How is Bainbridge Island to live and also commuting to Seattle? (Shoreline: apartments, lease) - Washington (WA) - City-Data Forum

Gators15 · 10-11-2009, 05:24 PM

My husband is considering taking a job in Seattle in the Queen Anne area. I wanted to know if Bainbridge Island would be a good place to live? I have 3 children. College, Middle School, and Elementary. We are going to lease/rent a house. I have read a lot about the weather and I am a little worried about that. Can anyone give me some help as to where we should start looking to live at and any advise in general on the move. I appreciate your help.

mtlogger · 10-11-2009, 05:44 PM

If memory serves me correctly, Queen Anne is downtown near Elliott Bay. Bainbridge would be a great place to live, BUT it's a ferry ride to/from every day. I'm sure you can find apartments to rent in Queen Anne reasonably priced nowadays that would save the ferry fees enough to live there.

Gators15 · 10-11-2009, 06:31 PM

Thanks for the info...We are not really big City people. That was the main reason for wanting to live on the island but be close to Seattle for the commute. I checked the fairy fees and it looks like we can buy a month pass for around $80.00? If we took the fairy and then walked or took a bus to work that is less than we would spend in gas in a week isn't it? I am not sure if we are understanding the fairy fees correctly as everyone keeps talking about how expensive it is. We also found a house in Kingsland?? How is that compared to Bainbridge Island?

SeattlitefromNC · 10-11-2009, 11:41 PM

First things first ... ferry fares are here:

Washington State Ferries - Fares: Bainbridge Island to Seattle Pier 52

You will want to take a gander at W(ashington) S(tate) F(erries) Monthly Pass. Keep in mind that the $88 price is for passengers only; your husband would have to walk and/or take the bus the rest of the way from the Terminal.

Bainbridge Island is nice, but then again, so is the rest of the area. You really have to look hard to find places that are less than safe around here. Property crime is a bit more common than physical crime, though, so while you may be safe ... your car may not be. (Even in the nice areas ...)

I should also note that Queen Anne is home to hills unlike anything you will ever see in NC. It's a gorgeous neighborhood, but hiking those hills can take some acclimation, for sure.

I have no idea where Kingsland is, so I apologize that I cannot help you there.

Gators15 · 10-12-2009, 06:31 AM

Thank you, I see by your name that it looks like you moved from NC to Seattle?? If so, how do you like it there? Was the change difficult? Where else would you suggest us living? My husband is going this Thursday to look at homes etc... Oh and I meant Kingston, sorry about that. I obviously have no clue what I am doing, lol

SeattlitefromNC · 10-13-2009, 03:08 AM

I did move from NC ... I'm from Raleigh. In the interest of full disclosure, though, I grew up in Raleigh and was quite ready to go when the time came.

I love Seattle. I could not imagine living anywhere else at this point. Seattle is quite different from the South, but not in bad ways. I overall feel that my move here was positive.

As for the weather (the elephant in the room), well ... people's reactions to the weather up here run the gamut. I was never a fan of the stickiness and humidity down south, which is more or less nonexistent in Western Washington (Central and Eastern Washington have a much different climate).

Kingston is quite a ways away, isn't it? Google Maps can only show so much, but it appears that the best case scenario for such a commute would be about an hour's commute one way. That seems a bit much, especially since that estimate does not take into effect the nasty traffic on I-5 and/or to the ferry.

What sort of living environment are you looking for?

Gators15 · 10-13-2009, 06:18 AM

I live right near Raleigh. My main concern are the children. I want to live somewhere good for them. We really like Bainbridge from what we see on the internet. My husband is not much for living in the City.

We want something outside of the city but I don't want him spending 2 + hours a day travelling either on top of a 9 hour work day.

We are also looking at Mukilteo and Shoreline area. We have a boat and want to be on that as much as possible. We also both golf so that would be nice to be near some great golf courses. I keep reading mixed reviews on the commute. One person says don't live on Bainbridge the commute sucks and then others say that is the way to go...Better to have a nice ferry ride where you can work some then sit in traffic so we have no clue. We can handle the commute. I just want the best area for the kids so they will be happy

Thanks for the feedback. It is nice to hear positive things about Seattle. I don't like the hot and humid weather here either so I should be just fine there.

cabocurtis · 10-13-2009, 06:44 PM

I work in the lower Queen Anne area and there is good Metro bus service right off the ferry on 1st avenue about 15 minutes more into the queen anne neighborhood. The Hills dont start until you go north of Seattle Center. Boating is good around Bainbridge and Golf is mediocre on the island at the public course and nice at Wing Point if you join the private club. Within a 45 minute drive off the island you can golf at Whitehorse in Kingston, Port Ludlow, Gold Mountain in Bremerton, Trophy Lake and Mcormick Woods Port Orchard some of the best golf in the state. The schools are top notch compared to Seattle schools. Shoreline isnt a bad option for schools but boating is more difficult and golf is below average. Mukilteo has a good golf course and a well rated but crowded school system. Personal I would rather ferry/bus to Queen Anne than bus or drive in from Mukilteo. Yoo do have the sounder train from there to Seattle but have to backtrack north on the bus to Queen anne about 22 minutes by bus.

nfdsouza2001 · 10-14-2009, 12:42 AM

Kingston is good place to live in. Homes are affordable but commuting from Kingston to Bainbridge can be tough. You can take a back way to Bainbridge. only to a certain point and then have to contend with Bainbridge traffic. Good luck

susanandraina · 10-14-2009, 01:28 PM

Hi Gators15,

Bainbridge island is a beautiful area with a population of about 20,000., it has very low crime and top rated schools. The ferry from Bainbridge/downtown Settle is about 30 minutes each way and Queen anne is a very easy distance from downtown. A monthly commuter pass runs about 88.00 and that is for walk on only, I don’t think they have a pass that includes a car so if your husband is willing to do the ferry/bus thing than it can work. Frankly I would rather do the ferry commute than sit in traffic on I5 for hours a day.
We live in West Seattle now but have started looking for a place on Bainbridge because the Seattle school district has a new enrolment policy for the 2010/2011 school year that is location based and while the elementary and middle schools are good in west Seattle the high school is awful so we have started looking for an area where all the schools are good all the way through plus we want a more small town feeling.
Let me know if there is anything else you would like to know about seattle and I will help if I can.