W. Pasco or Ocean Shores WA??? (Kennewick, Richland: rentals, insurance, condos)

[IvanInVegas]

Hello, names Ivan. I currently live in Las Vegas NV with my wife. In short we hate it here. IM 22 shes 21... and we were in the tri-cities a couple weeks ago and liked it. We stayed in Kennewick and took a few drives to look at the areas of W Pasco and W Richland... We liked it... Hardly any traffic and the people are crazy nice... It was kinda scary at first LOL.

Anyway after alot of research we decided on W. Pasco, we want to rent and have a house built while we are there but while searching the net for rentals we found some property in Ocean Shores. Personally I would love living by the beach but I've never been there either so I dont know if this would be my best choice.

My kid should be born on July 1st :-D and I just want to find a good place to raise my kid. Where would any of you suggest we go?

Thanks for any replys in advance

[scirocco22]

My vote is for the Tri Cities.

Ocean Shores, IMHO, doesn't live up to its hype. Remember, Washington beaches aren't that glamorous.

The best way to tell is visit for your self. Who knows, you might like it.

If you've been reading the threads here, I'm sure you realize that there's a huge difference in climate between the Tri Cities and the Washington coast. Tri Cities isn't quite as hot and dry as Las Vegas in the summer and it will be quite a bit colder than LV in the winter. The coast will be damp most of the year with few clear days ...mild summers and mild winters but wet, either foggy, overcast or rainy. When the sun is out, it feels good there, though.


Thanks.

--'rocco

[Ryan]

Since I'm the only person on this board that's lived in both places (currently in W. Pasco), I guess I'm kind of obligated to offer advice . It's not the kind of beach your thinking. Search Ocean Shores in some of my older posts. As far as W. Pasco, it's been great so far, but we've only been hear a month or so. If you have any specific questions let me know. I could go on about both.

[jaydbrk]

I'm sure your best info will come from Ryan, but in case you are looking for sort of a poll, i'll give you my 2 cents as a frequenter of Ocean Shores. (Well, maybe that's 1 cent.)

My family loves Ocean Shores, likely for the same reasons that may make it not so great as a permanent residence. We love going there, and have even looked into buying a house there, but realized that we go there for something different than we get at home. If it became home, it wouldn't be a vacation to go there anymore.

We go to O.S., not just for the beach, as there are better beach areas to be visited, but for the quiet and relative solitude. There are lots of weekend events throughout the year that break up the quiet, but my guess is that a couple as young as you and used to such a large variety of activity and people would find it tiresome and isolating in short order. At the very least, i would spend a solid week there (in the winter, don't cheat) before even considering it as a residence. Even if you love what it has to offer, it can end up being too much of a good thing.

[Rrrrichard99]

And it's still relatively affordable. I have spent many a vacation in and around Ocean Shores, and Westport, etc. While it is not ritzy, and while summer crowds may bring you down, and while amenities (restaurants, grocery stores) are not as regal as you may be accustomed to, let me say this. Standing on the edge of the Pacific Ocean can be and usually is a humbling, awe-inspiring experience. I have nothing less than total respect for all it represents. And the beach is huge! And long . . . and there are MILES of canals on the inner side of Ocean Shores. As for the people, they seem as nice as anywhere else, generally speaking. But I try and avoid the crowds. I can do without all the touristy civic spasms. But early mornings and weekdays you sometimes find yourself alone. Just you and the Pacific, brother. And the birds, and the whales, and the everpresent wind. As for Pasco, I don't know JACK SQUAT!

[rambrush]

ok my 3 cents worth is
Explore the tri-cities look at finley benton city and or burbank as well. Then notice the parks, Columbia park, levy landing, sacajwea, aires and such up the the rivers.
My opinion it can not be beat. we used to go fishing out of ocean shores and westport area and it was a drive to get there but it gave us the best of both worlds.
You have the right idea to escape from Vegas

[Ryan]

And make sure you take your trip in the winter when the power goes out 3-4 times a week for 6-12 hours at a time and the wind and rain blow nearly 100 miles an hour. Good times right there, but how about the summer when 3-4 million inconsiderate bougeoisie tourists treat the locals like dirt, wipe out the ONLY grocery store in town, clog the 2 lane roads making it nearly impossible to get anywhere without walking and there are more cars and people on the beach than seagulls. And how about that Pacific Ocean. You cant go more than a few feet into it without a rip tide grabbing you; great to look at though (?). And the city planning dept. (ugh) allows 40 year old mobiles to sit next to million dollar homes. That's all around. Look up the public works water supply lawsuit for a good read. That's all just a small bad taste of why you should avoid OS, and I could think of a lot more.

