IS STATUS QUO THE FUTURE WE WANT?

Smokestacks, Foul Air & Vacant Buildings Our Legacy?

Submitted to Shelton Blog by Katherine Price Mason County Progressive

Because I live and work in Shelton, I take it personally when an industry decides to add additional pollution to my air. This helps explain why I have been opposed to the Simpson/Solomon proposed biomass incinerator since the day I heard about it. I believe that if the Solomon plant ever goes online in the harbor, it will be the end of downtown Shelton and surrounding neighborhoods.

Until yesterday it was simply my common sense that told me this. Yesterday, however, I was in Grays Harbor and got to see what the death of a community looks like.

My husband and I were looking for a place to eat in Hoquiam after our granddaughter's dance recital at the 7th Street Theatre. In the course of searching for a restaurant that was open, we easily passed a half dozen closed eating establishments, and more closed businesses. We were finally able to find a nice Italian restaurant to have dinner, but it was a pretty depressing experience. The restaurant in question was a little upscale, and served great food. I suspect they are a favorite of locals and may be able to weather the economic depression in Grays Harbor for a while yet...but even their future is uncertain in a community without living-wage jobs.

Hoquiam exists in the shadow of the Grays Harbor Paper Company chimney, which was belching full-throated yesterday into the Grays Harbor air. Now that the timber industry has come to a screeching halt in the Harbor, there are not many jobs. Some are at the paper company, a few at those businesses still hanging on by their fingernails, but generally more businesses seem to be "out of business" in the Harbor than are "in business".

Even without Solomon belching 24/7/365 into the air, we are losing businesses in Shelton at what seems like the rate of one or two per month. Last week it was the art gallery on Railroad; a few weeks before that, the crystal shop on Railroad; before that Vern's Restaurant on First Street; and now it's happened again on Railroad, Ah Badabing Pizzeria is gone (and they had good pizza!).

I am sure our readers can report on even more businesses I have missed or forgotten. It's not very encouraging.

And what are the Chamber of Commerce and the Economic Development Council recommending to help revitalize our community? Well, there was ADAGE; and then of course there was ADAGE; and then again there was ADAGE. They were really, really big on ADAGE. Since there is no ADAGE now, what are their plans for revitalizing our community?

Well, there is Solomon... and, of course, tourist dollars.

I was just in Grays Harbor, and I can assure you that folks drive through there faster than they drive through Shelton. Tourists don't come to look at smokestacks and smell foul air. They just don't. If Solomon goes on line, the tourist dollars that the Chamber Pot and the EDC are counting on will be just so much more smoke and mirrors.

Where is the leadership that Shelton needs to help find better ways to revitalize our community? It is certainly not to be found with Simpson/Solomon, the Chamber, the EDC, or our City Commissioners. Those folks are looking somehow to keep things going by doing the same things that worked in the past.

If Shelton is going to survive into the next decade, we are going to need some new, innovative thinkers; status quo is not going to take us into the future.