Moving to Eugene soon (Springfield, Mission: crimes, homes, neighborhood)

[Eugene_Soon!]

Large or small doesnt matter so much to me. I am getting divorced and transferring with my job. I was told Eugene is where I am transferring to. WIth my type of job it doesnt have to be in the city necessarily. As long as I am within 30 minutes of town I will be fine for work purposes.

Unfortunately, I am doing everything over the internet and although I have found some places, I just have no idea what is considered a good area or not.

[wohelo]

Just my 2 cents on areas...
I felt that the river kind of separates the conservative (not real conservative) and then really liberal (University area). Ferry St. Bridge is a tad more church going, Talbots, Lexus SUV's, and over the bridge near campus you might find head shops, cool pottery, vegan restaurants and other delights. The Churchill neighborhood has it's own culture and is really a nice mix of both. This good and bad area is a tough one. But, I have often called the Police Dept and asked what areas have the highest crime or even asked the local research librarian. Caution regarding homes near I-5 and the Belt line very noisy because the valley traps the sound!! Enjoy the best park system, Hult center, Duck football and wonderful vegetation!

[Des_Demona]

I found this on another site from someone who asked the very same thing about good/bad neighborhoods in Eugene and I really found this person's answer helpful so I hope it helps all of you asking as well since I've noticed it's hard to say with Eugene. Here's what they said:

First ... stay in Eugene ... not Springfield, if at all possible. (They are seperated by the Interstate Freeway (I-5).

The following areas are excellent if you can afford them:

The area between delta highway and Coburg Road, from Oakway north, includes Cal Young Road, Oakway, the area around Walmart and Costco, etc.

The South HIlls are also excellent, but again, may not be within your finances, depends.

Some good places that are not as expensive are the Ferry Street Bridge area, and River Road NORTH of beltline Rd.

Generally speaking, avoid westmoreland, river road south of beltline road, and most of springfield.

The areas west of beltline, what is called the Bethel area, is so-so. Some are better than others.

I would contact a realtor, and tell them what your needs are, as far as schools, public transportation, community, etc, and they will give you good information.

Also, you might want to check out smaller towns in the area such as Junction CIty, Pleasant Hill, and Veneta.

Here are some general links about Eugene. I think its a great place to live, and a great place to raise a family.

Also, just FYI, there are a lot of apartment complex's just east of the Gateway Shopping Mall, while they are in springfield, it's not a bad area, you might want to rent for a few months while you look for a home, so you can get your own feel for the area, and where suits YOU best ... these complex's are good, some of my kids have lived in a couple of them.

http://www.eugene-or.gov/portal/server.p (broken link)...
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/eugene,_ore...
http://www.planeteugene.com/
http://www.wunderground.com/us/or/eugene...
http://www.registerguard.com/news/2006/0 (broken link)...
http://www.eugeneweekly.com/

Source(s):
Lived in Eugene area 25 years

[Eugene_Soon!]

Thanks for the replies, they have been very helpful

[wilberweb]

Hi
I am a builder in the Eugene and Springfield Oregon area.
I have a home in the Thurston area its on the market and I have a duplex
in Eugene at Bailey hill area of Eugene thats on the market and a house in Springfield and Sweet home Oregon

Both areas are a great place to live just a few hours away are the mountains and the coast we like the Thurston area you can see the homes we have on the market at Mod cut

not a plug just a reply at the nice area of Eugene and Thurston homes that you can see

[antsy22]

Generally speaking, avoid westmoreland, river road south of beltline road, and most of springfield.

where is westmoreland? did you mean whiteaker?

[justinschmidt85]

Coming from a native (moi!), here's my advice:

STAY OUT OF SPRINGFIELD! It's a nice place if you're more laid-back, conservative, republican, and/or straight.

Eugene is the place to be. It's very upbeat, liberal, gay-friendly(: I think it's more liberal than almost anywhere in the country, but that's just me. Transsexuals are aplenty there and I never heard of any hate crimes against them during my 13 and a half years there. but my family moved to the Phoenix Metro area and i'm waiting until I turn 18 to move back.

[TechmanOR]

Originally Posted by justinschmidt85

Coming from a native (moi!), here's my advice:

STAY OUT OF SPRINGFIELD! It's a nice place if you're more laid-back, conservative, republican, and/or straight.

Eugene is the place to be. It's very upbeat, liberal, gay-friendly(: I think it's more liberal than almost anywhere in the country, but that's just me. Transsexuals are aplenty there and I never heard of any hate crimes against them during my 13 and a half years there. but my family moved to the Phoenix Metro area and i'm waiting until I turn 18 to move back.

That would be a reason to AVOID it...

[skypros]

So if a town is gay friendly.... it should be avoided??

It is still amazes me that it is OK to gay bash..... if you did this to any other minority it would not be accepted by the masses....

I am glad Justin and his friends feel that he can be themselves and really enjoy Eugene and can't wait to move back.

Originally Posted by TechmanOR

That would be a reason to AVOID it...

[LyzonLightheart]

I would not move to Eugene. Most of the elected officials in Eugene, Oregon are very corrupt and heavily influence the Lane County Elections officials to keep people that don't fit their profile off of the election ballots (i. e. anything other than affluent white). The State of Oregon is investigating currently investigating election fraud in Eugene.

The current elected officials and the University of Oregon also are very anti-veteran, especially disabled veterans. The city of Eugene for the most part absolutely refuses to let any American Veteran, Arab American, African American organizations be included in parades and job fairs. The University of Oregon and most of the city of Eugene also does not recognize the national holiday, Veteran's Day.

In my humble opinion, I also believe that the police in Eugene are very corrupt too. Auto Theft, Buglaries, Drugs, and Gang activity is alarmingly higher than most big cities in the US. By the time anyone calls for the police, the need for them has usually long past if they even show up at all, an average of 5 to 11 hours for 911 calls is not uncommon. The City of Eugene does very little other than lip service to keep criminals in jail. It is not uncommon for people who are arrested to be let back out on the street for crimes like car theft 3 hours later only to get arrested for car theft again in the same day. The City of Eugene, Lane County, and senior State of Oregon officials are pushing to give themselves a 54% raise with no accountability, while they claim there isn't enough money for jail beds or to help senior citizens, the disabled, the homeless, and keep animal shelters open. Furthermore, the City of Eugene does everything but invite adult book stores and strip clubs on major city streets. In addition, most employers in Eugene will find reasons not to employ you if you are disabled. I know this first hand as a disabled veteran.

However, all is not lost in Eugene or Lane County, if you live outside the major city limits, the Lane County Sheriff's department is doing an outstanding job with the extremely limited resources it gets allocated to it. The K thru 12 educational system for the most part is very good in Eugene. Lane Community College is one of the best in the entire country too. However, the University of Oregon is more concerned about their sports teams than they are standards of education for their students. Also, the general population of Eugene is polite and unbiased. The situation in Springfield is much better than that of Eugene, the City of Springfield is proactive and not corrupt in trying to stop crime and run down areas of Springfield. Their worst area is car theft around Gateway Mall. I would put any valuables in your trunk site unseen if you happen to go there.

There are lots of churches throughout Eugene and Springfield for Christians like myself. But, most of Eugene and parts of Springfield is very liberal. I am a disabled US Navy veteran and have lived in the Eugene area for about 8 years. I have attended both LCC and U of O, and stay in Eugene so that I can live close to my kids that live with my adulterous exwife.