Is there a non-Portland city/town in Oregon that suits me? (Eugene: rent, home)

[malicious-berry]

I’ll be moving to the PNW when I’m roughly 25 and newly licensed as a registered nurse. I know I want to live in the northwest because of its natural beauty, but I’m not sure which state would best suit me. Lately, I’ve been looking into Oregon.

I am a leftist, but not an identitarian. I really don’t want to live someplace like Portland, where people are extremely PC, etc. I recognize the appeal of that sort of environment to some, but it’s not for me. (I’m okay with it in small doses.) I want to live somewhere with more local business than corporations, near/in the mountains, and with a hospital nearby so I don’t have to travel far for work.

Initially, Ashland seemed perfect, but I’ve been reading that some consider it a very new-age-white-people-esque place. I’ve already lived in Salem, MA and have had enough of the gimmicky new age stuff, lol. Looking into the rest of Jackson county, people say it’s quite conservative. Like I don’t care for leftist identity politics, I don’t care for baby boomers moaning about crazy liberals.

Do any Oregon cities/towns check these very vague boxes?

[texasdiver]

Check out Wenatchee WA. It's about what Bend was like 15 years ago: [vimeo]88411706[/vimeo]
https://vimeo.com/88411706

Diverse city with a large Hispanic population. Fairly purple politically. Lots of outdoor recreation nearby. And a fairly major local hospital.

Spokane or Salem if you want politically moderate larger cities that have large local hospitals. Especially Spokane which has a major medical industry with several large hospitals. Maybe also Boise ID.

[PNW to NEPA]

Jackson County isn't all that conservative. Medford has a lot of what you seem to be looking for. It has both liberal and conservative elements, minimal new-ageiness, hospitals and lots of other medical industry, close to great outdoor recreation. Oregon isn't generally that diverse, but Medford has a significant latinx population.

(I live in Ashland and I'm not in the least new agey... the fact that some people here are is really a non-factor in my life. It's a beautiful town with lots of fun things to do and a terrific culture scene but housing is quite expensive.)

[PNW-type-gal]

Most cities in Oregon that are thought of as "very liberal" have a very small core at the heart of the urban city that is the liberal center. In the Portland metro area, if you go just one city over - Beaverton, West Linn, Oregon City, Clackamas, Tigard, etc - or in to the city suburbs it isn't as extreme.

Jackson County is more purplish that strictly red or blue - if you look at the 2018 results by precinct rather than just by county, the results are bluish in the central city areas are reddish in the outlying areas. There are about 215,000 people in Jackson County but less than half of them live in the cities, which is how we ended up with Trump 48% and Clinton 41% (although I'd also say that the 2016 election is a very bad yardstick to measure anything by, a lot of disaffection on both sides). Obama squeaked by McCain in 2008 in Jackson County. Romney squeaked by Obama in 2012 with a similar small margin.

Compared with the elections in, say Multnomah County (Portland, Clinton by 76%) or Lake County (Lakeview, Trump by 80%), it is much more evenly split. Oregon overall is counted on the liberal side because nearly 3/4 of the state's population lives in Portland or other center centers that vote blue.

[Silverfall]

I agree that Salem and Spokane would work for larger cities. Both are pretty moderate.

For small cities, maybe McMinnville or if you want to go smaller Silverton might work.

[Larry Caldwell]

Originally Posted by malicious-berry

I’ll be moving to the PNW when I’m roughly 25 and newly licensed as a registered nurse. I know I want to live in the northwest because of its natural beauty, but I’m not sure which state would best suit me. Lately, I’ve been looking into Oregon.

I am a leftist, but not an identitarian. I really don’t want to live someplace like Portland, where people are extremely PC, etc. I recognize the appeal of that sort of environment to some, but it’s not for me. (I’m okay with it in small doses.) I want to live somewhere with more local business than corporations, near/in the mountains, and with a hospital nearby so I don’t have to travel far for work.

Initially, Ashland seemed perfect, but I’ve been reading that some consider it a very new-age-white-people-esque place. I’ve already lived in Salem, MA and have had enough of the gimmicky new age stuff, lol. Looking into the rest of Jackson county, people say it’s quite conservative. Like I don’t care for leftist identity politics, I don’t care for baby boomers moaning about crazy liberals.

Do any Oregon cities/towns check these very vague boxes?

I'm not sure your impressions are accurate, though I do think that people in your age group tend to be pretty stuffy and have a persecution complex. Notice I said "tend." I hang out with some young people who are great fun and get along just fine. The reason you should avoid Portland is not because it's PC, it's because the high rent will suck the life out of your lifestyle.

