Coming Back to Washington - Need input (Seattle, Tacoma: best towns, home)

[selandra]

My husband and I moved from WA a little while ago to chase dreams. The only problem is that when you catch up with them the varnish is not so shiny as you thought. We both miss WA, (though I admit I am enjoying the sunshine more), and want to move back. I've lived in Lynnwood, Bothell and both of us in Bellevue. I visited many areas but the problem is visiting and living are two different things. So I'm looking for advice on the best towns to live. I'll be doing in depth research but would like some ideas.

Here's what our list contains so far. We prefer the westside to eastside. Looking for small town but with culture. Tourist town is okay. Would like to be able to walk or bike often without worry of being run down. Biggest consideration to dog friendly areas. Big bonus would be area that allows chickens and small livestock. Need to garden. We enjoy living simply and socializing. He's retired but young at heart and active. I'm in the old enough to know better but just to young to care stage.

I know that finding everything on the wish list is unlikely, but if someone has a suggestion thats close I would love to hear it and why they recommend it.

Current areas of interest: Port Townsend, Langley, Port Orchard, Gig Harbor, Anacortes, San Juan Islands, Birch Bay, do not want to go south of Tacoma. May consider more inland if had most of the items on list.

[Inkpoe]

Isn't Gig Harbor south of Tacoma?

Woodinville have their wineries and it's really close to Marymoor (a big-big-big dog park). Other towns that could be a good match: Carnation, Monroe, North Bend and Snohomish. Any places on the westside is going to be much more pricier than eastern Washington; but I would also toss in Leavenworth, that'd be a fun town to move into and it has more sunshine than Seattle!!

[selandra]

Actually, Gig Harbor is slightly northwest of Tacoma. Love Marymoor dog park but would like to get away from the hustle and bustle. The other places are okay also but I would like to get closer to the water. Did consider Leavenworth but husband wants to avoid to much snow. Top of the list currently is Port Townsend but not sure how animal friendly they are? Anyone know?

[JustCallMeTC]

Originally Posted by Inkpoe

Isn't Gig Harbor south of Tacoma?

Just on the West (opposite) Side of the Tacoma Narrows Bridge...

[Ira500]

Whidbey Island is particularly dog friendly, with a bunch of off leash parks ( including Double Bluff Beach Park..heaven!)..Langley is very nice, but Port Townsend has better weather.
You might want to look at Vashon also, with it's artsy, eco groovy, hippie dippie ethos, and lots of small farmers.

[JasonS91]

Originally Posted by selandra

Here's what our list contains so far. We prefer the westside to eastside. Looking for small town but with culture. Tourist town is okay. Would like to be able to walk or bike often without worry of being run down. Biggest consideration to dog friendly areas. Big bonus would be area that allows chickens and small livestock. Need to garden. We enjoy living simply and socializing. He's retired but young at heart and active. I'm in the old enough to know better but just to young to care stage.

I'll do my best to list off Port Orchard point-by-point:

Small town: It's small, but not exactly everybody-knows-everybody. The residents are mostly located here because of the Bremerton shipyard. There aren't any horrible parts of town, but some are better than others.

Tourism: Yes. Only since Debbie Macomber wrote those Cedar Cove books. Read those to get an idea for what the town was like back in the 80s and 90s.

Walking/Biking: Most roads are good, but for biking please stay off Mile Hill.

Dog friendly: Yes. We've got several parks in the area with interweaving trails that people take their dogs to all the time. I'm one of them when I'm watching my grandparents' dogs.

Chickens/Livestock: In the more remote areas. If you're inside the city limits, might not be a good idea.

Gardening: Yes. My grandparents have been gardening for decades here.

"Simple Life": I'd say so. Port Orchard's more of an older-person town (there's a veterans home here), not a lot for kids except a movie theater.

Socializing: Yep, that too. A popular destination for people here is the bowling alley at Bethel and Mile Hill. I'm there every Saturday morning for breakfast.

[emopoops]

port tounseend

[J-Sook]

Bellingham