Ah, but Russ had his bonehead voyage party on Friday in the early evening, and these photos were taken on Thursday, at High Noon. In downtown Port Angeles. A place without people.
Downtown, the ferries, and the transit center...
And yet, no people to be seen.
Note the lack of any footprints in the sand. Even more
revealing - note the lack of paw prints in the sand. Not even
a dog is interested in Nathan West's Wasteful Waterfront Beach.
If you're on The Walking Dead, it's a good thing to not have
any walkers. But if you've spent millions on a new walkway...
It's maybe not such a good thing.
And speaking of spending millions of dollars...Note how,
even after spending millions on the CSO/Turd Tank project,
and the new waterfront, the City still has to post signs informing
people about the sewage outflows. (Well, they'd be informing
people if there were any there to inform, that is...)
Seen in this light, it's no wonder that Don Perry cut his "heritage tours" down to one a day. The only real wonder is why he hasn't cut it back to one a week. Anyway...It seems like Tyler has been documenting the changing of the seasons in Port Angeles, and the unchanging reality of the downtown being a place that is, for all intents and purposes, devoid of people 99% of the time, regardless of the season.
Given the content (or not, as the case may be) of these photos, and the approaching holiday season, I can't help but remember the Christmas Parade we went to our first winter in Port Angeles. A section of First Street was all blocked off with orange cones. A few hardy souls, no more than a couple of dozen people, were out lining the street in the cold evening. And then, the first small group marching in the parade came by...Followed immediately by a City truck picking up the orange cones that had been out blocking the street off for...nothing. It was all over in less than five minutes.
And speaking of cold...It's off-topic for this posting, but I had to pass along this headline from yesterday's Ripley Report:
ReplyDelete"Lee Whetham answers my question....says Untied Way is not left out of the cold."
So nice to see that Lee Whetham is sharing his cold with the Untied Way!
I prefer the "tied" way.
DeleteAmazing to see these pictures. My first thought was that they were a repost from before. But, as I looked at them, I recognized the changes in the so-called park.
ReplyDeleteI can understand spending millions on waterfront improvement projects, if there is a demonstrated need for them. It isn't like the town has gobs of extra money laying around to throw at questionable projects. So, where was the demonstrated need?
In most business purchases, the owners determine that buying a new piece of equipment is needed, going to pay for itself, and going to generate a profit, FIRST, before making plans to purchase it. In corporations, the financial officers do research on potential acquisitions, do extensive profit/loss analysis, and submit reports to the board, BEFORE money is spent.
But, not in Port Angeles. The volume of tourists in the area have been steadily declining, Anyone living here 15 years ago remembers the hundreds of boats in the harbor at the start of the Salmon Derby. Boats in the front row were just about run over by eager fisherman behind them, when the starting gun fired.
There used to be multiple ferries running every day to Victoria, and cars lined up on Railroad, up Lincoln over night with people waiting for the first morning ferry. Now there is only one, and as the picture above shows, no people waiting for it.
If there are less people in town, then why all the millions spent on these projects? For the local folk? Did any substantial number of the local folks ask for these projects?
I can't wait for the next set of pictures, in January or February, to complete the 4 seasons of emptiness.
We are so feted.
DeleteDon't you mean "Fetid" ? A bit more appropriate for Port Angeles.
DeleteI think a lot of people in Port Angeles suffer from a form of "frog in the pot syndrome." They don't get out of Clallam County much, and, as things have gotten progressively worse, they've just gotten used to it, and have nothing else externally to compare it to. But as the water slowly boils, well, we know how it ends for the frog.
DeleteI look at these photos from high noon on a sunny day, and am amazed. The other morning, at around 7 AM, I walked about ten blocks (through residential neighborhoods) to a co-worker's house, to check on his cats while he was out of town. On that cold, frosty, early morning, in residential neighborhoods, I saw more people out and about (walking) than I do in all of these current photos of downtown Port Angeles...At noon...On a sunny day.
I'd say CK has it with the "frog in the pot" analogy. If all you have to compare to is the previous year, and things are gradually declining. We've already seen how bad the Chamber, etc's metrics are from judging these things.
DeleteThen again, I don't usually visit comparable towns. Seattle is a major metropolitan area. Olympia and Victoria are both capitols, and tourist destinations. Silverdale has the mall which is a major draw. I try to keep in mind that PA isn't the same, but I may be just using that as an excuse.
I'd like to see some photos of First Street - Oak and First, Laurel and First and Lincoln and First. The empty streets, empty storefronts, the Big Empty.
DeleteLast Thursday I passed through down town at 4.00 PM. Aside from the panhandlers at Front and Lincoln, there was absolutely no one around.
ReplyDeleteCold out.
