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You seem to miss my point completely on these threads- which has been that quite often, the same people complaining (the curmudgeons I've mentioned, can be on the right or left) act like issues occurring throughout the state, region, and country are somehow limited to Bellingham, or act as if living in this city is terrible because there's a homeless population around downtown. You seem to fit into that category, and make it sound like issues like escalating real estate prices, traffic, homelessness, and petty crime simply don't exist elsewhere.... You often mention anecdotal crimes to scare people away, as if someone from Boulder or San Fran or Atlanta or anywhere else has never heard of a bike being stolen.
So I'm sure that you and the other Bellingham haters on C-D salivated at the news coverage we received over the last few days. Not to make light of it, but the "downtown situation" is mostly limited to city hall and the library. I agree that it was starting to get out of hand, though my wife and I walk by daily and have not feared for our safety. In fact, usually it feels somewhat like the camping area at a large music festival. We have gone over there numerous times and handed out food, as well as gloves, socks, handwarmers, etc. and not felt threatened, though there are clearly a lot of people suffering from mental illness and I'm sure some of them dealing with addiction.
Several of my friends work in city hall, though, and recently they started getting concerned about how close everyone was getting on the lawn...No matter, they've finally been given an ultimatum, so the camp is being swept this Friday. The city has created several housing areas, and it's time for them to move on. Unfortunately, there was some safety at first in the city hall setting, now many will probably go back out of sight and on to trails.
As to your other comments, saying downtown is becoming Pioneer Square makes me think you don't actually spend time or money there. Or you just live in total fear of an urban construct. Two or three blocks away, restaurants are humming and there are plenty of people walking and biking around. And I actually live and own a house in the adjacent neighborhood (Sunnyland) that you and several others constantly reference when talking about how bad Bellingham is. We're an urban, semi-industrial but close knit neighborhood where we have several watch groups online. But your portrayal is hilarious. It's also extremely walkable, home to five breweries, a Trader Joe's, trail and downtown access. You're far, far more likely to get bumped into by a jogger or run into by someone on a bike towing their child than you are to get accosted by an "undesirable."
Speaking of dangerous confrontations, I think that the optics of homelessness are what really scares some people on these threads. I certainly don't like the fact that it's a problem, and I'm sure- like many West Coast cities, it has a lot to do with some common characteristics- high housing prices/low paying jobs, low housing inventory, mild climate. From what I've experienced it's a trade off- many Western cities have higher homeless rates- but not entire dangerous areas that you'd never visit, which is commonplace in the East. And overall crime rates aren't dramatically different. Maybe it's because out of sight is preferable? After all, you constantly inquire about living in other places like Greenville, SC where the violent crime rate is over 2x Bellingham's. Somehow that doesn't seem to concern you as much as a relatively small area where the homeless are concentrated. Personally, I've mentioned my concern for the homeless and the homeless situation numerous times, and my thoughts would likely surprise you. I absolutely don't like that it's going on, but no one on either side seems to have a perfect solution. Just locking everyone up isn't going to help, and just ignoring problems won't make them go away. The city is investing in alternative housing, though I think that they should do anything they can to accelerate the process, and be firmer in general with law enforcement.
Anyway, like several of the other curmudgeons, it sounds like you need to move on and get a change of scenery. I fully understand the frustration you've encountered, now it's time for you to run into many of the same issues elsewhere.
With all due respect, this diatribe sounds as if it could have been written about 4 years ago by some naive Seattle booster who’s now fleeing their once-beloved city because the homeless problem has become so pervasive. Just how bad does the problem need to get before you‘ll take notice? If you disagree with my comments on the matter, go and talk to some displaced Seattleite or Californian, god knows there’s enough of them here. Me? I’d prefer to learn hard lessons through someone else’s misfortune rather than my own.
