New Study for Increasing Port Angeles' Retail Potential
The city will be conducting a study to see how to attract more retail business.
This retail market analysis will show what Port Angeles needs to do to bring in more stores, so that people will do more shopping here instead of traveling out of town. The study is being paid for with $25,000 from the city's economic development fund.
The study should be finished in about six months. Kent Myers said it will answer the "big question of how can Port Angeles be more efficient in attracting retail growth in our community?"
This retail market analysis will show what Port Angeles needs to do to bring in more stores, so that people will do more shopping here instead of traveling out of town. The study is being paid for with $25,000 from the city's economic development fund.
The study should be finished in about six months. Kent Myers said it will answer the "big question of how can Port Angeles be more efficient in attracting retail growth in our community?"
posted by Tom Harper at 12:52 AM
47 Comments:
The PDN article has a picture of Gottschalks when it was functional.
Does Kent think they moved out of Port Angeles because it was a profitable operation?
If it wasn't profitable for them (or any of the other of dozens of businesses that have closed up in the last year or so) to stay in business, how is this study going to solve that?
When will the leadership in Port Angeles wake up and realize that a region can only support so many businesses, and most of them have already located in Sequim.
As Linda Rotmark is quoted saying, there will not be two Costcos built in the area, unless there is a boom.
And, with all the vacant buildings, it's not looking much like a "boom" out there.
At least somebody will get something out of this effort, as the city wastes another $25,000 on this study.
Anonymous 9:27 AM:
Not that I'm sticking up for the study, or the PDN, or Kent Myers, but...Gottschalks closed here because the entire chain went down. From what I've heard, the PA outlet was actually one of their more profitable stores.
Anon 9:27 said "Does Kent think they moved out of Port Angeles because it was a profitable operation?" Well, according to the Gottschalks Bankruptcy filings, the P.A. Gottschalks store WAS one of only two profitable stores in their entire company. Had the nationwide economy not tanked, I'll bet they could have found somebody to keep this location going.
"From what I've heard, the PA outlet was actually one of their more profitable stores."
If this is true, one would assume other retailers would be falling all over themselves to take advantage of this business opportunity with a demonstrated positive cash flow, don't you think?
Why do so many commercial spaces stay empty for so long, if there is a positive business opportunity available, in Port Angeles? I've seem some stay empty for years now, with great visibility, parking, and locations.
rent is one factor, as it parking downtown. Perhaps we should address these things before we start trying to promote the town as having retail potential.
It's not that people wouldn't shop closer to home, it's just that the city hasn't thought about all the ways to make a downtown more attractive -- longer parking, enticing building owners to not try and get Seattle rents (triple net!) improving the buildings (most of them are fire hazards and asbestos filled not-to-code nightmares) and their facades (turn back the clock, not try and update to the 80's...a prime example is what happened at the plaza that holds Joanne/Star Video/etc)
Then, lower the costs for the businesses -- less $$ for "monthly parking" per employee, cut in utility rates for businesses.
Meanwhile, how do we get more people downtown? More events, more IN TOWN events (as we used to have, such as the art fairs on First Street) and, more catering to the wants/needs of the residents of the town. Not the same ol' music b.s. out on the freezing pier, but things that happen IN TOWN, which is First/Front from Lincoln to the old log-yard.
Relaxing the stick-up-the-butt man who bitches endlessly about signage, permits for banners, etc. Businesses need to be noticed and the codes on the books regarding sandwich boards, banners, etc., is much too draconian, and the permits much too expensive. The city isn't HELPING small businesses to thrive, it's punishing them.
I'll do a study for way less than $25k and it would be better as I'm local to the area. Where do I sign up?
When I was a kid, PA’s downtown was vital, and by small town standards, profitable. There were two groceries, three or four pharmacies, two department stores, and a ton of small retail shops. Of course, that was before the wise decision to move City Hall and the Police station up to 5th Street. A lot of potential lunchtime shoppers moved up there as well. Ask anybody who owned a business downtown-. That asinine move was the beginning of the end for downtown. Next comes the decision to try and force JC Penny’s into a building they didn’t want. Penny’s moved to Sequim, and their old site was converted into the welfare office. Add to that a large low income housing unit smack dab in the middle of the retail core. The hits just kept on comin’ with a 14 million dollar bus top, which not only serves no purpose, it also eliminated the largest piece of undeveloped real estate (and its potential) in the downtown area, as well as wasting millions in “economic development” funds that if spent wisely, might have been used to improve the situation, instead of making things worse. It’s almost as though the plan was to destroy any hope of revitalizing the area. If that was the plan, it would be the first time in 40 years where local government actually succeeded. But it’s not all gloom and doom for retail in PA- the first guy to open a donut shop next to the medical marijuana dispensary is going to make a mint.
