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The Northern Light • March 17 - 23, 2022
Opinion
The Northern L ght The Northern Light is published weekly by Point Roberts Press Inc. Locally owned and managed, the company also publishes the All Point Bulletin, covering Point Roberts, Mount Baker Experience, covering the Mt. Baker foothills area, Pacific Coast Weddings annual guide, and the summer recreation guide Waterside as well as maps and other publications. Point Roberts Press Inc. is a member of the Washington Newspaper Publishers Association, Chambers of Commerce of Bellingham/ Whatcom County, Birch Bay, Blaine and Point Roberts and the Bellingham/ Whatcom County Convention and Visitors Bureau. The opinions expressed by contributors are their own and do not necessarily reflect the opinions of the editors. Letters Policy The Northern Light welcomes letters to the editor. Please include name, address and daytime telephone number for verification. Letters are limited to 350 words and may be edited or rejected for reasons of legality, length and good taste. Thank-you letters are limited to five individuals or groups. Writers should avoid personal invective. Unsigned letters will not be accepted for publication. Requests for withholding names will be considered on an individual basis. Consumer complaints should be submitted directly to the business in question or the local chamber of commerce. Only one letter per month from an individual correspondent will be published. Email letters to letters@thenorthernlight.com.
Community support pours in after Terrill Drive fire By Grace McCarthy Community support has poured in for the Birch Bay home that was considered a total loss after it caught on fire earlier this month, while a fundraiser has started for a neighboring mobile home also destroyed by the fire. A home in the 7500 block of Terrill Drive caught on fire in the afternoon of March 6. High winds pushed the flames to an adjacent home and destroyed it. The GoFundMe campaign that started for the first home had nearly 60 donations totaling almost $5,000, five times the original goal of $1,000. Neighbors have now jumped in to help the mobile impacted, owned by Canadians who were across the border during the time of the fire. The GoFundMe campaign has garnered $350 of its $5,000 goal since being organized in the past week. People can make contributions at bit.ly/3tfUpdY. Whatcom County fire inspector Will Anderson said the fire marshal’s office won’t be able to determine a cause for the fire because of the extent of damage in the first home.
Publisher & Managing Editor Patrick Grubb publisher@pointrobertspress.com
Letters
Co-publisher & Advertising Director Louise Mugar lmugar@pointrobertspress.com Editor Grace McCarthy grace@pointrobertspress.com Reporter Ian Haupt ian@pointrobertspress.com Reporting Intern Georgia Costa prpintern@pointrobertspress.com Creative Services Ruth Lauman, Doug De Visser production@pointrobertspress.com Office Manager Jeanie Luna info@pointrobertspress.com Advertising Sales Molly Ernst, Gary Lee sales@pointrobertspress.com General Editorial Inquiries editor@pointrobertspress.com Contributors In This Issue Birch Bay Historical Society, Doug Dahl The Northern Light 225 Marine Drive, Suite 200, Blaine, WA 98230 Tel: 360/332-1777 Vol XXVII, No 39 Circulation: 10,500 copies
Circulation Independently verified by:
Next issue: March 24 Ads due: March 18
s The mobile home that caught on fire after flames jumped from a neighboring residence on March 6. Photo by Dean Haskins
The Editor My brother died today. As with most deaths, the loss is directed at those close friends and family. It is at those times that memories – good and bad – are replayed in one’s mind. On an individual level I believe we all want to think that our existence had some benefit but for the most part that can be hard to define. As I was going through my history of dealing with my brother, I was reminded of the significance (both good and bad – depending upon your perspective) he had on the community of Birch Bay. I am convinced that what we have in Birch Bay today would not have happened without Richard Nelson. This is not to diminish the influence of the Vogt family or men like Keith Coleman, but to only consider Richard’s impact on the community. In 1970, he needed to show me the piece of land (83 acres) he had bought in a place called Birch Bay. He had a vision to make money by building and selling lots for RVs. It was hard to be very impressed with the land but the location was stunning. By the end of 1974, he had built and sold almost 800 lots in a project called Birch Bay Leisure Park.
As a result of this success, he formed several partnerships to purchase additional acres in and around the area as part of his vision to ‘develop’ Birch Bay. During this time the land use rules were changing, but the real obstacle to any development of Birch Bay was a lack of a sanitary sewer system. The initial building permits for Birch Bay Village and Leisure Park were issued based upon septic systems. Building a municipal water and sewer system in an unincorporated area was not going to be easy and would be expensive. Financing was to be done by ULID assessment against the real estate that the sewer would benefit. Coleman committed the 1,100 acres of Birch Bay Village, the heritage families committed their properties, and Richard committed almost 600 acres to the project, The ULID assessment approached $3,000 per acre for properties that had been recently purchased in the $300 to $500 per acre range. While Leisure Park, Beachwood, the Malibu area and Idelese condos can be directly attributed to Richard’s efforts, I believe it was the financing and direct support of the sewer system that reflect his
legacy in Birch Bay. Without that, Birch Bay today would be significantly different. Thank you, Richard. Stephen Nelson Blaine The Editor: “Do you know what the three most exciting sounds in the world are? Anchor chains, airplane motors and train whistles.” – James Stewart in “It’s A Wonderful Life.” For those who are “bothered” by train whistles (horns), be glad that you don’t live in Syria or Ukraine where you would be listening to bombs and artillery 24/7. If you think living in Blaine is stressful because of trains, try living in New York City. I suggest that you celebrate the sound of trains as a sign of life. That you are fortunate to have food, clothing, shelter and a beautiful place to live. Richard Mollette Custer Please send letters to letters@thenorthernlight.com no later than noon on Monday.
Civic Meetings Birch Bay Water & Sewer District: Second and fourth Thursdays, 4 p.m., district offices, 7096 Point Whitehorn Road, Birch Bay. Info and Zoom meeting link: bbwsd.com.
Blaine-Birch Bay Park and Recreation: Second Tuesday, 5:30 p.m., location varies. Info: bbbparkandrec.org. Virtual meeting info: bbbparkandrec.org/board-meetings.
Blaine City Council: Second and fourth Mondays, 6 p.m., Blaine City Council chambers, 435 Martin Street. Info and virtual meeting login: ci.blaine.wa.us.
Blaine Park and Cemetery Board: Second Thursday, 9 a.m., virtual meeting. Info: 360/332-8311, ext. 3330.
Blaine Planning Commission: Second and fourth Thursdays, 6 p.m. Info: blainepc@cityofblaine.com. Info for joining Zoom meetings: bit.ly/2CiMKnk.
Blaine School Board: Fourth Monday, 7 p.m., Blaine school district offices. Info and virtual meeting link: blainesd.org. North Whatcom Fire & Rescue: Third Thursday, 11 a.m., Station 61 at 9408 Odell Road and via Zoom. Info: nwfrs.net.
