I'm from Brunswick. It was great--compact downtown area, strong emphasis on arts and culture, friendly people, safe, good schools and teachers, good running, and a strong running community. The primary drawbacks are jobs (non-issue if working remotely) and the weather. The winter anywhere in Maine is insufferably long.
OP, why don't you just move into the village area of Concord or West Concord? They have after school sports, the kids can bike to school and other things, and you can walk to the train station and take a 40 minute trip into Boston instead of driving to the station and taking a 2 1/2 hour ride on the Downeaster. The running in Concord is top-notch, there's xc skiing at Great Brook when the snow cooperates, and if you want to do more serious hiking or skiing you have your vacation house in NH. The running in most towns in Maine isn't as great as you might think- lots of narrow roads with no shoulder and fast-moving traffic. And if either of you ever need to move on to a different job you're going to have a lot fewer options in Portland. $1.3 mil will buy you a nice 3,000sf house in Concord- please don't tell me that's not big enough for a non-materialistic person such as yourself.
I'm from Brunswick. It was great--compact downtown area, strong emphasis on arts and culture, friendly people, safe, good schools and teachers, good running, and a strong running community. The primary drawbacks are jobs (non-issue if working remotely) and the weather. The winter anywhere in Maine is insufferably long.
I moved up to Maine from the south east and lived there for about a decade.
I loved it, for the most part. I found most Mainers, outside of Portland, to be super friendly. I found this to be especially true of the "cities" west of I-95. Maine was a good place to be, and I wish I could had stayed forever.
However, as stated above..........
"The winter anywhere in Maine is insufferably long."
"The winter anywhere in Maine is insufferably long."
OP, you currently live in Mass, have a vacation home and spent the pandemic year in New Hampshire, are from the Midwest, and are looking at places in southern Maine—I think you probably know this, but winter there won’t be hugely different than what you’re used to. Don’t let these folks scare you off.
Some thoughts from a fellow runner dad that lives in the Portland suburbs:
I love it here and would never leave. My two kids are a couple years behind yours and I think the quality of life is awesome. I work a bit from home and some in Portland- tons of growth in Portland and it will continue to grow in years ahead. We’ve had so many people move from out of state during the pandemic that you really don’t need to worry about being an outsider. That would be a valid concern if you were heading to northern Maine, but not Cumberland County.
What sports do your kids play? The schools you mentioned are all great schools and have decent sports programs. There are club teams in Portland for soccer, etc if they want extra exposure to something as they get older.
Portland has a very strong running community and tons of nice places to run. Many former D1 guys running 15:xx, a couple of masters close to that level and then plenty of other masters runners in the 16:30 - 19:00 range. No shortage of serious runners. There is a good USATF summer track program for the kids that Yarmouth, Cumberland, and Falmouth participate in. Also a spring and fall XC program.
Yarmouth- lived there a few years. Nice quiet community further off the beaten path. Good schools.
Cumberland- similar to Yarmouth but a bit more rural. Top ranked schools.
Falmouth- a bit easier commute to Portland, excellent schools and running teams, a bit more modern and developed than Yarmouth.
Cape- very different from the other three. Maine’s original elite community, still with some old money. Great schools and sports programs, much closer to sandy beaches in Cape and Scarborough if you like the beach. It can be a bit tricky getting in/out of Cape as you need to deal with a drawbridge to get into Portland.
We have friends in all of the school systems that you’re looking at, haven’t heard any complaints.
Other posters have mentioned that it’s still a rat race up here, which is somewhat true, but you’ll be fine if you have some decent incomes. I think some are shocked to see high schoolers driving luxury cars, or see families take a couple of big vacations each year… but it’s still probably a slower pace than Boston.
You’ll like it here. Almost everyone does.
Super helpful — thanks for responding. Hadn’t appreciated that about Cape. My kids play lax, field hockey, soccer, Nordic skiing, tennis, and sailing between them, and they sometimes run with my running club’s kids program. Love the tip about the summer track program — will look into that.
I live about 35 minutes west of Portland.. while training for fast racing is not great the winter is my favorite time of year to exercise outside ( although i love all seasons except maybe spring otherwise known as mud season. ) Trails groomed fro snowmobiles are great fro running, xc skiing and fat biking literally right out my door. 30 minutes to the oceans and 45 minutes to white mountains including MT Washington.
So to some extent we’d probably be trading one bubble for another, but just hoping the “hyper competitive elitist parent” dial is more like a 7-8 instead of cranked all the way to 11 like where we are now.
In that case, cross Cape Elizabeth off of your list.
As for running: Portland itself isn't all that great. The few options (Back Cove, path along the water near Eastern Prom) are short and not terribly interesting after the first 100 runs. South Portland and Cape have better road and trail options. The outer places you listed like Yarmouth and Cumberland are even better in that regard. (I moved from South Portland to North Yarmouth last year.) Also, running roads in Portland and, to some extent, South Portland gets dodgy once the snow is in place for a couple months.
