Charming towns for a creative person (Seattle, Olympia: renting, crime rates, house)

[mayfair]

Originally Posted by Unicorn hunter

Bellingham popped into my head immediately and agree it's getting pricey. Lots of good hiking, trails...lots going on with the university. Beautiful setting. Lots of creative, intelligent people, liberal......pretty much ticks off the boxes, if it's affordable for the OP.

True! But If OP thinks Pt. Townsend is run down, then Bellingham will appear about the same.

[homesinseattle]

Another vote for Bellingham. Vashon Island would certainly work too. Ruth, Vashon still has a bit of a hippie vibe (in a good way) but is looking pretty nice these days.

[ndcairngorm]

I love Bellingham but it is getting pretty trafficky these days. If you don't mind that, there's a good arts scene, and everything the university offers there. Only thing is, housing is pricing itself out of the market. Lots of small one bedroom rentals but trying to buy something is like trying to get in on the Black Friday sales.

[Blondebaerde]

Originally Posted by mayfair

True! But If OP thinks Pt. Townsend is run down, then Bellingham will appear about the same.

It isn't, and other isn't, either.

To the original message, Nah, don't worry about Silly, Judgmental, etc. I'll stand with "just not too clever."

• Neither Port Townsend nor Port Angeles are "run down."
• I have a monster pickup in my garage, next to the 911. (Had) Trump signs in Kirkland, and carry gun(s), chump. With two Master's degrees, one Bachelor's in STEM, and top few percentile income. "Yeeeee HAAAA?" How about, GMAFB.
• Love to live near old people, because they call the police on dirtbags while I am busy asleep.
• Find the military to be great neighbors, i.e. almost all of San Diego.
• "Ritzy" means "educated and successful," and non-"diverse", in skills the area OBVIOUSLY needs. Not Lesbian Basket Weaving Literature BS.

Bay Area tech workers are fascinating people and understand how to one, make money; and two, leverage technology to forward the human condition for winners. They are genuine intellectuals: some Far Left wackos (i.e. all of Facebook), and quite a few Conservatives, too. Try Seattle tech workers, too. Oh wait, no you won't be.

How about this: live with the bums on the side of I-5 and play "musical instruments." The level of passive insult, misunderstanding, and ultimate absurdity is no longer bearable in this thread...

Bottom line: I'd suggest Helsinki, Finland, since that is the place furthest from my current place of residence of the choices provided.

[StealthRabbit]

Why is this in Seattle sub-forum? That will seriously limit 'freeze' your replies! Everyone KNOWS Seattle is best!, and it IS 'washington!' (You really think there is anywhere BUT Seattle in WA?)


But you have one thing correct... follow the money!

Joseph, OR
Bend, OR
Hood River, OR (trust fund baby paradise, kite-board and Ski...)
Santa Fe
Taos
Aspen
Jackson Hole
Big Sky...

In WA...
Vashon (and a few San Juan Communities)
Chelan,
Fairhaven
Pt Roberts

Lots of wonderful choices!

[AADAD]

Girdwood Alaska

[Seacove]

Langley, Whidbey Island.

[bartonizer]

Originally Posted by Zima1349

I wasn't sure of the best title since "creative" can be interpreted in many ways. Instead of trying to explain, I will create a list.

Warning: Some will probably find it silly, judgmental, and overly critical.

Sometimes it's easier to say what you are NOT looking for. Here's what I want to avoid:

• Run-down (Port Townsend, Port Angeles, most towns in the Cascades)
• Monster pickup trucks, trump signs, guns... (most towns in the Cascades)
• A suburb (Edmonds)
• A retirement community (Anacortes)
• A military base (Everett)
• Overly "ritzy" (Some parts of Bainbridge)

And, here's what I want:

• Liberal
• Intellectual population (and hopefully a little more interesting than the average bay area tech worker, though tech has some of the best people I've met, too)
• It's possible to go out the front door and go for a nice walk through both town and nature
• Has forests and parks nearby
• There are places such as breweries and coffeehouses where one can read a book or maybe even talk to other humans
• Reasonable commute to Olympics and North Cascades (3 hours)
• Reasonable commute to Seattle (2 hours)

So far the two places I've found are Langley and Vashon. The latter is on the run-down side, but close and I know many musicians live there. I only know Langley from visiting but it looks adorable and close to perfect. Isolation is a concern there, but perhaps it's worth it.

The other alternative for me is to live in West Seattle, but Seattle is just getting too big for my taste...