It’s easy to dismiss problems like soaring housing costs by saying “It’s happening everywhere, not just Bellingham.” True, Greenville is also becoming gentrified, and expensive, and the locals are complaining - seems like Illinois, New York and New Jersey are sending lots of people their way (notice a trend, here?). It’s also true that, right now, according to Redfin, there are 568 homes for sale in Greenville under $650K, while Bellingham offers 127 homes at this price point, many with “review offer date” clauses in their listings. So, your seat-of-the-pants perception that “It’s happening everywhere!” doesn’t address just how awful our housing market is compared to another similarly sized city also experiencing growing pains. I actually visited Greenville last year and came to the conclusion that although I’d probably still spend quite a bit for a house, at least I’d have options.
Speaking of Greenville, I couldn’t help but make comparisons to Bellingham..after all, that was the whole point of my trip. I couldn’t help but ask myself, “Why doesn’t our downtown look like this? Why can’t our city attract well-paying jobs and young professionals? How is this chronic housing shortage and all its associated problems benefiting us?” I liked what I saw. Despite the bike paths and breweries, Bellingham seemed so stagnant and run-down in comparison. There’s no excuse for this. We’re situated in a gorgeous spot between Seattle and Vancouver and have an educated populace. This place should be popping, but it’s hamstrung by a pathetic no-vision city government masquerading as being “progressive” while it serves no one but retirees and the university.
I’ve noticed a concerning trend with you and your posts over the years. Anytime one of us comes in here to discuss Bellingham’s shortcomings, especially concerning homelessness and crime, like Johnny On The Spot you’re in here, telling us we’re overreacting. Yet Sunnyland’s Facebook page, of which you’re a member, is full of literally hundreds of posts by your neighbors discussing the rampant property crime incidents in your own neighborhood, but you’re nowhere to be found. Not once have you told a neighbor that’s had their car prowled, or their home broken into, that they’re overreacting and this sort of thing happens everywhere. Not once. You only do that on an anonymous discussion board people use as a resource for relocation purposes. Why is that, Dave?
Edited to add: While typing this, a S. O’Connell on Sunnyland’s page just reported a suspicious individual walking in the alley between James and King streets with not one, but two, likely stolen full suspension bikes and reacted to having his picture taken. Mr. O’Connell then expressed his concerns with drug addiction fueling these thefts. At least someone seems concerned..
Last edited by CoastieTX; 01-27-2021 at 10:36 AM..
Have you heard people play instruments or sing songs there? I saw a trashcan fire with guys standing around it, not sure if they were cooking smores over it or just keeping warm.
Okay, let me change "feels" to "felt" kind of like a music festival. For most of November and December it was not the same angry vibe that it became in the last several weeks. I fully agree that things started escalating and grew more dangerous, and as I said later in the post, along with the fact that I agree that police need to be firmer in general with enforcement. When they refused to give more of a barrier for safety between tents and city hall, it was time to take more decisive action. And it was probably well overdue to shut it down and force people to other options that were offered by the city.
With all due respect, this diatribe sounds as if it could have been written about 4 years ago by some naive Seattle booster who’s now fleeing their once-beloved city because the homeless problem has become so pervasive. Just how bad does the problem need to get before you‘ll take notice? If you disagree with my comments on the matter, go and talk to some displaced Seattleite or Californian, god knows there’s enough of them here. Me? I’d prefer to learn hard lessons through someone else’s misfortune rather than my own.
It’s easy to dismiss problems like soaring housing costs by saying “It’s happening everywhere, not just Bellingham.” True, Greenville is also becoming gentrified, and expensive, and the locals are complaining - seems like Illinois, New York and New Jersey are sending lots of people their way (notice a trend, here?). It’s also true that, right now, according to Redfin, there are 568 homes for sale in Greenville under $650K, while Bellingham offers 127 homes at this price point, many with “review offer date” clauses in their listings. So, your seat-of-the-pants perception that “It’s happening everywhere!” doesn’t address just how awful our housing market is compared to another similarly sized city also experiencing growing pains. I actually visited Greenville last year and came to the conclusion that although I’d probably still spend quite a bit for a house, at least I’d have options.
