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Bartonizer, I really feel bad for you man You get so offended when someone mentions anything bad about Bellingham. It seems your blood pressure rises every time you login and read honest comments here. Cool down, it’s not worth a stress, not healthy. If you like Bellingham that’s OK, good for you and best of luck. But don’t try to paint a nice picture of Bellingham when it’s quite opposite. Bellingham has many issues and people who live there already know or are somewhat familiar with it. Or they move there and then realize the mistake they made, and then they try to escape...in many cases (some of them stay, as moving around is not that easy).
It looks like you are not too happy with your life there,otherwise you wouldn’t get so mad and offended all the time. If all is good,you wouldn’t care for every comment. You wouldn’t analyze every single post,word by word. Or you are a real estate agent and it bothers you because you may lose some clients, as people are saying how it really is there. I hope you are RE agent, otherwise you need to talk to someone, and get help. I hope you have a life outside of this, for your own good.
Bellingham waterfront is basically all industrial area, and it will stay like that for a very long time as Bellingham doesn’t have money to change it. Investors are not investing/coming to Bellingham as there is nothing there. Couple of companies…that’s nothing. No jobs, no culture, boring town, homeless people everywhere. If you really want to have a good time, good food and enjoy cleanness you have to go to Vancouver, an hour away. Couple of parks, walk around lakes and trails gets boring after a while. Tourists are not coming to Bellingham to visit and stay (only to shop) as there is nothing there and it’s not pretty.
I did notice as well Bellis Fair mall diminishing occupancy,while there. Yes, everyone realizes online shopping is the thing now, but Bellingham doesn’t have anything else to bounce back on after all these stores close. That means more poverty for people who live in Bellingham. There will always be some major stores there because of Canadians, but slowly the service jobs will be disappearing and Bellingham work force and economy will suffer, as it’s based mostly on the service industry. Even less jobs than now. Can you imaging when the economy hits another recession, Bellingham will be on IV therapy..
No one is trying to trash Bellingham, we are just providing an honest opinion about our experiences there, because we live(d) there. People who read these comments will realize that you are analyzing every single post and will understand that you have some sort of, maybe monetary, interest here. People are smart my friend. We simply don’t want to provide false information and we want to tell the truth as some people make life choices when they move.
No one needs to provide you with their personal info, where they moved, did they own or rent, it’s not your business anyway. Who do you think you are? You can keep replying to every post if that’s what you like to do, or desperate doing it. Maybe that’s the only ‘fun’ you have in Bellingham, who knows. Lookat your posts man, get a life. You don’t seem happy at all. People are able to post their opinions here. You can certainly keep analyzing every one of them, don’t care, but that just tells everyone who you really are.
Bellingham being a desirable place to live? Seriously man, are you joking, or you are on something? Who wants to live in Bellingham? If Bellingham is desirable place to live many, many people would move there already. It’s an ugly, old, run down and worst climate town…with all other health and other issues galloping along. There is nothing in Bellingham worth of mentioning. What’s worth seeing in Bellingham…
Some of us didn’t leave because of the cost, we lived super comfortably there but left anyway because there is nothing there, and it’s ugly.Money wasn’t the problem at all. And no, it’s not an outdoor destination as it rains most of the year. Also, they will never clean up the toxic area as there is no money for full clean up (otherwise they would do it long time ago). It's just a cover.
Why are you recommending for this tread to be closed? Are you scared? Why you are so stressed about it and mad? If you are happy there you wouldn’t mind, right. But no, you are clearly having some sort of monetary interest in lying to people, you don’t want truth to come up. You realize Bellingham (Whatcom county) is leading in cancer on a west coast, did you look at the statistics?
This tread is best thing that happened, and it should be kept alive. People can read through honest comments and make their own decisions. Don’t play a secret agent dude, lower your ego. You are scared people will keep reading honest posts and find out the truth… don’t be that desperate.
We will keep telling the truth, and many people will express their opinion if they want to. It will never stop. If you are not happy or have some issues, sorry to hear that man. Good luck!
Leftforgood, C-D won't let me + rep you again, sorry.
I have to agree, Bartonizer's response is more along the lines of someone whose $2,800/month rental isn't getting filled, their 7-figure flip on Chuckanut isn't selling, or their RE sales are way down.
Leftforgood, B'ham is our second home, but will eventually be our principal residence. We have spent considerable time here in all but December and January, so we know what we are getting into, weather-wise. We have owned homes in several cities/states, so I have a reasonable basis for comparison. Bellingham combines several factors which make it a desirable place to live. I will agree with you that it is not perfect, but no place is, and Bellingham has a lot going for it.
