arche_757 Posted February 27, 2014 Share Posted February 27, 2014 Because of the green and planning initiatives they are taking in their city. It says a lot about your city if people are willing to move there whether they have employment or not just because they love living there. I know a few people that have done this. That isn't unique to Portland. New York City and Los Angeles both have reputations of having people move to each for various reasons. Neither are model cities in every sense of the word. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
livincinco Posted February 28, 2014 Author Share Posted February 28, 2014 That isn't unique to Portland.New York City and Los Angeles both have reputations of having people move to each for various reasons. Neither are model cities in every sense of the word.Its a very hazy metric that's pretty much impossible to substantiate. I'm not aware of any data that substantiates why people move to a specific location. I'd also question the long term sustainability of having a bunch of people without jobs moving to your city. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
arche_757 Posted February 28, 2014 Share Posted February 28, 2014 Impossible? Doubtful... Any way back to the topic at hand: Portland and why it is a model city (and what are the things we can learn from/improve upon).Portland gets a lot of hype due to the following:- Weather: Portlands weather is anything but extreme. In fact one could argue that few American cities have such average weather (and that includes heat/cold etc). San Diego may have great sunny weather 300 days a year, but it also suffers from droughts and danger from wildfire etc that Portland does not seem to face nearly as often.- Natural Beauty: Portland has majestic mountains (they are volcanos actually) and beautiful hills both in and around the city. It is also bisected by the Willamette River and its northern edge is formed by the mighty Columbia River (which is the prettiest of America's BIG rivers).- Size: Portland is neither too big to suffer from traffic/crime etc of larger American cities (LA, Chicago, DC), nor is it so small that you can't find/have everything you need in Portland (unlike say Boise or Des Moines or Louisville).- Growth: Portland has had big growth spurts, but the largest (up until the more progressive 2000s) were back when streetcars/and the Model T were common, so those neighborhoods abound and are (as we all know) very popular places for young/old Americans in every city.- Transit: Portland had a forward thinking city council that build a street car system that is the model for almost every other system in America. There is also a decent sized airport that allows international flights- Race: Portland is the "5th Whitest City" in America. So if you'd like to live a "Leave it to Beaver" lifestyle 24/7/365. If that's your thing then Portland is the biggest city in America with such a lack of diversity. Everyone is either a baby boomer/gen-xer/millennial, and a very large percentage are college educated. Sounds quite boring to those (like me) who love diversity and being able to enjoy the richness of other cultures.http://www.oregonlive.com/news/index.ssf/2009/01/in_a_changing_world_portland_r.html Just google "portland lack of " and diversity pops right up I've always viewed Portland and Austin in the same light. Neither are truly great cities, and neither are every really truly going to be great cities. Good cities? Yes, why not? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
august948 Posted March 6, 2014 Share Posted March 6, 2014 Interestingly, Portland ranks #16 in worst congestion in a recent traffic study for North American cities. Houston ranks #20, down from #19 last year. http://www.chron.com/news/transportation/article/Houston-isn-t-in-top-10-metros-with-worst-traffic-5293482.php?cmpid=hpfc#photo-4899173 Curiously, Vancouver ranks at #12 for worst congestion. I could swear I heard someone praising Vancouver's transit situation as well. Could it be that if you put a moratorium on roads and switch the funding to rail that congestion increases? No...say it ain't so. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
editor Posted March 6, 2014 Share Posted March 6, 2014 Portland is only a model city in the minds of the people who live there. And just like with politics and urban legends, if you tell a lie often enough it becomes the truth. Portland was one of the earliest cities to start taking steps in the right direction toward what we consider modern, sustainable urban design. But because of its small size, it was quickly eclipsed by other cities on a practical level. In spite of all their environmental and "new urbanism" boasting, there are VERY few places in Portland where you can live well without a car. Ditto for Seattle and other wannabe model "green" cities. It's all hype. Portlandia is a documentary, not a comedy. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mollusk Posted March 6, 2014 Share Posted March 6, 2014 I'd also question the long term sustainability of having a bunch of people without jobs moving to your city.Perhaps you don't remember the early 80s - when it seemed like one saw as many cars with blue Michigan plates around here as local ones. Shoot, even though I grew up here, I'd moved away and came back with no job prospects in sight around then. