I don’t know much about Lacey. The Eff-Dub is kinda dodgy in parts but there are also some cheaper places to live closer to it. I haven’t spent much time in either though so I can’t tell you about interesting spots there. You do want to note that if you’ll be working there, commuting from Bellevue or Kirkland or downtown Seattle will be a chore.
Plus streets like Republican or Prospect which share the same name on the ends of their runs, but the whole middle bit is an inconveniently large body of water.
And Green Lake, don’t get me started on Green Lake. It is a zone of infinite singularity improbability from which no driver escapes. Even when safely on the other side of I-5, you can here it chuckling at you…waiting…waiting…