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I live in the New York area (not in the city itself, though).
I'm looking for a fairly sizable city that has a much better quality of life. This is an extremely nasty, arrogant area.
Can someone tell me what the quality of life is in Portland, Oregon? I've heard good things about it. Please don't give me the standard "it's a great city, I love it, etc.", as they say that in New York too, and that is a lie.
I'd like to know specifically how the general environment is, ie., how are people when they drive, when they are walking down the street, when you encounter them in different situations.
I currently live on the East Coast but lived in Portland for 7 years. I loved it and would go back in a heartbeat if I could.
Good:
1. Relatively clean. Streets are cleaned on a regular basis and the city generally takes pride in its appearance.
2. Entertainment and Culture. There's a ton to do, lots of music, lots of diverse cuisine and arts, and lots of events in the summer. It's awesome.
3. Proximity. The "coast" as it is called is a day's drive. You won't be swimming or tanning though, it's cold and windy, but beautiful. Mt. Hood, Columbia Gorge, for hiking, climbing, camping, are all close to the West. Seattle is 3 hours north.
4. Transportation. The Tri-Met public transportation system is really excellent. Many areas of the metro area as within such easy reach of bus or light rail that a lot of people commute to work by public transport. Other than that a rush hour commute is about 30 minutes.
5. Weather. The highs and lows are much milder than the East Coast. Less humidity in the summer, not as cold in the winter and not as much snow.
6. People. Expect a lot of mild-mannered people and acceptance of funky lifestyles.
7. Health. Water quality is better, air quality is better, less superfund sites (sites targeted by the EPA for cleanup).
8. Nature. Lots of green within the city, lots of nature areas outside of it.
9. Beer and coffee. TONS of both. And relaxed liquor laws mean you can get wine and stuff by mail, there are lots of wineries in Yamhill county, beer/wine festival in the summer, and you can bring alcohol to public parks.
10. City upkeep. I think the City Planning does/did a great job of managing a large metro area without losing the flavor that is Portland. Yeah it's not the same as it used to be, but neither is anyplace else. It's the reason why so many people want to live here.
Bad:
1. Economy. While I hesitate to jump on the bandwagon with everyone dissing on the economy, salaries in general are lower. But house prices are still fairly high, but that depends on your point of view and where you are coming from.
2. Schools. I don't hear great things. Enrollment is down so schools are closing. Funding has shrunk. Etc, etc. However, parents do a great job of staying active.
3. People. While friendly, it took me a long time to break through and make real friendships....I felt there was a lot of polite, friendly reserve but reticence to really get to know a new face. And if you're not liberal, don't live in the city, live further out. The close-in areas are very close-minded to anything that does not jibe with the standard liberal "accepted truths". And I say this as a generally liberal person.
4. Weather. Yeah, it rains. It's gloomy in the winter and early spring. I didn't mind it so much but if rain gets you down, it would be a problem. The rainfall per year is actually LESS than NY but it's in the form of a near constant drizzle from November to April (or May).
5. Lack of big-city major attractions. If you're a museum person, you'll be dissapointed. Portland has some museums but other than OMSI and the Art Museum, it's all small potatoes. There's an aquarium on the coast, but it's not that high profile. There's a nice zoo, though.
6. Drivers. They have their heads in the clouds when they drive, or something. I don't get it. The roads are full of people wandering aimlessly from lane to lane. But they all drive about 50 miles an hour though so it's no problem getting around them
7. Pizza. Hey, if you like fruit and sun dried tomatoes and whatnot on your pizza then fine, but I was constantly disappointed in the pizza. Other than Escape from NY Pizza, there were no "pizzeria" pizzas.
8. The constant "Locals versus Californians" thing. I have no idea who is right but my god. How tiresome.
9. Various crime, depending on your tolerance and where you live. There are a LOT of strip joints. And adult entertainment stores. So, accompanying prostitution in those areas. Gang activity in various neighborhoods. Property crime and theft.
