Pasco, WA is an amazing looking city. (Seattle, Kennewick: crime rate, school)

[revelated]

That bridge is gorgeous too. And I'm given to understand that it's got a rich history: was once basically a slave deport site?

My question: why is it Seattle never "evolved" like this? What's the story around this Tri-Cities? Why was/is the I-90 not super developed to enhance tragic flow between Pasco and Seattle, or at the very least, a reasonably priced commuter flight setup?

[Botev1912]

I don't see a city in the pictures.

[Hemlock140]

There are only 264,000 people in the whole Tri-Cities area. The greater Seattle area has 3-1/2 million. There is just not much need for better/more transportation between the two regions. I went to Pasco for a few days on business in the early summer and it was an easy drive. I thought Pasco was a nice little city, and much more affordable, but if I lived there would miss the green, mountains and cool weather.

[Count David]

Richland and Kennewick are nicer, but Pasco is okay I guess. The bridge is cool, almost has the glory of an interstate river crossing.

You don't usually hear "Pasco" and "amazing" in the same sentence. You just don't.

[j_k_k]

Pasco's position among the cities has shifted with the explosion of a more gentrified western part with the proper proportion of strip malls. It used to be the smallest and highest crime of the three, and the most blue-collar and Hispanic. It is probably still the most Hispanic, but Kennewick is catching up there. It is now the largest, I believe, and I think Kennewick's crime rate is close to Pasco's. The Tri-Cities concept of blue collar is mostly school employees, environmental safety people at Hanford, and farm laborers. All of the above except farm laborers are pretty well spread out.

If you wonder why TC didn't become much more important, it's worth knowing that early in WA history, Walla Walla was the main contender with Seattle for primacy. However, one thing is easy to see: Seattle was a seaport, and Pasco was not. Nor was Pasco a significant port at all, because in those days the Columbia was not navigable for heavy craft. The TC were a backwater until 1942, at which time Leslie Groves came out here and said: "Let's see. Lots of fresh cooling water, check. Big area of desert we can confiscate, check. Area that would be no loss if it got hopelessly contaminated by nuclear waste or accidents, check. Far away from actual cities, check."

[revelated]

Originally Posted by j_k_k

Pasco's position among the cities has shifted with the explosion of a more gentrified western part with the proper proportion of strip malls. It used to be the smallest and highest crime of the three, and the most blue-collar and Hispanic. It is probably still the most Hispanic, but Kennewick is catching up there. It is now the largest, I believe, and I think Kennewick's crime rate is close to Pasco's. The Tri-Cities concept of blue collar is mostly school employees, environmental safety people at Hanford, and farm laborers. All of the above except farm laborers are pretty well spread out.

If you wonder why TC didn't become much more important, it's worth knowing that early in WA history, Walla Walla was the main contender with Seattle for primacy. However, one thing is easy to see: Seattle was a seaport, and Pasco was not. Nor was Pasco a significant port at all, because in those days the Columbia was not navigable for heavy craft. The TC were a backwater until 1942, at which time Leslie Groves came out here and said: "Let's see. Lots of fresh cooling water, check. Big area of desert we can confiscate, check. Area that would be no loss if it got hopelessly contaminated by nuclear waste or accidents, check. Far away from actual cities, check."

That's good detail. Thanks for that.

I've decided that a 3+ hour commute isn't appealing, despite what I consider a perfect residential makeup. But maybe someday when I'm super wealthy, I can consider it as a place to retire.