Oregonians: Are there any "Bad" Areas in Lane County?

Question

I am planning on moving here (Eugene Area) in spring of next year- are there any cities I should avoid?

Answer 1

Pichi is the optimist, but I'd feel badly if I didn't give you a more realistic view of the surrounding area. Unless you want to live in Hillybilly Heights, avoid Cottage Grove, Junction City and anything near the airport and Old Highway 99.

Your best bet is to find an affordable rental along the bus line. Plan to spend the weekends during your first couple months exploring the neighborhoods.

One last word of advice: Eugene's daily newspaper, The Register Guard, runs a monthly feature on the last Monday of the month. They publish a citywide map that lists the crimes by neighborhood over the past reporting period. (The link is below.)

Answer 2

Not really any entire cities to avoid ....
There are parts of Eugene and parts of Springfield that you probably won't want to live in. Creswell is more blue collar, but depends on your preferences. Junction City, Cottage Grove, and Veneta are all your basic tiny town, with a good balance of people who work in/near the town and those who commute to Eugene/Springfield. Coburg is basically a bedroom community of Eugene. Harrisburg, Elmira, Pleasant Hill are all tiny rural/country towns, plenty of people commute, but they retain the rural country town feel.

Add what you are looking for specifically, and maybe I can suggest some areas.