Speaking of Greenville, I couldn’t help but make comparisons to Bellingham..after all, that was the whole point of my trip. I couldn’t help but ask myself, “Why doesn’t our downtown look like this? Why can’t our city attract well-paying jobs and young professionals? How is this chronic housing shortage and all its associated problems benefiting us?” I liked what I saw. Despite the bike paths and breweries, Bellingham seemed so stagnant and run-down in comparison. There’s no excuse for this. We’re situated in a gorgeous spot between Seattle and Vancouver and have an educated populace. This place should be popping, but it’s hamstrung by a pathetic no-vision city government masquerading as being “progressive” while it serves no one but retirees and the university.
I’ve noticed a concerning trend with you and your posts over the years. Anytime one of us comes in here to discuss Bellingham’s shortcomings, especially concerning homelessness and crime, like Johnny On The Spot you’re in here, telling us we’re overreacting. Yet Sunnyland’s Facebook page, of which you’re a member, is full of literally hundreds of posts by your neighbors discussing the rampant property crime incidents in your own neighborhood, but you’re nowhere to be found. Not once have you told a neighbor that’s had their car prowled, or their home broken into, that they’re overreacting and this sort of thing happens everywhere. Not once. You only do that on an anonymous discussion board people use as a resource for relocation purposes. Why is that, Dave?
Edited to add: While typing this, a S. O’Connell on Sunnyland’s page just reported a suspicious individual walking in the alley between James and King streets with not one, but two, likely stolen full suspension bikes and reacted to having his picture taken. Mr. O’Connell then expressed his concerns with drug addiction fueling these thefts. At least someone seems concerned..
And you sound like someone who spent too much time here, never bought a house, and is now bent out of shape because you've been priced out of the market. And I'd have sympathy for you if that's the case- it happened to me in Colorado, and I understand the frustration. In fact I have sympathy for anyone trying to buy a house or condo out here- it's expensive and prices have skyrocketed in the last few years.
As to your other comments about homelessness, clearly you didn't take the time to read my comment. Or any of my comments, apparently. Obviously I'm concerned, but it should be pointed out that a) most of the people complaining about homelessness never offer any solutions, just complain that local government is doing it wrong and b) use the issue as the main indicator that Bellingham is a terrible place to live.
My point about Greenville is that it's not some perfect place. I like the downtown and spent plenty of time in the area when I lived in Western NC. But statistically you are FAR more likely to be a victim of a violent crime in Gvill than Bham. Also, there are areas of town- and in nearly every Eastern city I've visited- that are far more dangerous than a homeless shelter or tent camp around city hall in Bellingham. Again, I brought up this point in my post. Perhaps it's a weird tradeoff. As to why homelessness is so pervasive in Western cities, well again I offered my theories. But clearly low housing inventory has something to do with it. It's just a different landscape, and for much of the west there's simply not much in the way of affordable housing. In the East- especially the SE, you can often go another ten miles up the interstate and find another city that has something that may work.
Another factor is employment, and since you seem to pay a lot of attention to my posts, I'm not sure how you've missed where I've stated numerous times that we should be doing all we can to attract more jobs. But that seems to be a commonality of you and some of the others here, where you all seem to totally disregard where I agree with you in an effort to make me some kind of enemy. I just disagree that this place is terrible, and I find that many of the folks that comment about Bellingham on C-D sound like-and in some cases confirm- that they've never actually lived anywhere else, and act like problems we encounter here are somehow unique to our city.
Also, people like to have it both ways. Is it getting worse or getting better? You claim that Bellingham is stagnant and run down, but in the nearly seven years I've lived here, the area in and around the city center has gotten much better, many businesses have opened, neighborhoods are full of owners making improvements to their properties. So you liked it better when it was more dangerous and run down? Bellingham (and other urban areas west of the Cascades) have always prided themselves on grittiness. Have you been to any other cities in the NW?
