Midwest to Austin or Portland?? Please help! (Houston, Dallas: high crime, homes)

[dundermifflin]

Hello - I am will be graduating from college this summer with a degree in urban planning. I must complete an internship this summer before I can get my degree. I am from Missouri but I really want to find an internship somewhere else and not move back. I am looking into Portland, OR and Austin, TX. I am looking for a place that is fairly liberal (SW Missouri can be painfully conservative). The weather in Portland seems ok but the winters seem like they can be depressing. The summers in Austin seem hot but my sister lives there and really thinks I would like it. I never imagined myself living in Texas but who knows what will happen. I am just looking for some times and/ or advise. I have also thought about Denver, DC and Dallas. I also thought about Florida but this website seems to have nothing great to say about FL. I just could not come up with a city I was that interested there... Thanks

[scongress1234]

Well. Missouri has some pretty rural parts, so I wouldn't say that you are coming from a perticularly urbane/urban state like Connecticut or Massachusetts. I feel more out of sorts in the Ozarks or the little dixie part of Mo. than much of Texas. Actually Mo. is more, far more, backwoods than Texas. St. Louis is rural not far out of the metro area, Kansas City is more southern than many Texas towns, and there are some really cornpone rural areas in the southwest of the state around Branson and Springfield. If anything, Texas would be a more worldly step up from Mo., speaking of Dallas, Houston, and Austin. You seem to be focused on a lot of areas/places. Most you mention are great in their own right, though have their own merits/deficits. DC has an insane amount of things to do, and is a history and current event buffs dream come true. It is also high crime, and very dense per traffic. Florida is large, and encompasses a large number of cities/areas. Most of it isn't doing too well economically per repercussions of the housing crisis, so I would stay away from there. Denver is a great place, with a plethora of outdoor activities, and a relatively safe metro area. Lastly, Portland and Austin are ranked near the top of best places to live. Portland even more so, being like Austin with Mountains added. I would recommend the last two, particularly Portland. You should go to both cities on short trips, and see which one you prefer. Hope this helps!

[behindthesun]

I've lived in DC, the DC suburbs, just north of Portland Oregon, and now live in Austin.

DC (the city) is a transient city. A lot of young people (like myself) do the DC thing for a few years and leave. Sounds like you are looking for something more permanent. In DC people don't care where you are from because they are likely from somewhere else too, and is not at all socially insular like Portland. People in DC are focused on business, government, military, and politics though so they might be too busy to sociallize. Traffic is pretty bad. You get 4 seasons in DC. DC might look best on your resume out of all the places you are considering but I personally wouldn't let that make the decision for me. The city itself is not a particularly good place to live in my opinion. There are surrounding areas that are though, in Virginia and Maryland with good schools and very safe neighborhoods. Housing is very expensive though and commutes can be bad.

I would think an urban planner would do well in Austin because there is so much land here for sprawl and it's growing fast here.

Portland is very liberal but it can wear on you if you aren't a die hard liberal. Austin seems to have a healthier mix of liberal/other.

I lived in the rainy northwest for 3 years (just North of Portland Oregon) and also visited Portland. The weather and everything it does was a deal breaker for me so I left. Yea its green but most of the year it's gray, in more ways than one. The rain was Chinese water torture and the lack of sun really had an impact over time. Would you rather deal with 8 or 9 months of too little sun (Portland) or 4 months of too much sun (Austin)?

Which place gives you a better vibe? No amount of research can replace experiencing a place first hand. Go to each place, go visit your sis and visit Portland, and meet as many people you can - you will become a little bit more like them with time, wherever you move to.

I too never thought I'd move to Texas, but it's one of the better choices I've made in life.

[brattpowered]

From my understanding, Portland treats urban planners like rock stars. I don't think the average Austinite would really know what an urban planner is or does, and it shows in the landscape.

If you learned how to build the widest access roads and largest suburban parking lots, you will do well in Austin. If you learned about efficient public transportation and person-scaled development, you will do well in Portland.

[sberdrow]

Originally Posted by dundermifflin

Hello - I am will be graduating from college this summer with a degree in urban planning. I must complete an internship this summer before I can get my degree. I am from Missouri but I really want to find an internship somewhere else and not move back. I am looking into Portland, OR and Austin, TX. I am looking for a place that is fairly liberal (SW Missouri can be painfully conservative). The weather in Portland seems ok but the winters seem like they can be depressing. The summers in Austin seem hot but my sister lives there and really thinks I would like it. I never imagined myself living in Texas but who knows what will happen. I am just looking for some times and/ or advise. I have also thought about Denver, DC and Dallas. I also thought about Florida but this website seems to have nothing great to say about FL. I just could not come up with a city I was that interested there... Thanks

If you are looking for sunshine: Denver
Sports: Austin/Denver
Culture and liberalism: Portland
Most beauty: Portland
best wages: Portland
Best public transperation: Portland
Cheapest homes: Denver (austin will kill you on property tax)
Nice people: Austin/portland
liberalism: Portland (austin is liberal, but Texas is not)
access to other cities: Portland is close to Seattle, and Vancouver BC
Best schools for young ones: Austin
Best Pizza: Flying Pie, portland, Austin should just stick to BBQ and Denver has not heard of pizza, and would not be popular anyway unless is was Orange and blue.
Most Conserative: Denver
most unpredictable weather: Denver, but Austin can get crazy too.

Hope that helped

[Mike78613]

So Denver is Conservative? Dang-it!!

[love roses]

Denver is conservative. If you want liberal, Boulder is where you'd go.

[sberdrow]

Originally Posted by love roses

Denver is conservative. If you want liberal, Boulder is where you'd go.

or Fort Collins....I like liberals (I am a liberal), but Id stay clear of boulder unless you are a very snobby lib. Fort Collins is more friendly.

[love roses]

Very true

[sberdrow]

Originally Posted by Mike78613

So Denver is Conservative? Dang-it!!

well too conservative for this tree hugging, envornmental green conscience, God respecting liberal. In Texas, I felt Austin was a fortress of liberalism surrounded by a red sea of the dark r souls of the Texas repulican minions.

Step outside of the safe city limits, and you were no longer in the FREE ZONE. After all, the term conservative generally means "you cannot do it". Score 1 for Austin: Keep up the fight.