Bedroom Communities

I’ve lived in the Portland Metro Area my whole life. Started out in the Hawthorne neighborhood, then Parkrose, Mt. Tabor (x2), Kelly Butte, Rockwood, Metzger/Washington Square, Tualatin, Boring, Mt. Tabor (again), Parkrose (again), Somerset, Raleigh Hills, Clinton/Hawthorne, Progress, Hillsboro, Sellwood, Beaverton/Murray Hill (x2), a couple of vicarious arrangements in Vancouver, and now, after a 12 year absence, I find myself in Columbia County.

We had the opportunity to go to Newberg or here. From our research it looked like Columbia County was less of a bedroom community than Yamhill County. I have been wondering why that is? Scappoose & St. Helens are closer to Portland – especially downtown – than Newberg and McMinnville.

The only thing I can figure is that the drive north on Highway 30 is ugly, until one gets past the St. Johns Bridge. The industrial area in NW Portland is very distracting and people can’t get past that. It provides a protective barrier that has kept the metro suburbanites from spreading NW into Columbia County.