An effort to allow Birch Bay residents to use “Birch Bay” instead of “Blaine” as their mailing address was denied by the county in August.
In March, Birch Bay resident Lisa Guthrie requested that the USPS consider creating a ZIP code for the census-designated place of Birch Bay.
Birch Bay residents currently use “Blaine, WA 98230” as the last line of their mailing address.
In response to Guthrie, USPS Washington District Manager Trent McNeal wrote in May that the USPS takes several factors into account when creating ZIP codes, and it “cannot adjust these boundaries with every annexation of unincorporated territory, nor based solely on customer preference.”
But as a workaround, the USPS could allow Birch Bay residents to use “Birch Bay” in the final line of their mailing address to allow for community identity, McNeal wrote, but upon address validation, “Blaine” would still be listed within the USPS database.
In order for “Birch Bay” to be added to the USPS database, Whatcom County would need to submit a complete list of addresses in the Birch Bay community, McNeal wrote.
Though this wasn’t Guthrie’s original intention, allowing residents to use “Birch Bay” on their mail was the ultimate goal, she said.
So Guthrie went to the county to request that it compile this list.
In August, Whatcom County Council Clerk Kirsten Smith wrote in response to Guthrie that county administration was uninterested in supporting the mailing address change for several reasons.
Smith listed concerns that county staff had regarding residents changing their mailing address to “Birch Bay.”
Smith wrote that the county’s standardized addressing system would no longer be valid for residents if their mailing address were changed. This system was developed over many years for the county’s Geographic Information System and other applications such as its voter database and property tax assessments.
Address changes would also be likely to affect the emergency response system, Smith wrote.
The county’s Public Works Department’s addressing system for new development and permitting would be impacted, she wrote.
Smith wrote that the county would have difficulty defining the Birch Bay community.
“Do we only include the parcels designated as (Urban growth Area) today or also the larger surrounding area parcels currently designated Rural on the (Comprehensive Plan and zoning map) that likely consider themselves more Birch Bay than Blaine?” she wrote.
Smith wrote that the county can’t prohibit residents from working with the USPS, but the mailing address change isn’t something the county administration is interested in for the listed reasons.
“(Administration’s) feeling is that incorporation is the cleanest way to make the switch,” Smith wrote.
Guthrie said she is disappointed that the county was unwilling to support the effort to allow Birch Bay residents to use “Birch Bay” in their mailing address, especially considering Birch Bay’s size and its designation as an Urban Growth Area since 1997.
Despite having a higher population than Blaine, Birch Bay residents will continue to use “Blaine” as their official mailing address — though Birch Bay’s potential incorporation could change that. Guthrie is the vice chair of the Birch Bay Incorporation Group steering committee.
According to Whatcom County’s Comprehensive Plan, the Birch Bay Urban Growth Area had a population of 8,908 in 2023. The Blaine Urban Growth Area had a population of 6,728.
In an email to The Northern Light, Guthrie wrote, “I remain disappointed that Whatcom County designated Birch Bay an Urban Growth Area almost 30 years ago, continuing to encourage growth here (the population has approximately tripled in that same time frame), but without support for the level of service a community of over 9,000 residents deserves.”
