Coos Bay vs Newport (Portland: 2015, house, taxes)

[Cloudy Dayz]

Originally Posted by Larry Caldwell

Getting to the Willamette Valley from Coos Bay is quite a trek. Either you drive north on the coast to Florence and head inland to Eugene or you drive inland to Sutherlin, which still leaves you an hour south of Eugene.

Of course, inland from Newport drops you in Corvallis, which is not renowned for its shopping.

I drive 101 north to Reedsport, 38 east to Drain, I-5 north to Eugene. It takes about two hours. It takes an extra hour and a half or two hours to get to Portland.

Newport is within two and a half hours of Portland.

[greenwitch420]

The most shopping I do is grocery, the occasional trip to Walmart, and thrift shopping. I usually don't venture far from home, and when I do I'd rather spend a day hiking or a weekend camping than most anything. Though I do think I may invest in a Costco or similar membership for a monthly stock up trip.

Thanks for all the info, it really does help. At least neither is getting overwhelmingly negative reviews, that's a plus.

[Cloudy Dayz]

Originally Posted by greenwitch420

The most shopping I do is grocery, the occasional trip to Walmart, and thrift shopping. I usually don't venture far from home, and when I do I'd rather spend a day hiking or a weekend camping than most anything. Though I do think I may invest in a Costco or similar membership for a monthly stock up trip.

Thanks for all the info, it really does help. At least neither is getting overwhelmingly negative reviews, that's a plus.

Both Coos Bay and Newport have Walmart, supermarkets, and a few thrift stores. I believe Eugene is the closest Costco.

[wolfdog]

Originally Posted by Cloudy Dayz

Both Coos Bay and Newport have Walmart, supermarkets, and a few thrift stores. I believe Eugene is the closest Costco.

Albany Costco is the closest to Newport.

[Larry Caldwell]

Originally Posted by Cloudy Dayz

Both Coos Bay and Newport have Walmart, supermarkets, and a few thrift stores. I believe Eugene is the closest Costco.

Bi-mart has several stores on the coast. From Coos Bay, the closest Costco would be Roseburg. I re-up my membership any time I need hearing aids or glasses, but other than that I don't shop there.

[Metlakatla]

I get most of my nonperishables sent Amazon Prime at my place in Alaska and plan on doing the same at my place in Oregon.

[texasdiver]

I would chose Newport over Coos Bay in a heartbeat.

Newport actually has beaches. On the north end there are lots of houses along the beach or within easy walking distance. On the south end the South Beach state park provides very nice beach access and there are the jettys for fishing. I spent many hours fishing off those jettys as a kid. Coos Bay is more of a bay town than a beach town. You can drive around to Horsfall Beach to the north or down to Sunset Bay or Cape Arago beaches to the south but there is no walking or biking beach access from Coos Bay itself. Rather, the waterfront is an industrial bayfront.

Newport is much more accessible to the rest of the state. Much easier to get to Portland for air travel or all your other big city needs. That's probably why Newport feels more prosperous. Because it gets a lot more tourist and weekend visitors flowing the other direction FROM the Portland metro area whereas Coos Bay is just way too far away and has little tourist appeal, not being an actual beach town.

[pnwguy2]

Agreed, Newport is better than Coos Bay as a coastal town. However, the coast is easily accessible from the Coos. As I mentioned earlier, there are more industrial jobs in Coos, but both cities don't have a growing job market. If your idea is retirement, both could be good candidates, but Newport would likely add up to the best of the two.

[greenwitch420]

Well I'm only 46, and I'm back in school working on my bachelor's degree. What I possess is 23 years experience in hospital laboratory and there is a nationwide shortage. While jobs in other areas might be scarce, I am in high demand, particularly in the coastal areas apparently. (I've applied from Eugene to Seattle west of the Cascades, these are the 2 showing the most interest.) My son will be a junior in high school and my daughter will be in 2nd grade, so I do want to put down roots for a while.

[greenwitch420]

Originally Posted by Metlakatla

I get most of my nonperishables sent Amazon Prime at my place in Alaska and plan on doing the same at my place in Oregon.

Does this work well? I have thought about doing this. I have green bean produce delivery here, it's really convenient.