52 Reasons to Love Lake Oswego

Downtown Lake Oswego is releasing a new event to kickoff the holiday shopping season this Saturday, November 2, from 3:00 p.m. to 6:00 p.m.

During its inaugural Wine Walk, twenty-six shops are open for more than your business– each will be offering samples of two premium wines along with bites to eat from local food establishments. A $25 ticket entitles you to tasting in eight locations of your choice.

Wines have been selected by oenophile-in-residence, Susan Olson with World Class Wines, and feature offerings both from the Pacific Northwest as well as around the world.  

Italian wines, for example, can be sampled at Nicoletta’s Table, Soletta’s Shoe Boutique, Tucci’s, and The Oilerie. Oregon tastes can be found at Lucky Me Boutique, World Class Wines and Bernard C. Chocolates. Other offerings include samples from Spain, Argentina, Oregon,Washington, France, California, as well as Sake and Champagne.

Attendees should start their walk at either the Lakewood Theatre at 368 S. State Street or Step It Up Ballroom Dance Studio at 449 Third Street to receive their souvenir Wine Walk Lake Oswego wine glass, along with a map featuring the event locations and wine details.  All wines tasted that day will be available for order and purchase at World Class Wines.

Tickets are available through local businesses like World Class Wines, Accessories from the Heart, Step It Up Studios and the Lake Oswego Chamber of Commerce as well as online. For more information call the Chamber: 503.636.3634.

Check Out These Neighborhoods for Trick or Treating in Lake Oswego

Before Saturday’s Wine Walk, kiddies will be walking the streets for candy on Halloween, this Thursday. Check out one of my earlier posts for hints on good neighborhoods to hit. If you have any to recommend, leave your suggestions here. I’d love to add them to the list.

If Dorothy were to check out the scarecrows at Luscher Farm in Lake Oswego, Oregon, I’m sure she’d look around and say, “Toto, I’ve a feeling we’re not in Kansas anymore.”

Instead of the straw-stuffed bird-scarer who followed her through Oz, she’d find everything from a glamorous blonde bombshell to an Oregon Duck and Oregon Beaver fan.

This is garden art that the whole family can enjoy. So get yourselves out to the farm at 125 Rosemont Rd. and cast your votes for your favorite while you still can (scarecrows are up only through October). Ballots are in the old metal toolshed next to the barn.

Help your kids to find Sneaky Pete who is hiding behind one of the other scarecrows. They’ll earn an “I Found Sneaky Pete” sticker for their efforts.

A recent survey has confirmed what Lake Oswego parents already know. Lake Oswego schools are top-notch.

In April, ZipRealty announced the results of a national survey identifying the best school districts with the most affordable housing. Lake Oswego ranked third.

Test score data and student teacher ratios comprised the School Score, which for Lake Oswego was 9.6. That was factored in with the $167 median price per square foot for housing in the district to earn it the third place spot behind Westonka Public Schools in the Minneapolis area at 9.6 and $112 and Geneva School District outside Chicago at 9.4 and $123.

Numbers only tell half the story, however. Case in point. This past year Lakeridge High School failed to make U.S. News & World Report’s Best High Schools ranking because its test results were too high. Since over 95 percent of Lakeridge students met or exceeded state standards in reading and math in 2010-2011, the Oregon Department of Education, as a matter of policy, did not provide the exact percentages to U.S. News & World Reports so as not to violate the Federal Family Education Rights and Privacy Act. Without Lakeridge data in a format that lent itself to the analysis they needed, the news agency was unable to rank the school. So it was left off the list even though the other high school in town, Lake Oswego, ranked second in the state despite having lower state assessment test scores than Lakeridge.

The school district’s reputation is what brings many potential buyers through my doors. I encourage them to look at the numbers but to also visit the schools and talk to the teachers, parents and students.

My kids will tell you that the schools prepared them well for college. They felt like they hit the ground running while many of their peers were still trying to figure out how to do a research paper. And as a parent, I am grateful for the AP courses that transferred in at public high school rates, saving me thousands of dollars in college tuition.

Let me know if you’d like to cash in on that successful formula Lake Oswego has: affordable housing plus great school district. I’d love to show you around.