Seattle/Kirkland area -- Is it a good place?

[Slater]

There isn't really anywhere in the Seattle area that is not queer friendly. Let's put it this way ... I have lived for 7 years across the water in Bremerton, which was/is a dumpy little Navy town and even Bremerton is pretty queer-friendly.

I haven't spent much time in or around Kirkland in a number of years, but it was (and I imagine still is) a fairly affluent, very white, tech-industry-dominated suburb.

The queer community in Seattle is large and visible. I would agree with AtLastHome that the biggest drawback is the public transit. There is a new light rail system, but it is still very limited, primarily connecting downtown with the airport, but it will be expanded to the University of Washington (and maybe then over to Kirkland, I'm not sure).

Housing prices are still falling so it's a good time to get into the market. The state government is kind of in financial shambles because voters don't seem to understand that they need to pay taxes if they want a functioning government (why yes, I am still a little bitter about last November's elections).

Good luck with Google. By the way, your avatar is great.

--Slater