Your argument that if Bellingham were desirable many people would have moved here is perplexing, since the population has increased 34 percent from 2000. (2000 population was 67K, and is 90K in 2019) And that increase is despite physical/geographic features that inhibit additional building. People vote with their feet and their dollars, and for the past decade, the trend has been decidedly in favor of moving into, rather than out of Bellingham. Whatcom County has the second highest population growth in the state, after Franklin County, and that is largely from net migration. Median home prices have nearly tripled since 2000. By comparison, I have a family member in PA where home prices have gone up <1 percent per year during the same period. As for outdoor activities, from March through October, there are plenty of days to enjoy the outdoors.
Granted, when this becomes our principal residence, we may spend some of the winter months somewhere sunnier, but there is plenty to do during the other 8 months. We are fortunate in that in retirement there are many cities in which we can afford to buy a house, but we have chosen Bellingham. It's not for everyone, but it seems there are plenty of us who think it is ideal for us.
Leftforgood, C-D won't let me + rep you again, sorry.
I have to agree, Bartonizer's response is more along the lines of someone whose $2,800/month rental isn't getting filled, their 7-figure flip on Chuckanut isn't selling, or their RE sales are way down.
RK, I used to have some respect for you and some of your observations, but you're just being a jerk at this point. I'm the one being transparent, while you're literally ignoring my story and making things up, because apparently you find it far-fetched that someone likes it here. You expect me to not reply to your nonsense?
You're full of it, but I'm sorry that Bellingham is no longer your thing and you think that everyone who's moved here in recent years is your enemy, or up to something sinister. We feel fortunate that we were able to buy a house here, and we love this town.
Anyway, I hope it works out for you when you move to someone else's backyard. I promise we'll take good care of your hometown, even though you don't care for it anymore.
Note: I wish I owned a nice unit to rent out, or an expensive house on Chuckanut Drive. I love our little house in the middle of town, but I'd love to acquire more real estate in or around Bellingham!
Last edited by bartonizer; 09-04-2019 at 07:36 PM..
Are you really using lease and occupancy rates of the regional mall as a metric of appeal the area? It seems you and kynight have somehow managed to miss the massive downward decline of retail shopping and death of shopping malls that is near daily national news and occurring in every.single.other.part.of.the.country?
I fail to understand why you guys keep mentioning national issues and acting like they are unique to this area, and that they should scare people away. Do you understand what trends are? Do you pay attention to what goes on elsewhere?
You may have a rough time living in a new place- especially if it's a comparable size. You'll see that things you complain about here are everywhere- and much worse, in some cases. And you'll likely run into people like yourself who can't stand new people in town. Again, best of luck on your relocation.
The biggest and best malls are still full of merchants. Malls are an indicator, especially when u consider there isn't another one nearby except in Surrey or Abbotsford bc. Even with the Canadian traffic the future of the mall is bleak.
The biggest and best malls are still full of merchants. Malls are an indicator, especially when u consider there isn't another one nearby except in Surrey or Abbotsford bc. Even with the Canadian traffic the future of the mall is bleak.
The future of the mall EVERYWHERE is bleak. The decline in retail is one of the most heavily covered economic stories of the last five years. If you're making the point that Bellingham's economy should be concerned because of this fact, that's reasonable- though it's certainly worth mentioning that the drop in Canadians shopping at Whatcom retailers has been a) tied into the strength of the US dollar, which has been a disadvantage to BC shoppers for five years, and b) balanced out by more people coming south of the border to vacation.
If you're trying to make the point that a few empty stores our mall is an indicator of something else, like the general appeal of the area, you're reaching. It is in no way unique to Bellingham that the mall has experiences several closures from nationwide chains going out of business. FYI, the closest mall nearby is actually Cascade Mall, just over 20 miles south of us, and it has far more closures than Bellis Fair. Again, this is a very well-covered issue globally, but especially domestically. Have you been paying attention to the trend?
BC is a slightly different story, with completely different retailers and supply chains. Comparing several new malls in the Vancouver metro is an apples and oranges comparison, but retail in the province is still experiencing negative numbers.
There are still malls across the country that are vibrant and completely full during peak days. Ours isn't one of them. Cascade mall is worse but it was never a reputable mall to begin with. More and more north Washington natives are going up to Canada, not just because our dollar is stronger but because shopping is better (lively shopping centers) and closer than Seattle. Bellingham mall is nice but slowly becoming bleak.
Quite a thread going on here, I'm laughing my way through it. It is humorous to see the vitriolic effluent coming from those who openly denigrate the area they live in, or lived in at one time and then left. Bellingham is, and hopefully will always be, a small NW Washington town with all it's natural beauty fully intact. Seattle is now the favored punching bag for the same kind of transplants who wanted to have their own version of paradise and found a large and vibrant city growing at warp speed.
