Up and Coming Port Angeles - 8/16/2023

I totally disagree with many of the reviews I’ve read about Port Angeles. I’ve lived here for 18 months now and I absolutely love this town. The weather is awesome, the outdoor opportunities are amazing. Cultural and arts offerings are numerous with a brand new multi million arts and events center recently opening. Port Angeles is not on the decline it’s on the incline. It’s trying to bounce back from Covid. The people are friendly and Community minded. We do have a housing issue. Air Bnb has decimated our rental properties as have high rents. The city council have moratorium on new vacation rental properties. We have homeless and we have drug problems. What city doesn’t? It’s moving in the right direction. I’m happy to call Port Angeles home. We have the ocean and the mountains. I am an active volunteer in the community. You can complain or be a part of the solution. As for politics, we are a mixed bag of right and left, but honestly I haven’t found any of our community not easy to get along with regardless of political affiliation. That shouldn’t define us.

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PA, small town on the cusp - 12/8/2021

PERSPECTIVE: I’m writing as a visitor and ZNOT as an established resident. So, that is my bias. I’ve visited PA five times in the past three years; staying with friends for two to five weeks each time. I’ve never encountered an unfriendly person. In fact, I find the town to be pleasantly friendly. Yes, there is obvious homelessness. Yes, the town is not thriving economically. And yes, the town is split politically. But everyone, yes everyone, I’ve spoken with, whether at a coffee shop or hut, auto shop, bank, contractor’s office, wherever, have all been friendly and say they feel safe. Yes, they all mention homelessness as a problem. Yes, they all recognize drug use as a problem. And yes, they all expressed polar opinions of why the town has these problems. Yet, to a person, none were able to proffer a solution. They all seem to just want to live their lives in ways that reflect being part of a community struggling. City government is doing what it can with the financial resources it has. There is an abundance of civic art. There is a top-notch library. There is a new and state-of-the-art swim center. There is new affordable housing going-up. PA is a blue-collar timber town that is struggling to adjust to the realities of a post commodity economy that has become a services and tourist driven economy. On my last visit (Nov 2-Dec 1), a prominent broker told me the current real-property boom, precipitated by the pandemic, is unprecedented; caused by greater Seattle metro dwellers buying-up homes site-unseen with cash, often for more than the listing price. With working from home now the new normal for finance and tech jobs, and companies like Amazon, living in super affordable PA, with the closeness of the Olympics, is a no-brainer. This influx has driven home prices up by almost 100% in the past three years. This, unfortunately, is making PA even less affordable for locals and exacerbating the affordable housing shortage. Confirming this Seattle-PA migration is the wide-spread rumor Fairchild Airport will begin thrice weekly milk-runs to SeaTac twice daily; presumably to service the demand by Seattle expats now living in PA. Will the influx of Seattle money help PA economically and socially? Will it push low-income people out of PA to more affordable areas like Aberdeen? The story has many chapters left to be written. The fact of the matter is, PA is going through some changes that show signs of moving the town into a more prosperous and socially stable community. How it will play-out is uncertain. However, one thing is certain, older residents are selling, cashing-out, and leaving. Those people on the economic margin who by necessity are renters will find living in PA increasingly difficult financially as available single-family homes and apartments become increasingly unaffordable with rents rising as fast as home prices.

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Great Place to Visit, Horrible Place to Live - 7/27/2021

The only positive thing to say about this town is the nature: the Olympic national park, lake crescent, and others around it are absolutely beautiful!!! But that's more of a reason to visit rather than live there. There is an extreme housing crisis that's only getting worse with time. For being such a small town it's absolutely jaw dropping just how many homeless people there are!!! There's also a severe drug abuse problem here with used needles being a very common litter problem. Litter in general is a disgusting issue the entire town is overwhelmed by. Jobs, too, are extremely hard to come by with many people commuting out of town for work. The entire town is on a downward slope, making it difficult to walk around. The bus system is cheap, but the routes are long, don't make sense, and still don't reach a lot of parts of town. The town layout too has almost all residential areas on the outskirts of town, making trips to the store or work or any businesses longer than necessary. The doctors and mental health resources here are pathetic! There are extremely few options for any health care related needs and the doctors that are here are notorious for misdiagnosing and neglect. The people themself are mostly unhappy and unkind. Older folks complain that the town is in a decline while young people are desperately trying to escape. Extreme Trump supporters are all over town and it's impossible to go 5 minutes without seeing a sign, flag, bumper sticker, or clothes with Trump on it. Even the buses have giant anti-abortion ads plastered all over them. LGBTQIA+ resources are non existent and it's even unsafe at times still to be out and proud. It's a very unkind town overall.