ReplyDeleteThinking of the homeless in Port Angeles that so few care enough to do ANYTHING about. Most in Port Angeles are sitting in their warm houses, day after day. Months pass by, and millions spent of Turd Tanks, stainless steel fences on empty promenades, fake beaches and concrete parks. But humans try to sleep outside in freezing weather, and nothing is offered.
“The test of our progress is . . . whether we provide enough for those who have too little.”
Franklin D. Roosevelt
"A nation's greatness is measured by how it treats its weakest members."
Mahatma Ghandi
“There is no Them. There are only facets of Us.”
John Green (American Author)
Per the National Weather Service website, we're headed for several days where the high never gets above freezing. And winter isn't even here yet.
DeleteIf you had all the money spent on the Turd Tank, in one dollar bills, and had to burn them to stay warm, how long would they last?
Or maybe you could use that money to support all the people who cannot afford their utility bills from the city of Port Angeles.
Or...?
You can now pay your utility bill at Country Aire. Please take a moment to ask Josh how his plans for removing the DHHS and the homeless people from downtown are going!
DeleteI remember seeing that the city recently found $65,000 to contribute to a $400,000 study on doing "improvements" on Race Street.
DeleteFunding contractors and consultants, the city can do really well.
I know, helping the needy has to turn a profit, or we're not going to get involved.
DeleteTalk about turning a profit out of homelessness, check out the Serenity House. They own millions in property but cannot lend a ride to the shelter. County taxpayers are all that is holding SH afloat and no one is checking on their accomplishments, if any. All they have to do to full fill their contract with the county is self-report on their success. Shouldn't taxpayers be more aware/concerned with their efforts. This is a huge chunk of our taxes. "Hey boss can I self-report on my work today?"
DeleteCountry Aire is for the PUD not the City of PA.
DeleteI'm confused. What does PUD in Country Aire have to do with any of this?
DeleteJust clarifying an earlier comment about PA people not being able to afford to pay their utility bills, which was followed by someone saying you could now pay it at County Aire, but that's the PUD, not City of PA. At least as long as Country Aire stays in business...
Delete@ Anon 7:55: Bro, I sure don't know but it's clearly important to them!
DeleteI know dude, right? PUD! Country Aire! PUD! Country Aire! It makes no sense. They must be completely stoned since I'm completely incapable of following any sort of conversation!
DeleteMatthew Randazzo rears his ugly, balding head again in today's PDN, I see.
ReplyDeleteHey Chief Gallaher, is it cold enough to be concerned about the homeless yet? Are you concerned about the homeless? If so, audit Serenity House and their continuous never ending contracts with the county. Talk about a leech.
ReplyDeleteAs I looked at these latest pics of empty streets, a little refrain came to me:
ReplyDeleteEmpty heads in charge, empty streets at large.
Best Town Ever? How come there are no people in it?
ReplyDeleteSo just why was Tyler there?
DeleteDid he enjoy the peace and quiet?
What's wrong with knowing a good deal when you find it?
I'd say Tyler knows where to find some solitude on a sunny winter afternoon that the rest of us missed!!
Thanks, Russ. Glad to know you're still in there swinging...
Delete@Anon 4:02
DeleteWhy was I downtown at noon last Thursday? I was waiting for the 2 pm ferry to go to Victoria.
Did I enjoy the peace and quiet? Actually, I felt sad and concerned for all the merchants who had no foot traffic, no visitors and no patronage. As someone who has been self employed most of my life, and having dozens of employees I had to provide paychecks for, I know well that empty streets and sidewalks are not a good thing at midday. If I want to enjoy peace and quiet, I go out to Freshwater Bay.
What's wrong with knowing a good deal when you find it? I feel sorry for you. If you are so clueless, so cold hearted as to think small town owner-operated businesses struggling to pay bills because of the poor conditions in their community is some kind of "good deal", you really need some counselling.
Sunny winter afternoon? Umm, it isn't winter yet.
But yes, obviously, after documenting the same area spring, summer and fall, and seeing how empty the downtown area is, I can say I know where one can find solitude. Sadly, it is where a vibrant, prosperous town should be.
Sadly, this place of solitude is where tens of millions of tax dollars have been spent on clearly ill-advised project by our civic leadership that were supposed to increase commerce in the area.
Tyler
Selinda is pist:
ReplyDeletehttp://portocallpublishing.com/2015/11/23/powerful-email-arrived-today/
What kind of a result do these pictures reveal? After all the professionals who have been paid serious money to come up with these projects, the City staff that have reviewed them and passed on their professional recommendations to City Council for review and consideration. And, this is what we get? Deadsville?
ReplyDeleteThis all is being done to, I thought, improve the place. And improve meant bring more business to Port Angeles. I'm not seeing it.
Is there EVER any accountability in this town?