Potential Move to Camas (Seattle, Vancouver: apartment, to rent, condo)

[izzy2017]

Originally Posted by texasdiver

Um no. Not really a concern. That is about the Hanford Nuclear Reservation which is 200 miles upriver and they are talking about slow seeps of groundwater from storage facilties that are well away from the river. The whole Hanford nuclear mess is a giant fiasco that they will be spending billions of dollars to continue to clean up over the next several decades or more. Legacy of our WWII and Cold War bomb making industries. But I have never heard anyone talk about it in Camas or of there being any issue with radioactivity in the water flowing past. if that were the case it would be the whole region including Portland, not just Camas.

The bigger environmental issue (in my mind) are all the coal and oil trains that pass through Camas and could increase in the future if coal or oil shipping terminals ever get built here. The trains pass right through Camas and right along the river. There was a proposal to build a massive oil terminal in Vancouver but I think that is mostly if not completely dead at this point due to lack of permits and leases from the State and the Port. But I'm not 100% positive.

+1 on the Um no.

And the oil terminal proposal is completely dead.
https://www.opb.org/news/article/oil...ver-lease-end/

[texasdiver]

Originally Posted by izzy2017

+1 on the Um no.

And the oil terminal proposal is completely dead.
https://www.opb.org/news/article/oil...ver-lease-end/

Even though the terminal is completely dead there are still coal and oil trains passing through Camas. And there will continue to be efforts to push midwestern oil and coal through Vancouver regardless.

[tanyarlc]

Originally Posted by nestvine

Thanks for the info!

We have made the decision to move to Camas and will be moving in about a month and half. Excited!

would love to know how you feel about your decision a year later and thanks for his thread it is very helpful for those of us that are potentially transplanting!

[nestvine]

We are really loving it.

The beauty here is hard to beat. Absolutely stunning for the most part. The education for our kids is holding steady to our level of expectations. I feel like it is a tad more conservative than we like, but, everyone minds their own business. So easy to get to Portland and PDX if you leave at the right time. We actually find ourselves spending more time on the WA side as more establishments are introduced.

Overall, we feel we absolutely made the right decision.

Let me know if you have any questions.

[QuahTom]

We also made the move from the Seattle area to Camas, WA approximately 9 months ago. This thread helped in our decision process so I thought I would provide an update from our perspective as well.

Overall we're very happy with our decision to move. Camas retains all of the Pacific Northwest's natural beauty without the high cost of living and congestion in the Puget Sound region. The schools are great, there are lots of family-friendly parks and events, and everyone is nice. The only two downsides I can think of would be the general lack of racial diversity compared to the Seattle area. It's not a big deal but it's always very noticeable when returning to visit Seattle. And the wind. The 3-4 weeks during the winter in which there are sustained, heavy wind gusts was something I wasn't prepared for and I really didn't like it.

Overall, though, Camas has a great small town feel to it while still having plenty of bigger city amenities. I'd say it's one of the better kept secrets of great places to raise a family.

Finally since it was brought up in the original post, I will comment that politically it's certainly more conservative than liberal Seattle. You see it in little things such as people being more overtly religious and patriotic. It really shouldn't bother anyone unless you move here prepared to fight about politics in which case you should probably just move to Portland instead.

[texasdiver]

Yes, Camas is more conservative than either Seattle or Portland but it is actually very middle of the road politically. Here is an interesting map from the New York Times of the 2016 election that is, of course, just one data point. But it is instructive and gives outsiders a pretty good political picture of the area. Most of Camas is basically light blue just like all the other ring of suburbs around Portland like Happy Valley, Wilsonville, Hillsboro, etc. Downtown Vancouver is more blue and more similar to Portland. But as you move north and east in Clark County beyond the city limits of Vancouver and Camas it quickly becomes bright red. My Prune Hill precinct went 47/43 for Clinton. Downtown Camas went 53/36 for Clinton. By contrast, the Livingston Mountain area north of Camas went for Trump 50/40 and the Hockinson area went for Trump 56/34. Move further north into the Yacolt area in the far NE corner of the county and the precincts favored Trump 76/18

https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/...122.536/105333

The parts of the Seattle area that would be more similar to Camas politically would probably be the outlying suburbs on the Sammamish Plateau east of Bellevue, or places north like Lynnwood, Mill Creek, Edmunds, etc.