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A Truly Disgusting Place To Live Or Visit - 3/9/2021

Expect the dredges of society in this crumbling town. Where do I start? I have lived in many towns throughout the United States, all having their good and bad. But I'll put Port Angeles on my "I'm never coming back" list. There is nothing good about it. There's everything bad about it. I'm not including areas where recreational activities may be found in the country, but this is about the town itself. This is another place where the law has been stifled by brainless bleeding heart liberal leadership. What comes after that? Abundant crime, both property and crimes against people. Port Angeles is the home of a recent slew of murders, one in particular where children and adults were slain, and the perpetrator is still at large. The city is home to vagrants who camp, eat, and defecate on public property and monuments where it is forbidden by law, but goes unabated due to mindless liberal pandering. Look it up yourself. Port Angeles has a mentally unstable man who is well known by the community who swings his favorite machete in public. His last feat was to shoot arrows at the Port Angeles Masonic Temple. He remains free to scare and disturb the public. Will he hurt someone? Seems the town leaders don't give it a thought. Public health is not a priority unless it concerns helping criminals, drug addicts, pedophiles, thieves, street alcoholics, pushers, or revenue from government grants. Most buildings are derelicts remaining from the once booming fishing and timber industry. Now they are havens for prostitution and drug activity. Methamphetamines are a staple drug in Port Angeles. Take note of a site on facebook called the Clallam County Scanner. The miscreants violating the law is precipitous EVERY day in Port Angeles. Tie down or lock everything you own...even the catalytic convertor on your car. Meth heads are actually cutting them off of newer cars and selling them to salvage yards for their precious metals...then it's out to satiate their drug addiction with the newly acquired funds they worked so diligently at attaining. Sell a convertor or burglarize a home. Big decisions are being made in Port Angeles. Or one may find it a rewarding field trip to the charitable organization who caters to the hapless called Serenity House near the airport which is run by millions in grants, attracting more and more parasites of society...and we taxpayers pay for it. Just ensure you lock your car and don't get out while in that area. You get my drift, right? The weather? Dark, dank, cloudy, drizzling rain most of the time, mud puddles in the chuckholes of un-kept streets. Port Angeles has the distinct ambiance of a tortured and depressing, as well as depressed city...and everyone in it. There is a bright side to the weather situation. One always has the opportunity to cuddle up with the addicts and homeless, sheltered on the sidewalk from the overhang on the Goodwill building located on Peabody street. Bathing is frowned upon there. My final and most enlightening and positive comment regarding Port Angeles is that you won't be forced to stay there. City of liberals, city of fools.

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ARM PIT OF SOCIETY - 6/23/2020

I lived there for 2 years, hateful element amongst the locals. Oil change, the mechanics trash your engine, utilities base rate $175, typical bill is $400 per month. Medical is 3 times that of the national average. Water tastes terrible, in fact, i never watered my plants unless I had bought filtered water. Hateful rednecks, park on their lawns regardless whether they have a driveway, unwelcoming of strangers, dangerous and bazaar hunting practices with machine guns killing animals, ranger station has a sign posted if you encounter a goat, pellet the poor animal with rocks. Bottom line these folks are backwards rednecks...Do yourself a favor never even stop there.

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NOT RECOMMENDED!!! - 3/21/2019

Bad drug problems. Poor economics. Too remote. Mixed bag of humanity with some nice folks & social derelicts. NOT RECOMMENDED!!!

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terrible. - 6/11/2018

I came here from upstate NY a year ago to what was sold as "heaven with very, very little crime". I arrive here to find no housing available, a bigger drug problem that anywhere else I've ever seen and zero jobs outside of healthcare or tourism. The property crime is out of control. I have lost thousands of dollars of property including a bike with a 50$ cable lock that was cut like it didn't exist. I came here to serve a community as a professional healthcare provider and was repaid with a bitter disappointment. The weather is VERY stable, 34-64 degrees with rain/ full overcast 5-7 days a week, year round. The view is wonderful, the people are passive aggressive and miserable, DUI is unbelievably common along with deaths and injuries that go with it. Ferries and bridges are realistically the only way out and are often down, late or crowded out. Back woods mentality and alcoholism and/ or drug addiction seems to be a requirement here. I will be leaving the millisecond that I can.

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Drug infested, dead economy, terrible wet weather. - 6/11/2018

I came here from upstate NY a year ago to what was sold as

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Doesn't Get Much Better! - 4/20/2016

I have lived here for 16 years. As a dear friend used to say, "This is 'The Land of Ahhhs'..." Having lived in PA near Philadelphia, on Long Island, NY, and in Southern CA, the Olympic Peninsula is my all-time favorite place. Yes, there are overcast days, but what the chart fails to take into consideration is that even on those days, the sun usually comes out for a little while at some point. Washingtonians call them "Sun Breaks". This makes those cloudy days tolerable -- and the sunny days MORE than make up for any dreariness! It is warm enough to be comfortable 9/10 of the year, spectacularly green, friendly people, views that are unsurpassed. If you enjoy nature and don't mind being quite a distance from city conveniences (airport, up-scale entertainment, etc.), Port Angeles or Sequim are the places to live. I have never been happier!