You would definitely be doing a lot of driving if you're in one of the outer suburbs but your kids have practices and games and you want to enjoy Portland's urban offerings.
There are a lot of good masters runners in the area. One potential difference from your situation is that there aren't really clubs with twice-weekly or whatever get-togethers. It'd be up to you to find compatible training partners.
Thanks for responding — again helpful info re: Cape. And good to know about the running club scene. My current club is great and has a ton of regular events, but I end up running solo most of the time anyway, except for ad hoc long run meetups and the like with the faster crew. So I think this should be fine.
Do not move to Maine. Stay in Massachusetts or go somewhere else. Real Mainers will hate you. Massholes already ruined NH, now they are coming for Maine. plus, all the towns you mentioned suck and are filled with the poor man’s version of the people that live in Westin, Wellesley, et al. We don’t want you. Go F yourself.
This guy is actually correct. Massholes did ruin southern NH and they want to ruin Maine too. Most Mainers resent Boston people moving in, driving up real estate prices, and bringing their Boston attitudes/lifestyle with them. If you're family isn't like 4 generations deep, you will never be considered a Mainer. You will always be a transplant and that will never change. This gets worse the further north you get.
Portland is a great little (and I mean little) city with it own character. It doesn't need to become Boston jr. Expect the pace to slow down a little bit. People will stop and talk to you for awhile. Most people are super friendly and helpful. If you move there and adopt the same attitude, you will fit in just fine. If you are a hustle and bustle type guy who expects things to be done yesterday....save that attitude for work. Mainers do not appreciate that.
Many Mainers think Portland is the armpit of the universe and that there is nothing but trouble there, its just a bias they have. Coming from a larger city, you won't bat an eye. Portland's big problem is drugs and homelessness. Most Maine towns don't offer social services of any kind, and they all end up in Portland where they are all clustered together. That brings obvious problems. Its mostly contained to 2-3 blocks though.
The running is a bit tricky. There are plenty of roads/trails to run on, I never had any issues with that. The winter does get a bit dicey, but you just deal with it. There is a faster running group that seems to soak up anyone who is talented. There's a trail group within 35 or so minutes as well who were all very friendly and decent runners. It does become tough if you are a mid pack type of runner. Its hard to find people in that pace range. The local clubs are mostly social, so you end up in a no mans land.
My post sounds negative, but it really isn't. I want to just give you some tips on how to assimilate when you get there. I can't say enough good things about it. Portland was my favorite place to live. I loved the city, the rest of Maine, beaches, mountains, all of it. I would move back again given the opportunity.
Thanks for responding. Good info. Nothing you’re saying is dissuading me. I’m not too worried about the winter running, as I mostly switch to Nordic skiing, AT, fat biking, and Zwift each winter anyway. Easier access to all of those (except Zwift) in the Portland area as far as I can tell.
FWIW, I have a friend in a very similar situation who just moved from Andover MA to Scarborough ME and they are enjoying it much more.
+1
Scarborough also has some of the best running in the Portland area. It’s also the top school for sports and a little bit bigger than some of the other schools/towns OP was looking at. OP may want to add Scarborough and Freeport to the list. Scratch Cape if you want to eliminate the snobbiest crowd.
Interesting — I know we looked at Scarborough initially, but I can’t remember now why it didn’t make the short list. I’ll revisit.
I like your options. The commute, even one day a week, really would be a bear. You definitely wouldn't see the kids that day--not sure how you'd feel about that.
What about something a bit closer, like Portsmouth? I lived there for a year and really enjoyed it. I had a reverse commute into Boston and it wasn't bad at all (commuter rail times didn't work at the time, but maybe that's changed). It's got its own thing going on and is a lot closer to outdoor opportunities, like you mentioned with s NH.
All good options, though! I envy you.
Yeah, that’s a reasonable consideration for sure. I’m not too worried about the commute though because I’m planning to take the train (which I’ve done in the past and enjoyed, though that was DC-Philly, not Portland-Boston). And assuming those trains are generally on time, I should be able to see the kids on at least one end of the day.
That said, Portsmouth was definitely on our list and I don’t think we’ve totally ruled it out. I think we’d be loosing easy weekday access to Nordic skiing though, which is my #2 sport and which my whole family is really into.
Yeah, Portland is demographically likely to have good schools. There’s only one slightly better scenario (Silicon Valley), but it’s safe to say that you won’t have any Detroit type schools
Meh, I’m still a reasonably ambitious person who would like to have guest room/home office now that I’m mostly remote — I guess I don’t necessarily need to leave all the rat races behind if that’s what that is. And we won’t be driving to Boston — our plan is to take the Amtrak Downeaster. I used to commute from DC to Philly a few days a week via Amtrack back in the day and it was great — just a mobile office (complete with wi-fi) that sells decent beer on the way home. I’m kinda psyched about that aspect of this TBH. And better yet, apparently these schools actually provide a “late bus” to take the kids home after practice!
