Letters to the Editor

The Editor:
My name is Lauren Hyman and I was a national History Day participant written about in this paper a couple of weeks ago. I am writing to thank a very important person that was not mentioned in the aforementioned article. Mr. Nighbert has coordinated this event all four years I have participated in it and this last time helped raise money so I could go to Maryland to compete in the Nationals. I appreciate his help so much and realize that without it, I most likely could not have gotten as far as I have. Thank you.
Lauren Hyman
Blaine

The Editor:
Wow! Another awesome Old Fashioned July 4th! Congratulations to these folks who brought it all together: Bob Hines, Roger Ellingson, Debbie Harger, Carolyn Anderson, Rachel Ely, Esther Moynihan, Jim Jorgensen, Gary and Renate Tomsic, Terry Galvin, Sheri Sanchez, Dave Pfiefer, city of Blaine, Blaine police department, Blaine fire department, The Northern Light, Birch Bay Refuse, Whatcom Transit Authority (great bus!), Pizza Factory, Jim Zell, Blaine pubic works department and all our volunteers.
Special thanks to Nancy Boat for parade line-up, Cheryl Fischer for the car show, Pam and Bob Christianson for a great fireworks show, and the wonderful Leroy Dougal.
Our parade trophy winners were Chokin’ Chicken Ranch, Bill Pinkstaff, Blaine Bouquet, Little Caesar’s Pizza, Bellingham Pipe Band, Mt. Baker Quarterhorse Association and Peace Arch Unit Girl Scouts.
And thanks to all of you who came, celebrated and enjoyed our 4th of July. We’ll see you all next year!
By the way – did you know a family came all the way from Tokyo for the 4th because they heard our celebration was so great?
Carroll Solomon
Event co-coordinator Blaine
Chamber of Commerce
Blaine

The Editor:
I am a member of Birch Bay stormwater and shellfish protection task force and watershed master/beach watcher.
The Washington State Department of Health (WSDOH) has been sampling Birch Bay waters for over five years. In general, Birch Bay waters have tested within allowable health limits but with decreasing quality. A couple of years ago, Birch Bay was placed on WSDOH threatened list. The threatened rating is intended to give local citizens a warning that if something isn’t done, shellfish harvesting could become prohibited. If shellfish harvesting becomes prohibited, then the county is required to set up a shellfish protection district. In the meantime, the Birch Bay steering committee has set up a sub-committee called stormwater and shellfish protection task force.
There are three areas in the Birch Bay’s watershed that need to be studied. The three locations are mouth of Birch Bay Village Marina, north end of Birch Bay State Park and Terrell Creek. The task force is looking for local volunteers who live in Birch Bay Village, along Terrell Creek from Lake Terrell on and north end of Birch Bay State Park.
The volunteers should have an interest in reducing the pollution entering the bay. Our only enforcement tool is education. As a beginning, the Terrell Creek volunteers will meet with a representative from Whatcom Conservation District. The conservation district works with small and hobby farms on a voluntary basis. The other volunteers will meet with Erika Stroebel from Whatcom County department of public works for marine waters.
Anyone interested can email me at larsong@comcast.net.
Gerald Larson
Birch Bay

