Sheridan (Portland, Eugene, Salem: home, elementary school, casino)

[las vegas]

We are looking into moving to Sheridan. Any advice, tips, or any helpful information would be very much appreciated, especially from anyone living there.

[mdvaden]

Originally Posted by las vegas

We are looking into moving to Sheridan. Any advice, tips, or any helpful information would be very much appreciated, especially from anyone living there.

It might be easier to provide some advice if you can share about why you picked the area.

That way you won't have to review what you already learned.

Any specific types of information needed?

[Carol, Oregon coast]

Lived in the area some time ago and still visit...Sheridan has a federal prison which has created some new jobs. Big farming and ranching community. Closest bigger cities are McMinnville and Salem. About half an hour to the beach and also to Salem. Lots of extremely nice people, many who have lived there for generations. Home of Phil Sheridan Days, celebrating General Phil Sheridan who was stationed in the area during it's settlement. USED TO BE home to the Phil Sheridan Rodeo, until some fool had the idea to sell the rodeo grounds for development. Still has a great parade, mud drags, art show. Excellent schools, only exceeded by the mighty Bulldogs..(kidding, just a little rivalry humor there). All in all, a nice place to live.

[brandonfricke]

If you like living the small town life, well then you nailed it on the head with this one. Close to the beach, McMinnville, Salem, and the casino. But Im guessing that youve seen your fair share of those. If you need any other information please let me know and I'd love to help.

Brandon

[Larry Caldwell]

Originally Posted by las vegas

We are looking into moving to Sheridan. Any advice, tips, or any helpful information would be very much appreciated, especially from anyone living there.

My sister teaches elementary school in Sheridan. She writes grants for educational programs for the kids. When she points out that it is an economically depressed area, and the two largest employers are a federal penitentiary and a casino, the grant is a slam dunk.

The Delphian School is also in Sheridan, run by the Scientologists. Elvis Presley's daughter went to school there.

My sister says the kids are highly variable. One year the kids will be great, the next year she has to deal with a lot of behavioral problems.

[las vegas]

Originally Posted by mdvaden

It might be easier to provide some advice if you can share about why you picked the area.

That way you won't have to review what you already learned.

Any specific types of information needed?

I was looking at safety ratings, affordable housing, family oriented, and somewhere not too far to commute for work. Now I am wondering if a suburb would be better.

[las vegas]

Originally Posted by brandonfricke

If you like living the small town life, well then you nailed it on the head with this one. Close to the beach, McMinnville, Salem, and the casino. But Im guessing that youve seen your fair share of those. If you need any other information please let me know and I'd love to help.

Brandon

I guess I should have just posted one response back to everyone, but I'm new to this.
I was looking at safety ratings, affordable housing, family oriented, and somewhere not too far to commute for work. Now I am wondering if a suburb would be better. When you say small town life, how small town are we talking? I think I want too many things and it's probably not possible.

[las vegas]

Originally Posted by Larry Caldwell

My sister teaches elementary school in Sheridan. She writes grants for educational programs for the kids. When she points out that it is an economically depressed area, and the two largest employers are a federal penitentiary and a casino, the grant is a slam dunk.

The Delphian School is also in Sheridan, run by the Scientologists. Elvis Presley's daughter went to school there.

My sister says the kids are highly variable. One year the kids will be great, the next year she has to deal with a lot of behavioral problems.

Is the Delphian school private? Are there a lot of Scientologists?
Economically deperessed doesn't sound good.

[Larry Caldwell]

Originally Posted by las vegas

Is the Delphian school private? Are there a lot of Scientologists?
Economically deperessed doesn't sound good.

Yes, the Delphian School is run by the Church of Scientology. They are not known for their tolerance, so I doubt that they employ many non-scientologists. They are pretty insular, so you probably won't even have to talk to one if you don't want to.

The economy of Oregon has traditionally been based on farming and manufacturing. For the last 25 years, farming has been a pretty marginal occupation, though that promises to soon change in a big way. Manufacturing has been based on lumber mills.

Much of the timber available in the Coast Range belongs to the feds, and they aren't interested in selling any. That leaves the Tillamook State Forest and some private holdings to supply a much reduced mill operation. When you add in automation, small towns like Sheridan have lost 80% of their family wage jobs in the last 16 years.

People have adjusted, finding jobs at places like the steel mill in McMinnville, but there is still a lot of grinding poverty in small towns like Sheridan. Sheridan is better off than many small towns. At least Hampton Lumber is still open. Many mills have closed, leaving some communities with no economic base at all.

[stillawebfoot]

Carol, Oregon coast said: " Excellent schools, only exceeded by the mighty Bulldogs..(kidding, just a little rivalry humor there)."


Go SPARTANS forever!! LOL. Couldn't resist the age-old rivalry myself.


Las Vegas,
I lived in Sheridan till I was 18, graduated HS there in '71. At that time the town had a pop. of 1,880. It is now over 5,000 largely due to the prison. What I notice when I go back (I now live in L.A. suburbs, but want so much to be back in Oregon), is that everything, sadly, seems look run-down. I don't know that maybe it was that way even in 1971 and I'm just accustomed to pristinely (yuppie) manicured lawns, etc. or if with just the passing of time, things have deteriorated. I go back every summer, so I do see it. It would be interesting to know if the kids today still want to escape the small town for 'big city and it's excitement'. I think Sheridan is still very much a sleepy bedroom community. It's a rural town, surrounded by rural life, but not so far from Salem, Portland, Eugene that you can't get to them if you want, though if you're commuting to any for a job, you'd definitely want to reconsider - no freeways! Personally, I see that as a good thing. There are many other small towns, some larger, some smaller (Willamina -hiya Bulldogs, Amity, Lafayette, Dallas, McMinnville (30,000+) and others).