I love this time of year!  The wet, drizzly days just make the glorious, crisp, sunny ones stand out more brightly.  And that is actually my topic today – change and contrast.

We have lived in Whatcom County for over 30 years, and perhaps I am simply noticing it more, but I do believe there has never been as much happening that will leave a permanent imprint on what this place will look like and live like in the future.  There are multiple meetings and hearings every week to inform about, plan & permit new building projects.  The Growth Management Board has sent the County back to the drawing board to look again at the development densities they have established.  Builders are talking about multiple 6 to 20 story buildings.  Fairhaven is building out in a manner that would probably warm the hearts of those earlier developers – Charles Larrabee and “Dirty” Dan Harris.  137 acres of waterfront in the midst of the city is available to do with as we will.  One of the largest building corporations in the country has applied to develop 429 houses at the north end of Cordata Parkway, and they have additional land under contract.  And all this is only a small part of the activity.

We are asked daily, “What’s driving these changes?”  “What impact are the large builders going to have on me, who build 4, 8, 10 houses a year?”  “If I buy this today, can I sell it for more money next year?”  “Who is buying these houses?  Where are they coming from?  Where do they work?”  “What is Whatcom County going to be like 20 years from now?  Will I want to live here?”

None of us have definitive answers to any of these questions.  Some are more quantifiable than others, and we have opinions based on our experiences in the marketplace.  But of all these questions, there is just one over which we have any control whatever, and that is the last.  We are the people who will determine what Whatcom County will be like 20 years from now, and if we do nothing toward the process, we will have only ourselves to blame if we no longer want to live here.  Perhaps the most important election of the last 30 years is almost upon us.  There is an enormous amount of information readily available about the candidates and the issues.  Decide how you want Whatcom County to be 20 years from now, and then vote your beliefs.  The choices are quite clear, and it is up to you.