Living in Vancouver, Washington: City Guide

Vancouver, Washington was incorporated in 1857 with a population of 250. Vancouver now has a population of 157,000 and is the 4^th largest city in the State, after Seattle, Spokane & Tacoma. Vancouver's proximity to the Portland, Oregon metropolitan area, has lent to its allure of being a beautiful suburbia with all the amenities of the "Big City".

The Vancouver of today has much to offer, and has made great strides to revitalize and create the lively, bustling & diverse city where people can live, work and play. Over the past few years Vancouver has completely renovated the downtown area and made it into a fabulous place to shop, live and play. The Farmers Market downtown is outstanding, and has become one of the regions largest outdoor markets and its only indoor one, and is Southwest Washington's largest visitor attraction. The market has everything from the freshest NW produce and hormone free meats to original works of art from local artisans. Several local entrepreneurs have used the farmers market to catapult themselves into a thriving, stable new business. In addition to the market, Esther Short Park (the oldest public square in the Pacific Northwest, 1855) has outdoor concerts, and other family fun events all summer long.

Vancouver also has limitless choices for recreation available within the city limits or just a short drive away. With the Pacific Ocean just to the west, the Cascade Mountains and the Columbia River Gorge to the East, Vancouver has an outdoor activity for everyone, whether you enjoy, hiking, biking, camping, hunting, windsurfing or just a leisurely stroll. There are 3 local wineries right in the Vancouver metro area and dozens more through out Washington and Oregon. There are even several Casino's nearby. There are several community centers with activities for the kids, such as public pools, rock climbing walls, arts & crafts classes and indoor play equipment.

Vancouver's school system includes the Vancouver School District, the Evergreen School District, Clark Community College and a branch of Washington State University. Vancouver is also home to Washington State Schools for the Deaf and Blind. More information on these and other schools can be found at (http://www.cityofvancouver.us/). In addition to some pretty good schools, Vancouver also has two very large hospitals and a great variety of excellent health care facilities for any medical need you or your family may have.

When ever doing research on a city you intend to relocate to I am sure you will notice that the information you find published on the web always makes any town or city sound like a Utopia. I relocated to the Vancouver area with my family when I was 5 and have lived here for 31 years and I can say from personal experience, growing up here wasn't as glamorous as the cities website would make it sound. I grew up in a fairly decent neighborhood and attended school in the Vancouver School District. 30 Years ago the winters were colder and we frequently experienced quite a bit of snow. The summers were perfect by any stretch of the imagination, with highs between 75 - 85 and a light wild flower and lavender scented breeze sweeping through the city, it was some of the best days of my life.

Today we experience a lot more mild winters and rarely get snow in the city limits, and when we do get harsh winter weather it is always sporadic, unpredictable and very unwelcome. It rains from early October through May, so we are almost always guaranteed a very wet fall, winter and spring, but hey that is why they call Washington the "Evergreen State". Spring here is fabulous with the trees, wild flowers in the fields and meticulously planted landscapes bursting into their full grandeur. The picturesque blossoming trees and flowers are everywhere and the city streets and neighborhoods look like a scene painted by Thomas Kinkade himself. When the sun comes out, the city comes alive. Summer season in the Pacific Northwest is one of the most beautiful glimpses of God's creation I have been blessed to witness. The smell of fresh cut grass, chicken and hotdog's on the barbecue's grilling and the gentle, fresh breeze are just some of the best things about summer here.

The Clark County Fairgrounds open up and a host of activities begin there during summer, including the fair itself in August. There are concerts at the new amphitheater and the tasting rooms in the nearby wineries begin welcoming visitors for the season's tours and life seems to be in full swing in the summer.

Five years ago you could purchase a pretty nice sized three bedroom two bath ranch style home here for about $150,000, since then the average selling price of homes has gone up exponentially, and now that same ranch home will cost you $266,928. I personally think the price of houses is outrageous, but I suppose that is because I know how much they were just 5 years ago. I have heard that the average home price here is considered cheap by many who are relocating here from cities on the east coast and from California, but for me, a native Vancouverite these prices make it impossible for the moderate to lower income, single parents (one of which I am) to ever become homeowners. Rental prices are also a challenge for the moderate to lower income families, since a decent 2 bedroom apartment or duplex in a good neighborhood starts at $675 to $695 and goes up from there, and the majority of these don't include the water, sewer and garbage service in those prices. Vancouver does however have many budget friendly places to shop for food, clothing and other household needs for low income families. We have a variety of retail super-centers, and thrift stores, and Portland, Oregon, where there is no sales tax, is just a hop, skip and jump over the bridge.

Most jobs in Vancouver are limited to high tech, medical and manufacturing fields and most residents opt to work over the bridge in Portland where there are many jobs available for any career field you can imagine. The only downfall to working in Oregon is that they impose an income tax, so if your job or career path isn't historically a big money earner it is not worth the commute over the border. After one pays for gas, higher car maintenance bills, longer daycare hours and income taxes, your going to be bringing home less money than you would earning 2 or 3 dollars an hour less in Vancouver, a little tricky. It seems as though anymore no matter where you live most households can't make it on one income alone anyway.

Overall on a scale of 1 to 10, I give Vancouver a 7.5 on great places to live. Like I said a lot of the wonderful services and programs we offer here have just recently, in the last 5 to 7 years, taken off. It is just now, in my opinion becoming a better place to live work and play. One of my favorite things about this area is that we don't have a lot of HUGE nasty bugs, snakes or otherwise nasty creepy crawlies and as far as I am concerned that is reason enough to consider this area as a permanent residence, if the natural beauty, proximity to the coast and mountains, the job market or the public services and amenities aren't enough to suck you in!