Tell me about Corvallis!

[GuavaGirl]

We may be moving there but I'm somewhat unfamiliar with the area and I've love some insight or where to live.  I've driven through town plenty of times though.  Where are the areas to look for and which are the ones to avoid?  We'd like to live not too far from town but want to feel like it's a nice safe cozy neighborhood.  ...at the same time, a place that has a slight country feel, where we can have a garden and couple chickens sounds nice too.  

Do you like it there?  Tell about it.

thanks so much.

[journeywooz]

I loved Corvallis.  If you want a more country-feel, Philomath might work and its a few miles west.  Or the outer edges of Corvallis could work.

Their farmer's market is amazing, and the place has so much to offer--trails, resources, and all the good stuff.  Close to the coast and the mountains.

[phathui5]

When is the farmer's market in Corvallis?

[pomplemoose]

I've lived here for most of my life. I love raising my kids here. We live about 8 miles north of corvallis in Adair Village. It's about a 10 minute drive and yes we can have chickens! We are right next to state forests and a wild life refuge great place for quiet country-esque living. The farmers market is downtown on 1st street and its on wednesdays and saturdays. They have a winter market at the fairgrounds too for when the weather turns. 

[olliesmommy]

I don't live in Corvallis, but worked there for years & am there al the time since it has the amenities that we need that our rural town doesn't have.

There's a pretty big Food Not Lawns movement in Corvallis, folks have taken out their lawns & are growing food instead of grass & there is a yearly backyard chicken coop tour. It's my understanding that if chickies are penned & there are no roosters it's an unlimited number that can be kept (double check tho!).

It's a college town, so every September a large population of kids converge on the town & there's the typical college town issues (drinking, parties, football games, traffic, etc). But it's not so out of control that it's a horrible place, I just make sure to time things around games so I'm not stuck in traffic or get stuck trying to go out for dinner when there's big events going on.

There's a really great Crunchy vibe, lots of good places to spend time with family & kids activities. Housing is higher than some of the other closer towns mentioned above, but there are a lot of areas that are walkable/bikeable which is super nice. Some pretty good places to eat & a Co-op that's amazing for organic/local foods.

If you are thinking of renting there is a company locally that you should look in to before you rent from them, pm me & I will give you more info.

[Italiamom]

For the love of god, don't buy or rent near the university.  Of the three college towns I've lived in, Corvallis was the worst as far as noise.  But if you stick with the NW part of town, or parts of South town, it's very much just like any other small city.  If you're renting, avoid properties with the notorious "red doors."  Really!!  PM me if you'd like more info.  Be prepared to either get out of town, or avoid driving on game days.  In the summer when all the students leave, it's a much nicer place.

I hated living there, although for much of it we needed to live near the university, which was just awful.

[ashleyb87]

Old thread I know but we love in the country-ish area of Corvallis. Lewisburg would be another option besides Adair Village. Feel free to PM me if you want. We LOVE it here. I love that I can park downtown and walk all over.