefit.


Sept is often a very nice month in PNW. BE SURE to go here, sunsets in fall are superb. (1.2 hrs west on US 26 (through Beaverton, OR))
north oregon coast - Hug Point

north oregon coast - Google Search

Spend a couple days, or at least one LONG day making a loop in the Columbia Gorge (SR14 to Maryhill, I-84W to Bonneville Dam, then Scenic Highway to Troutdale. Columbia River Gorge Visitors Association
Columbia River Gorge Loop - Driving trip | EveryTrail


Then spend an Evening at (Take in a movie and walk around this quirky and delightful estate... previous 'poor farm')
McMenamins - Edgefield Homepage

If you don't like the movie, go on in to McMenamins - Kennedy School Home (15 minutes on towards Portland). Maybe you will be lucky and hit a night that has History Pub
June 27: History Pub Monday at Kennedy School – “The Jewish Community of Old South Portland” - Portland Events, Music, Art, Entertainment, Sustainability | PDXPIPELINE.com | Portland Events, Music, Art, Entertainment, Sustainability

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