“The woods that broke the bank: development or preservation as park?” is Bob Simmons’ latest article on Chuckanut Ridge published in today’s Crosscut.
It’s an interesting read with a number of eye-opening quotes from Mayor Pike, Washington Federal Sr. VP Tom Kenney, and developer David Edelstein.
Commenting member • Member since Jan 16, 2008
An anonymous author imagines a better world where we are truly free
3 comments, most recent 5 months agoShall we protect - or shall we forever change - the nature of established residential neighborhoods?
8 comments, most recent 1 year agoDemocrat presidential candidate Ami Horowitz and his desire to enter the national debate
1 comment, most recent 1 year agoAn interesting city- and state-oriented strategy to solve the national corruption crisis.
Jason Hickel asks “Can we have perpetual growth AND a healthy ecology?”
3 comments, most recent 1 year agoThe lawsuit challenging the creation of the Chuckanut Community Forest Park District and the park district’s ability to preserve Chuckanut Ridge is finally over.
1 comment, most recent 2 years agoThe Bellingham Neighborhood Coalition (BNC) thanks the 365 community members for signing the Community ADU Comment Letter on the City of Bellingham’s ADU Ordinance update.
Will Bellingham Neighborhoods wake up in time? Or will we experience the same failure of upzoning reform as our friends in Ballard?
7 comments, most recent 2 years agoAffordable housing is one part of a housing trilemma: housing cost, economic strength, and quality of life.
4 comments, most recent 3 years agoA radical truth trying to gain traction
10 comments, most recent 8 years agoExploring the myths and reality of accommodating population growth
2 comments, most recent 8 years agoQuestions raised by the Superior Court’s barring of the Bellingham Community Bill of Rights initiative from being placed on the ballot.
21 comments, most recent 8 years ago… the person who recently had this to say about the Sunnyland Neighborhood rezone application
9 comments, most recent 8 years agoWanted: Someone to interpret chamber president Oplinger’s remarks
13 comments, most recent 8 years agoWhere to begin? Misinformation. Disinformation. Truths. Myths. Same old, same old. Paradigm shift. GMA. OFM. Growth pressures. Population loss. Growth subsidies. Proportionate share.
36 comments, most recent 8 years agoHow spending $1,000 could save millions on the acquisition of Chuckanut Ridge
11 comments, most recent 9 years agoAccording to Superstring theory, the universe consists of 10 dimensions, not 3 or 4. But what does this all mean?
14 comments, most recent 9 years ago“The woods that broke the bank: development or preservation as park?” is Bob Simmons’ latest article on Chuckanut Ridge published in today’s Crosscut.
Why Washington Federal’s best option is to accept Bellingham’s offer to take Fairhaven Highlands off its hands
6 comments, most recent 9 years agoUpdated Sun, Oct 31. An open letter to Bellingham Planning Director Jeff Thomas re: Fairhaven Highlands application deadline
12 comments, most recent 9 years agoPolitics is like a pool of ice water. When men jump in their balls shrivel up.
5 comments, most recent 10 years agoBREAKING:
On Dec 3, the FDIC issued a Supervisory Prompt Corrective Action Directive to Horizon Bank due to the bank’s critically undercapitalized status as of Sep
Dateline: Nov 11, 2011
Bellingham, WA
A series of recent landslides around the perimeter of Chuckanut Ridge, which caused substantial property damage, several injuries a
Professional journalist and local resident, Bob Simmons, has published an article entitled Horizon Bank and the fate of Fairhaven Highlands on the Seattle-based Crosscut.com</b
3 comments, most recent 10 years agoA public hearing on the Fairhaven Highlands Draft EIS was held on Tuesday, October 20 at the County Council Chambers. Approximately 250 to 300 were in attendance.
Channel 10 (BTV)
No confidence. That’s right. NO CONFIDENCE! I have no confidence in the Fairhaven Highlands EIS… and neither should you.
And it’s not for the obvious reasons. Sure,
If you are interested in saving Chuckanut Ridge, there is some glimmer of hope for preserving this ecologically-rich and environmentally-sensitive property. If you are willing to make a single phone
3 comments, most recent 11 years agoThe Associated Press (AP) has created an interesting interactive chart measuring the economic stress by County.
