Carless in Sellwood...with a young child? (Portland: transfer, neighborhoods)

[gradstudentmom]

Okay, not completely carless! We have one car in our family but my husband will need to use it for work when we relocate to Portland from Seattle this summer.

Sellwood seems like a great neighborhood, but how difficult would it be getting around without a car AND a 3.5 year old? I would like to walk or use public transportation to take her to pre-school, swim classes, the park, etc.

Other neighborhoods I'm considering are Goose Hollow, NW, or maybe even the Pearl District, as I will be a graduate student at Portland State.

Are there other "family friendly" neighborhoods in Portland (not the suburbs) with good public transportation options?

Thank you for you help!

[roneb]

So long as you are content to stay fairly centered in Sellwood for most of your activities (it has pretty much everything you need), it is a great neighborhood. Busing to downtown/PSU will require a transfer, I believe, but still shouldn't take too long.

You might also look into Multnomah Village in SW. It's very family friendly and a single bus ride into town. Goose Hollow could also be good and is a walk to PSU.

[davemess10]

Sellwood will be doable, but not ideal. There is enough there where you won't have to leave very often to get things, but it is fairly isolated from the rest of the city. If you can hold out for 3 years or more the MAX line should be done and can take you right to PSU from Sellwood.

[Leisesturm]

I would live car free in Sellwood in a New York minute. I would not live car and bicycle free anywhere in the U.S. for any reason. There are bike trailers designed to transport tykes in relative safety (relative being the operative word) or you could visit Clever Cycles in SE Portland to see some of the innovative bicycles designed with child transport as an integral function.

H