The Editor:
Last month I wrote a letter in regards to development on the spit at Semiahmoo and debate over the best use of the Blaine airport property. Since this letter, I have spoken to several Blaine residents who feel the city of Blaine needs to get rid of the airport and make use of this city property as an economic asset instead of a financial headache.
The prime commercially zoned real estate could be leased to the Port of Bellingham and could be a great source of revenue but, as we have seen for the past 30 years, it has been rarely used and benefits only a few.
I’m not surprised that residents in Ferndale, Deming and Sumas have not asked their city councils to provide an airport for their communities. I think the main reason these small towns don’t have airports is because they realize that the Bellingham airport’s only about 25 minutes away. Recently, I used the Bellingham airport for a trip to Las Vegas and it was very convenient. Also, the last time I went to Disneyland I was about 20 minutes from Disneyland when I arrived at the airport in California. I could see having an airport if there wasn’t one in our backyard. Having an airport in Blaine makes about as much sense as having another NFL stadium in Seattle!
In getting back to the controversial privately owned Trillium property at Semiahmoo, whether we like it or not, a Canadian developer recently purchased the property between the Beach Walker condominiums and the Semiahmoo Resort for a little over $8 million.
In the next few years, he will put up 48 condos priced between one and two million dollars per unit on the property. With the addition of the 36 Seagrass units that are being proposed by Trillium, there will be 84 new condominiums on the spit. With a cost of around $1.4 million per unit this will generate about $118,000,000 in revenue for the developers.
Recently, a group of local residents tried to put together a land trust group to purchase this property. After discussions with Trillium, they claimed that Trillium is an unwilling seller! I know David Syre as an associate in the real estate business and I can assure you that if anyone out there wrote him a check for $50 to 60 million he would take it, shake their hand and walk away. I don’t see that happening in the near future.
If this type of development bothers you, I suggest you either buy the property, find someone else to buy the property, or simply let the local real estate market take care of itself. As I said last month, I don’t want this community looking like Lynwood or Seattle anymore than anyone else does but unless someone with really deep pockets wants to step up and buy all the real estate in this area, we will continue to see developers do what they do. As long as these are well thought out developments that meet all the required guidelines, I suggest people find something else to complain about the property they do own, such as the Blaine airport!
Dennis Hill
Blaine

The Editor:
There has been a lot of talk about the backups and wait times at the border crossings these days.
I work in a warehouse in Blaine and all the freight we receive comes from the border so I know all about long waits and holdups.
It is my opinion that no matter how long it takes to get through the border, it’s worth the wait. I myself would rather wait forever and a day than to have some dope dealers or terrorists sneak through the border crossings.
I’m sure the people who complain about waiting would change their tune if something bad happened to them from some bad people who might cross the border. I just hope that something bad doesn’t happen at all.
Wouldn’t we all rather be safe than sorry?
Richie Auriemma
Everson

The Editor:
For those in town who enjoy fireworks, you certainly must have felt fortunate that they started before the first of July and were still going off on the sixth.
For the rest of us who enjoy the professional fireworks on the evening of July 4, we can only hope for a better crackdown on the disrespectful few who wake us up and scare our pets for over a week.
To all who spent their money on the fireworks – hope you had fun watching your money disappear. Maybe next year you might do something better with it, like donating to a worthy cause or to the skateboard park, then join the crowd at Marine Park and watch the really spectacular fireworks for free.
Dorothy Bush
Blaine

The Editor:
We had an excellent beach cleanup of fire works debris on July 5. Fifteen citizens and visitors signed up at the C-Shop in the morning and others cleaned up without reporting in.
A special thank you goes to the Whatcom County parks department in the person of Tony George and his outdoor crew who did the majority of the heavy hauling to the Blaine Bay Refuse dumpster at the Alderson Road end. It is truly amazing the amount of trash that has to be dealt with on July 5. Obviously a lot of folks had a lot of fun but it sure would be nice if they would bother to take a little time to clean up after themselves.
Kathy Berg 
Birch Bay

 

Letters Policy
The Northern Light welcomes letters to the editor; however, the opinions expressed are not those of the editor. Letters must include name, address and daytime telephone number for verification. Letters must not exceed 350 words and may be edited or rejected for reasons of legality, length and good taste. Thank-you letters should be limited to 10 names. A fresh viewpoint on matters of general interest to local readers will increase the likelihood of publication. Writers should avoid personal invective. Unsigned letters will not be accepted for publication. Requests for withholding names will be considered on an individual basis. Only one letter per month from an individual correspondent will be published.

Please send your letter to:
225 Marine Drive, Blaine, WA 98230 or fax 360/332-2777.
E-mail:editor@thenorthernlight.com

Letters Policy

The Northern Light welcomes letters to the editor; however, the opinions expressed are not those of the editor. Letters must include name, address and daytime telephone number for verification. Letters must not exceed 350 words and may be edited or rejected for reasons of legality, length and good taste. Thank you letters are limited to five individuals or groups. A fresh viewpoint on matters of general interest to local readers will increase the likelihood of publication. Writers should avoid personal invective. Unsigned letters will not be accepted for publication. Requests for withholding names will be considered on an individual basis. Only one letter per month from an individual correspondent will be published.

Please email letters to letters@thenorthernlight.com