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Old 12-22-2015, 08:08 AM
 
Location: Earth
30 posts, read 39,190 times
Reputation: 23

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Hello everyone,

My partner of 37 years (we were married when it finally became legal) and I are thinking about retiring, and have found a property that we really like in near Salem. It is in the area of Brush College Road (97304 – is that considered NW Salem?). While, from what I understand, Salem itself trends moderate to slightly conservative, I have heard that the areas outside Salem can be pretty conservative.

My question is, would two politically progressive, lesbian, retirees, be happy/accepted/fit in NW Salem?

I sincerely hope that this post doesn't cause a forum firestorm. :O)

Thanks!

Lianna :O)
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Old 12-22-2015, 12:44 PM
 
4,059 posts, read 5,584,472 times
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Will you be happy? No idea. If you tend to be happy generally, then probably yes.

It's a nice area on the whole. Like anyone else you'll have to find the shops/activities/groups/friends that make you happy.

It's not going to be as liberal as Eugene or the Hawthorne, sure, but I know quite a few lesbians/progressives who live in more "conservative" towns in the valley with no issue.

So I wouldn't worry about the politics or sexual identity as much as whether there are things in the area that make you happy, and how big a shock the area is overall.

Keep in mind 97304 overall is a big zone and even Brush College Rd. stretches a ways out. I'd worry mostly about how rural the particular house is, and if it is rural how comfortable you are with the practical issues that come with living rurally, now and as you both age.

Last edited by bler144; 12-22-2015 at 01:10 PM..
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Old 12-22-2015, 01:38 PM
 
Location: Portland Metro
2,318 posts, read 4,601,340 times
Reputation: 2773
IMO, this will 100% depend on who your neighbors are. They are most likely to not give a hoot, but I have some friends who live in a rural area about 30 miles south of there that are dealing with a neighbor who doesn't like them for who they are, and making them uneasy about their safety in the home they've lived in for 20 years.

Unfortunately (and this is the case all over, not just in rural Oregon), you can't control who moves in next to you.
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Old 12-22-2015, 02:22 PM
 
Location: Salem, OR
15,487 posts, read 40,178,438 times
Reputation: 17297
Polk county, in general, is very conservative. There are some issues at Dallas High school right now with a transgender teen, and a city council member that has made some comments.

West Salem is part of Salem despite being in Polk county so it isn't conservative like that. No one can guarantee that you will be happy or fine. It really depends on your neighbors who may be nice or nasty. There is just no way to know that until you live there. If you are worried about it maybe go and knock on the doors of the neighbors and just ask their thoughts on the area? Sometimes just having a conversation will help you to know the kind of people you would live near, at this moment in time.

If you are asking if you would have issues in West Salem in general, I don't think I would be too concerned about that. I don't see you being harassed as you go grocery shopping or anything like that. It is a fairly well-educated group of people out there for the most part. Being progressive in Salem is probably a bigger issue than being a lesbian couple. Although Salem could use more progressive perspectives to add to the discussion. Salem has a lot of retirees so that isn't an issue.
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Old 12-22-2015, 02:26 PM
 
Location: Earth
30 posts, read 39,190 times
Reputation: 23
Quote:
Originally Posted by jjpop View Post
IMO, this will 100% depend on who your neighbors are. They are most likely to not give a hoot, but I have some friends who live in a rural area about 30 miles south of there that are dealing with a neighbor who doesn't like them for who they are, and making them uneasy about their safety in the home they've lived in for 20 years.

Unfortunately (and this is the case all over, not just in rural Oregon), you can't control who moves in next to you.
Thanks for your reply.

You are sooo right. I just figure that the odds of accepting neighbors are better in some areas than others, and because Pam and I really like the property that we are looking at, I'm hoping that it is in a somewhat tolerant area. Luckily, the house that we are looking at is on a pretty big chunk of land. :O)
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Old 12-22-2015, 02:45 PM
 
Location: Earth
30 posts, read 39,190 times
Reputation: 23
Quote:
Originally Posted by bler144 View Post
Will you be happy? No idea. If you tend to be happy generally, then probably yes.

It's a nice area on the whole. Like anyone else you'll have to find the shops/activities/groups/friends that make you happy.