Just for fun, feel free to suggest places outside of the Seattle area or even outside of America. However, I love northern landscapes and moody weather, so I'd limit this to PNW, BC, Alaska, and parts of northern Europe.

Between this post and your earlier posts you've described Bellingham to a tee. I've even heard people describe Bham as West Seattle or similar to other neighborhoods back in the day. And as others have mentioned, it's hard to find anything available- because it has become very desirable- especially for people who desire a laid back existence. We have 15 breweries, multiple bookstores, trails galore, and multiple commercial areas- including Fairhaven as the quaint, historic little village, and then a downtown filled with independent shops and funky restaurants. It has a distinct vibe and is not suburban at all in feel, and much of the town (especially west of I-5) is very walkable and bikeable, but surrounded on most sides by mountains and water. You're closer to Vancouver than Seattle, but still in the two hour range, traffic dependent.

The shabby thing is the only hiccup. There are parts of town with nicer, larger houses, and those with westward facing water views- South Hill or Fairhaven, for example (though you'd have to exchange your beloved Olympics for San Juan Islands and/or Canadian Coastal Mountains). And, you still may find something that fits all your wants for $500-700k. But it needs to be mentioned that most Western WA towns are green, lush and overgrown. The housing stock that is near walkable areas varies but tends to be older, so I'd suggest slowing your pace and reconsidering how much that means to you, and taking a better look at what's around. If it's new, it's likely to be more expensive, and more sterile, and lack the character that you desire. A gentrifying area or town is more likely to have the vibe you're looking for, but also may be a bit run down, but improving. You probably can't have it 100% both ways, though you can come close.....

Anyway, I think that the Port Townsend comment is throwing everyone off. Most people regard it as extremely charming, so again, the run down comment comes across as a little insulting, as it's a spot a lot of people would love to live in. But I have a hunch that it (and definitely places like Langley or Vashon) may be a bit too small and remote for you, so personally I'd suggest doing a more thorough exploration of Olympia and especially Bellingham.

[PS90]

Originally Posted by Diana Holbrook

This. I don't think I can help you. I think unless you can seriously open your own mind to people who might be a little different than you, you'll honestly be happier just looking at pretty pictures of the NorthWest online.

For now I am leaving Trump signs out of it, because they are unusual, and temporary.

You want a well paid population (no run down or poor-looking houses) with time for creative endeavors (music and art) and recreational leisure time (social scene and breweries), but you don't want them to be too old (no retireds) too well paid (no ritzy) too nerdy (no tech workers) and probably want none of the employment opportunities or development that would support such a population (walking distance to forests and parks).

You want a young intellectual population who live in the woods with no pickup trucks or guns. You want to live in the pretty forest without any of the people (loggers, excavators, mill workers, road builders, construction trades people, utility workers, farmers, firemen, hunters and others, who make life in the sticks possible for you.

You want a fairy tale version of what rural life is like.

There are wonderful places to live in Western Washington. Beautiful places with gorgeous views and wonderful natural places I could show you. Small towns with good people in them. Diverse people. Not the Seattle definition of diversity... actual diversity where people think differently, and value individual freedom and property rights and neighbors who just go about their lives and mind their own business, and actually get along pretty well, most of the time. We will accept anyone here from pretty much any background, except for those who want to tell us what to do, and thieves, we help each other guard against those.

I know lots of creative people in my town... musicians, artists, crafters, writers, hippies. They all would fail your litmus test in at least one category. But most of them are happy here... At least, the ones who are willing to find their own balance in life, rather than expecting everyone else to provide it around them.

If you think you can widen your horizons and open your mind a little, maybe I could help you. I wish you luck.

This is an excellent post.

OP, I'm hoping that your wishes are just that - an idealistic list that you acknowledge may never be completely fulfilled - rather than a closed-minded, intolerant view of what you think rural life should be like.

[pikabike]

What the OP described is a strange kind of trustfunder town. Money, loads of free time yet not old/retired or “shabby.” Intolerantly liberal enough to disallow other political flavors yet NIMBY about having nonprivileged nonpretty people around. Safe yet devoid of any military or gun taint.

Affordability or job market was never mentioned. Maybe OP can establish his or her very own Bubble Town filled with clones desperately trying to pass as creatives.

Every genuinely creative hotbed I’ve ever been in has plenty of messy or weird people in it. Goes with the territory...

This wishlist town sounds like a very conformist group, not creative.