Did Seattle peak in the 90s? (Pacific, Starbuck: tech jobs, place to live, young professionals)

[fnh]

I moved to Seattle in 1994. There was an energy and excitement in the city then that was palpable. The city was riding a wave of national awareness - Nirvana, Pearl Jam, Microsoft, Frasier... It had a wonderful energy.

I moved away in 2004 but bought a second place there a year ago. The city feels different to me now - more mature, much more urban big city. But I like it, too. I don't think it has peaked yet, it just feels more grown up and sophisticated, for lack of a better word.

Read Sons of the Profits, though, for some perspective. It is pretty historically conceited to think that Seattle peaked in the '90s. Unless, did you mean the 1890's?

Jk,

[pw72]

Wow, someone who actually read "Sons of Profits". Great. And a great read. Seattle is not a purely white whimpy city, as opposed to some who still hold on to that. These are not real Seattleites, or those who have not read about the history of the city. Anyone who has taken the time to study Seattle realize that Seattle didn't get where it is today due to a wimpy population. Seattle grew due to strong beliefs and strong businessmen. Yes, there were down periods, but the city always bounced back and will continue to do so. Unlike Portland, Seattle has a strong aggressive motive to be bigger and better. This has manufactured itself again and again, and IMO will continue. I will be long gone, but check back in 2060 and you will see a Seattle as world leader. Not just one of the major cities in the U.S., but a definite world leader. (A couple of Super Bowl wins and World Series wins won't hurt! )

[Yankeemama]

Originally Posted by pw72

Wow, someone who actually read "Sons of Profits". Great. And a great read. Seattle is not a purely white whimpy city, as opposed to some who still hold on to that. These are not real Seattleites, or those who have not read about the history of the city. Anyone who has taken the time to study Seattle realize that Seattle didn't get where it is today due to a wimpy population. Seattle grew due to strong beliefs and strong businessmen. Yes, there were down periods, but the city always bounced back and will continue to do so. Unlike Portland, Seattle has a strong aggressive motive to be bigger and better. This has manufactured itself again and again, and IMO will continue. I will be long gone, but check back in 2060 and you will see a Seattle as world leader. Not just one of the major cities in the U.S., but a definite world leader. (A couple of Super Bowl wins and World Series wins won't hurt! )

Seattle is def. more ambitious than Portland, where I have lived for the last four years. I prefer the ambition and larger size, faster pace of Seattle to Portland. Portland is a great and affordable place for a Hubby and I to rear our children... so here we stay. The close proximity to Vancouver from Seattle is a huge draw to Seattle IMO. I may be around 2060 since I have longevity in my genes so I guess we will just have to wait and see. Nice post!

[malamute]

Originally Posted by dicecobb

I'm certainly not a hater. Despite being hated, lied on by co-workers and ultimately banished from Seattle I still love it because I know it will be great one day. But currently 60% of KING COUNTY Negro families are homeless so I'm not very happy with Seattle. It's 48% more than the next ethnic group. It's a sick joke by the white establishment and needs to end now. The Seattle workplace is hostile towards blacks and a major reason why many are homeless. I would be homeless if I stayed.

You would have to wonder why that is the case in such a very liberal city.

[007jamesbond]

I personally liked Seattle better in the 1990's. So for me I would say that Seattle peaked in the 1990's. However, the reality here is that this question is simply a matter of opinion. It simply depends on how you choose to look at it.

[Harrier]

Speaking of the 1990's, Mayor Norm Rice recently retired.

Norm Rice, Seattle's 'Mayor Nice,' Says It's Time To Retire | KUOW News and Information

Mayor Rice was an awesome mayor, an icon of Seattle in the 1990's, and an all around great guy!

Too bad he got Locked out of being Governor of Washington.

[pw72]

Gov. Locke did a decent job, IMO.

Jay Inslee is a democrative conservative, which is actually what WA needs.

Washington State is doing just fine. Among the top of the heap in new residents. (I know, some don't like that, but it really, really works!)

Inslee would be even more favorable to me if he advances transportation projects that are sorely needed. And I include Light Rail AND additional highway spending. Can he find the right balance?

[NorthWetter]

I guess that you'd have to defined "peaked." If you're talking about youth counter-culture, yes it did peak in the 90's. For those few brief years Seattle was the epicenter of the rock world.

Now the Seattle area has matured and has become the economic powerhouse of the Pacific Northwest. Counter culture types are being priced out of their traditional haunts like Capitol Hill - that's probably why you see the current desperate push toward Socialism in city politics.

Portland has became more of the American counter-culture city. Unfortunately, that city got discovered about five years ago, all of America's free-loading losers moved there and now that city is in a serious economic decline.

The interesting trend in Seattle is the rapid growth of (former) satellite cities Bellevue/Kirkland/Redmond which has attracted a lot of the wealth from Seattle proper.

[NorthWetter]

If you want to see how light rail works out, just look at the fiscal health of Portland's Tri-Met system. I have yet to see one study that shows that it made a dent in automobile traffic there. Seattle needs to figure out how to properly fund the Metro bus lines that it just cut before we start going down that money-pit.

[Deezus]

Originally Posted by NorthWetter

Portland has became more of the American counter-culture city. Unfortunately, that city got discovered about five years ago, all of America's free-loading losers moved there and now that city is in a serious economic decline.

Portland wasn't discovered by the counterculture in the last five years, it was discovered by the mass media in the last five years. It's just getting more expensive and more yuppified like Seattle recently--"freeloading-losers" aren't the one buying up increasingly expensive real estate in inner SE and NE neighborhoods, it's professional-types who can work and afford the high prices or rents in the trendy areas. The city isn't in economic decline either really, while the economy has never been as robust as some other places it's markedly improved in the last five years--it was worse when I moved here in the early 2000s.

Portland will never have as strong an economy as Seattle, but at the same time the mentality of the city is slowly changing, people are more vocally pragmatic these days about the city's direction after the Vera Katz/Tom Potter/Sam Adams years.