Living in Beaverton? (Portland, Hillsboro, Lake Oswego: apartments, house prices, safe area)

[Amiller1900]

Hi, my husband is considering a job in Beaverton, so we are doing a lot of research on the Portland area. We would like to live somewhere where we can walk/bike to coffee and restaurants that is also family friendly (we have two kids). My husband also doesn't want a long commute. I understand the commute from Portland to Beaverton in the morning isn't bad but the reverse in the afternoon can be. From what I've read about Beaverton I'm not sure it would be a good fit for us..too spread out, not able to walk places, etc. So, does anyone have any recommendations for us as far as what neighborhoods or areas to check out? Or are there parts of Beaverton that might work for us? Any advice would be appreciated!

[hamellr]

It depends on what part of Beaverton you're in. I live in Central Beaverton with an 87% Walkability scores. If you live in Raleigh Hills neighborhood, Walkability drops drastically.

There are not any unsafe areas of Beaverton, there is one little street of apartments that has a bad reputation of noise and domestic problems, just off of Hall and Cedar Hills. But even that area is cleaning up well, the Beaverton Police have been good to great in the two instances I've had to deal with them.

I also commute to work frequently on Bike and find Beaverton to be fairly good. It's better then Portland in some ways, worse in others in the attitudes of drivers towards bicycles. I keep to areas with Bike lanes as much possible but am not afraid to (legally) take the lane when I need to.

Beaverton does have a reputation for strip malls and McMansions and they certainly exist because a lot of the city is relatively new due to our population booms.

[Rob Allen]

Yes, the Central Beaverton neighborhood might be ideal. I prefer the south side - look at the area around the library and the adjacent park where the Farmer's Market is. Here's a couple of links to get started:

Beaverton, OR - Official Website - Central Beaverton NAC
http://www.beavertonoregon.gov/Docum...w.aspx?DID=856

[Deezus]

Originally Posted by hamellr

It depends on what part of Beaverton you're in. I live in Central Beaverton with an 87% Walkability scores. If you live in Raleigh Hills neighborhood, Walkability drops drastically.

Yeah, Raleigh Hills isn't really that walkable, though right at the corner of Beaverton-Hillsdale and Scholls Ferry(which I think is right on the actual border of Portland), there's almost enough stuff that one could walk to if they lived right on that side of the neighborhood. Not really a walkable area though. Up on the northside you get further away from but most of it you are pretty close to places to go in a short drive, so you have nice options in terms of groceries or places to eat along Beaverton-Hillsdale.

Central Beaverton seems like a good option for food and shopping(there's some really good restaurants I like in that area), how are the houses south of downtown? I've never explored that area that much except to stop at the library back in the brief time I had a Washington County address..

[skiffrace]

We would like to live somewhere where we can walk/bike to coffee and restaurants that is also family friendly (we have two kids).

South Beaverton is perhaps the nicest, classiest, cleanest and most upscale area anywhere in Portland Metro.
It wins hands down against the overhyped, manhattanized and graffiti-strewn Pearl and downtown districts, or the snobbish and isolated Lake Oswego.
Since it attracts primarily the "traditional" demographics, it is the quintessential "family-friendly" neighborhood.

It is composed of 2 main commercial centers: Murrayhill Marketplace and Progress Ridge.

It is as walkable as any place in Portland - it has 3 supermarkets (Albertson, Safeway and New Seasons), movie theater (Cinetopia) gym (24 Hour Fitness), Beaverton public library, many coffee shops, restaurants, stores etc., and direct bus line (92) to downtown Portland.
All the housing stock is quite new or brand new - no 100 year old houses (with all their problems) there.

There are 2 small lakes, one of which is stocked with fish and has a small fishing platform.
The fishing lake (Progress) has bars and restaurants directly overlooking it so you can "dine on the water".

Last but not least: the housing costs (both rents and house prices) are 20% to 30% less than in the 'fashionable' Portland neighborhoods.

One more thing: just a few minutes west on Sholls Ferry Road you enter the farm and orchards of Washington county. A nice place to pick your own produce and fruit in the fall. A few miles further out is the Tualatin River sanctuary - the most enchanting wilderness area next to big city you'll find anywhere in the country.

[JXBC]

I live at the top of Murray Hill and absolutely love this section of Beaverton. It's quiet, clean, and upscale without the feeling of being overly upscale.

Even though I work in downtown Portland, I don't think I'd pick anywhere else but the Murray Hill/Progress Ridge area of Beaverton. It's wonderful here.

[Sherwoody]

I think a Whole Foods is going in where the old Lambs Thriftway was just a little north on Shoals Ferry & 124th also.

[Amiller1900]

Thank you so much for all your responses. I appreciate the pictures too! It does sound like central Beaverton would work for us! A few more questions...is is easy to get downtown, or is the traffic going downtown always bad? Are there still a lot of vegan/vegetarian options in Beaverton?

And, are there any other areas between Beaverton and downtown Portland that we should look into?

Thanks again!

[sas513]

This thread got me very interested in the South Beaverton area (thanks Skiffrace for the great info!). I'll be working for Intel in Hillsboro so I was wondering if someone could comment on that commute? It looks like getting from the Murray Hill area to Hillsboro could be a pain. Seems like the best route would be all surface roads and I'm wondering how congested that gets. How long do you think that could take during rush hour? Any help appreciated, thanks

[SETabor]

In the Oregonian supplement for the westside/Washington County/Beaverton, they had an article about different Beaverton neighborhoods and descriptions. You should be able to google it and get a better idea of the different options.

South Beaverton/Murray Hill/Progress Hill is a nice area but I would never live there. I prefer an older neighborhood with no cul de sacs.