Is Eugene for us? (Medford, Corvallis: apartments, renter, loft)

[uiier]

Lots of opinions and I will happily share mine as well.

We moved to Eugene a year ago from Utah, and if I didn't ever read forums about this city I would call it the perfect place.

We moved into an apartment with out 8 yr old daughter, who met a lot of other kids who moved here from out of state, and for the first time in her life we allow her to be independent, she goes out and plays without us watching every move like we did in UT. Obviously part of this is her getting older, but it's also because we met our neighbors and have been greeted warmly by almost everyone we pass by. We have met the parents of the other kids and now know each other well enough to just chat while the kids play outside, and a benefit to this is the kids always have a parent we trust close by.

We often forget to lock our apartment when at work, I have even accidentally had all the windows rolled down all night in our 09' Nissan and nothing has ever happened to it.

This isn't to say bad things don't happen here, but I have yet to see anything that would make this place feel unsafe to us. We have never regretting moving here and do not plan on leaving.

[Steve97415]

Originally Posted by Coldylocks

I'm psyched to hear everything I can about Eugene, and my husband, who bike commutes year round in the fridged, snowy midwest will be pleased too! A place where our family can bike everywhere and leave our car behind (except to get to outdoor adventures) is exactly what we're looking for. The leaf piles sound awesome too, I would miss that if we weren't moving someplace else that had a beautiful fall.

I think it's Corvallis that you're looking for, Coldylocks. It's a much more family-friendly low-crime city...Eugene's well-behaved little sister 38 miles to the north. Corvallis is featured in this month's Outside magazine as being one of America's premier "green" communities. It is one of the few cities in the U.S. to receive a GOLD rating from the League of American Cyclists. It has the highest mode share of bicyclists of any city in Oregon (Eugene got a SILVER rating...still very good). And Corvallis is very well located for short day trips by car. Eugene is just a 45 minute drive to the south. Twice that far to the north gets you to Portland. About an hour west to get to Newport on the coast.

League of American Bicyclists * Bike Friendly Community Campaign

[Mr Eugenified]

To answer the original set of questions from my own totally unbiased point of view:

1. Property crime: I think the statistics are influenced by Eugene being a college town, i.e. lots of bike thefts and the like. This artificially (unless you have your own bike stolen) raises the numbers. That said, there are some slightly grungy areas that also "contribute" to the crime numbers, e.g. downtown around the bus station (runaway goth kids love it there) and the far west side of town. Just don't go to those places and your problem is solved.

Springfield: I don't think the two cities have much in common, nor do they influence each other much. I do go to the Gateway mall from time to time for movies, but that's about it. Otherwise, I stay on my side of I-5.

2.Allergies: I have had bad allergies for years (mainly pollution and dust set them off), but no problems since I moved to Eugene. Everyone always talks about grass seed allergies and the valley and blah blah blah, but I don't feel a thing. I guess that means I am not allergic to grass seed..or all the internet pundits are full of it.

Cancer!: Never heard anything about that before!

3. People: I think the people who have lived here a long time are somewhat closed off and have some not-so-friendly attitude towards newcomers. But there are plenty of other people who are very friendly. The aged-hippie types are always open to talk. Plus there are plenty of other people who also moved here but maybe a few years before you.

4. Vibe/culture: There are certainly two or three different types of people here

We've got the "local locals" who are often work manual labor-type jobs. They're mainly just trying to get by day to day. They keep to themselves, and are not too open to anything new; they just want to get home to watch TV or drink a beer with their friends.

We've also got a large group of people that live their lives around the university and the football team. Sorta like they never outgrew college, which is slightly weird, but harmless.

Plus we've got a large group of aged hippies who are very liberal thinking but also anti-development, anti-hair-dye, and anti-deodorant. They love to eat at Studio One for breakfast and talk on and on and on. But they're fun to watch.

[Mr Eugenified]

Originally Posted by Steve97415

I think it's Corvallis that you're looking for, Coldylocks.

I agree, Corvallis is nice, but it is seems slightly more expensive for a house than Eugene (purchase). Also, it really is a little small and insular (adj. Of, relating to, or constituting an island. Living or located on an island. Suggestive of the isolated life of an island) for some people's taste.

[CCCVDUR]

Originally Posted by lkjasdf

(Note: Annotated by Tom) = Eugene is the most crime ridden place I have ever lived and I have lived in Pittsburgh and Boston previously. Everyone I know here has had crappy things happen. My car has been broken into (window smashed to get in). Friend #1 has had the same car stolen 3 times in the last year, Friend #2 has his truck broken into on a regular basis (the first time they just broke the steering wheel $2000 worth of damage trying to steal it). Friend #3 on her first night after moving to eugene had her hotel room broken into and her laptop stolen....None of these people live in an area of Eugene that would be considered a bad area and a couple live in what is supposed to be a nice area in the south hills. I have considered quitting grad school and leaving this place but have come to far to quit now but I am looking forward to getting out the day after I graduate. If I had kids, I definitely would not feel safe letting them wander in the neighborhood on their own. Eugene's crime is bad and Springfield is worse. This place is crawling with meth addicts and homeless.

The culture here is full of pseudo-hippies. Uneducated people who prefer to focus on looking like the stereotypical image of a hippie rather than actually educate themselves about the issues and adopt a hippie mentality, unless you consider just smoking a lot of pot, reading tarot cards, and talking about horoscope charts a hippie mentality....