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Slick Vik Posted March 6, 2014 Share Posted March 6, 2014 Its a very hazy metric that's pretty much impossible to substantiate. I'm not aware of any data that substantiates why people move to a specific location. I'd also question the long term sustainability of having a bunch of people without jobs moving to your city. There are people moving to Houston every day without jobs, they just aren't talked about because they are from Mexico. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Slick Vik Posted March 6, 2014 Share Posted March 6, 2014 Interestingly, Portland ranks #16 in worst congestion in a recent traffic study for North American cities. Houston ranks #20, down from #19 last year. http://www.chron.com/news/transportation/article/Houston-isn-t-in-top-10-metros-with-worst-traffic-5293482.php?cmpid=hpfc#photo-4899173 Curiously, Vancouver ranks at #12 for worst congestion. I could swear I heard someone praising Vancouver's transit situation as well. Could it be that if you put a moratorium on roads and switch the funding to rail that congestion increases? No...say it ain't so. LA is probably the most car obsessed city in the country, and it's #1. Not sure I see the correlation. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
livincinco Posted March 6, 2014 Author Share Posted March 6, 2014 LA is probably the most car obsessed city in the country, and it's #1. Not sure I see the correlation.The correlation is that transit becomes attractive when traffic gets sufficiently gridlocked that it becomes preferable to driving. Direct correlation to the amount of transit development in these cities. As long as the option to drive is less painful, the vast majority will choose it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
august948 Posted March 6, 2014 Share Posted March 6, 2014 LA is probably the most car obsessed city in the country, and it's #1. Not sure I see the correlation. Portland must be the 16th city most obsessed with cars, then? Perhaps their obsession led them to some bad choices for their citizenry? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
livincinco Posted March 7, 2014 Author Share Posted March 7, 2014 Portland must be the 16th city most obsessed with cars, then? Perhaps their obsession led them to some bad choices for their citizenry? The original reason for this thread was to look at the comparison between Charlotte and Portland which are two cities of almost identical size with very different approaches to planning. I think that it's relevant to point out that Charlotte was listed at #28 in overall congestion. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ArchFan Posted March 8, 2014 Share Posted March 8, 2014 I was reading this thread earlier and it occurred to me to wonder how much peoples' reaction to the original topic would be influenced by what I could call the hipster-trendophilia syndrome. Awhile back, it occurred to me that there was an axis that existed, one that tended to shuttle young acolytes between places like Austin, Portland, SF, Santa Fe, Boulder, et al., in their quest for jobs that would pay just enough to enable them to exist in some place that satisfied their need to feel fulfilled in some way. Insofar as those people received satisfaction in their quests, the places they perceived as vital instruments tended to wind up being shining icons in the minds of many other young (and not-so-young) idealistic people. I'm not saying that those feelings are necessarily bad ... but, there does to be some sort of starry-eyed innocence in the worship that those places seem to receive. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
livincinco Posted March 8, 2014 Author Share Posted March 8, 2014 I was reading this thread earlier and it occurred to me to wonder how much peoples' reaction to the original topic would be influenced by what I could call the hipster-trendophilia syndrome. Awhile back, it occurred to me that there was an axis that existed, one that tended to shuttle young acolytes between places like Austin, Portland, SF, Santa Fe, Boulder, et al., in their quest for jobs that would pay just enough to enable them to exist in some place that satisfied their need to feel fulfilled in some way. Insofar as those people received satisfaction in their quests, the places they perceived as vital instruments tended to wind up being shining icons in the minds of many other young (and not-so-young) idealistic people. I'm not saying that those feelings are necessarily bad ... but, there does to be some sort of starry-eyed innocence in the worship that those places seem to receive.I agree with your points and it brings up an interesting question about people locating where they "want" vs where they can find a job. Not sure how prevalent that is, but it would be interesting to see how much of an impact that has on figures related to unemployment. Lots of media coverage related to the number of people that are underemployed and from a strictly economic sense, unwillingness to move to where the jobs are would certainly reduce economic efficiency and would cause underemployment. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
livincinco Posted March 14, 2014 Author Share Posted March 14, 2014 Continuing issues with TriMet's ability to manage the transit network that has been constructed in Portland. http://www.oregonlive.com/commuting/index.ssf/2014/01/state_audit_finds_trimet_needs.html#incart_m-rpt-2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
