Sequim Gazette Editorial and Letters to the Editor

We started hearing about a sub-area plan to revitalize downtown Sequim earlier this year. At the April 12 city council goal-setting meeting, the topic resurfaced.

But it also stalled.

Granted, the goal-setting meeting was not meant for set-in-stone decisions, but to ask have the plan shelved — as it nearly was — is a mistake.

As city councilor Bill Huizinga pointed out, postponing and essentially ignoring a downtown revitalization eventually will mean a haphazard downtown with no sense of direction.

The downtown plan is wrapped up in growth issues facing Sequim. Cities throughout the country continually grapple with growth issues, many of which have to do with density versus urban sprawl. Those of us living in Sequim do the same, albeit on a much smaller scale.

While we don’t have what is typically defined as urban sprawl — creating an excessive reliance on cars and eating up rural land and open space — we are witnessing the demise of a lot of open space and farmland.

When we talk about redefining the city’s core, we are at the same time talking about density versus further development into the countryside.

The Growth Management Act requires growth and higher-density development to take place within city boundaries, which protects against sprawl, even in communities as small as Sequim.

What residents of any city fail to realize is that their city will grow. Healthy cities grow. And that growth can happen in two ways: up or out. Building out is an environmentally unfriendly practice that creeps into open spaces, destroys wildlife and forces people to consume resources.

Building up is more environmentally responsible.

Which brings us back to the sub-area plan.

A huge concern for many Sequim citizens — and the city council — is that somehow this sub-area plan equates to a Trump Tower in the middle of downtown Sequim. Not so.

As we’ve said before, Sequim has a personality and an identity that needs to be preserved. That doesn’t mean there isn’t room for change and added density to the downtown corridor, which could include a mixed-use five-story building or two.

Several city councilors have expressed concern that the sub-area plan will change the face of downtown Sequim.

Frankly, that’s a good thing. Downtown Sequim isn’t a destination for travelers, but it could be. When visitors talk about the beauty of Sequim, they are usually referring to the surrounding mountains and strait, not downtown.

The city council should trust its city planners and give them the direction they need to continue the sub-area plan process. And once completed, Sequim citizens must get on board and contribute to the rebuilding of a new and improved downtown.

The sub-area plan is one of the topics that will be open for discussion at the April 28 town hall meeting. What say you?





A chamber divided

On June 16, 1858, shortly after Abraham Lincoln was selected as the Republican candidate for the U.S. Senate, running against Democrat Stephen A. Douglas, Lincoln delivered a speech titled “A house divided against itself cannot stand.”

He was, of course, referring to the issue of slavery, saying he did not believe the government could endure permanently “half slave and half free.”

The title of Lincoln’s speech paraphrased a statement by Jesus in the New Testament, “Every kingdom divided against itself is brought to desolation; and every city or house divided against itself shall not stand.”

How about another paraphrase?

A chamber of commerce divided against itself may not survive.

That appears to be where the Sequim-Dungeness Valley Chamber of Commerce is headed.

While the issues are not as grave as slavery, the shenanigans going on at the chamber may cause the organization to implode.

This all started with the firing of the chamber’s executive director back in January. Rather than sort things out in a civilized manner, a public shouting match at a chamber meeting, accusations of illegal maneuvers at the board level and downright personal attacks of integrity have fractured a once robust Sequim chamber of commerce.

We’re beginning to look like fools to those on the outside looking in. We’re beginning to set a bad example for those who will be in charge in just a few short years.

Frankly, most of the strife lies at the feet of the Concerned Chamber Committee, a group that formed shortly after the executive director was fired.

As we have stated before, to question is good, but to denigrate is not.

It’s scary to think that at the end of the day those with opposing thoughts can’t sit down and talk. There may be different views on how the chamber should function, but different views often make for a better way in the end. Concessions and compromises give the best result.

We all care about our city and our friends and neighbors. It’s time to put aside petty differences and power struggles and concentrate on how best to put this broken chamber of commerce back together.



Mary Powell can be reached at editor@sequimgazette.com or at 683-3311.