Granite Falls/Arlington/Marysville (Seattle, Spokane: for sale, real estate, crime)

[bb0905]

My husband and I are going house-hunting in the Everett area in two weeks; after reading a few of these threads I've gotten a little concerned. We were looking hard at Granite Falls but I had no idea it was once dubbed the Meth Capitol by Rolling Stone...I know the media tends to blow things out of proportion too. We have two sons, nine and two, and like any parent we hope to avoid the drug/crime areas as much as possible. Schools are a close second but safety is #1. I also see Granite Falls has taken Baseball and Basketball state titles recently, not that my kids are big sports stars, but this says something about the kids there Right??? Any advice from people who know this area would be GREATLY appreciated. We are getting out of the Air Force, my husband is from Eastern WA and I have lived in Richland, Spokane, Bremerton. He is taking a job in Everett, we haven’t really looked at the areas south because I figured the closer to Seattle the more hassle – I could be wrong. Thank you so much!

[noplacelikeWA]

I personally would not choose Granite Falls. I have known several friends and family that have lived out there and I was not impressed or happy with what I saw or experienced. The area is pretty to look at, but IMO it is not a good town. I would consider living in Lake Stevens which is not far too from Granite Falls and closer to Everett.

I also have family in Marysville and Arlington and I would choose either of these over Granite Falls any day. Marysville is much more developed than Arlington but it also has its downsides, both of these cities are too far out of the way for me personally and I would not want to deal with the wretched commute! Take a closer look at Lake Stevens, you might find it fits your needs better.

[aussiegal]

Once you get further south of Everett then you're getting into high density so looking further north is a great idea both in terms of price and lifestyle. If price is a concern, then you probably should choose areas north of Lake Stevens since it can be more pricey there. If not, then there are some really pretty parts of Lake Stevens. The downside of course is getting across the trestle in rush hour but lots of people do it. Marysville is more built up than Arlington or Granite Falls. But for the money, you can get some really great deals in Granite. The school district is working its hardest to change the stigma that is sometimes associated with the town. There are young families moving there and while it's a little limited in "entertainment" for teenagers, that can be a plus not necessarily a minus. Whatever happened to good 'ol family time and having our kids friends over to our homes? Having said that, my money of course is on Arlington (since that's where I'm from) and the school district can't be beaten. Lots of elementary schools, 2 middle schools and a pretty new high school. It's a very quiet, laid back little town, 3 miles off the freeway yet just 20 minutes drive to Everett. However, at certain times of the day, the freeway grinds to a halt in Everett so living closer to work might be preferable? It depends what the job hours are. Some times of day are better than others. And just to add to the mix, parts of Stanwood abut the freeway to the west of I-5 near Marysville so that could be a possibility too. Check it out!

[teresanaas]

We live in Lake Stevens, near Granite Falls and closer to Everett. We haven't had any problems or heard of any. Teresa

[forevertexas]

Hi bb095! I personally wouldn't pick Granite Falls, and from most of the response, most people wouldn't. Marysville/Lake Stevens is a great place to live. I live in Marysville but are at the cut off for school boundaries so my kids attend Lake Stevens School district which we were blessed because that is a much better school district than Marysville. So I guess you can say we have the best of both worlds. We are forced to move due to relocation and my house is up for sale.

Good luck house hunting. We are doing the same in Texas.

[Susan Anderson]

Originally Posted by bb0905

My husband and I are going house-hunting in the Everett area in two weeks; after reading a few of these threads I've gotten a little concerned. We were looking hard at Granite Falls but I had no idea it was once dubbed the Meth Capitol by Rolling Stone...I know the media tends to blow things out of proportion too. We have two sons, nine and two, and like any parent we hope to avoid the drug/crime areas as much as possible. Schools are a close second but safety is #1. I also see Granite Falls has taken Baseball and Basketball state titles recently, not that my kids are big sports stars, but this says something about the kids there Right??? Any advice from people who know this area would be GREATLY appreciated. We are getting out of the Air Force, my husband is from Eastern WA and I have lived in Richland, Spokane, Bremerton. He is taking a job in Everett, we haven’t really looked at the areas south because I figured the closer to Seattle the more hassle – I could be wrong. Thank you so much!

Seriously. All of the bad rap about meth was misinformation to media in the worst way. Look at the followup article in the Seattle Times/PI, where all of what was said in Rolling Stone & Oprah was qutoed as false information. Granite Falls hosts several national awards for educators & and drug intervention specialists, and our school superintendent and middle school assistant principal have recently won state awards as well. Granted, the schools are small, but unlike Lake Stevens & Everett schools, where drugs are passed around from kid to kid like candy, Granite Falls schools are clean, athletic, artistic, and WASL successful. It is a growing community that hosts room for kids to run, ride quad, swim & fish. This is clean, wholesome living without the high dollar real estate prices.

[Arleigh-20]

Susan,
If you can describe living in Richland, Where I plan to move, it would be appreciated.
I grew up fishing and camping all over the Granite falls area. It was wonderful.
But that was before the huge population movement of the 80's-90's. It was far out in the country and offered great outdoor rec. I was looking for a house in Granite Falls,
in the year 2000, and was very surprised at the growth the area had experianced.
I wish I could offer more, but never lived their or had kids in school.
Good luck
John

[julesandkids]

I just had the oppurtunity of hearing the 2008 National Teacher of the Year, Andrea Peterson, speak. She is from Granite Falls. If what she shares about the area is any indication of the character and spirit of the people there...I'd move there. No matter where you live, you are going to have your share of strange people....but as a parent, I want my childern to have teachers and a community that supports their education and is are advocates for them

I'd suggest that you do a search for her and read up on her and the schools.
I noticed you put something regarding the sports records for the area. Keep in mind, ten years ago, before she was there and before the Rolling Stone article was written, the town took pride in the fact they had NEVER won a game.

[tnt2nc]

Hi everyone, I haven't been on this site in a while. My family just came back from a stay in Hickory. We were in town to look at houses in the area, colleges, and a possible job. The house we fell in love with was off of Grace Chapel in nearby Granite Falls. When the job interview went well, we decided to take time to look at South Caldwell High where my daughter would attend her senior year before going away to college. The Granite Falls area and school seemed quite charming. The people in the school dropped everything they were doing and spent about 1 1/2 hours with us answering many questions. Reading the above posts sure has me thinking...I hope we are doing the right thing, especially for my daughter. We are from NJ. My daughter has such a great group of friends right now, she is very active with leadership in many school clubs and church functions. We were not able to meet anyone in the neighborhood during our visit, but I would hope they would have been alot nicer than what I have just read. If anyone can add some positive feedback to the issue of moving to Granite Falls, I would love to hear about it. Thanks!




mod note: tnt2nc, This thread is talking about the town of Granite Falls in Washington state. I'm thinking that you are referring to Granite Falls North Carolina. If so, please let me know and I'll move it or you can re-word and post it in the North Carolina forum yourself. Thanks.

[tnt2nc]

Mod: Yes, I am sorry! This was meant for North Carolina.