You have tunes in LG?

Blog post by Jeff D Clark, Realtor – La Grande Oregon Real Estate and Lifestyle

Actually, it turns out we do.... Read on!

La Grande is a fun place for live music. Being positioned roughly halfway between Portland and Boise, we have a lot of great bands of all genres moving thru town on Interstate 84 – and many of them stop and play! Locally, we have a number of excellent bands that frequently play at one of our local venues.
 
Once you begin to plug into life in town, you will find the locations that host music. Following the various restaurants and music venues and theaters on Facebook is the best way to stay up to date on shows, but we also have a small insert in the local newspaper called Go! Northeast Oregon, which features music and culture articles and a schedule of local events.
 
Where to find live music:
 
HQ – 112 Depot Street  - HQ is run by local creative mind Chris Jennings. He is very well connected in the Boise and Portland film, music and culture scenes, as well as one of the founders of the Eastern Oregon Film Festival www.eofilmfest.com. HQ is a great space in the heart of the downtown with a true stage, a bar and lots of space for dancing and hanging out. Often times they fence off half the street in front of the space and fire up the burn barrels for an evening of musical revelry.  lagrandehq.com/
 
10 Depot Street Restaurant – A long time La Grande music venue fixture, this little bar and restaurant packs a punch. They host music twice a week nearly year round, with Tuesday evening typically being your lighter scene, say a solo artist or an open mic, and Thursday being a full band. You can check out their schedule at www.tendepotstreet.com You’ll find everything at 10 Depot from jazz bands, rock shows, electronic, singer song writers and more.
 
McKenzie Theater, EOU – Of course, our university is often the host of various musical talent, and for now McKenzie Theater is the standing location for the Grande Ronde Symphony. www.granderondesymphony.org
 
Side A Brewing – 1219 Washington Avenue – Our local brewery really stepped into the music scene when they opened with an aggressive policy to bring more great music to town. And like true small town heroes, they reached out to the other bars and restaurants and did their best to not conflict with schedules or step on toes. They have a nice patio out back for outdoor music in the warm season. www.sideabeer.com
 
La Grande Farmers Market – Adams Avenue and Fourth Street – Our local farmers market has live music every Saturday morning (during market season) on a covered stage with plenty of space for listeners on the tiered seating area. It’s a great family-friends scene with kids running all over the place and a packed house of happy shoppers. Well worth a stop by! www.lagrandefarmersmarket.org
 
Joe Beans Coffee – 1009 Adams Avenue – This cozy, down-home space hosts a great live music tribute night called “The First Tuesday Concert Series” where they cover an artist of the month as performed by the house band “The Adams Avenue Irregulars”. www.joebeans.cool
 
Benchwarmers Pub and Grill – 210 Depot Street – A warm and inviting sports bar in downtown La Grande, Benchwarmers has a large covered outdoor parking lot, recently built, which transforms into a great open air music space when they pull in their large flatbed trailer. BW is well connected with EOU and hosts numerous student events, such as homecoming and graduation parties.  www.benchwarmerspubandgrill.com
 
Liberty Theatre – 1010 Adams Avenue – Look for this exciting downtown venue to open in 2020. Funding is in, contractors being scheduled and architectural plans are being finalized for the restoration of La Grande’s historic theatre. This venue will feature a bar and restaurant and will be host to music, theater, lectures and more. Keep checking the website and Facebook page for updates. www.libertyonadams.org
 
This post should give any new-to-town music lover the ability to find some entertaining music for an evening out in our fine little town. There are lots of other spaces around where you’ll find tunes, including some underground locations. Ask around or feel free to shoot me an email at [email protected] and I’ll see if I can get you connected with the right people.
 
Jeff D. Clark
Realtor, GRI, RPCV
Blue Summit Realty Group
102 Greenwood La Grande OR 97850
 
La Grande Oregon Real Estate – Union County Real Estate – La Grande Homes For Sale – Union County Oregon
 

Well, I’ll tell you – La Grande, Oregon is a great little town located in the heart of the Blue Mountains of Eastern Oregon. La Grande is an outdoor recreation haven, and fairly well undiscovered – for now. Find yourself in the downtown and you are just miles from several forest recreation access points to the north.  Running across the face of Mt. Emily is the Mount Emily Recreation Area (MERA). The MERA is a 3700 acre forested property with a diverse and fun trail system. It is composed of two sections, one for horseback riding, hiking and bicycling, the other section for motorized recreation. A large hillside separates the two units, so noise from machines is not a problem if you are hiking and you are not likely to run over a hiker if you are out having a blast on your four wheeler. Check out more information and get a feel for the beauty of the area here:  www.meetmera.org

A few miles further out and to the east, you will find access points to the Eagle Cap Wilderness Area, the largest wilderness area in Oregon. The Eagle Cap Wilderness is one of my favorite places in the world. There are countless trails and scores of high alpine lakes. You won’t regret a visit, and you typically won’t see another person on the trails once you’re more than a couple miles in. Lots of great information at www.eaglecapwilderness.com.  

So back to La Grande, let’s learn more:

We have about 13,000 people in La Grande and 25,000 in Union County as a whole. La Grande is home to Eastern Oregon University. This beautiful campus is the state’s most eastern college location and home of the EOU Mountaineers! There are a diverse range of programs and the school is doing well. There is excellent information about the school available online at www.eou.edu.  

Downtown La Grande is a great place that continues to improve in aesthetics and quality in spite of the nationwide trend of failing downtowns. We have seen many local building owners and investors creating more downtown quality rental housing in the last few years. Downtown living is one of the keys to building a thriving downtown economic zone. City hall (http://www.cityoflagrande.org) and the bi-weekly La Grande Farmer’s Market (www.lagrandefarmersmarket.org) are located at the intersection of Fourth and Adams – the heart of downtown. Right across the street is the public library -  a beautiful building, and there are numerous good restaurants and small shops very close by. Don’t miss the La Grande Underground Market right around the corner or stop by for some outdoor dining at Mamacita’s. Get set up for the outdoors at Blue Mountain Outfitters and Mountain Works – our local adventure shops. Drink a delicious beer at Side A Brewing on Washington Avenue!

La Grande and Union County have a great real estate market. We have lots of acreages for sale both small and large around the valley. We have great, old established neighborhoods with beautiful bungalows and craftsman homes, as well as newer quality subdivisions. We have commercial property, industrial, recreational and much more available.  Right now (early 2019) inventory is tight, but as you know, the real estate market is always fluid and dynamic. Check out my office website to view all available properties for sale in La Grande, Island City, Union, Cove, Elgin, Imbler and more! www.bluesummitrealtygroup.com

This post is really just scratching the surface, I’ll dive into more details about life in La Grande and Union County on other posts. Thanks for reading!

If you have any questions about my community, real estate or otherwise, please feel free to reach out to me at [email protected] or 541-805-8274. I’d love to help you buy or sell your next home, or at the least send you in the direction of a fun outdoor adventure, a great music show, and an ice cold drink to wash it down!

Jeff D. Clark
Realtor, GRI, RPCV
Blue Summit Realty Group
102 Greenwood La Grande OR 97850
 
La Grande Oregon Real Estate – Union County Real Estate – La Grande Homes For Sale – Union County Oregon