Best place to raise a family??? (Portland, Beaverton: power lines, crime, homes)

[GaBoy-n-Iraq]

[SIZE=3]Hello Oregon,[/SIZE]
[SIZE=3] I will be leaving the military in about a year, I’m from Georgia but I’m thinking about maybe moving to another state. I have done a lot of research on Oregon, but would like to know what the residents think. What are some good places (cities) to live? Things like crime, schools, economy, state taxes, cost of living, are all important but a couple of things I’m looking for as well is “hospitality”, a sense of neighbor hood, and politeness. I’m looking for a place that has community events (festivals, parades, carnivals, fairs, concerts), with beautiful scenery, hunting, and fishing. I’m currently in the US Army serving in Iraq, I built power lines before I joined and I’m a (25L) Signal Corp Telecommunications Lineman inside the Army. I will be looking for work in the power lineman or telecommunications field when I separate from the military. My wife is a Registered Nurse (RN) and will be looking for a job as well. So any info on power companies, telephone companies, and hospitals in those areas would be greatly appreciated. Best place to raise a family? So what’s your states “Mayberry”? [/SIZE]

[Waterlily]

Hello from Oregon! It's going to be hard to decide as a lot of smaller cities are going to be like you said. Finding a job as a nurse will not be difficult. Just pick any place that has a hospital. Your job might be more difficult to find. You may need a bigger city to find a job for yourself.

I live at the coast out here in what we call the Bay area which is Coos Bay,and North Bend. We've got lots of those events and festivals. There are farmers markets too. Mostly they have these events taking place during summer and into fall when the weather is at it's best.

Keep safe please. We want all our soldiers to come back well.

[GaBoy-n-Iraq]

Originally Posted by Waterlily

Hello from Oregon! It's going to be hard to decide as a lot of smaller cities are going to be like you said. Finding a job as a nurse will not be difficult. Just pick any place that has a hospital. Your job might be more difficult to find. You may need a bigger city to find a job for yourself.

I live at the coast out here in what we call the Bay area which is Coos Bay,and North Bend. We've got lots of those events and festivals. There are farmers markets too. Mostly they have these events taking place during summer and into fall when the weather is at it's best.

Keep safe please. We want all our soldiers to come back well.

Thanks for the info "waterlily"

[Silverfall]

Silverton is our Mayberry as far as I am concerned and the have a great hospital there.

[John Smart]

I can tell you about my area atleast. Beaverton has St Vincent Hospital, Hillsboro has Tuality Hospital and soon to be a Kaiser Perm. hospital. Comcast and Verizon are the big phone/cable compaines. Its not Mayberry but there are nice areas and plenty of community events. You could also easily commute from the small towns of Forest Grove, Banks or North Plains though. Recreation is very nearby --- camping, hunting and fishing off Hwy 6, in the Tillamook Forest, about 40 minutes away. The beach is an hour away, Mt Hood a little longer and then about 3 hours to Central Oregon. I dont know about jobs in Central Oregon but its an outdoorsman's paradise.

[lifes2short]

We live in Sherwood, which I have for years referred to as Mayberry It is a great community with a spirit I have not seen elsewhere. My DH is retired military, so with all those moves we have a lot to compare against. Anyway, there are a lot of retired and former military here. Not sure why, but we do. Great schools, lots of festivals, small enough town that it is really easy to get around, and people look out for each other. The commute to downtown Portland is only 35 minutes, so not far at all. There are hospitals in Newberg, about 5 minutes away, and in Tualatin, about 10 minutes away.

[BLAZER PROPHET]

My thoughts as a 51 year native Oregonian who has lived in every part of the state.

Avoid Portland. Very big and crime and movement is a issue that's getting much worse.

The coast is beautiful, but with 90-10" of rain per year in most areas it's no place to raise kids. Many families move away as they can't play outside much.

The Bend area is ultra elitist liberal and the water table is vanishing. Very beautiful, but too expensive and kooky.

I would suggest the following areas:

Medford, Grants Pass, Klamath Falls, LaGrande- pretty areas, good people, good schools. Good quality of life.

[organic mama]

We have lived in Sandy, Oregon for 6 years now.
Small town feel, but starting to grow fast.
Great place to raise a family...and it's only 35 min. up to the Mountain.
(Mt. Hood ...Fun place if you love to snowboard or love any winter sports.)
Great weather in the summer, Beautiful area, rainy mostly in the winter, but we Doesn't it rain in the winter in Oregon?? Just quack like a duck and you will be fine.

[btc65]

I would probably suggest the Bend area. They have great schools, hunting, and tons of other wonderful outdoor activities. As far as good neighborhoods, there are some great planned communities in Bend, as well as suburbs of Portland. [Mod cut] is a great place to check out beautiful homes in Bend and Portland.

Good Luck on your move to Oregon. Also, thanks for your service to our country.

[Lootmeister]

Sandy, Oregon is a GREAT place to live!