According to the AP, Whatcom County has a Stress Index of 9.86 for March 2009, wi
“At present, we are stealing the future, selling it in the present, and calling it gross domestic product.” So says renowned entrepreneur and visionary Paul Hawken at his May 3rd commenc
1 comment, most recent 11 years agoDear Director Stewart:
As I write this letter, I am reminded of a comment by a former planning department staffer who claimed he knew he had done his job well when he was hated equally by both
On February 20th, I wrote a column about the Chuckanut Ridge / Fairhaven Highlands mature forested wetlands and the failure of Horizon Bank’s wetland consultant to properly rate th
4 comments, most recent 11 years agoPulitzer Prize-winning author of The Jungle, Upton Sinclair observed, “It is difficult to get a man to understand something when his job depends on not understanding it.”
Have you ever wondered how truly livable cities become undesirable hell holes? Do the people who run these highly attractive areas into the ground merely fail to comprehend the distinction between <b
2 comments, most recent 11 years agoIf you are new to Whatcom County (or have been hiding under a rock for the last several years), you may not be familiar with the gut-wrenching process required by the state’s Growth Managemen
If you happen to find yourself in the market for an 82-acre hilly swamp wholly encumbered by critical areas like steep slopes and mature-forested Category 1 wetlands in southwest Bellingham, here are
Please don’t misunderstand. I’m not claiming that the Fairhaven Highlands environmental impact statement (EIS) does not have the potential to be meaningful. However, in its present form,
9 comments, most recent 11 years agoI really pity Horizon Bank’s CEO Rich Jacobson. His predecessor, Laury Evans, sure left him a bad hand to play. Not only is Mr. Jacobson faced with the same loan portfolio problems plaguing mo
2 comments, most recent 11 years agoWhen Mayor Pike ran for office, he convinced me and thousands of others that he was truly concerned about the issues that impact those who call Bellingham home. In particular, I believed he would do
12 comments, most recent 11 years agoIn recent weeks, the Chuckanut Ridge / Greenways 3 mêlée has been blown way out of proportion and has become nothing more than an irritating sideshow. Personally, I am much more interested
Elected officials will soon be making decisions that will determine how Whatcom County and its cities grow for the next two decades. These decisions will impact our quality of life in ways most of us
4 comments, most recent 11 years agoWhen it comes to planning for the future of our county and cities, must we be victims of the past or can we become masters of our own destiny?
Whatcom County will be adopting its population p
If you pay taxes in Bellingham, prepare to be screwed… again. The city’s Parks Department and Planning Commission have recommended a new Park Plan that will require raising taxes by at le
7 comments, most recent 12 years agoPeople everywhere like to use labels to compartmentalize things - as well as other people.
25 comments, most recent 12 years agoThanks to all who responded to my last column - “Is anybody out there?” - both on the Northwest Citizen website and personally by email. From you, I have received great encouragement and
5 comments, most recent 12 years agoHere’s a confession. I hate writing columns for this blog. They take time away from other things I’d rather be doing, and they certainly don’t engender any new friendships. In fac
13 comments, most recent 12 years agoOn his personal blog, former City Councilman John Watts has written a column entitled, “Chuckanut Ridge: Land Supply Implications” in which he concludes, “without a reasonable level
12 comments, most recent 12 years agoIn “The thousand acre dilemma: Part 1” we introduced the $69 million quandary Bellingham officials are currently wrestling with: How does the city provide parks for the 13,000 or so resid
11 comments, most recent 12 years agoAs a community, we ‘hamsters absolutely love our parks. It’s too bad we’ll have significantly fewer to love in the future compared with the level city officials had planned f
7 comments, most recent 12 years agoOn March 26, 2002, the US Patent Office issued Patent No. 6,362,718 B1, potentially altering the entire paradigm in our quest for the holy grail of unlimited clean energy. British journalist N
11 comments, most recent 12 years agoYou don’t need to be Nostradamus to make this prediction: Bellingham city officials are about to waste precious staff time and taxpayer resources preparing an environmental impact statem
6 comments, most recent 12 years agoAfter an extended hiatus, the battle over Chuckanut Ridge has begun to heat up again. In one corner: landowners Horizon Bank and David Edelstein. In the other corner: thousands of local resid
2 comments, most recent 12 years agoDear County Councilmembers,
Now that Bellingham has adopted a resolution signaling its desire to work with the County on the size of its UGA, the County has a tremendous opportunity to ensure t
Can Bellingham learn a trick or two about managing growth from the City of Tacoma? Councilmember Louise Bjornson thinks so; and I’m inclined to agree.
“I believe,” Louise r
