Tacoma is okay if you like cities, it is maybe 15 or so miles from Seattle, and in the other direction is about 25 miles from Olympia (I prefer Olympia to the bigger cities). Lots of outlying towns/cities, major traffic, used to be a big gang area, and was known as the meth capital of the state, don't know about now, hopefully it has been cleaned up. I would look into one of the smaller towns on the outskirts to live in, just my choice. Fort Lewis Army Base if is there and McChord Air Force too. Good luck.

Thanks for the info, Marie. My son is in the army, going to be stationed in Ft. Lewis. I'm moving with them to help out with the kids while he is gone overseas. I've never been further West than Oklahoma. It's hard moving to a new place and not knowing the good from the bad places. Any help is sure appreciated. I want the kids to be in the safest place possible.

why ya moving? curious I'm about to uplift as thinking spokane... born and raised in seattle area.. now im from oregon

The fort area is very low income, and has a fairly high crime rate, but apart from casual theft of anything not nailed down, it's actually a really nice area.

First of all, rents are cheap, and the shopping around that area is very inexpensive. The shop owners are REALLY nice to people who pay without arguing and who give them repeat business. They are also VERY social and love to talk to new people.

I lived in Tacoma and still have a house on 46th street. Tacoma isn't as terrible as people pretend it is. Seattle-ites act like it's a Million miles from civilization, but they're just biased and never drive anywhere. Tacoma has the Glass museum, which may not sound so cool but it's f**king awesome. Kids love that place. The "docks" in Tacoma are vibrant, full of businesses, boaters, and people who are so friendly that you could wind up getting invited on a sailing trip on somebody's Yaught.

I can give you a list of fifty things to do in Tacoma that are cool. There's an honest to God Mansion that you can tour, several huge parks, a zoo that is larger than anything else in the NW USA, and a vibrant downtown business zone that has some of the largest antique shops I've ever seen in 38 states.

MSG me if you want specifics. It is not, however, easy to get around Tacoma by bus. You will need a car. Parking is free almost everywhere, and there's a huge, FREE parking lot downtown with a FREE trolley to all the stores.

I worked at a law firm downtown in Tacoma and loved the area. Yeah, there are a lot of poor people and ethnic problems in Tacoma, but not on the scale of say, Detroit, or Los Angeles, not at all. I lived in T-town for two years without any incidents.

~D

I wanted to say that depending on the ages of the kids that you will be taking care of there is a LOT to do. At the Seattle Center there is a "Children's Museum" that is a lot of fun. The Seattle Aquarium at the waterfront is also fun. I have not been to the Point Defiance Zoo & Aquarium but I've heard good things about it. The Woodland Park Zoo in Seattle is nice. Also, for a BIG day out during the summer you'll want to go to Enchanted Village / Wild Waves in Federal Way. It is a LOT of fun. And there is almost always something to do around the Puget Sound area - just check out the internet for ideas. Lots of parks and places to go camping, fishing, hiking and more.

Good luck on the move. And... if you get depressed from not seeing sunshine for a while - check into "light therapy". It can be an issue for some folks when they move here.