Which is more desirable as a place to live, Denver or Portland? (Pueblo: living, restaurants)

[Nea1]

Originally Posted by denverian

If dirty hippies count as non-white, Portland might have Denver beat

yea alot of hippies. Homeless problem too.

[CamaroGuy]

Originally Posted by Nea1

yea alot of hippies. Homeless problem too.

Ditto for Austin.

[kittykat13]

Denver, Co..

[NYSD1995]

Most people are focusing on weather but that aside, they are very different cities`

Portland is one of the most liberal cities on the west coast, has an big granola - hippy - stoner scene, lots of skateboarding, hipsterism, death metal, etc. Also Portland has a huge homeless / teenage runaway / gutter punk population which is very visible especially downtown. There is a longtime heroin problem there that is mostly permitted or ignored.

Portland is also much more anti-sprawl than other western cities and as a result has a fairly compact footprint. New housing tends to be attractive, upscale, modern housing compared to places like CA.

Denver seems a bit less extreme culturally than Portland. There are hippies but they don't dominate. There are homeless but they don't dominate. Denver is a bit more conservative and would not tolerate a large and open heroin scene on it's streets.

I think Portland is the prettier city but Oregon has been a welfare state for a long time and Portland has never really lived up to it's potential as a tech or business destination. It is almost like San Diego is to Seattle, the pretty, younger, laid back cousin who is always broke and usually hung over.

[80skeys]

Originally Posted by Sassberto

Portland is one of the most liberal cities on the west coast, has an big granola - hippy - stoner scene, lots of skateboarding, hipsterism, death metal, etc. Also Portland has a huge homeless / teenage runaway / gutter punk population which is very visible especially downtown. There is a longtime heroin problem there that is mostly permitted or ignored.

....

Denver seems a bit less extreme culturally than Portland. There are hippies but they don't dominate. There are homeless but they don't dominate. Denver is a bit more conservative and would not tolerate a large and open heroin scene on it's streets.

Is the same thing true about Seattle?

[NYSD1995]

Originally Posted by 80skeys

Is the same thing true about Seattle?

Seattle is liberal and tolerant, but it is also so much bigger than Portland that it is harder to get any singular impression of it. Depending on where you are exactly you will see all the extremes of American culture. Portland is not nearly as diverse. Seattle is also much more affluent than Portland - a lot more people are working, busy, moving around. The homelessness and public drug use issue - especially the runaway teens and young people - is much more visible in Portland than it is in Seattle.

[earlyretirement]

Which city has a better cost of living?

[KaaBoom]

I agree with most everything in this thread. But I think people in Denver like to gloss over the winter weather in Denver. Sunshine year round, and snow always melts quickly is an exaggeration. Some winters in Denver can be just as bitter as Chicago. Yes, Denver has over 300 days of sunshine a year, but that still leaves as much as 65 cloudy days for rain and snow.

I can remember some bad winters in the 80's and 90s, from when I lived in Denver. Where it stayed overcast for over a month, with off and on snow-showers, sometimes blizzard conditions.Temputures staying below freezing, dipping as low as 10 or 15 degrees below zero, and snow accumulation over two feet. To make it worse the snow stayed on the streets for weeks, making driving almost impossible. Because of the incompetent city government's policy to just sand the streets, and wait for the snow to melt. Because of course everyone knows that snow always melts fast in Colorado.

Even if the winter doesn't get that severe, there will always be a few snowy days. Which means that the sand trucks will be out in force. When the snow melts, the sand stays on the streets. Every single car, truck and bus going down the street kicks up a cloud of dust, that you choke on.

So yeah, if I have my choice between spending one winter month in Denver with white overcast skys, snow and ice on the ground, ans temperatures around zero. Or a winter month in Portland, with grey rainy weather and temperatures around 40 degrees. I'll choose Portland. I don't miss Denver's winters.

[Mike from back east]

Originally Posted by earlyretirement

Which city has a better cost of living?

Dec. 2009 cost of living index in Denver: 101.7 (near average, U.S. average is 100)
Read more: //www.city-data.com/city/Denver...#ixzz0dYNVqSh2

Dec. 2009 cost of living index in Portland: 102.8 (near average, U.S. average is 100)
Read more: //www.city-data.com/city/Portla...#ixzz0dYNrKap0

There's a ton of statistical data like this on the data side of City-Data.

It's really a toss up cost-wise.
- Both cities have light rail systems.
- Portland is rainier.
- Denver is colder and snowier.
- Denver has all five Pro Sports.
- Denver has access to all sorts of winter / mountain sports, year round.

What are your requirements?

[Jimrob1]

Originally Posted by KaaBoom

I agree with most everything in this thread. But I think people in Denver like to gloss over the winter weather in Denver. Sunshine year round, and snow always melts quickly is an exaggeration. Some winters in Denver can be just as bitter as Chicago. Yes, Denver has over 300 days of sunshine a year, but that still leaves as much as 65 cloudy days for rain and snow.

I can remember some bad winters in the 80's and 90s, from when I lived in Denver. Where it stayed overcast for over a month, with off and on snow-showers, sometimes blizzard conditions.Temputures staying below freezing, dipping as low as 10 or 15 degrees below zero, and snow accumulation over two feet. To make it worse the snow stayed on the streets for weeks, making driving almost impossible. Because of the incompetent city government's policy to just sand the streets, and wait for the snow to melt. Because of course everyone knows that snow always melts fast in Colorado.

Even if the winter doesn't get that severe, there will always be a few snowy days. Which means that the sand trucks will be out in force. When the snow melts, the sand stays on the streets. Every single car, truck and bus going down the street kicks up a cloud of dust, that you choke on.

So yeah, if I have my choice between spending one winter month in Denver with white overcast skys, snow and ice on the ground, ans temperatures around zero. Or a winter month in Portland, with grey rainy weather and temperatures around 40 degrees. I'll choose Portland. I don't miss Denver's winters.

Thats probably accurate on what the weather can be like in Denver. It does seem to have weather extremes, but thankfully its not known for winters like Minnesota or New England.

As far as Portland, Make sure people bring a job with them to this city or area. Make sure also you are someone that can deal with the types of populations, cultures and behaviors you will see in this city. Not everyone was meant to live in Portland. There is alot more to consider than just the climate of an area when moving any where. Alot more.

.