Navy Family Moving To Whidbey Island in April 2010 (Everett, Oak Harbor: job market, school districts)

[Mr. Moe]

Been in Sunny San Diego, California all my life. Wife is in the Navy and has been fortunate enough to have been stationed here the whole 15yrs of her career. As for me, I curently work as a Manager for General Dynamics-NASSCO and my wife got the call from her detailer stating we are scheduled to report to Whidbey Island in April.

Been looking and hearing that work on the island is scarce and to work in the city would require you to spend more time traveling to and from work then actually at work. LOL

So I would like to get any insight as to what the job market is actually like and what to expect if I have to commute from the island for work.



Thanks in advance


Mr. Moe

[sean98125]

See if there is anything that you can do with Boeing at Paine Field. There are probably a lot of Boeing employees who live on Whidbey and commute there - it's a short drive from the ferry terminal. There are probably buses or vanpools that would take you there.

Do you have kids? If not, you might think about living separately for a couple of years if you can't find a job here in Washington. It sounds like you are in a pretty solid position and you may have a hard time finding something equivalent here.

[dubfan]

Unfortunately there is practically no demand on the island for technically skilled professionals. Commuting from Oak Harbor (where you'll likely be living) to Boeing in Everett is not practical. To do that you'd have to live on the south end of the island but then your wife would have to commute to Oak Harbor, which is a 30 mile drive on a mostly two-lane highway notorious for drivers stuck on "island time".

[tescalle]

Working on the "mainland" is your best bet. I live in the middle of the island (Greenbank) and it is about 20 mins to Oak Harbor and 20 mins to the ferry - give or take depending on what time of day. The commute is not a big deal to me, but then again, I used to live in Temecula, CA and I was used to driving an hour or more in horrible traffic to get almost anywhere.

There are several commuting options. Look here for some of them Island Transit - Commute Options

If there is anything else I can do to help a fellow So. Californian, please let me know.

Take care!

Tammi Escalle

[Mr. Moe]

Originally Posted by sean98125

See if there is anything that you can do with Boeing at Paine Field. There are probably a lot of Boeing employees who live on Whidbey and commute there - it's a short drive from the ferry terminal. There are probably buses or vanpools that would take you there.

Do you have kids? If not, you might think about living separately for a couple of years if you can't find a job here in Washington. It sounds like you are in a pretty solid position and you may have a hard time finding something equivalent here.

Yes we do have kids (4, 10 and 16yrs old)...

Originally Posted by dubfan

Unfortunately there is practically no demand on the island for technically skilled professionals. Commuting from Oak Harbor (where you'll likely be living) to Boeing in Everett is not practical. To do that you'd have to live on the south end of the island but then your wife would have to commute to Oak Harbor, which is a 30 mile drive on a mostly two-lane highway notorious for drivers stuck on "island time".

I was thinking the same..seeing Oak Harbor is nowhere close to anything. But I was also thinking maybe I could find something on base for the time being until I get acclimated to area and can start networking.

Originally Posted by tescalle

Working on the "mainland" is your best bet. I live in the middle of the island (Greenbank) and it is about 20 mins to Oak Harbor and 20 mins to the ferry - give or take depending on what time of day. The commute is not a big deal to me, but then again, I used to live in Temecula, CA and I was used to driving an hour or more in horrible traffic to get almost anywhere.

There are several commuting options. Look here for some of them Island Transit - Commute Options

If there is anything else I can do to help a fellow So. Californian, please let me know.

Take care!

Tammi Escalle

Yes I have a few friends who commute from Temecula to South San Diego county daily for work. I have been preparing myself for a long commute to and from work. Right now I travel about 20 miles one way to get to work.. I will definitely have more questions for you once I can think of more.


Thanks to everyone for your input.

[tescalle]

One of the other things you will want to look at is the schools. I only have first hand exprience with the high schools since that is the age of my kids (14 and 16). Washington is a choice state - that means you can choose to place your kids in any school that has room - you do not have to stay in your district. We live in Greenbank, so I was pretty much central for the 3 high schools. I let my kids decide which one. They are all good schools from what we have found, so I was fine with which ever one they felt the most comfortable.

There is Oak Harbor School District, the farthest north, which covers Oak Harbor. The high school is a 4A school (4A being largest, 1A being smallest of the A schools, then there is 1B and 2B which are really small). There are several military families so one nice thing for your 16 year old is that they are used to new kids.

In South Whidbey, there is the South Whidbey school district. The high school there is a 2A school. The high school is located in Langley and the district covers Clinton, Langley, Bayview and Freeland.

Then in the middle of the island is Coupeville School District. It is located in Coupeville and is a 1A school. The district covers Coupeville and Greenbank.

All the schools have pros and cons. My 16 year old drives to school, but since they actually chose Coupeville and it is our district, they could take the bus, but she likes to drive.

One thing if you decide to choice into a school - if your high schooler plays sports and you do not live in the district, there is a one year (12 months - not school year) waiting period to be able to play on a varsity team unless you can get a waiver from WIAA (the state athletic association).

If you have any questions about the schools, let me know. We just did all the research on the individual school districts, so it is pretty fresh in my mind. You can PM for my phone number if you want to talk that way.

Take care -

Tammi

[dubfan]

Originally Posted by tescalle

In South Whidbey, there is the South Whidbey school district. The high school there is a 2A school. The high school is located in Langley and the district covers Clinton, Langley, Bayview and Freeland.

I heard South Whidbey was promoted to 3A. This didn't make sense to me because the district's enrollment is declining...

[tescalle]

South Whidbey High is still 2A. I had heard something about moving them into a 3A league (not changing statugs) because of the lack of small schools close by to play. They play both 2A and 1A schools in their current league. But as of now, they are still in the same conference. My kids go to Coupeville High which is 1A and they still play SWHS.