Regarding the winds. We have a big yellow lab who must be walked 3-4 times a day 365 day/year around Camas. What I have discovered by going out with the dog every day around Camas is that the amount of wind you find is inversely proportional to the views. Streets and neighborhoods with great views of Portland and the Gorge are ALWAYS much more windy than street and neighborhoods that are tucked down into more sheltered streets and areas. My street is kind of tucked down next to a greenbelt and doesn't get really fierce winds. When I walk two blocks up hill to the more expensive view houses I get blasted by winds. So your view of Mt. Hood comes at a price.

[Jay K]

I presently live in Bellevue, WA and am thinking of cashing in on the appreciation of my home and moving elsewhere. I work out of my home office so location is not an issue from a business standpoint. That is both good and bad, the bad being it takes a lot of work to figure out where to move when you can move virtually anywhere, and this has caused some stress as it is a big decision. The good is I can move virtually anywhere which offers a lot of opportunities.

The two places I am focusing on now are Camas and the Boulder/Denver CO area. There seem to be potential environmental issues in both places, but given this is the Camas thread I would like to ask about one that affects Camas.

There apparently is a rather high level of radon in Clark County, to the point of being potentially dangerous in places. Given this I am wondering whether homes for sale typically have radon inspections before they are put for sale. i realize there are ways to mitigate radon in the home, but am unclear the extent this depends on the home construction; I would hate to end up buying a home with a high radon level, only to later find out that owing to its manner of construction it would be very expensive to mitigate, or perhaps impossible.

I am also curious whether radon levels diminish much as one heads towards Lacamas Lake away from the river. That is likely the area I would be interested in.

In any event, has anyone here dealt with the radon issue, particularly when buying or selling a home, and is there anything I should know about this issue before looking at homes in the area?

[StealthRabbit]

Radon levels varies in Clark county. (usually it's on the higher end of 'acceptable') 3.0 - 4.0pCi/L
https://www.portlandradonmitigation....on-levels.html
https://www.clarkcountytoday.com/new...-clark-county/

Test if you desire to know (Not common (not required) to have testing done when listed FS) Best to test 4x / yr during different conditions (usually highest during winter / when homes are sealed / doors and windows shut)

While health officials know which areas of the county are most susceptible to radon, it crops up inconsistently.

“You can do (tests) in the same neighborhood that have high readings of radon in homes,” says Warren Tryon, a home inspector with Pillar to Post in Vancouver, “and then we’ll do a house down the street or even close by on the same block with lower levels.”

It’s a product of the inconsistent way the granite was deposited around Clark County. Radon is most likely in the northern and southwestern areas of the county.

Warning...
My Colorado homes (near Boulder) were far worse for Radon than my WA places. I had a lot more friends and neighbors die of 'various' cancers in CO than WA. Several 'non-smokers' due to lung cancer (possibly attributable to Radon)
Lost (3) close friends in Texas this yr to Cancer. (But Colorado stands out in my circles as higher incidence)

Part of my reasons for not going back to CO is health risk related (was there for 30 yrs and WA for 30 yrs). Colorado also has some other issues to beware of. (Political battleground State make livability quite miserable (contentious). + Violence / angry males with guns... BTDT). I will be in CO again this week (many times / yr). But I prefer to visit there rather than live there. Nearby WY and SD can both be great (in a few areas) and are income tax free!

At the moment (while traveling / using airport several times / month and enjoying Portland access (20+ colleges)... I will continue to domicile in SW WA (temporarily). My CoL / QoL spreadsheets disappointed me by showing WA favorable to WY, SD, and CO. Spouse was pleased with the spreadsheet results.. Said.... "You will be VERY Lonely in CO, WY, or SD... See-ya... Have a great time!"

Colorado is superb for biking (mtn, Road, Motorcycle), but a long way from coast! and a LOT of pressure (crowds) on recreation (fishing, hunting, hiking, climbing)

Washington is great for sailing and diversity of recreation and proximity to BC!!! (and OR and CA)

[QuahTom]

Great question, you've definitely done your research. When you purchase a home, you have the option of paying for an additional, separate radon test along with your usual home inspection. If high levels of radon are detected, the seller will pay to make the necessary fixes. It's my understanding that radon mitigation is relatively easy in homes with a crawl space. It's more difficult and expensive in homes with a basement. Which also explains why basements are much less common.

In my personal opinion, because it's detectable and mitigable I don't think it should be much of a factor in your relocation decision-making process.

[182pilot]

We did a Radon test through Pillar to Post and the results came back with .8 pCi/L. Essentially nothing. We're on flat farmland with a bunch of clay so not terribly surprising. If we were up in the mountains on top of granite, I'd expect much higher results.