Allergies in Eugene?

marachne · Oct 23, 2008

My husband and I are considering moving to Eugene with our two little boys. I'm an ED nurse and am attracted to the new hospital there: Sacred Heart, Riverbend Campus, due to their new level 2 trauma center. However, I've heard that Eugene is a bad place for environmental allergies. Can anyone comment on how bad it is, and how long the allergy season is? Is it bad enough to consider moving elsewhere? Can you suggest any other small cities in Oregon (Portland is too big for us) where there would be a decent sized ED?

The Willamette Valley (Which Eugene is in) apparently has the highest allergen count in the the country. The Valley has lots of agriculture, including the largest amount of sod farms (i.e. grass). The whole western side of the state is very lush, there are tree pollens, grass pollens, molds in the winter. I was told that "if I didn't have allergies before moving here, I would after." Didn't happen to me (and I've been here 13 years), but I know it makes other people pretty miserable. What are your allergies?

It may be better in central or eastern Oregon, but I don't know for sure. Bend has St Charles Hospital which is level 2, and I have heard good things about it. The area is high desert, so probably a lot fewer allergens.

Canadian Girl · Oct 23, 2008

Thanks for your reply. I do think I'm allergic to grasses, but I'm not sure how manageable it would be. There are some great reasons to move to Eugene, like low housing prices and a relaxed lifestyle. We did visit Bend . St. Charles is a beautiful hospital ( however the medical benefits are far from free, even for benefited employees). We're tying to measure the pros and cons of Eugene and other cities in Oregon.

marachne · Oct 23, 2008

Thanks for your reply. I do think I'm allergic to grasses, but I'm not sure how manageable it would be. There are some great reasons to move to Eugene, like low housing prices and a relaxed lifestyle. We did visit Bend . St. Charles is a beautiful hospital ( however the medical benefits are far from free, even for benefited employees). We're tying to measure the pros and cons of Eugene and other cities in Oregon.

I don't know where in Canada you're moving from, but your comment about "low housing prices" sent up a warning flag.

It may be that comparatively it's low, but Eugene is not an inexpensive place to live. I've been told that the cost of living is pretty much the same as in Portland.

It's a college town, and that always skews things.

That said, Springfield, which is right next door may be less expensive.

All I'm saying is check out the stats carefully before coming to conclusions.

rowan_dreams · Dec 9, 2008

I've always dreamed of living in OR and didn't know this about the allergens. Thanks for this information.

Mimi2RN, ASN, RN · Dec 9, 2008

As marachne posted, it's the Willamette Valley that has the worst problem. When I lived there, I heard it was the biggest producer of rye grass seed in the world. I was there for 18 years and survived without severe allergies, but my eldest son suffers every spring. He moved away about 14 years ago. You won't know how you will be affected unless you live there.

I like Eugene, but agree that it's probably less expensive to live in one of the surrounding small towns.

annreese · Dec 16, 2008

I have such bad allergies in the spring and summer, I will come into work with my eyes swollen up and i'll have to spend the first 20 minutes with a warm washcloth over my eyes. Im in portland but I think eugene is going to be more or less the same.