Why longtime Washingtonians are leaving the Seattle area

Earlier this week, Seattle Times data journalist Gene Balk — a.k.a. FYI Guy — reported on a recent trend in local migration: For the first time in long while, the number of native-born Washingtonians in King County has declined.

So as newcomers pour in, longtime residents are leaving.

Why? Readers who commented on the story, numbering in the hundreds, painted a dismal picture of congestion, skyrocketing expenses and cultural upheaval. Oh: Not to mention crummy weather.

Here’s what a handful of them had to say, edited for spelling and brevity:

• “For our family, we moved because of King County and Seattle’s war on cars. Our lives are far less stressful, and our small business is developing more and more clientele outside of the traffic jam Seattle. We fled!  We love it!”
• “Most of the people I know here are not leaving because of home prices. Many of them are living in the house they grew up in; they just took it over from their parents when their parents passed away or needed assisted living. They are leaving because the people moving here are just so awful.”
• “It’s cheaper for those of us preparing to retire to buy a place in Arizona than it is trying to relocate in our own city.  And that’s a real shame.  Watch out Arizona, I have a feeling a whole bunch of liberal Republicans and centrist Democrats are headed in your direction.”
• “It’s pretty easy to figure out. The born and bred Seattleites are sick and tired of of the mayor and the council totally screwing the city up, by building too many bicycle lanes and allowing builders/contractors to overbuild their neighborhoods with townhouses and large apartment buildings.”
• “We left after a lifetime in Seattle. Born at Virginia Mason and Swedish, Husky/Seattle U grads, lived on Queen Anne and Capitol Hill and Ballard. Weekends at The Pink Door, Discovery Park, Alki, Ballard Ave., Fremont. Unbridled growth and the complete destruction of all the creative, cool, insider stuff that made this city so great, replaced with oceans of idiotic condos, townhouses and stupid overpriced eateries. When we had to allocate three hours of drive time to go hiking in the Pass and park a mile from the trailhead on a Forest Service road, we pulled the plug and headed to the desert. Haven’t spent five minutes thinking about my lifelong hometown since.
• “Since Oct. 3, Seattle area has experienced only four days when you could clearly see the sun. Rain, clouds, more rain and more clouds. Feel like escaping.”

To read all the comments, scroll to the end of this story.