No it ain't paradise but where IS this imaginary and elusive city they rage on about?? Yeah, they're pissed, but oh well we don't all get to re-make our cities, nor should we. As a side note, I suspect that many people are simply angry at the world, but never consider their own poor attitude as a feeder to that anger.
On homelessness: Get real, EVERY city and town across America has some homeless people, how much isn't the question, but moreover how does the homeless populace affect the average citizen. Bellingham isn't affected nearly as much as other places across America, so, get the Ryder truck and go searching for that town of Mayberry, good luck..
Are there some negatives about Bellingham that we should know about? Of course there is, but we can't just eat a steady diet of negativity and expect to live a happy and contented life either. I have relatives in B-ham and they are native to the area, been there their whole lives, they know the good and bad--AND they're still there in town, loving their little slice of Washington.
I'm in Seattle for a few days and laughed aloud at the documentary titled, "Seattle is dying," My God some people just don't get out enough, there are tens of thousands of people here, shopping dining, walking, biking, and, at eight PM..So no, B-ham is doing alright and so is Seattle. Sorry about all you naysayers, get a life, leave the NW to us who can live realistically, the rest can go straight to "Mayberry."
Info from 2004. Fifteen years later, toxic waste still there…
“Bellingham's proposed cleanup plan may not remove all the toxic mercury left in the water and on the land…”
“The port plans to leave some contamination in the bay, as well as on land at the waterfront site…”
“Testing has found mercury levels high enough in spots to justify the cost of soil and sediment removal…”
“Mercury, a metallic element that is liquid at normal temperatures, can trigger birth defects and damage the nervous system, among other health problems. It can find its way into the human food supply when it accumulates in fish and other aquatic edibles. Leaving any of it behind makes some people nervous…”
“Has called the plan more of a cover-up than a cleanup…"
“Executive director of the Seattle-based Waste Action Project, said mercury should be removed, not capped…”
“Capping sediments is also cheaper than digging them out and hauling them off to a landfill… acknowledged that the price tag winds up being an important factor when state and federal regulators decide what type of cleanup to require…”
“was also the place where mercury-laden waste entered Bellingham bay beginning in 1965…”
“...the city choose not to take this opportunity, my grandchildren are going to be looking at the same thing I'm looking at now…”
“12 sites in the Bellingham Bay area. All are on or very near the Bellingham waterfront…”
“Soil, sediment, and groundwater were contaminated by operations at the former pulp and paper mill, municipal landfills, wood treatment plants, shipyards, and a coal gasification plant…”
I think there are malls across the US where the lease is more affordable and therefore there is less impact from online competition. My comment about ours stems from it's managements greed in super high lease/rents....it's in a constant state of tenant influx and outflux as many of it's retailers run on the ragged edge of staying profitable.
The cross border shopping is laughable, unless one is making some major purchases it doesn't really pencil out to much savings and then if it does, customs may want in on the "action" when you return. I had figured the savings amounted to ~$3/hour awhile back when all the Canadians were swarming the Bellingham Costco for our milk and gas.
Name calling, how adult of you Bartonizer. Put yourself in our shoes for a moment and maybe you'll understand:
Several generations of your family grew up in your hometown, as did your friends and their families. Some magazine decides it's the "best place on earth", and in pour the people. You work hard and rise above the average, still able to afford the rapidly increasing costs of living, but watch your friends, co-workers, and other family members forced to move away for jobs that offer actual living wages and retired friends/family members priced out of their homes they own by sharp increases in property taxes. Then, add insult to injury in the things you used to enjoy....camping....boating.....fishing.....mounta in biking....hiking.....end up "all reserved", "boat launch full", "parking full" "sold out" "campsite full" and so on. Then, "but wait there's more" like a bad infomercial, your workplace can't attract employees because even with well paid job offerings the housing cost has become so bad that only the top 13% of our income earners (doctors, lawyers, managers, CEO's or someone with $250K to "buy into" the housing market) can afford the average listed home price....so you work even harder and longer hours with less help than before. Would you be happy?
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You get so offended when someone mentions anything bad about Bellingham. It seems your blood pressure rises every time you login and read honest comments here. Cool down, it’s not worth a stress, not healthy. If you like Bellingham that’s OK, good for you and best of luck. But don’t try to paint a nice picture of Bellingham when it’s quite opposite. Bellingham has many issues and people who live there already know or are somewhat familiar with it. Or they move there and then realize the mistake they made, and then they try to escape...in many cases (some of them stay, as moving around is not that easy).