As to your neighborhood comment, that's just hilarious, and wrong. First of all, I'm not the one trying to be anonymous- you clearly had no issues finding my name. Yet I don't know who you are at all, and you're the one posting it here, which I find to be rather creepy. But, since you know it- look me up using the search bar in the Sunnyland FB group you're talking about and go completely negate your own argument by reading my activity on the Sunnyland thread. I'll look forward to your retraction, though I don't expect one.
In general, I appreciate people posting on a neighborhood watch thread, though it can get a little ridiculous at times (for example, neighbors posting about missing flowers in their yard when deer and rabbits were obviously the culprits). And most of the posts are minutia, things like people giving away items they don't need or local charity fundraising efforts. But in general, why would I argue with a post about someone posting helpful information? As I mentioned, I've posted numerous times on Sunnyland and other groups, both reporting shady people and thanking people for posting, and in fact I've been very vocal in the past about zoning/construction/crime issues arising in the neighborhood.
Again, this is a centrally located, semi-industrial, mixed-zoning neighborhood bordering downtown. Not only did I know what we were getting into when we bought our house, we sought this out. It has delivered and we love it. It's on a grid, and people have to walk through the neighborhood to get to other places. Our neighborhood even hosted a temporary, city-sponsored, secured homeless tent encampment, and crime actually seemed to go down while we were there. To be honest, in this day and age, I feel my risk of getting my property damaged or being physically attacked is far higher from arguing with someone like yourself online than it is from a random person just walking down the street.
Anyway, I'll finish by going back to your "concerning trend" comment. I generally post as a reaction to the one-sided and rather relentless bashing of Bellingham that occurs on the WA forum. This is the 1,073rd comment on the 108th page of a thread that's gone on for 13 years about a city that's enduring the same issues as most every city on the West Coast, though I've never seen anything like it regarding other cities or towns. I've gotten called names and been attacked numerous times simply for pointing out that myself and many other people find Bellingham quite desirable. All the while, I've acknowledged that we need to work harder on providing more reasonably priced housing, pursue more well-paying jobs, do a better job managing growth, and do more to enforce crime/come up with more solutions to the homeless issue. Most of the things I just mentioned, I'd assume you agree with.
I hope this helps you understand my desire to provide a little balance to the bizarre, ongoing saga of anti-Bellingham posts on this website. If you made it this far, thanks for taking the time to read my comment.
Last edited by bartonizer; 01-27-2021 at 01:42 PM..
And tune in for the **** show every evening (PM me for the frequency if you somehow can't find it). The police are WORKING HARD dealing with this mess. Its too bad that within hours most are back out on the street though.
Several of the camps in town are openly harvesting the stolen bikes for parts. I drive by several camps each day and often there is a "new arrival" bicycle that gets smaller and smaller and then the frame disappears as they either recycle or sell the parts. There was a homeless/druggie man screaming, punching at the sky, and yelling obscenities on the Whatcom creek trail yesterday afternoon for hours.
Lastly, our data on Bellingham crime and violence is from 2018. I suspect to see a marked increase posted for 2020.
While typing this, a S. O’Connell on Sunnyland’s page just reported a suspicious individual walking in the alley between James and King streets with not one, but two, likely stolen full suspension bikes and reacted to having his picture taken. Mr. O’Connell then expressed his concerns with drug addiction fueling these thefts. At least someone seems concerned..
Bike theft, burglary, and car prowl is huge here in Bellingham. These homeless aren't dumb, they get a few bucks and pop into harbor freight for crowbars and bolt cutters (along with knives, hatchets, hammers, saws, etc) and will help themselves to bicycles locked into racks and or valuables locked inside vehicles in minutes. Its also common to see car doors that were pried open with a crowbar to get inside, which absolutely ruins the quarter panel/B-pillar and door on the car (which is typically part of the frame of a unibody car and causes $1,000's in damage). One person complained that they had about $3 worth of change and a couple CD's in their center console, and a homeless person pried the door open with a crowbar to steal it and caused $5,600 in damage.
And tune in for the **** show every evening (PM me for the frequency if you somehow can't find it). The police are WORKING HARD dealing with this mess. Its too bad that within hours most are back out on the street though.