If you want a wonderful family friendly, safe area with an amazing school system, that could almost pass as Mr. Rogers Neighborhood, try Amherst, Massachusetts. We called it our bubble, never lived in a safer more comfortable place. Portland, Maine is also a favorite. I know these suggestions are not the Northwest but good luck on your search, I'd keep looking.

Wow! Geeez! Is all this REALLY the case? IF so, sounds like another economically depressed community of uneducated, uncultured left wing wackos like here in Flagstaff, Arizona. Do viewers agree, disagree?

What state/local economic policies have failed -- causing Eugene to experience such huge income disparity (gap) between the rich and the poor? Eugene only has just ~1500 households making more than $50K per year for a pop. of ~125,000. It's just as bad in Flagstaff, ~550 households making more than $50K for a pop. of ~52,000. Ref: City-Data civic profiles.

Compare that to ~1100 in Edmund, OK (same size as Flagstaff), and ~1100 also in Boulder, CO (94,000 pop.).

We need plenty of people making big bucks (50K-100K), since they 1) provide the jobs for the rest of us poor folks; 2) buy our goods and services; 3) buy advertising for our newspapers and radio stations.

[CCCVDUR]

Originally Posted by zitsky

Yes, it's true that Lane county has a drug problem, but there are plenty of safe places to live in the city. Too many folks blame Springfield for all the problems. There are just as many bad apples in Eugene. If you avoid living near the university neighborhood and some parts of downtown Eugene, you'll be fine. I lived in the southwest hills and never worried about crime. There are many safe neighborhoods in Eugene.

You nailed the apparent problem with this post. If the University in a town is full of drugs and crime, then that town is likely to not be safe, especially at night. Unfortunately, the same can be said of Flagstaff, Arizona (NAU); and Boulder, Colorado (UC).

A "College Town" City Data Crime Index should be under 200, like in Cary, North Carolina; Provo, UT, or Edmund, Oklahoma. Young urban professionals don't steal from each other! The index shouldn't be over 200 like in Boulder, CO; San Luis Obispo, CA; or over 400 in Eugene and Flagstaff; and over 600 in Albuquerque and Tucson !

The University of Washington in Seattle is safe, day or night. There are no drug problems on campus that I was ever aware of in the late 1990's / early 2000's -- when I commuted to the UW 30 miles each way with the Metro bus system. There were drugs in the suburban community I commuted to. I never knew any UW student who used drugs.

After two years in the Southwest, I am tired of crime, drugs, failed economic policies from the far left wackos, and the inability to walk outside at night. I miss green trees, lawns, gardening, bark mulch, streams, lakes, fog, mist, and hardwood forests. I am tired of looking at Xeriscaped yards of gravel and rocks in Flagstaff and Albuquerque.

Is Eugene safe or not? What economic policies have failed, causing unemployment and crime? Can you build or buy a home there easily or are there huge Impact Fees as part of Oregon's "smart growth" laws? Eugene is a great outdoors and bicycling town w/ year round gardening opportunities, and that's all very important to me. I miss hearing birds, too, in desert neighborhoods, where they only plant certain kinds of trees, amidst yards full of nothing except boulders and gravel. Corvallis was very nice when I lived there twice in the 1990's

[Mr Eugenified]

My opinion still remains that these extremist posts stating that Eugene is crime ridden are hugely exaggerated. My advice to readers is: Don't believe them for a minute.

Check the data yourself, and then look closely at the details of the data, not just the total. Yes, Eugene has lots of small property crime located around the university area (bikes, skateboard, car windows broken, etc.). Yes, Eugene has lots of "open alcohol container" type crime located in a very small area downtown (due the Eugene's fairly tolerant attitude towards vagrants). But those are both very concentrated issues that greatly skew the overall Eugene data.

Take a look at the Eugene Register crime map and then you will get a clear picture of how these small crimes, concentrated in a small area, tend to skew the overall Eugene data.

In summary, Eugene is very safe for normal people living normal lives.

[CCCVDUR]

Originally Posted by Mr Eugenified

Take a look at the Eugene Register crime map and then you will get a clear picture of how these small crimes, concentrated in a small area, tend to skew the overall Eugene data.

Thanks -- are you referring to these two links ?

Crime map | Springfield Extra | The Register-Guard, Eugene, Ore. The Register-Guard

and

Eugene police call log (beta) | The Register-Guard

the last link loaded once and then refused on subsequent attempts ...

[Mr Eugenified]

Originally Posted by Tom Lane

Thanks -- are you referring to these two links ?

Crime map | Springfield Extra | The Register-Guard, Eugene, Ore. The Register-Guard

and

Eugene police call log (beta) | The Register-Guard

the last link loaded once and then refused on subsequent attempts ...

I was referring to the Eugene one (your second link), but I also can not get to that web page tonight either. Maybe they are down for maintenance.

I think the Eugene police also have a crime map, but it is not as nice as the Register Guard version.

[Mr Eugenified]

I should also mention that before I decided to move to Eugene, I researched a lot of different cities. And EVERY SINGLE ONE OF THEM was blasted in the forums by a few people claiming that said city was crime-ridden, a meth addict haven, terrible for jobs, etc, etc. It seems like the exact same set of complaints is recycled for every single city!