I believe there is merit to the idea of a "Gottschalks" type store in Port Angeles.
What can we do to help?
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High rent? Parking? Signage? City fees? Yes, I've heard people say this before, but..
If this is true, why was the former Gottschalks profitable?
"Well, according to the Gottschalks Bankruptcy filings, the P.A. Gottschalks store WAS one of only two profitable stores in their entire company."
This would suggest other factors are responsible for the ongoing decline of Port Angeles.
People used to park on Railroad Ave, up Lincoln and beyond, waiting for the ferry to Victoria. I haven't seen that for 10 years, at least. Do you think this decline is because of signage, city policies, parking and high rent?
I hate to be Captain Buzzkill, but c’mon, the place is doomed. Logistically, Downtown is a nightmare. Because of the bluff, it can only ever be 3 or 4 blocks deep. You can’t get out except how you came in. The downtown simply ends at a log yard, with a freaking paper mill just down the way. The buildings are a hodgepodge of architecture in poor condition owned by landlords who can’t (or wont) even maintain them properly. The city government seems to be nothing more than a rotating ensemble of well-meaning boobs and real estate pimps. This ensures that we will always have money to spend on bus stops, but not for sewage overflows. Pretty much guarantees that we’ll soon get a nice “Welcome to Port Angeles “ sign, but the Laurel Street Stairs will still reek of urine and human shit. Nice retail environment. Forget it and move on. Leave that mess to the people sorry enough to own it, and start developing up Lincoln, where there are people.
"Forget it and move on. Leave that mess to the people sorry enough to own it, and start developing up Lincoln, where there are people."
I won't disagree with most of what you point out. It is pretty much true.
But, I don't think moving up/out of the downtown is any more viable. The root issues are the same. A limited population that is generally "low rent", and that values stores like Wal-Mart. Have you seen the parking lot of the new Wal-Mart less than HALF full, since it opened? And have you been inside to see the EVEN CHEAPER crap they are stocking on the shelves, now?? (I've been inside once, and will not go back. It was just appalling).
It isn't that stores don't set up in Port Angeles and give it a try. It IS that not enough locals patronize them enough to keep them going. Except for Wal-Mart.
You want to increase Port Angeles' retail potential?
1. Have a mix of sustainable private sector jobs, both blue and white collar, with a mix of income. Don't just rely on low-paying service and tourist industry jobs.
2. Have a retail environment that caters to a wide range of people.
3. Have a mixed use downtown that will draw in people for something besides picking up the latest knick knack.
Better incomes + financial security + variety of goods + reason to go downtown = better sales
It's a simple formula, but much different than what's been done before, which appears to be:
1. Steal underpants
2. ????
3. Profit!!
Hey 8:34pm
The ferry traffic has been impacted by...wait for it...the PASSPORT RESTRICTIONS, the economy, and the ever-popular Border Patrol's increased "presence" on the peninsula. When all those articles were written about how they were stopping cars on 101 -- pretty much every green-card holding person said "nah, not worth the risk" and declined to visit the Peninsula. Add to that the increased State Trooper presence (and promotion in the Seattle Times and Intelligencer). How many tickets were given out since the start of the campaign? LOTS and LOTS!! So, lets see...if you were a visitor to the Olympic Peninsula and received a speeding ticket for being 4-6mph over the speed limit (as is custom for most Seattle drivers, btw) how likely is it that you would want to repeat the visit?
Sure, sure safety, blah blah. But, you can't ignore that an expensive speeding ticket adds significantly to the declining popularity of the region.
Perfect storm, dude. The decline is the perfect storm to sink our ship.
Downtown businesses are easy to forget about. The theater runs the dog movies, and what is the deal with them not putting ANYTHING on the Lincoln street side of the billboard? Like NO ONE EVER drives up Lincoln and looks to see what is playing???!!! (Do IDIOTS own that place? It's almost as bad as Deer Park showing 3/4 ads, and you can't even SEE the movies showing for all the b.s.) The downtown has priced itself out of the market -- the rents are too high for small, new businesses. The problem: only a few landlords, and the few are greedy old dimwits.
