Young couple moving to Seattle area for job in Tukwila (Bellevue: to rent, house)

[tscherm1]

My wife and I are moving to the Seattle area for a new job with Boeing, in Tukwila. We're moving from the Philadelphia area. We are looking for a fun area that would allow for an easy commute to work for me. We own our home right now, but would be looking to rent initially to get to know the area. We'd be looking to spend about 1000-1500 on rent and would like a place with a yard and walkability (to bars, parks, and restaurants), because we have two dogs. Along the same lines, we're both from the east coast and have never lived on the west coast (I'm from Cleveland and she's from Buffalo). What should we expect from the transition (weather, culture, etc)? Any advice or input would be appreciated.

Thanks,
Ted

[lngnglr]

Ted,
Georgetown, Freemont and Capital Hill areas in Seattle might be good for you and your wife. If you are looking for a more suburban feel you might try Covington. Commute from Seattle to Tukwila would be easy - you'd be doing a reverse commute. Covington is south of Tukwila, so it's a little dicier. Commuting from the eastside would be rough.
There are wonderful social experiences here in Seattle. There are several museums (art like SAM, flight - Museum of Flight in Tukwila and many more)

Seattle is beautiful. Weather is very temperate, not ice cold and muggy humidity like in the midwest or east coast.

[mkarch]

Working in Tukwila, Burien near SW 152nd st would be good to check out. If Burien is too unrefined for you, West Seattle, Admiral District near California Ave wouldn't be a bad commute either because you can shoot down 509 to 518 and straight into Tukwila and avoid I-5 altogether. But check out the map as a commute from West Seattle is quite a bit further, it just happens to take advantage of some lesser used highways on the SW side of the city.

I would avoid living north of the ship canal or even I-90 on the east side of Seattle.

[Ira500]

As someone who drives a lot for work purposes, I've really grown to hate commuting. So I'd advise putting a priority on the short commute. I-5 has become more and more of a nightmare, unpredictably bad. Fremont might be pushing it, commutewise, but they do have a bar/restaurant that you can bring your dog into. The beer is good, the food is good, and the dogs are always well behaved.
Coming from Buffalo and Cleveland, you're going to think you're in paradise, weatherwise. Summers are mild, and winters are cool and gray. Yes, it rains here, and in the winter sometimes a lot. But you don't have to shovel it.
As far as areas that have bars, parks, and restaurants, and are a fairly painless to commute to Tukwila from:

Georgetown : Artsy Seattle neighborhood, one of Seattle's oldest. It doesn't look like the rest of Seattle, it has cool old brick buildings, like a mini Buffalo? Many bars and restaurants. A few parks, but it's more of an industrial/residential neighborhood. It's only a 5-10 minute drive to Westcrest Park, which has a big off leash dog area, and trails in the woods.

Burien: Seattle's generally a pretty homogenous place, and there just aren't a lot of neighborhoods that are cool, affordable, and multi-cultural. Burien is one. It has a very walkable/charming downtown, with a brewery/brewpub serving house made organic beer and great food. Burien has the best Philly cheese steaks in the Seattle area. Burien has an independent cinema. Burien has Puget Sound, and trails in the woods overlooking the water. It also has some of the best Mexican food in the Seattle area. Hipsters and Hispanics. What more could you want?

Renton: Full disclosure- I live in Renton. Renton is generally thought of as a little more working class than many Seattle neighborhoods. I'm originally from New Jersey, and Renton feels good to me for it's unpretentiousness. There are all kinds of good places to eat and drink, from places specializing in microbrews, to Vietnamese, to decent pizza, to Afghani food. Has a big part of the Cedar River trail, a 17 mile long trail from where you can watch salmon swimming at certain times of the year.

Columbia City: A South Seattle neighborhood with charm. It's not a huge neighborhood like Capitol Hill is in Seattle. But it's got awesome places to eat and drink, cool old buildings, and within walking distance to both the Genessee Park Off Leash area and to Seward Park, which is my favorite park in Seattle. It's nice to have water nearby if you're living in the Seattle area, and Columbia City is not too far from Lake Washington.

Generally speaking, I think you'll find housing costs here to be higher than Philly's.

[RJ8089]

If you're going to work in Tukwila (which I have done before), I'd recommend living in Federal Way, Des Moines, Burien, Renton. In that order.

[mkarch]

Originally Posted by Ira500

I'm originally from New Jersey, and Renton feels good to me for it's unpretentiousness.

I find the lack of pretension unsettling, as if they're trying to hide something.

Originally Posted by RJ8089

If you're going to work in Tukwila (which I have done before), I'd recommend living in Federal Way, Des Moines, Burien, Renton. In that order.

Federal Way isn't a reverse commute though - is it really the best option, heading towards downtown like everyone else at that time?

[tobester]

When you say Tukwila, exactly where? My Boeing office is listed as 'Tukwila' but at the Development Center near the Flight Museum. If you are working at the DC or nearby, consider Seward Park (where I live) or Columbia City. My commute is 15 minutes from out the door to at my desk.

[burgerbun]

Don't live in Tukwila.

As someone who has worked in Tukwila, and lived north of it, I can tell you this:

-The commute south on either 5 or 405 is no big deal as long as you don't get on the interstate north of 90, generally speaking. You will avoid all the people who commute into Seattle and Bellevue from the north.

-Going home in the evening via 5 or 405 basically sucks, no matter where you live.

[citydave]

I would recommend West Seattle. It's a nice neighborhood and even has a pretty urban district called The West Seattle Junction, plus it's a small freeway drive away from Tukwila and you can avoid the major traffic on I5.

[RJ8089]

Originally Posted by mkarch

I find the lack of pretension unsettling, as if they're trying to hide something.



Federal Way isn't a reverse commute though - is it really the best option, heading towards downtown like everyone else at that time?

To me, Federal Way is the best option out the cities named. Sometimes commuting is what has to be done. The world isn't perfect.