luciaphile Posted March 18, 2014 Share Posted March 18, 2014 I was reading this thread earlier and it occurred to me to wonder how much peoples' reaction to the original topic would be influenced by what I could call the hipster-trendophilia syndrome. Awhile back, it occurred to me that there was an axis that existed, one that tended to shuttle young acolytes between places like Austin, Portland, SF, Santa Fe, Boulder, et al., in their quest for jobs that would pay just enough to enable them to exist in some place that satisfied their need to feel fulfilled in some way. Insofar as those people received satisfaction in their quests, the places they perceived as vital instruments tended to wind up being shining icons in the minds of many other young (and not-so-young) idealistic people. I'm not saying that those feelings are necessarily bad ... but, there does to be some sort of starry-eyed innocence in the worship that those places seem to receive. Saw this today: http://www.theatlanticcities.com/jobs-and-economy/2014/03/us-cities-highest-levels-income-segregation/8632/ It strikes me that what "hipsters" want is only what (few things) they've been taught to want. Despite their self-reflecting devices, I don't see anything unusually narcissistic in the current twenty- and thirty-somethings. If anything, there is far less of the smugness and self-involvement of, say, the Boomers, or the pure materialism of my own cohort.As befits a generation that has come of age knowing nothing but a meritocracy, and nurtured on the promise of egalitarianism, I could see where young people might be attracted to certain cities because those cities feel like the momentary fulfillment of that promise, even as the rest of the country trends a different direction. Austin doesn't fare nearly as well as Portland in this regard (Portland evidently being the second-least-income-segregated large metro in the country) but it certainly trails other Texas cities.Among large metros, Richard Florida finds, "San Antonio has the highest level of income segregation, followed by Memphis, New York, Houston, Washington, San Francisco, Philadelphia, Dallas, Denver, and Austin." (SA is #7, Houston is #13, Austin #32.) Indeed, the retreat of the wealthy into enclaves may be said to be a hallmark of the Texas model: "The most highly segregated metros are actually smaller and medium sized, many of them in Texas. El Paso tops this list, followed by second and third-ranked Laredo and McAllen. College Station comes in sixth place. San Antonio, which is first out of large metros, is eighth overall, and Brownsville is ninth. Outside of Texas, Bridgeport, Connecticut is fourth; Trenton, New Jersey fifth; Memphis eighth; and Jackson, Tennessee tenth." I know most urban enthusiasts will file this development under "Dynamism!" but if you're a certain age, it's a little strange, not at all what was expected. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Subdude Posted March 18, 2014 Share Posted March 18, 2014 You know, I've given some thought to Portland as an eventual retirement destination, but that's more about climate than anything else. I'm about as far from a "hipster" as it is possible to be. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nativehoustonion Posted March 18, 2014 Share Posted March 18, 2014 I love Portland you can take the light rail from the airport. It is walkable everywhere but too cold and always raining. It has a good light rail system, but Portland is only 135 square miles. I wish Houston could at least build rail inside the loop. Houston has far more museums and better restaurants. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
IronTiger Posted March 18, 2014 Share Posted March 18, 2014 [/q"The most highly segregated metros are actually smaller and medium sized, many of them in Texas. El Paso tops this list, followed by second and third-ranked Laredo and McAllen. College Station comes in sixth place. San Antonio, which is first out of large metros, is eighth overall, and Brownsville is ninth. Outside of Texas, Bridgeport, Connecticut is fourth; Trenton, New Jersey fifth; Memphis eighth; and Jackson, Tennessee tenth." College Station area is at least explained by its a college town. There are very, very few ultra-ritzy neighborhoods and even less super-nice restaurants and stores. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Subdude Posted March 18, 2014 Share Posted March 18, 2014 It is walkable everywhere but too cold and always raining. Check, check, check. That's why it's on eventual retirement radar. I love a wet climate. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nativehoustonion Posted March 18, 2014 Share Posted March 18, 2014 So move. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Subdude Posted March 18, 2014 Share Posted March 18, 2014 Well it's not as simple as all that. One day perhaps. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nativehoustonion Posted March 18, 2014 Share Posted March 18, 2014 I like going there for a few days. There unemployment is 8% with hippies walking around smoking pot. It is still a great city I'm not a cold person. I love the Houston heat until August, then I go to Portland. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tumbleweed_Tx Posted March 19, 2014 Share Posted March 19, 2014 I have a good friend in Portland who is in real estate. He sells garages that have houses attached to them, caters to the car guy market Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nativehoustonion Posted March 19, 2014 Share Posted March 19, 2014 I'm not a car guy market. I fly United Airlines, are you joking? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Subdude Posted March 19, 2014 Share Posted March 19, 2014 I thought Portland had regulations about "snout houses" that were garage-dominated. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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