We could have had a shot at enticing software companies relocating, or starting out here -- but, wait, we clogged up our only access to high speed internet with a sweetheart deal. Darn, bad move.
We have a failing infrastructure because the city and county have gotten too used to sucking the state and federal boobies to think creatively or constructively.
Walmart, Walgreens, CVS, Safeway, Albertson's, and every other "chain" store will be the death of the small business -- the bulk of every dollar you spend at the big chain stores flies right out of the community, folks. So, given that, why does our city and county keep pandering to these slaveholders?
This is a classic "cause and effect" situation. The local leadership has guided this city through one bad decision after another, and then wonders why people leave for a better community.
Drive around, and see the empty houses, sitting unsold for months. The business opportunities sit empty, like the empty Gottschalks, the former Midas Muffler building, etc. for years. HarborWorks spent hundreds of thousands of dollars on "studies" which showed no interest by developers for residential, retail, commercial or industrial projects.
But, why use the information from the HarborWorks studies, only a year or so old? Let's spend another $25,000 on ANOTHER study!
If the Economic Development Council isn't ALREADY doing these studies, why aren't they? What are they doing week after week, year after year?
If the Chamber of Commerce hasn't made this a primary importance, WHY haven't they?
If the Port Angeles Business Association hasn't made this a primary importance, WHY haven't they?
If the Port Angeles Downtown Association hasn't made this a primary importance, WHY haven't they?
Think of the collective monies spent, and efforts expended by these groups and organizations on morning breakfasts, luncheons, awards, speakers, newsletters, "socials" and more. All while the city continues to decline.
You saw the declining numbers of Kenmore Airlines patrons, as reported in the PDN.
Looking at the above, one can see people are moving away, to communities that offer opportunities for a future.
But, I don't think moving up/out of the downtown is any more viable...
Agreed...
My point is that any further public investment in that blighted shit heap that old timers call "downtown" is foolish, and driven not by sound reasoning, but by a handful of "Ednas" and the PABA, PADA, alphabet soup business organizations that run this burg.
"New Study for Increasing Port Angeles' Retail Potential".
What a joke!
I guess the leadership is too involved in their own little worlds to see what is actually going on here.
If any of them were any good, things would not be declining.
As if all the other drawbacks to shopping downtown PA aren't enough, just wait until this spring when Cutler & Company begin tearing up First Street to install huge sewage overflow vaults under the roadways. Here we go again with yet another season of disruptions to pedestrian and vehicle traffic, plus more dust and fumes.
The City convinced the National Park Service to pay for this public works project as part of the "mitigation" for the removal of the Elwha Dams. The NPS originally planned to simply build a wastewater treatment plant near the Lower Elwha Reservation to handle the sewage when the hundred or so tribal homes converted from septic systems to centralized sewage treatment. Now sewage from the homes will go instead to the City's wastewater treatment plant; and tearing up the downtown streets to build the sewage system vaults will be paid for by federal taxpayers.
I think we can all agree, downtown is a joke, what can you get there besides a movie, chinese food and a used teacup?
Think about it, forget about salvaging a shithole, lets start thinking about creating somthing worth looking at.
The Gottschalks building is, in a word, crap. Whomever buys it should demolish it and start over.
create what, where, and why? With what money? What do you consider "development" ...Walmart? Big box shitholes? More of the same?
Downtown used to be because it was where people could connect, and be a community. So, what are you proposing?....8th street? The town is divided up by bridges and weird traffic concepts. I'm not seeing any "center" spot to develop.
Then, the other issue...is for what? Our population is declining, we're strangling whatever growth we could have had, and we have no focus, no vision, and damned if anyone would LET anyone take the reins with any vision.
What we end up with, as always, is the same-ol'long time residents trying to make a buck at the expense of the rest of us....
But, people, we have beautiful art downtown, especially the wonderful Avenue of the People!
As you know (or may not know, judging from so many negative posts), every summer tourists from around the world (it's true!) get off the lovely Coho ferry and what do they see? Aside from Necessities and Temptations, I mean. Why they see one of the beautiful Avenue of the People statues and those tourists just make a bee line right for downtown where they discover the many, many lovely shops! I've seen this happen at least once.
Now you all stop being such a bunch of negative Nellies and get with the spirit of downtown!
