Camas

Google built a major data center campus in Camas — roughly 400 acres along the Columbia. It's not the city's identity, but it's the city's largest property taxpayer and a signal that east Clark County has tech infrastructure underneath the small-town surface. The paper mill at the western edge of the city — originally Camas Paper, later Crown Zellerbach, now Nippon Paper — has been operating since 1883. On certain wind directions you know it's there. But downtown Camas has put enough distance between itself and the mill identity that first-time visitors are often surprised: the 1920s brick storefronts along NE 4th Avenue are genuinely intact, Grains of Wrath brewery fills a former hardware store, and the old Camas Hotel has been restored. This is not a city that looks like it should be this good.

Camas School District is the main reason buyers stretch their budget to get here. It's consistently one of the top-rated districts in Washington state — small enough that teachers know students, large enough to offer AP tracks and strong extracurricular programs. Camas High School regularly ranks in the top five percent of Washington high schools. Buyers relocating from Portland who have kids in middle school or older specifically target Camas for the schools. The housing reflects that demand: medians run $100,000–$150,000 above Vancouver proper, and well-priced homes don't sit. Lacamas Lake Regional Park anchors the outdoor life — a 304-acre lake with swimming, kayaking, and loop trails that see serious use on summer weekends.

Camas is 25 miles east of Portland via Highway 14 along the Columbia, then across the Glenn Jackson Bridge on I-205. Southbound I-205 backs up reliably every weekday afternoon — expect 45–60 minutes to downtown Portland in peak traffic. The longer route is faster exactly never. What buyers are trading for that commute is no Oregon income tax, schools that outperform most of Portland's options, and a downtown that doesn't feel like a trade-off.