10. Homeless and addicts. There are a lot of services (shelters, clinics) in the city that draw in a lot of indigent. If you are waiting for a bus on the bus mall you expect to get hit up for change. But other than that, if you stick to the well-traveled commercial block area you don't see much else because the shelters are not in the really busy areas. Personally I never minded, but some people do.
11. Ballot meaures. This depends on your politics. Portland is constantly, CONSTANTLY fiddling with ballot measures. CONSTANTLY!
All negatives considered, I would still live there. I think the negatives are minor. You always pay a price for the good stuff.
As a native NY'er who lived in Portland for several years and moved back to NYC, the quality of life in Portland is far better than NY. (Are you living in the NYC region?) It is far more laid-back and less crowded than NY, yet it has all the urban amenities. There are also a lot more free or low-cost festivals to go to in summer, plus the summers aren't humid so you actually want to be outside. If you're into outdoors activities, like hiking, it's a mecca for that. People who move to Portland from more rural areas or small towns seem to have more complaints, but it's hard to have complaints if you're coming from the NYC area. Drivers are much more polite than NY. They willl stop for pedestrians, what a concept. However, the politeness of people in Portland can be superficial. It's not easy to make friends and sometimes I do appreciate the bluntness and sense of humor of New Yorkers.
Funny, we're very much in agreement but I'm a gal of few words. I'm sure your detail will be appreciated by the original poster.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Missmeamea
Hi there,
I currently live on the East Coast but lived in Portland for 7 years. I loved it and would go back in a heartbeat if I could.
Good:
1. Relatively clean. Streets are cleaned on a regular basis and the city generally takes pride in its appearance.
2. Entertainment and Culture. There's a ton to do, lots of music, lots of diverse cuisine and arts, and lots of events in the summer. It's awesome.
3. Proximity. The "coast" as it is called is a day's drive. You won't be swimming or tanning though, it's cold and windy, but beautiful. Mt. Hood, Columbia Gorge, for hiking, climbing, camping, are all close to the West. Seattle is 3 hours north.
4. Transportation. The Tri-Met public transportation system is really excellent. Many areas of the metro area as within such easy reach of bus or light rail that a lot of people commute to work by public transport. Other than that a rush hour commute is about 30 minutes.
5. Weather. The highs and lows are much milder than the East Coast. Less humidity in the summer, not as cold in the winter and not as much snow.
6. People. Expect a lot of mild-mannered people and acceptance of funky lifestyles.
7. Health. Water quality is better, air quality is better, less superfund sites (sites targeted by the EPA for cleanup).
8. Nature. Lots of green within the city, lots of nature areas outside of it.
9. Beer and coffee. TONS of both. And relaxed liquor laws mean you can get wine and stuff by mail, there are lots of wineries in Yamhill county, beer/wine festival in the summer, and you can bring alcohol to public parks.
10. City upkeep. I think the City Planning does/did a great job of managing a large metro area without losing the flavor that is Portland. Yeah it's not the same as it used to be, but neither is anyplace else. It's the reason why so many people want to live here.
Bad:
1. Economy. While I hesitate to jump on the bandwagon with everyone dissing on the economy, salaries in general are lower. But house prices are still fairly high, but that depends on your point of view and where you are coming from.
2. Schools. I don't hear great things. Enrollment is down so schools are closing. Funding has shrunk. Etc, etc. However, parents do a great job of staying active.
3. People. While friendly, it took me a long time to break through and make real friendships....I felt there was a lot of polite, friendly reserve but reticence to really get to know a new face. And if you're not liberal, don't live in the city, live further out. The close-in areas are very close-minded to anything that does not jibe with the standard liberal "accepted truths". And I say this as a generally liberal person.
4. Weather. Yeah, it rains. It's gloomy in the winter and early spring. I didn't mind it so much but if rain gets you down, it would be a problem. The rainfall per year is actually LESS than NY but it's in the form of a near constant drizzle from November to April (or May).
5. Lack of big-city major attractions. If you're a museum person, you'll be dissapointed. Portland has some museums but other than OMSI and the Art Museum, it's all small potatoes. There's an aquarium on the coast, but it's not that high profile. There's a nice zoo, though.