Several of the camps in town are openly harvesting the stolen bikes for parts. I drive by several camps each day and often there is a "new arrival" bicycle that gets smaller and smaller and then the frame disappears as they either recycle or sell the parts. There was a homeless/druggie man screaming, punching at the sky, and yelling obscenities on the Whatcom creek trail yesterday afternoon for hours.
Lastly, our data on Bellingham crime and violence is from 2018. I suspect to see a marked increase posted for 2020.
Wow, that police report for the past 7 days is overwhelming. Where is all this bad behavior originating? This is not the town where I have lived in since I was born.
As far as the illegal homeless camping and other activity, I am disgusted with the government for allowing this to happen, the squatters, protestors, and all these enablers. I do not go downtown any more and any business I have with city and/or county government is accomplished on line or by phone.
I used to ride the bus to the library to check out books then sit on the grass reading my favorite. When our daughter was young, there was a children’s entertainment program on Fridays during the summer around noon. We would eat our lunch on the grass and be entertained for an hour. What was once a great place for kids and adults is now closed due to this lawless bunch. Some naive people are making excuses for their destructive behavior. There is no excuse for this at all.
Location: Whatcom County, WA/Cherokee County, NC/Pike County, KY
447 posts, read 332,823 times
Reputation: 609
Quote:
Originally Posted by bartonizer
Okay, let me change "feels" to "felt" kind of like a music festival. For most of November and December it was not the same angry vibe that it became in the last several weeks. I fully agree that things started escalating and grew more dangerous, and as I said later in the post, along with the fact that I agree that police need to be firmer in general with enforcement. When they refused to give more of a barrier for safety between tents and city hall, it was time to take more decisive action. And it was probably well overdue to shut it down and force people to other options that were offered by the city.
The first time I saw the homeless camping on the city hall lawn I was thinking, wow it looks like the homeless are protesting by setting up camp on the government's lawn. I didn't think the mayor set this up or allowed it. I'm still not sure who initiated it but I knew it wouldn't end well, unless they're housed under a roof. The safety barrier sounds like an obvious tactic to push them out. It was never safe or a good idea, it only makes the government look like morons, unless they had a concrete plan to move them indoors soon. I'm sure nobody wants to be liable for housing the homeless. If anyone can do it it's the local government and I'd say it's their responsibility. If they can't afford ask the state, or federal government or government to fund the nonprofits. Too simple maybe?
Wow, that police report for the past 7 days is overwhelming. Where is all this bad behavior originating? This is not the town where I have lived in since I was born.
As far as the illegal homeless camping and other activity, I am disgusted with the government for allowing this to happen, the squatters, protestors, and all these enablers. I do not go downtown any more and any business I have with city and/or county government is accomplished on line or by phone.
I used to ride the bus to the library to check out books then sit on the grass reading my favorite. When our daughter was young, there was a children’s entertainment program on Fridays during the summer around noon. We would eat our lunch on the grass and be entertained for an hour. What was once a great place for kids and adults is now closed due to this lawless bunch. Some naive people are making excuses for their destructive behavior. There is no excuse for this at all.
It's really bad. I grew up here and it's seriously like Back to the Future 2 when Marty came back to Biff's Hill Valley. Remember a "busy week" ~10 years ago even during the great recession might have been 2-3 pages of police report. Now it's 15-20+ pages. The areas of crime are indeed located around the areas of the homeless camps. Understand that most non-violent non-substance abuse homeless get shelter, there is plenty of safety net for them. The violent/addicted ones are what we see on the street as they are not allowed into shelters and do not want to give up their addiction for shelter/help.
Here is the library and city hall now. See picture!
That's the library lawn you spoke of Explorer, on the left.
Sounds like we have cleanup and removal of the camp, and another protest in process today.
A good recent article with more pictures and video.
About halfway down the page, there is a picture of a giant pile of bicycles/parts on the library lawn....if you are missing a bike it's likely there.
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