It’s not a new sentiment in Oregon. Since 1971 when then-Gov. Tom McCall invited tourists to come and visit “but for heaven’s sake, don’t stay,” it’s been a thing.
In current community conversations, the subject of locking up land to prevent housing has gained steam, with observers commenting on how the cost of housing is rising and how they don’t want any more of Those People coming to Oregon, bidding up the prices and crowding up the place!
They envision a modern day wagon train of overly tan Californians in their SUVs winding their way through the southern pass with their U-Hauls in tow.
And Californians are here, for sure, and indeed more have come in recent years as the economy down south has become unfriendly to many.
However, they aren’t behind the desperate need for more houses. They aren’t the ones populating most of the bidding wars for a 3-bedroom, 2 bath with a modest square of lawn in the front.
Do you know who most of these so-called New Residents are, crowding up our little towns?
They’re our children.
And our children’s children.
The great majority of people buying houses in Yamhill County…They are us.
They were born and raised here, moved out of the our basements and are now ready to start their own lives. Others went off to college or off to accept a job somewhere else for a few years and now they are back home with their babies in their arms, hoping to give their children what they had growing up. An Oregon childhood.
Let’s make room for them!
An interesting note: Tom McCall was from Massachusetts.