6. Drivers. They have their heads in the clouds when they drive, or something. I don't get it. The roads are full of people wandering aimlessly from lane to lane. But they all drive about 50 miles an hour though so it's no problem getting around them
7. Pizza. Hey, if you like fruit and sun dried tomatoes and whatnot on your pizza then fine, but I was constantly disappointed in the pizza. Other than Escape from NY Pizza, there were no "pizzeria" pizzas.
8. The constant "Locals versus Californians" thing. I have no idea who is right but my god. How tiresome.
9. Various crime, depending on your tolerance and where you live. There are a LOT of strip joints. And adult entertainment stores. So, accompanying prostitution in those areas. Gang activity in various neighborhoods. Property crime and theft.
10. Homeless and addicts. There are a lot of services (shelters, clinics) in the city that draw in a lot of indigent. If you are waiting for a bus on the bus mall you expect to get hit up for change. But other than that, if you stick to the well-traveled commercial block area you don't see much else because the shelters are not in the really busy areas. Personally I never minded, but some people do.
11. Ballot meaures. This depends on your politics. Portland is constantly, CONSTANTLY fiddling with ballot measures. CONSTANTLY!
All negatives considered, I would still live there. I think the negatives are minor. You always pay a price for the good stuff.
As someone who relocated here about 3 years ago, I strongly agree with Missmeamea's overall take.
From what I've noticed, people from the East Coast are very blown away by the friendliness here and the relatively cheaper cost of living. I don't see that as much since I am from Texas where the people are really, really friendly and it's a really, really low cost of living.
And drivers around here do have their heads in the clouds sometimes, but they are also extremely courteous.
As someone who relocated here about 3 years ago, I strongly agree with Missmeamea's overall take.
From what I've noticed, people from the East Coast are very blown away by the friendliness here and the relatively cheaper cost of living. I don't see that as much since I am from Texas where the people are really, really friendly and it's a really, really low cost of living.
And drivers around here do have their heads in the clouds sometimes, but they are also extremely courteous.
Not to take away from the thread, but what you just said here makes a lot of sense where I live. A LOT of East Coasters hit the Florida Keys, and you can tell, as well as a lot of them own the biz here too. The attitude is there, it's a friendly, sunny place, but people are still rude. I guess that's just an East Coast thing. In Indiana, people still hold the door open, and I do too.
As a native NY'er who lived in Portland for several years and moved back to NYC, the quality of life in Portland is far better than NY. (Are you living in the NYC region?) It is far more laid-back and less crowded than NY, yet it has all the urban amenities. There are also a lot more free or low-cost festivals to go to in summer, plus the summers aren't humid so you actually want to be outside. If you're into outdoors activities, like hiking, it's a mecca for that. People who move to Portland from more rural areas or small towns seem to have more complaints, but it's hard to have complaints if you're coming from the NYC area. Drivers are much more polite than NY. They willl stop for pedestrians, what a concept. However, the politeness of people in Portland can be superficial. It's not easy to make friends and sometimes I do appreciate the bluntness and sense of humor of New Yorkers.
I find it funny that we both had the same observation about friendliness. There were times when I felt my normal conversation style was just too blunt for the person I was speaking with. You know what, though? I didn't have that problem when I lived in Eugene. I don't know if that was due to my age at the time or what, but I have fond memories of a lot of cool people I met in and around Eugene.
Missmeamea is right on in all of her points. I've got one thing to say about the pizza, though.
Yes, Portland pizza can be weird. But one of the best kept secrets in metro Portland is that there's some really good pizza in Vancouver. There's a little shop over on Chkalov that serves great New York style pizza. It's definitely worth crossing the bridge for, even with today's gas prices. And I love Vancouver Pizza at 24th and Main. And soon they'll be opening a new Rock Wood Fired Pizza over on SR14 next to the new Fred Meyer. And Pizza Italiana on 4th Plain is good stuff, too.
There's probably more. I haven't tried all of the pizza in Vancouver yet. But I will.
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