Hi Oregon, coming out your way

[CanonRay]

Hi all, my wife and I are spending the next two months in your beautiful state, renting a house in Florence. We're going to be looking for a home somewhere in Oregon (assuming we can sell our Colorado home...I can't handle the altitude any more). Our first choices are Florence, Philomath, Banks, St. Helens,and Forest Grove. We're tired of fighting the redneck Rethugs here, and are looking for a decidely liberal small to medium sized town. Any other suggestions?

Thanks DUers!

[Bluenorthwest]

1. I live in Eugene and like it very much....

Florence is a straight shot across, I love, love the Oregon Coast. Winchester Bay. Gold Beach. My favorite is Ashland, for the theater at Oregon Shakespeare Festival, http://www.osfashland.org/plays/index.aspx

[CanonRay]

2. Great town, but too hot in summer to liver there!

Last time it was over 100 every day.

[stubtoe]

3. Each town you named is red as red can be.

Try Corvallis. Expensive, though. Got a job lined up, or are you retired?

[CanonRay]

6. We looked these towns up in "Best Places to Live"

and there was a Minimum 20 point differential between Democratic voter registrations and Republican. (Unlike my current town, which is 55-30 Republican). How can they be Rethug with that kind of registration spread? Thay are also all about 20% "religious" which is much better than the 60% here. Are you guys sure they're Rethug territory?????

I'm retired, so I don't have to worry about the job market, thank heavens.


On Edit: I don't expect there to be zero Republicans, just a lot less than us. I'm tired of losing elections.

[stubtoe]

8. Really?? That surprises me.

Lived here almost 30 years now; I find the data to be more positive than the actual experience. I'd love to see your sources, got any links? Well, who knows, maybe things are changing.

If you want decidedly liberal, I can count them on one hand:

Portland
Corvallis
Eugene
Ashland
and maybe Yachats on the coast. Nice little town.

Here is a great resource on Oregon's cultural regions, for your research:

http://members.peak.org/~gourleyr/Docs/9States.pdf

It's from 2003, so a bit dated, but it's a very good analysis by the Oregonian, and would be valuable for anyone relocating.

[CanonRay]

9. Thanks and here's some links

http://www.bestplaces.net/

http://www.bestplaces.net/voting/city/oregon/forest_grove Shows Forest Grove as 59.82% Dem, 24.89% Religious

http://www.bestplaces.net/city/oregon/st._helens Shows St. Helens as 54.06% Dem, 22.65% religious

http://www.bestplaces.net/city/oregon/philomath Philomath is 64.33% Dem, 21.8% religious

http://www.bestplaces.net/city/oregon/florence Florence is 62.35% Dem, 23.62% religious

Banks shows the same stats as Forest Grove, so it's possible they are lumping them together as Banks is so small.

On the flip side,it shows Coos Bay as only 46.53% Dem and 24.45% religious Gold Beach is only 42.41% Dem

I can't totally vouch for these stats, as they seem to lump several towns together e.g. Newport and Bandon, etc. That's why I was asking the locals. Unfortunately, we really don't want to live in a city as large as even Eugene. We've been up in the Colorado mountains for ten years, but are unable to tolerate the altitude any longer, so Oregon is our choice. We'll just have to explore for a while. I'm thinking of contacting the Dem county chairs.

Thanks againn for the help.

[grasswire]

12. Oregon native here, and I would disagree with your data as well.

I live in a suburb of Portland, and even this close to a liberal city the ignorance of current events, social issues, and political literacy is surprising.

Eugene is the most liberal community. Part of SE Portland would be second, I would guess.

[sense]

10. Showing my age...

Been here more than 50 years.... and I must agree with your assessment.

[mk2guy7355]

11. +1

[0rganism]

4. You won't escape the redneck pugs in Forest Grove...

I don't know what you have in mind, but the towns you listed are not exactly progressive bastions of liberality.

Are you retired or independently wealthy? If not, what kind of work will you do? This is very much a determining factor for where you should be looking to locate.

[LWolf]

5. My mom lived in Florence for several years.

She couldn't take the rain, and ended up on the east side of the Cascades.

If you want liberal, you may not want to look for small towns.

I love Ashland and Portland. You might like they outlying areas around Portland. If you are going to be here for a couple of months, spread your net widely!

[laconicsax]

7. IIRC, there's an ex-DUer in Florence.

I think sandnsea said they live in Florence at some time before being banned.

[stubtoe]

13. Hi, CanonRay, just checking in to see how your search is going.

I'd love to hear!

[Lydia Leftcoast]

14. I lived in Corvallis for two years and loved it

I'd still be there if Oregon State University hadn't been such a terrible employer.

It's small and manageable but large enough to have a cultural life of its own. A real countercultural vibe. Convenient to both mountains and the coast. Beautiful views of the Coast Range and sometimes the Cascades. Easy access to Salem and Eugene and not so bad for going to Portland.