Over the last decade, Bellingham has seen phenomenal growth. Blessed with the ocean, rivers, lakes, mountains and forests at our backdoors, people are flocking to the area to enjoy nature combined with city amenities. With this increased population there comes the question: do we move outward or upward?

The Growth Management Board of Washington, along with other city, county and state officials are opting for the latter. “Higher Density Housing” is becoming the buzz phrase of the area as we try to put more people into the same amount of space. This leaves us with a few questions:

How do we combine different types, sizes and prices of homes on land that is becoming increasingly expensive?

How do we deal with increased traffic and the risk of increased crime associated with higher density housing?

How do we maintain our unique “Bellingham” character?

These questions will be addressed by Gordon Price as he presents ” Growing/Liveable Vancouver - Creating the livable communities we want” on Thursday October 6, 2005 at 2pm and 7pm at the Whatcom County Courthouse Council Chambers located at 311 Grand Avenue, Bellingham. As City Counciller for Vancouver, BC, and community planning professor at UBC, Mr. Price has helped Vancouver realize its potential as a family and business friendly city. For more information regarding this event, call 360-671-5600 x4.

We would love to hear your thoughts regarding this issue. Please feel free to post your comments here, or email us at info@johnsonteamrealestate.com.