I have to say, I've lived here since 1989 and I never went into Gottschalks.
" ..create what, where, and why? With what money? What do you consider "development" ...Walmart? Big box shitholes? More of the same?"
This gets to the basic questions. IF we are going to embark on an activity to improve things in Port Angeles, WHAT is that activity going to be, and with WHAT goal in mind to achieve?
Looking at all the business groups, Economic Development Council, city efforts and more that, after all these years of their work, have gotten us to THIS point, what other options are there?
I saw the city is proceeding with it's plans to "improve" the waterfront down along Railroad Ave.
As if a few yards of new sidewalks will convince people to drive miles to NOW come and spend money in the junk stores. This is not "vision".
So, where is this vision going to come from?
we need a 4 lane highway all the way from Silverdale to start with.
Without that everything else makes no sense
"..we need a 4 lane highway all the way from Silverdale to start with.
Without that everything else makes no sense."
Do you think the forecast $5 a gallon for gasoline that is supposed to happen in the very near future will impact outsiders coming to Port Angeles?
With the ever increasing concerns about Climate Change, and people driving less, that we should put all our "eggs" for Port Angeles' future successes in the "outsiders' basket"?
Just wondering.
"The ferry traffic has been impacted by...wait for it...the PASSPORT RESTRICTIONS, the economy, and the ever-popular Border Patrol's increased "presence" on the peninsula."
I would also argue that it started costing too much to come out here in the aughts. Coming from Seattle, you've had increased ferry fair, gas that tripled before settling down to "just" double. And for what? What experience do we offer that couldn't be found better elsewhere? That's a point PA is missing: focus on the experience, not just empty promises.
"As if a few yards of new sidewalks will convince people to drive miles to NOW come and spend money in the junk stores. This is not "vision"."
It'd be a great vision IF it was tied to other things. Look, Railroad Ave is an ugly mess that should NOT be the first thing tourists see when they step off the Coho. I agree with making it look nice. It will help. Emphasis on "help". It's not the whole solution, but it's a start. I'm just not sure we have the wherewithal to finish. We'll probably wind up with a patchwork of half-assed fixes.
"tourists from around the world (it's true!) get off the lovely Coho ferry and what do they see? Aside from Necessities and Temptations, I mean. Why they see one of the beautiful Avenue of the People statue"
Oddly enough, I've seen more tourists interacting with those statues than I'd expect. When I'm seeing tourists at all (which isn't always) they're making weird poses with those things, and uploading their pictures to Facebook or whatever. Yeah, I know, I didn't expect that but it actually is working.
Of course, that's when I see tourists downtown. Or anyone. Downtown Port Angeles is one of the emptiest towns I've ever seen, and I find that unappealing. Mark that down as a suggestion for increasing retail potential. Make downtown less depressingly empty.
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We need a 4 lane highway all the way from Silverdale to start with.
Without that, anything else makes no sense.
You can't build a house with laying the foundation first.
Oddly enough, I've seen more tourists interacting with those statues than I'd expect. When I'm seeing tourists at all (which isn't always) they're making weird poses with those things, and uploading their pictures to Facebook or whatever. Yeah, I know, I didn't expect that but it actually is working.
And who else would they interact with? There's nobody else down there. A dead body lying on Laurel Street would attract a crowd too. But no customers.
As for four lanes to Silverdale, I think that would simply make it even easier to spend money in Kitsap County. But I wouldn’t mind a speedier escape route. Maybe one lane in and three lanes out…
What a scam of federal tax dollars! Downtown will be torn up for weeks and the federal government will be spending nearly $2 million because the sewage from 100 homes will over-burden the city's stormwater system?
Can no one in charge of federal spending do some math? Even if each home sends 250 gallons of sewage a day into the wastewater system (which is easily three times more than the actual amount) this will result in a grand total of 25,000 additional gallons of daily effluent to be absorbed by the city's system. That much could be contained within a vault the size of an average 2-car garage. So - how logical is it for the federal government to be paying millions to the city for this extremely over-built type of "mitigation"?
"Look, Railroad Ave is an ugly mess that should NOT be the first thing tourists see when they step off the Coho. I agree with making it look nice."
I'm not sure this makes a lot of sense.
I'm willing to bet that virtually every person getting on the Coho is not doing so spontaneously. People who are wandering around downtown waiting for the next ferry are just waiting.