It's not going to be as liberal as Eugene or the Hawthorne, sure, but I know quite a few lesbians/progressives who live in more "conservative" towns in the valley with no issue.

So I wouldn't worry about the politics or sexual identity as much as whether there are things in the area that make you happy, and how big a shock the area is overall.

Keep in mind 97304 overall is a big zone and even Brush College Rd. stretches a ways out. I'd worry mostly about how rural the particular house is, and if it is rural how comfortable you are with the practical issues that come with living rurally, now and as you both age.
We are pretty happy in general and have enough interests and activities to keep us busy on both sunny and rainy days. Our concern is that we can get along with the people around us (especially neighbors). We are both pretty social and make friends easily.

Oh, and the property that we are looking at, according to Google Maps, is about 10 minutes from of downtown Salem.
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Old 12-22-2015, 02:55 PM
 
Location: Earth
30 posts, read 39,190 times
Reputation: 23
Quote:
Originally Posted by Silverfall View Post
Polk county, in general, is very conservative. There are some issues at Dallas High school right now with a transgender teen, and a city council member that has made some comments.

West Salem is part of Salem despite being in Polk county so it isn't conservative like that. No one can guarantee that you will be happy or fine. It really depends on your neighbors who may be nice or nasty. There is just no way to know that until you live there. If you are worried about it maybe go and knock on the doors of the neighbors and just ask their thoughts on the area? Sometimes just having a conversation will help you to know the kind of people you would live near, at this moment in time.

If you are asking if you would have issues in West Salem in general, I don't think I would be too concerned about that. I don't see you being harassed as you go grocery shopping or anything like that. It is a fairly well-educated group of people out there for the most part. Being progressive in Salem is probably a bigger issue than being a lesbian couple. Although Salem could use more progressive perspectives to add to the discussion. Salem has a lot of retirees so that isn't an issue.
Yikes! I guess that we may have to stay away from Mr. Garus...sounds like he has some hate issues.

Our concern is neighbors. The way that I look at it, we will have more luck finding accepting neighbors in a...well...more liberal area. That said, I don't really know a lot about Salem (we have only been there once and I've looked at statistics on the Internet). We were originally looking closer to Portland (we are also looking at a property in Washougal) but found this wonderful house, and now I'm trying to get a feel for the area. It could be a big scary move! :O)

I like your idea of talking to people in the neighborhood. We plan to visit around January 14th through the 18th and really explore the area.

Thanks for your reply!
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Old 12-22-2015, 03:04 PM
 
4,059 posts, read 5,584,472 times
Reputation: 2892
Well, regardless of anything, as jjpop notes, you can't control your neighbors. Even if you pick the rights ones to move next to, when they leave who knows who replaces them.

Living in a more dense area I tend to worry more about the day-to-day stuff (barking dog, cars with poorly maintained motorcycles, teenage kids who party when parents are out, etc.). I've had neighbors that were absolutely delightful people in conversation but annoying to live near nonetheless.

Good luck!
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Old 12-22-2015, 04:19 PM
 
26,476 posts, read 36,301,263 times
Reputation: 29493
Buy the property if you love it. Chances are that you'll come into very little contact with your neighbors. Most people in Salem keep to themselves, for the most part.
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Old 12-23-2015, 12:39 PM
 
Location: North Idaho
32,477 posts, read 47,405,393 times
Reputation: 77670
If a politically progressive area is really important to you, you are limited to Portland, some parts of Eugene, and Ashland.

If you won't be running for political office, just about anywhere in Oregon is live and let live. You are very unlikely to run into any problems because of your sexual orientation. Well, unless you insist upon riding a tricycle around town, naked, except for a pink feather boa. Even then, it wouldn't be your sexual orientation that irritated your neighbors.

Portland, Eugene, and Ashland, the progressive areas also are the areas with large numbers of homeless sleeping on the sidewalks downtown and living and tossing dirty needles all over the city parks. If you want to live where it is politically progressive, I suggest that you be happy to embrace the homeless as a sort of city stray cat pet project.

Salem is more than just moderately conservative, but I don't see where that should cause you too many problems-- well, maybe if you want to march around carrying BLM placards, you'd be better off in Portland. Not that anyone would throw stones at you in Salem, but you might not get along well with your neighbors, on a friendship type of basis.
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