OS does have a couple of the better restaurants in the area (Lucky Dragon, Galway Bay), and lots of elderly people if your interested in the retirement community aspects, but that's it.

If you want a nice beach for your $, look into Grayland and the adjacent coastal areas. It's absolutely beautiful there, and just a short commute to Aberdeen etc.where you can actually find work, shop etc. while still enjoying a secluded atrmosphere and the best beaches right where you live.

- I just saw the guy who top posted me. IMO, Finley and Burbank are nasty little desert trailer parks. Benton City will be the next area to really grow, but for now, it's very country and mostly farmland. Not bad, just different from Pasco... and Westport does have some of the best fishing on the coast, but the Columbia River isn't too shabby either.

[rambrush]

Yep the fishing is great around the tri-cities. launch at Aires up the snake and fish all the rip raff rocks and the bass are all over.
Head up to Othello to the Potholes resevoir and catch most anything. Osullivan is just north of there for even better fishing. Just under the bridge and a tad north in West Richland has been great catfishin country on down to the old twin bridges area.

[Rrrrichard99]

For heaven's sake, the man is talking about relocating out of LAS VEGAS, the TOURIST CAPITAL OF THE WORLD! I think he could handle summer crowds, don't you? I've lived in Leavonworth in the past, and over a decade in Winthrop, and they suffer from tourist problems too (we like to call them 'Tourons'--a cross between a tourist and a moron . . .). But it's a problem you learn to deal with. You make sure your gas tank is filled before a major concert, and before the weekend. If you've got a post office box, you skip your mail now and then. You buy groceries on weekday nights, and you ABSOLUTELY stock up before the big summer holidays. It comes naturally after awhile. As for the power going out, that is small potatoes indeed. I've had my power go out for several days at a stretch in the dead of winter, with subfreezing temperatures, up in the North Cascades. Hey, if you don't have a woodstove, a generator, a stocked fridge and pantry, some candles and common sense to prepare for just such predicaments, then you deserve to suffer! Don't blame the city for your own lack of preparedness. As for the winds of winter in OS, yes, it can be intense and drives some people mad. But I happen to love the primal rawness of it all. It is not everyone's cup of tea, but then neither is the cabin fever associated with being snowbound in Winthrop for days at a stretch. Those that learn how to cope can thrive. Those that can't, move. More room for the rest of us. As for SWIMMING in the Pacific Ocean, that is for tourists only. I don't remember anyone, certainly not myself, talking about the pleasures of swimming in the Pacific. Not only riptides, but potent waves and great whites cruising the deep blue. Hence the numerous swimming pools at all the major hotels and condos! But if you like to kayak or canoe along endless canals, or have the nerve and skill to sail on one of the world's premier oceans, right at your front door, or if you like to hop on a charter, and if you generally LIKE PEOPLE, then you should seriously consider the pleasures of Ocean Shores. As for Grayland, it is beautiful indeed, if you don't mind paying 200k for someone's rundown garage! If you want to really worry about living in OS, consider the tsunami risk, the adverse effects of global warming in the not too distant future, and the quality of your home insurance policy if you choose to live there. It's still close enough to perfect for me.

[NCWmark]

Personally, I think the Ocean Shores area is beautiful... but these other people are right, don't think of it like the beaches in California... or even Oregon. The storms rolling inland off the open ocean are gorgeous though.

I used to live in the Tri-Cities area and it is very nice, you will love the lack of traffic and friendly people, though it is growing fast. Coming from Vegas, the heat shouldn't bother you... people need to remember that much of Eastern Washington is classified as a desert.

I'd choose W. Pasco... then I'd visit Ocean Shores now and then.