I'd get the hell outta Boston toute suite if I were you. I lived and worked in the Portland area for 10 years back in the 1990's (Gorham), now live in RI. I'd move back to Maine if I could full time but my wife is from RI, loves it here and we live on the coast. We do have a cabin in the western Maine mountains however, and love it there. The only hassle is getting through Boston to visit it. I'm just retired and she works from home. Both my daughters grew up in Maine, did sports primarily swimming and track. Home prices outside of Portland are lower but then again it depends on where you go. The places you mentioned are high end, relative to the real estate market, and always have been. If you are intent on living in one of those high end places I'd probably wait till the market drops significantly, which is likely imminent. In short, I'd move in a heartbeat if I were you.
Thanks for responding. Definitely watching the real estate market with interest—agree it’s an interesting time.
I grew up in North Yarmouth (same school district as Cumberland), moved into Portland for high school, and both of my parents still live in Portland which I still visit 1-2 times/year (except for during the pandemic). Some thoughts:
-Have you thought about living in Portland proper? On the peninsula gets pretty bustling especially during the summer tourism months, but both the West End and East End are super nice. And if you were to live off the peninsula in Portland you would have great access to city amenities without the drive time of living in the suburbs, and you would also be shocked at how affordable it is.
-If you have concerns about the school district in Portland, well, first, I wouldn’t, but second, you could look into Waynflete.
-I second what everyone else says about Cape Elizabeth—it’ll feel more like a Boston suburb (in the competitive, keeping up with the Joneses way) than any of the other towns you mentioned, although they all have a little bit of that. Also, be ready for some of the towns you’ve mentioned to be more conservative than your typical Boston suburb. I had teachers at Greely Jr. High tell me that the administration had told them not to let anyone know they were a Democrat.
-Other towns to consider: Scarborough, South Portland, and Freeport. And if you’re willing to go a little further out, Brunswick. The school districts may not have the same reputation as the towns you mentioned, but your kids can get a good education at any of them, for sure. And affordability and access to the water (and other different outdoors, depending on which one of them you go with) are features for all of them.
-As someone who grew up playing youth sports in the area, unless things have changed dramatically since the ‘90s-early ‘00s, you’re right that the club sports culture is relatively weaker and the parks and rec departments and schools provide a lot of options. I grew up playing Little League, parks and rec basketball, and running parks and rec XC meets every Wednesday (and getting smoked by Ben True) through grade school, and I started playing on school teams in all of those sports in middle school.
-Know that the late bus won’t meet all your needs, though—on game days and certain winter days when practices are stacked one after another, you’ll still need to pick your kids up.
-I also don’t think you’ll have to deal with any people being super skeptical that you’re “from away” anywhere in the Greater Portland area/Cumberland County.
Honestly, I think you’re making a great call. Reach out to Dirigo RC about joining and to find some good training partners, get ready to make the Mother’s Day 5k, Clam Festival 5 Mile, and Beach to Beacon your “A” races every year, get involved in your local school and community, and you’ll love living there. In fact, I’ve almost convinced myself to move back with this post.
Super, super helpful—thank you. I was advocating for Portland proper, but my spouse is all-in on the ‘burbs. I think that probably rules it out but I might try again.
It's a wonderful area for adults and children, the perfect mix of city and country, and you have proximity to the mountains and beach. Like you say, housing is relatively cheap, and I think you're in the middle of a huge upswing in property values. Also amazing food!
All that said, I don't mean to be a bully, but I think you have no business posing this question on an anonymous online forum. Nobody here knows your financial or family situation. So talk it over with your family and financial advisor, not anonymous running fans.
Best of luck in the decision!
Meh, obviously not making the decision based on letsrun. But this is a handy way to gather info way outside my network.
OP, why don't you just move into the village area of Concord or West Concord? They have after school sports, the kids can bike to school and other things, and you can walk to the train station and take a 40 minute trip into Boston instead of driving to the station and taking a 2 1/2 hour ride on the Downeaster. The running in Concord is top-notch, there's xc skiing at Great Brook when the snow cooperates, and if you want to do more serious hiking or skiing you have your vacation house in NH. The running in most towns in Maine isn't as great as you might think- lots of narrow roads with no shoulder and fast-moving traffic. And if either of you ever need to move on to a different job you're going to have a lot fewer options in Portland. $1.3 mil will buy you a nice 3,000sf house in Concord- please don't tell me that's not big enough for a non-materialistic person such as yourself.
Interesting you say that — we did think/talk about Concord. It was actually where I’d wanted to move when we came back to the Boston area 10 years ago or so. We are pretty close to there now, and I spend a lot of time there cycling and running and agree it’s a good spot in most of the ways you say + agree we could definitely trade up houses. However, I know plenty of folks who live there, and the parenting culture is arguably even worse than where we are now — definitely not escaping that particular rat race by moving there. So I don’t think it really solves one of the main things we’re trying to deal with here.