LOCATION
The Bay Area is located on the Pacific Coast midway between San Francisco, California and Seattle, Washington. The communities of Coos Bay, North Bend, and Charleston  are approximately 115 miles from Eugene, Oregon’s second largest city.  

CLIMATE
Coos County  has a mild marine climate. Rainfall along the coast averages 63.48 inches per year. The majority of our rain falls in November, December and January with averages of approximately 10 inches per month. Temperatures range from annual mean highs of 59.5 to annual mean lows of 45.5 degrees. Elevation ranges from sea level to 400 feet above sea level.

OUR CITIES
There are two incorporated cities within Oregon’s Bay Area, Coos Bay and North Bend. They are adjacent to each other with common boundaries. Charleston is an unincorporated area adjacent to the southwest. The communities of Barview, Libby, Millington, Sumner, Cooston, Glasgow, and Hauser also surround the cities, all comprising the Coos Bay Region, or Oregon's Bay Area. 

Coos County (including Oregon’s Bay Area), has a population of 63,000.  

HOUSING
A typical three-bedroom, two bath home with a double garage, located within an urban area, sells for approximately $225,000. This increases dramatically in locations with views or other amenities. Rental housing ranges from $650 to $1300 per month for a three-bedroom house. 
Click here to see a list of Real Estate or Property Managers.

Several Assisted Living & Nursing Facilities are available as well as Evergreen Court which offers Independent Living for Seniors. 

TAXES
Oregon property taxes apply to privately owned real property such as land, homes, farms, stores, factories, warehouses and commercial offices which are taxed at 1999-2000 rates of $16.94 per $1,000 of value in Coos Bay and $16.08 per $1,000 of value in North Bend. Oregon has no sales tax, but does have a State income tax.  

ECONOMY
Historically, wood products, commercial fishing and shipping have been the mainstays of the Bay Area’s economy; more recently, agriculture and tourism have become increasingly important segments. 

Economic diversification is occurring, slowly and steadily, bringing a variety of new products and jobs to the Bay Area. Among the newer items now being manufactured here are precision tools, sports equipment, food products, specialty sound systems, plastics, hand-crafted furniture and musical instruments and myrtlewood products.

With the advent of fiber optics and other technological advancements, the Bay Area is beginning to attract Internet-based companies. The first of these, CyberRep, (recently purchased by ACS Call Center - Affiliated Computer Services), provides more than 450 technical support jobs.  

OUR SEAPORT
The Oregon International Port of Coos Bay   (541) 267-7678 is the largest coastal harbor between San Francisco and the Puget Sound, and is Oregon’s second busiest maritime port. The federally authorized and maintained deep-draft navigation channel has been a valuable asset for the Bay Area and southwestern Oregon since the 1850's.  

CHURCHES
There are over fifty churches of various denominations in the area. A church directory is available from the Chamber upon request, or click here to view on-line.

LIBRARIES
Three major libraries serve the citizens of the Bay Area -- the North Bend Public Library, the Coos Bay Public Library, and the Southwestern Oregon Community College Library.   All belong to the The Coos Library Service District, comprised of seven libraries within Coos County. This allows library patrons to access material that may not be home based at their local library.

UTILITIES
The Coos Bay-North Bend Water Board  (541) 267-3128 serves residential and business users in the two cities and some outlying areas with reliable potable water. Rates are dependent upon metered usage, at a minimum residential rate for 300 cubic feet per month of $12.26.

Verizon Communications (800) 483-4000 provides telephone service, phone systems, Internet access, and long distance service. As of September 1997, access lines to Coos Bay, North Bend and Charleston totaled 28,752. Internet products and services are also provided by several private businesses.

Charter Communications    (866) 731-5420 offers a total of 62 broadcast, satellite, premium movie and pay-per-view channels, packaged in a variety of tiers. They also offer CD-quality music 24-hours per day and the Charter PipelineŽ, a broadband Internet system.  

United Communications, Inc. or UNICOM (800) 342-4124, provides Internet services, ADSL services, web design services and local and long distance telephone service. 

Pacific Power  (866) 801-8078 provides electricity to residential, commercial and industrial users. Calls are received 24 hours a day/7 days a week.

Garbage disposal and recycling services are provided by Coos Bay Sanitary Service  (541) 267-6675 and North Bend Sanitation  (541) 756-5211

Construction of a new, natural gas pipeline has begun, bringing this desirable and needed additional energy source to our area. Contact Northwest Natural  (541) 267-5655  for further information.