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Found my heart home! - 2/11/2016

4 years in March and I'm still in love with Port Angeles. Came for the Olympic National Park, stayed for the community. This is an inspiring, and unique community full of character, charm and ingenuity. Downtown is full of small, private businesses, a fantastic Farmer's Market, orca and grey whales in the harbor, wineries and craft brewers and specialty coffee shops. Fantastic area for vacations! If you're thinking of relocating, now is the time - especially if you're an entrepreneur or work in the health field. The area lost a major industry (logging), and is building back from that but everything is trending positive. I think we were lucky to get in while prices were low.

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Wonderful City That Is A Diamond In The Rough - 2/5/2016

Our family (me, husband, and three little girls all under 6) moved here about a year and a half ago from UT, and we LOVE it here. There is so much to do outdoors and such beautiful scenery. There is always something going on in town, from the Dungeness Crab Festival to Brew Festivals to community events. Most of the population here is older, but they are friendly and kind. Many people here kind of keep to themselves, which is a nice change from UT-- where it seems everyone is nosey and judging their neighbors. There is quite a diverse mix of white and blue collar in the area, as well as a diverse mix of housing-- there are often large, expensive homes located right next to older, run-down mobile homes. There is an incredible view from everywhere in town, whether you want to see the water, the mountains, or both. The climate here is pleasant, with a fairly cold spring and fall, warm, comfortable summers, and rarely does it snow in town (although you can drive up to Hurricane Ridge and enjoy the snow anytime in the winter as long as you have chains). The schools are also excellent (with the exception of the high school that is run down and the older folks don't want to up the taxes to fix it). Teachers are involved and caring and students are friendly. There is an undercurrent of drugs in the community, but that seems to be everywhere, and there are many community organizations hoping to bring awareness and prevention to the issue. Crime is relatively low and most crimes are drug-related, ie, car break-ins by addicts looking for quick cash. Port Angeles is a bit isolated, with no major shopping areas (downtown is cute but very tourist-oriented), but that can also be a positive in my book. Overall, we really love it here and we are so glad we came. I would highly recommend this city to anyone.

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elemerty schools in PA are the best!!! - 6/3/2012

Wow, the Port Angeles schools are very great!!! Jefferson, Hamilton, Franklin, Dry Creek, Olympic Christan School, and Queen of Angels. all of the teachers are so great, they teach what is above and beyond of what you would except. The kids are great and everyone has a friend. some of the schools have field trips (all have field trips, but not all have big field trips), I know that Jefferson at the end of 6th grad goes to Sol Duc natural hot springs in the Olympic Mountains. Also Jefferson goes to lake crescent for 3 day and 2 nights for school. Franklin goes to one huge field trip (if you are in the MAC program), and one time they went to Victoria B.C. and once they went to see the Seattle science center and saw the king tut, and all the artifact from Egypt. then all the schools get to have one big one of the year. and the awesome activities during and after school are tremendous. you should really move and Live in Port Angeles, Washington. (I recommend Jefferson, I go there). Thank You. Port Angeles ROCKS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Charles

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Tail wags dog public works & utilities - 2/2/2012

Port Angeles Public Works Light Operations and Electrical Engineering departments are guilty of violating WAC 296-45-045 on a regular basis, willfully placing the public in danger to save a buck. Extreem lack of education with current practices and minimum code requirements adopted by the state of Washington in 1996 have gone ignored by City management and line crews. Keep your family safe, stay away from Port Angeles, WA!

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comment - 8/20/2009

Great place, people, scenery, cool climate

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This place is Wonderful - 7/31/2009

We moved here 9 months ago from Wyoming. We absolutely love it here. We have two young boys and there is so much to do outdoors. The people are great and we feel very safe. I think that sometimes I do feel a little isolated from the rest of the world out here but all in all I would recommend this little secret gem to anyone!!

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I Love this Place! - 9/26/2008

I moved here from Ft.Pierce FL and have no regrets. The good part is that I have gotten as far as I could from the "CarpetBaggers" that have overrun Florida. Port Angeles is one of the most beautiful areas in the US and has just about everything you could want. Cheers

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Beautiful Weather - 5/12/2008

It does not rain here as much as people think. We moved to Port Angeles from Colorado four years ago on a whim. Colorado has snow and summer heat. The weather here is PERFECT. I also lived in the South and I can tell you there is way more rain down there! It does tend to be more cloudy but we still have plenty of sunny days and even when it is cloudy, the temperatures are good. I take the kids to the beach every week and we love it. We are close to Seattle and also a quick ferry ride to Victoria, Canada - which is also beautiful. We have great schools and fun neighbors.

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PA SADD - 6/19/2007

I have lived here nearly 20 years and love it when the sun is out, but like most of Western Washington cloudy skies are the norm. There are seldom extremes in the weather having only a few memorable snows, wind storms, thunderstorms, and days above 90 since I've lived here.

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I like it! - 5/24/2006

I like port angeles. Where else can you take about an hours ferry ride to visit another country?

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climate of Port Angeles - 4/10/2006

In response to the previous poster, Port Angeles' climate is not between 60 and 90, except for a couple of months in summer. In winter, expect 40 degrees, wind and rain. Spring and fall are also rainy and chilly interspersed with sun breaks. PA is a beautiful location set between mountains and water but be prepared for it to be chilly most of the year.

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