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tell me about living in Beaverton, OR

1K views 8 replies 5 participants last post by  zjande 
#1 ·
After living in Eugene for ten years the school budget situation is seriously making me want to move. They are considering closing my daughter's school and that school is one of the main reasons we have stayed here so long!
I have heard that Beaverton has really good schools so I checked out the district's website and I am very impressed. Almost every school in the district scored an "outstanding" and they seem well funded. From what I can see on the various city websites, I think I would like it there. There appears to be lots of parks, greenspaces, it sounds pedestrian friendly, and the farmer's market sounds great!

But of course the city websites can make any place sound good, so I want to hear from you all! I really want to live in Portland proper, but my partner is not into it, and figuring out the schools is daunting, so I am looking at suburbs of pdx. Beaverton is the first place I have really looked into because of the school district's excellent reputation. Due to our current school situation the schools are a HUGE factor, but I do want to live where we will fit in. Are there a good amount of progressive/ liberal, crunchy, attachment parenting types there? Are some neighborhoods more conservative or more liberal? Are some areas not nice or family friendly? Is there a good health food store? I read there is only one charter school, but are there alternatives to the traditional public school setting? What is the general feel of the town?

I've wanted to move to the Portland area for a long time but don't know very much about it. Any info or suggestions you may have would be great!
 
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#2 ·
Honestly, I found Beaverton to be one endless suburb with lots of big box stores and not too many places for the kids to hang out. The houses and apartments are very cookie cutter in nature.

Have you looked at Lake Oswego? Great schools, very walkable and closer to Portland hippiness.
 
#4 ·
As someone who lived in Eugene for many years, and now resides in Portland (and has also lived in Lake Oswego, and Beaverton for a few short, miserable bouts), I can tell you that you're not going to find a Portland suburb that is similar to Eugene in terms of walkability/pedestrian friendliness. If those are important to you, you would want to reside in the city proper. That goes for Beaverton, Lake Oswego, Tigard, Clackamas, or any of the suburbs. All of them have their advantages (like good schools) and disadvantages (big box stripmalls, or wealthy, uppity people), but NONE of the suburbs here will match Eugene in terms of transit options, walkability, and pedestrian friendliness.
 
#5 ·
I know the special Bubble we call Eugene is hard to beat.


I also know I will be happiest in Portland, but I'm having a hard time convincing DP that he will also be happy there. He wants our yard to back up to trees or at least be big and private. I tell him we can have big and private in pdx, but he is not convinced. And when I try to research Portland schools it's just very overwhelming. It seems like in the neighborhoods I like the schools don't have a great rep., and some neighborhoods have great elementary schools that feed into not great middle schools, etc.. There's just so much to figure out. All I've come up with as far as where to go in pdx is that I think Mt. Tabor looks good b/c my friend is a teacher at the middle school and he says the neighborhood schools are good and i like the big park and that it's all residential but there's a new seasons, etc nearby.

Anyone want to suggest some neighborhoods in pdx to check out? Schools are the biggest factor, followed by a big yard, family friendliness of the neighborhood, and walkability.

And if I didn't mind living in suburbia, which suburb would you suggest?
 
#6 ·
We live in SW PDX and we love it. It isn't as hip as other neighborhoods, but it is wooded and lovely. We have a 90+ acre park less than a mile (google Gabriel Park) and tons of young families (not as crunchy as SE). We have a really big yard and live on a quiet street. The schools are really good here (Maplewood, Gray, Wilson), maybe not as good as Lake O, but certainly as good as Beaverton. There are even some parts of the neighborhood that are in Beaverton schools if you think you wanted that. You could google Multnomah Village and Hillsdale. Also, New Seasons for organic food and a neighborhood co-op, Food Front, is in Hillsdale. Will you have a chance to visit?
 
#7 ·
Thanks for your suggestions Beka. I hadn't looked in to the west side much because my friends live on the east side so I know more about that part of town. But I do like how the west side has more tress and hills. I will have plenty of chances to visit and check out the areas, I always love a trip up to portland.
 
#9 ·
We live in Beaverton. I agree that it is very sprawling suburbia, with all sorts of ugly shopping areas everywhere. But we came here from the bay area in CA 4 years ago, so in comparison, I think it's gorgeous here! :) So much green, trees everywhere, and we are right on the very edge of farm land in several directions. I *love* that when I'm out running regular errands, like taking the kids to the dentist or something, I have to drive right through farm lands to get there. There are great farms & farm stores nearby, tons of U-pick food places all summer, the Beaverton farmer's market is awesome, & even New Seasons, though sometimes way overpriced, is a great place to get sustainable, organic foods when all else fails. Also, soo many people grow gardens here, or have or are interested in backyard chickens. And I've found so many parks & natural areas to take the kids to play at. We're smack dab in suburbia but can walk to 3 playgrounds, including a huge area for the dog to play. We love the new "sprayground" in Hillsboro. And the people are SO friendly! It was a remarkable difference for us, coming from the bay area.

However, we would like somewhere *less* liberal, plus we want to own a big chunk of land, so we're looking to move to Idaho one day. LOL!

Good luck with your search!

ETA: I forgot to mention that we homeschool so I can't be helpful in the school area.
 
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