Portland or Tallahassee (pay, county)

[LaurieinJax]

Many of the posters (LarsMac) have described what I see Tallahassee to be. Portland, OR is super liberal and yes, Portland, ME has HORRIBLE winters.

I moved to Tallahassee in January 2016. I found a job in my field right away. It pays well. I actually like the weather here. I moved South in 2011 from Green Bay, WI. Heat and humidity are my friends. We're close.

The traffic here stinks. People just plain can't drive and I don't think anyone knows what a turn signal is. A road improvement project will start and I'm told will take almost a year, if not longer to complete. I'm witnessing that right now out my office window. Either the City or County has decided out of the blue to just change the street name where my office is. After YEARS of being called one thing, now it's a new name and the numbers are changing. Weird.

Yes, many things about Tallahassee are like the old South. We're close to Georgia and Alabama. But I'm talking old South charm. It is just beautiful here. Hills and trees and the people here are just wonderful. Much friendlier than Jacksonville. My fiance and I live in Midtown, I guess a very desirable place to live if you have to live in the city. But, I have to say I have NEVER seen a Confederate flag any where. Jeb Bush had it removed from the Capitol building when he was governor. BTW, being bred, born and raised a Yankee, I never had a problem with the Stars and Bars. It really doesn't stand for slavery and racism. It's a part of the South's heritage. Those who think otherwise, well, you need to research it. Back to the city. It's beautiful and the people are great.

Yes, most of the industry here is government and the two big universities. Florida A&M and Florida State. Both great schools. (I'm still partial to the University of Wisconsin-Madison, but hey).

I know the original post was from March, but I hope you settled in and are happy. I am. I love Tallahassee.

[TD*]

Tallahassee is awesome. Especially to people who have the grass is greener syndrome. Leave and you will sure miss it.

[LaurieinJax]

Originally Posted by TD*

Tallahassee is awesome. Especially to people who have the grass is greener syndrome. Leave and you will sure miss it.

You got that right. Although, my settling here started out a nightmare. Oh.Good.Lord. Nightmare doesn't begin to describe it.

[scottrc5391]

I just visited Tallahassee for the first time. I couldn't believe how friendly everybody was, from the retail workers to the tow truck drivers (car issues) to random people on the street. People must be happy here is all I can say. I noticed that the churches were so packed on Sunday cars were parked along the streets. Racial tension I did not feel (I am white, probably half those here are not and half those I met were not). I don't believe there are that many racists here. While you have a few bad apples (KKK), I believe most of the racists actually reside in the northern states where the non-white population is much smaller. It's easy to espouse racial equality, regardless of your actual beliefs, when one doesn't actually encounter other races on a daily basis. So I think it's s complete myth to say that northerners are less likely to be racists. I don't know about Portland to add much but I was told the locals are not all that inviting to the transplants flooding their city (which, by the way, is causing rents and probably home prices as well, to skyrocket).

[TD*]

Moving to Tallahassee is a good thing to do.

Its the best city in Florida.

[Griffis]

I haven't made it to Florida yet, but plan to be living there before the end of the year.
however, I lived in Portland, Oregon from 2009-2013, so I think I can speak to that.

Portland has a lot to recommend it. 90 minutes from some beautiful beach towns (Lincoln City was my fave) lots of cool things to do, neat little shops, lots of culture, etc.

However, it has gotten insanely expensive and at this point it it next too impossible to find housing there unless you come with an enormous hunk of cash and just buy a home. The town has a 98%+ occupancy rate. Landlords can be (and are) very, very choosy about who they rent to. Plan to spend a couple thousand just to get into a place, even a small apartment. Not that monthly rent is that high, but all the deposits, etc. are.

Also, from about October to March it is gray, gray, gray. This really got to me after a while. The rest of the year is incredibly gorgeous, but it's 6 months of dreary drizzle and 6 months of Spring basically. It is a very pretty town, surrounded by even more beauty.

I found the people not overly inviting or friendly. They CAN be, but you kind of have to break the ice.

It's a wonderful place if you enjoy great coffee and micro-brewed beer (and now I guess other things are legal there, which I've heard has only further driven up the cost of everything and negatively impacted the availability of housing.)

I didn't think Portland's traffic was all that terrible IN town, but man, feel sorry for anyone who lived in a burb. Getting in and out of Portland is sheer hell.

I am glad I got to spend time living in Portland, and I liked Oregon in general, but I don't have a desire to go back either. We considered it for awhile, but it would have to be a town other than Portland. We just couldn't afford it now and it's so, so hard to "break in" there. Then again, with the right job offer, it might be workable.

[Atlanta Scientist]

I just got back Tallahassee as well. I'm originally from Columbia, SC, a place I loved when I moved away and hated when I moved back. Those two places strike me as very similar. Capitals and large universities. Tally, like Columbia, seems like a great place to live if you are just living your life. No too much going on but enough to keep a family busy. Personally, I would never live there because I like a faster paced life and all the amenities of a big city. If I had children, I'd probably settle down there. I can't comment on Portland because I've never been.

[Nausikaa]

Tallahassee over Portland any day. Better place to raise children, cheaper housing, better weather. Close to better beaches. Pretty city.

[TD*]

True. Tallahassee is awesome.

[solomonkane]

Originally Posted by TD*

Moving to Tallahassee is a good thing to do.

Its the best city in Florida.

Someone misspelled Orlando.