Oklahoma to Washington (Seattle, Tacoma, Bellevue: 2010, to rent, buying a home)

[OKSunny]

hello.
I am a graduate student in the school of Library Science and Information Studies at the University of Oklahoma. I will be graduating in May 2010. I also have a elementary school aged child (single mother).
I am very interested in relocating to Washington due to the beautiful scenery and diverse population. I would love to get some advice on which areas are the most compatible to my situation.

I am very liberal (another reason for leaving OK)
School quality is very important.
I have an active lifestyle.
Would like a city with a population in the range of 75,000 to 150,000.
Would like a work commute average of 30 minutes or less.

I know I am asking a lot and will probably have to compromise on a few things.

Can someone please suggest a few cities they are familiar with that comes close to my preference. Thank you so much

[Ira500]

Bellingham? Olympia? North Tacoma? Ellensburg?

[yukiko11]

Think about South Everett, Lakewood, and Edmonds.

[OKSunny]

I am from Oklahoma and I have to get out of here.
I am totally in live with the state of WA. The climate (cool), the scenery(green and mountainous),the lifestyle (active), the location (coastal & Canada), the people(mostly liberal) & everyone seems so dog friendly. It's like another planet and everything that OK is not.

I will be graduating in a year with a Masters in Library Science and am counting the days until I can move. I have looked at a few jobs around the state and it seems promising; average salary ranging from 40-70K based on experience (I have a few years working in a history library as a grad student).

Where would be the best place for someone like me? I have a young child so school quality is important.

So far I have looked at the Poulsbo, Bremerton, Seabeck, & Ocean Shore areas.

Thanks so much

[allforcats]

Hi again!

First, Washington state in general, and the larger cities in WA in particular, are reputed to be in the ranks of the more highly-educated in the U.S. So that means readers, and libraries, and book stores, and universities, and colleges. So pick a city, any city, in WA and you've got the start of your employment search.

In the order in which you mentioned things, yes, Washingtonians are quite dog-friendly. We're also cat-friendly

Next, for your child, generally the school districts in WA considered "best" by GreatSchools.org and Newsweek's annual survey are on the west side of the Cascade Mountains. From north to south: Bellingham, Shoreline, Bainbridge Island, Vashon Island, Mercer Island, Bellevue, Lake Washington (the city of Kirkland), Issaquah (which includes some of the east part of the city of Renton), Maple Valley, Olympia, Camas. Fancy that Olympia showing up again!

If you want greenery, forests, mountains and ocean, you want the west side of the Cascades. With all that yummy stuff, you get gentle breezes all year, a lot of drizzle and cloudiness for nine months of the year, but very little snow, no bitter winder winds, and tada! no tornadoes!, and hardly any thunder and lightning.

East of the Cascades you get blistering hot summers, cold and windy winters with wondrous snow, lots of amazing desert, not so much forest except up in the northeast corner, more thunder and lightning, smaller cities, and less bustle. No ocean, not to mention shores, although there are many many wondrous, breathtaking lakes formed by glaciers eons ago.

Poulsbo is one of the nicest places on Earth. Period. Safe. Small. Bucolic. Community. Perfect.

Bremerton is a U.S. Navy town. I'm sure there are nice areas of Bremerton. I'm a woman who has lived in Seattle and Bellevue for 25 years, and I would never live in Bremerton. Not a great choice, I feel, for your situation.

Seabeck I've never been to personally, and I understand it's very pretty with virtually no 'there' there. Certainly not the school district your post suggests. And I can't imagine what an MA in LibSci would do there... tend the llamas? Check the City-Data.com page -- in the upper left corner of every page here, click on City-Data.com. Then click on Washington. Then find any city or town you're looking for.

Try Bainbridge Island. Poulsbo. Whidbey Island. Olympia. All those places, including the outskirts of Olympia, will give you good schools and a bucolic life, with many resources available. Olympia has the most resources and the most employment opptys of them all. Clinton, Langley and Coupeville, NOT Oak Harbor which is military, are towns to look for on Whidbey Island. Good Montessori schools on Whidbey.

About affording: study craigslist.com to get ideas. Check out The Olympian.com for that whole area. Also, plan to rent for at least 6 months while you're learning about where you are and what you want.

This is fun! Next topic?


P.S. Just ran into this post on a thread in which we were yammering about our favorite areas outside of the city of Seattle. This is about Bainbridge Island. You will smile...
http://www.city-data.com/forum/9971582-post8.html

[captiv8ed]

Look into the Timberland Library system. It encompasses most of southwest Washington, including Olympia, Ocean Shores, Westport, and South Bend. I think there are 27 libraries.
I live in Olympia and it is a great place, with a great library and fantastic schools and outdoor opportunities.

[Fat Freddy]

Originally Posted by captiv8ed

Look into the Timberland Library system. It encompasses most of southwest Washington, including Olympia, Ocean Shores, Westport, and South Bend.

Ocean Shores is not part of the Timberland System.
It is an independent library.
They just laid off a couple of paid staff.
Much of the work is done by volunteers.

[OKSunny]

thanks guys....WA does have some of the nicest, most helpful people in the US. Paulsbo sounds awesome--just the kind of area to raise a kid. Im so excited. I appreciate everyone's advice and comments....I can't believe anyone would want to live anywhere else.

[allforcats]

Originally Posted by OKSunny

thanks
I can't believe anyone would want to live anywhere else.

Me either!
Speaking of buying a home before learning what you actually want, here's an interesting thread. Majority opinion? No.
http://www.city-data.com/forum/gener...nion-city.html

[OKSunny]

I totally agree with most of those posts.
My plan is to rent while I build up my down-payment pile and then after I have learned as much as I can about the area, but a home. Hopefully the prices won't skyrocket until after I have signed on the dotted line. I am planning a trip there next Spring to check out a few cities and libraries. I am in the process of setting up a few library tours and meetings with their library managers to feel out the job prospects while I am there.
I can't wait..Im looking out my window right now and it's super bright and hot and I can hear all these bugs "buzzing" YUK. I don't even want to leave my house