moving to longview wa on a job (Vancouver, Kelso: real estate, apartment)

[nena2000936]

can omeone tell me what part of longview is the best place to live i will there for two years i hear that it is a bad place to live. but i have no choice.got to go where the job is. and i hear cell phone service is bad to.so if there is someone out there can help.thanks

[earls]

Cell phones are just fine within the 'general freeway' area.
The reason for bad signals is the hills getting in the way of the signal. The cell towers are positioned all along the freeway because that is where the usage is.
I have read on this site a lot about bad areas of Longview but do not know about any personally. I would suggest asking the real estate people about the 'better' areas also just drive around and see if the area you are in is 'run down' or not. Longview is NOT very big so you can live a lot of places within a 30 minute drive.

[nena2000936]

thanks i think im going to look around longview i still have a litte time left.

[LISA IN LONGVIEW]

stay out of the highlands area of Longview and South Kelso and you should be just fine. Depends if you are renting or buying. Apartment or House. Anything around the lake is beautiful, a little more expensive. but better cared for. Depends on where your job is.
if you can give somemore details i will be glad to assist you. my husband has lived here all his life. 57 yrs and i have been here 18 yrs. so i think we know a little bit about it.
I don't have any trouble at all getting out on cell service and i have AT&T. might have a dropped call when i am going by Kalama but that is just one area, and heading out towards the beach is a little iffy. but we have never had trouble. Now qwest cell service sucks, unless you stay right on the I-5 Corridor. Will be happy to assist you just ask.

[moonmaiden]

I lived in Longview for 6 years - just moved a few months ago. A good town in many ways, fairly friendly people and seems to be in a tiny 'banana belt' area for plants - spring comes a bit earlier there than surrounding areas. I second the remark about staying out of the highland area and the 'dirty 30's' area (streets with thirty - something Ave) Bad area, full of drugs. Efforts are being made to clean up a lot of it tho. Air quality is BAD - pollution from the plants there is nasty. Water quality is fair to good. Rent is lower than either N or S of the area. Area is depressed tho as some of the larger businesses have folded and/or moved away. Not a lot of flat land except in town so if you're looking for country property you'll end up in the hills. Beautiful area tho - close to the ocean and Portland/Vancouver so shopping is a breeze. Decent shops in town for majority of things. Night life is pretty 'countrified' and there are some danger on main streets in town and in the bad areas so don't want to walk around in the dark <g> Also, one of the highest counties in WA state for meth use and cooking so drugs are a big issue. But if you stay away from the 'bad' part of town and off the main drags during night you'll be fine. I never worried about walking in my neighborhood during dark but it was a decent neighborhood. NOT friendly to gays, or other races altho large group of hispanics are there. If you have a job set up when you move in, you'll do fine. Sorry that I put so much negative in but just wanted it to serve as a 'watch out' kind of thing. For the most part, Longview is a decent place to live. My biggest gripe about it was the air quality