Does Anyone Know About Shelton, WA? (Seattle, Tacoma: crime, buying, YMCA)

[WeCanWithYou]

Hi Shelton Gang, I too am thinking on moving to the Shelton area but would like some more recent posts indicating how it is in 2015 instead of 2007 - eight years can make a difference - such as Lowes moving to town or not? Also am interested in learning how many days of rain you folks get up there plus what a person grow in their garden.... I would so appreciate it if somebody posts something recent so am looking forward to the eight year update! Thanks!

[gumisgood]

i liked it when i lived there. we were like one of 2 black families, so we stuck out a bit. it was kind of racist, but not too bad (i've lived in worse places)..really, i think it was because we were outwardly different. anyway, i enjoyed the country. i liked that there were apple trees free for anyone to pick from right by the bay. i loved picking blueberries, we made home made jam. i liked the puget sound, i liked that we were so close to the forest, and the ocean. i liked that there seemed to be a sense of community. there was a lake that would freeze over, you could skate on. thanksgiving, halloween, christmas...all very fun, lots of events. public swimming pool in the summer, and we used to live right next to it...i was always there. i became a scout there...a webalo haha, but i gave it up to play basketball...

"mason county garbage" was the name of our basketball team. but, we were not garbage...we went undefeated that whole season, and we tied the final game. we ended in a tie..i remember being so upset at that.

anyway, 15 years ago at least...it was a good place to raise a child. i had lots of fun there.

[pikabike]

Mason County Garbage for a team name, LOL. Gotta love the ability to laugh at yourselves. Sounds like you are a resilient person, and that is really key to making a go of it anywhere!

[Sockeye66]

Great pubbing along Cota Street.

[meo92953]

How is the cost of living there? Would a retired 62 year old single woman be happy there? Mind you, where I am living now there is only a mini mart & I have to drive 9 miles to a grocery store.

I'm a quiet person, just looking to relocate to a safe, friendly town. Is there a library? If not. There's the internet. Is it close to the water? I seriously don't care if it's redneck, you may as well be talking about a lot of outlying Minnesota. I am on social security so would need a reasonable apartment. I do love Washington.

[RoryFigz]

Hi there!

My husband and I are looking for more information about the Shelton area. So far I can tell it seems that Shelton has a crazy drug problem- but I grew up in Phoenix so I am no stranger to this. What we are looking for is more along the lines of the outdoors- we love being outside and living in Cincinnati we don't get to do too much. We have to really make plans to go camping for a day- and we would like to be able to live closer to hiking/fishing areas. We would like our children to grow up outside of a bigger city and enjoy the outdoors as well. I would love to know any information about accessibility (whether it is outdoor or shopping) as well as how the population is...Meaning, are people generally shut-ins and cranky, or can I talk to someone at the grocery store without being an obvious outsider.?
Also, if anyone can tell me how local businesses do, I would very much appreciate that! We own a small bakery and would love to relocate as we just don't care for the area surrounding us!

We're looking to move in the next year- so if moving here is a bad idea for us I would love to know honestly. We are looking at Shelton, Elma and Olympia but would love to stay somewhere smaller.

Thank you!
Rory

[Diana Holbrook]

I know all those areas, I was raised around here. Like you said, I don't think the 'drug' issues here are any different than anywhere else. It's around the edges everywhere.

Shelton grew up a timber town, like many of the towns around here, and has suffered the changes in modern timber practices and politics. We still grow and cut a lot of trees, but we have fewer mills, and we export a lot of logs raw now instead. :/ That means a lot fewer jobs here for those towns.

The old Simpson sawmill is the center of Shelton, and it is closed at the moment. :/ The good news though, it has been sold and it is expected to re-open next year. That will mean a lot to Shelton. It's hundreds, not thousands of jobs... but it's the heart of Shelton.

We love our access to the outdoors... it's an hour to the mountains or to ocean beaches... trails, public forest access.

Shelton probably still does a lot of it's major shopping in Olympia.

I think they would enjoy a local bakery. And I bet there is a space for rent on the main drag through downtown.

[CrazyDonkey]

The more housing prices and rents go up in the Olympia area, the more people are looking at the Shelton area, which is still pretty close. You're close to Hood Canal and Olympic National Park, the ocean beaches, Mt. Rainier.

You could also look at Montesano - a little further west, but good scoring schools. Lake Sylvia State Park is great for swimming/picnics, Wynoochee Lake/River for fishing.

[CrazyDonkey]

Look at this:

20301 Van Dyke Rd SW, Rochester, WA 98579 | MLS #839379 | Zillow

Close to Grand Mound. High school has 29 students.

[Diana Holbrook]

Originally Posted by CrazyDonkey

Look at this:

20301 Van Dyke Rd SW, Rochester, WA 98579 | MLS #839379 | Zillow

Close to Grand Mound. High school has 29 students.

I live in Grand Mound / Rochester. It's a nice little town, but the high school has far more than 29 students.
Closer to 600.