What do you mean by "travel for work?" Is 15 miles too much? You are going to have to have a car to live in Oregon. There are some nice small towns not far from city hospitals. Silverton comes to mind, right in the foothills of the Cascades and only a few miles from Salem. On the other side of Salem is the Dallas/Monmouth/Independence area, which is more convenient to the Coast Range and the coast. Oregon doesn't have any shortage of mountains, ocean, rivers or lakes.

Anyplace on the east side of Springfield along the McKenzie River is beautiful, near the mountains, and only 15 or 20 miles from major medical centers in Eugene. Just south of Eugene you have Oakridge, Cresswell and Cottage Grove. My favorite place in the state to live would be between Eugene and Corvallis, which would give you fairly convenient access to OSU, U of O, and the Coast Range. That might be too isolated for your taste. I know at 25 I didn't have the internal resources to live in the country. At 72 I would never live in town. The Hult Center in Eugene is one of the two places in Oregon you can catch touring Broadway plays.

Ashland is a multicultural mecca thanks to the theater industry. It shares the same rent problem with Portland, so most young people live in Medford, 10 miles away, and party in Ashland. A number of actors and musicians make Ashland home, so small venue live music is very high quality. There is a summer-long outdoor music festival in Jacksonville that attracts A-list acts, but Jacksonville is also pretty expensive. Grants Pass has a small medical community where you might find a job.

From your post, it looks like you are shopping for people rather than a job or a city. Unlike many parts of the US, it's unlikely your neighbors will be your friends. You might make a few friends at work. Most people in Oregon make friends through mutual interest associations. Like hiking? Join a hiking club. There are equestrian clubs, motorcycle clubs, church clubs, dog clubs, astronomy clubs, mushroom clubs, the list is huge. Are you a musician? Show up at an open mic night at any one of dozens of night spots. Join a community theater. It's just how we roll here. You can meet people you like a lot, but not if you sit at home and watch TV instead of getting out and getting involved. You get to pick your people, but Oregon is not Dominos. We don't deliver. You have to go out to get it.

[E-Twist]

New age? I don't know of any and I have lived in Oregon all my life. I think it would take some effort to find new age stuff. I read somewhere that Oregon is the most unchurched state in the union, if that is of any interest to you.

The scenery in Ashland and Medford is way different than mid-valley or farther North. More and bigger trees from Roseburg (I wouldn't recommend it) north. If you want a small town I suggest Dallas, Stayton, Silverton..... they have hospitals but are also an easy commute to Salem, which has a large hospital. About two hours from skiing on Mt. Hood, and about an hour from the beaches. Farther north there are some other towns closer to Portland that might be suitable.

Then there's Eastern Oregon. Bend is mid sized and nice. The far Eastern part of the state Pendleton and John Day are red neck.

I would suggest taking a vacation here. As for housing costs I don't know how we compare to other states. I do know it has gone up in recent years, particularly within commuting distance to Portland. Northern California is scenic, too.

[BendLocal]

Originally Posted by malicious-berry

I want to live somewhere with more local business than corporations, near/in the mountains, and with a hospital nearby so I don’t have to travel far for work.

If you like winter weather check out Bend.

[NW4me]

Springfield?

[Harpaint]

Originally Posted by PNW-type-gal

Most cities in Oregon that are thought of as "very liberal" have a very small core at the heart of the urban city that is the liberal center. In the Portland metro area, if you go just one city over - Beaverton, West Linn, Oregon City, Clackamas, Tigard, etc - or in to the city suburbs it isn't as extreme.

Jackson County is more purplish that strictly red or blue - if you look at the 2018 results by precinct rather than just by county, the results are bluish in the central city areas are reddish in the outlying areas. There are about 215,000 people in Jackson County but less than half of them live in the cities, which is how we ended up with Trump 48% and Clinton 41% (although I'd also say that the 2016 election is a very bad yardstick to measure anything by, a lot of disaffection on both sides). Obama squeaked by McCain in 2008 in Jackson County. Romney squeaked by Obama in 2012 with a similar small margin.

Compared with the elections in, say Multnomah County (Portland, Clinton by 76%) or Lake County (Lakeview, Trump by 80%), it is much more evenly split. Oregon overall is counted on the liberal side because nearly 3/4 of the state's population lives in Portland or other center centers that vote blue.

I agree with this after living in Jackson Cnty for 12 years. But as an RN it was tough. It was easy to find a job, but the census in the hospitals was often so low that we were FREQUENTLY called off at the last minute in the morning or sent home early after all the patient discharges. I remember one pay period where I only worked one full shift though I had been scheduled full time! It really became stressful not just financially, but also in planning child care and life in general.