Birch Bay feels absence of part-time residents

Crystal Anderton has been visiting Edgewater Trailer Park since she was an infant. Even before she was born, her great-great-grandparents rented a cabin one week every summer in Birch Bay, spurring a tradition that carried through generations – a story similar to many of her neighbors.

What made Edgewater feel like home was the people who shaped those memories: The ones who were there when she potty trained and the ones who were at her wedding reception in the park 13 years ago.

But now Anderton and her husband, Josh, are one of two American homes left at Edgewater, along with an essential worker from Canada – a stark difference from the dozens of homes normally occupied. And with repeated border closure extensions since the first shutdown to non-essential travel on March 21, Anderton isn’t sure when her Canadian neighbors will return.

When the border first closed, the Andertons got to work helping neighbors. They exchanged emails, collected spare keys, emptied fridges, turned off water and upgraded their phone plan for international calls.

“In the beginning it was ‘don’t drink all of our beer,’ then it was ‘you better drink it, it’s going to get expired,’ and then it was ‘we’ll get you a 12-pack when we’re back,’” Anderton said.

Anderton likens the quiet park to the aftermath of an atomic bomb. Bird feeders are overrun with yellow jacket nests, children’s toys are cluttered on a deck, and a Canadian flag is blowing in the wind.

CBP spokesperson Jason Givens said in an email to The Northern Light that travel into the U.S. for visiting the personal property is not essential under the temporary travel restrictions but if additional circumstances make the travel essential, then a traveler may be permitted into the country. Final determination on what is considered essential is made at the port of entry.

Janice Massender, one of Anderton’s Canadian neighbors, said she grew up spending summers in Birch Bay and has owned her own property there for over 30 years. Memories like kayaking, swimming in the ocean, and the annual sand sculpture contest were put on hold this year.

“We were just sick,” Massender recounted hearing of the border closure. “This is the first time in my whole life I haven’t been in Birch Bay. My whole life.”

For Massender, the most frustrating element is that, even if she vows to make a non-stop trip, she can’t drive across the border to check on her property but can fly across the border, something she calls a double standard.

Massender’s cousin, Linda Sharpe from Maple Ridge, B.C., has visited her Birch Bay home almost weekly for nearly 30 years. She visits often in the summer for the crabbing season and two times per week in the winter. “It’s my paradise,” she said.

Sharpe said she would feel more worried if it were not for neighbors helping her out, but her husband, Cal, worries about servicing the lawnmower and other equipment that may not start when they return, and pesky intruders including ants and mice.

Canadian property owners in Blaine and Point Roberts are also struggling to connect with their properties.

About 2,367 properties in the 98230 zip code, which includes Birch Bay and Blaine, have taxpayers with a Canadian mailing address, according to the Whatcom County Tax Assessor’s Office. But the taxpayer is not always a complete indication of Canadian homeownership because properties will also have divided ownership with one address, said county assessor Rebecca Xczar.

In Point Roberts, Canadians are petitioning to maintain or remove belongings from their American properties. Kevin McIntosh of Ladner, B.C. started a petition after the border closure was extended in May to allow Canadians to check on boats, horses and other property, which has gathered nearly 3,400 signatures to date, more than double Point Roberts’ population.

Anderton and her husband said none of the homes contain valuables and there are many cameras on the property to help catch potential intruders. They’ve also had a great relationship with Birch Bay deputy Todd Damon, who they said will go out of his way to patrol the entirety of Edgewater.

“My general feel is when the border opens up that we will get an increased number of calls from things undiscovered,” said Damon, who has seen more burglaries to homes that he knows are Canadian-owned than ones occupied.

Damon recommends Canadians contact the Whatcom County Sheriff’s Office to add their address to the office’s computer service system. That way, if there is a crime, the sheriff’s office will know whom to contact.

“It’s setting up to be good if you’re a criminal, not so good if you’re a homeowner,” Damon said.

The Andertons spend a few hours each week maintaining homes and mailing left-behind items like summer clothes but prepare for more work to winterize the mobile homes if the border isn’t open by the first freeze.

“Our list is going to get longer,” Anderton’s husband, Josh, said.

For now, the Andertons video chat with their cross-border friends, gathering for happy hour and reminiscing on the times when they were together.

“It’s part of their life, their history,” Anderton said of her Canadian neighbors. “Not to be here is an odd feeling. It’s like something is missing.”