Yes, it will be nicer if the place is not as ugly as it is, while they find things to occupy the half hour or so before the ferry loads up. But making it nicer will not make them change their travel plans, coming to or from Victoria.
Stand at the corner of Lincoln and Railroad, and watch the ferry unload. Once the vehicles clear customs, they do not stop at ANY stores. They head out of town, promptly and directly.
Most of the people wandering around are waiting to go to Victoria, where they will be processed by Canadian customs. Anything bought in Port Angeles will face being taxed. Forms, money, extra time. A major disincentive.
And, let us not forget the wood mill operations that are directly adjacent. Inescapable.
Downtown is empty because people CHOOSE not to spend their time there. It is not a pleasant place to spend time. Let us not forget the wood mill operations that are directly adjacent. Inescapable. Yes, they provide jobs, but they also ugly-fy the area massively.
Most all the people you DO see down there are there because they have no choice.
Especially since the Coho probably wont' be with us 5 years from now. I'd be willing to wager that it will be a silent sale and a DONE DEAL the moment the threshold of time that qualifies as fulfilling the donation terms is reached, the COHO will be a goner. We'll have a spiffied up Railroad avenue for what?
Meanwhile, what would drive people there? There is NOTHING on that street. Most of the vacant lots are owned by one elderly gentleman who has a part-time home in Sequim and a full time home in Southern California -- he wants a fortune for them. No cares about developing it (retail,commercial, eh! Bah humbug!)
The old logging yard could be a lot of things but so far all the "deals" were quirky ones. Maybe some had good ideas, but they were underfunded, and/or silly. Just silly.
Convention center my ass....like this town has the infrastructure to do conventions, muchless any expertise in how to attract them or manage them.
Railroad is a joke....it's going to have trees and a path for jogging, like more than 10 people jog, and if they did, why would they go there?
Anon 9:38, I do agree with you even though I still think the waterfront improvements would be a good step. Downtown is not a destination for most people. People coming off the Coho leave quickly and people who are going on the Coho are just killing time. The trick is in making downtown a destination. Will cleaning up the waterfront do that? Not by itself, but along with some other things that COULD work. I say could because it depends on how quickly Port Angeles empties out and if anything can reverse this decline.
As for the jogging trail: I've walked the waterfront trail in the summer and has a LOT of people on it, lot of families with baby buggies, lot of joggers, walkers, bicyclists. That waterfront trail is one of the few things in this town I'd call a "success". Of course, these people aren't buying but it's the best example of a crowded park I've seen in PA. I mean, there are real PEOPLE walking around there. It's like I'm in another town or something...
"I mean, there are real PEOPLE walking around there. It's like I'm in another town or something..."
LMAO!
Well, this points to the fact that there are a LOT of folks in Port Angeles who you never see at most of the meetings the city holds. These are the folks who have "given up" on trying to change things, and just go on about their daily activities.
I also suspect that a fairly large percentage of the folks you see on that trail are people who live up on the bluffs nearby.
I don't think too many people come from very far away to enjoy the beauty of downtown Port Angeles.
But, back to the topic of salvaging Port Angeles from itself. I think it is important to factor in the high price of fuel that is forecast to befall us all in the near future.( I note the PDN poll today is about this very topic).
Really, for one reason or another, I think most of us will agree the days of driving long distances for "pleasure" are diminishing. Whether it be because of oil company /investor greed, or concerns about Climate Change, many forward thinking communities are planning on less travel, less driving. Being less car dependent.
So, are there any opportunities for Port Angeles that do not require so much dependence on people driving long distances?
We've heard all the same old tired visions from the same old folks that really are not viable. What other scenarios are possible?
"What other scenarios are possible?" Well, we have the perfect setting to have LEVX place their Monorail "demonstration project" along the Waterfront Trail (20 feet in the air so as not to bother the walkers)from Rayonier to the Estruary, and somewhere in the middle of that run place the base of a gondola ride up to Hurricane Ridge (just like the Palm Springs Aerial Tramway, or the one in Kellog Idaho, or many, many places throughout Europe and South America). That would create a "destination" activity that would keep folks here instead of just driving through on the way somewhere else. It just takes money and the will to do it.
How about many times have you tried to buy something in this town only to be told "I can order that for you?" Ever find one closed at 9:00 in the morning? Happens to me a lot. Few of the retail shops I've been in here in PA even deserve my business. I've been thwarted trying to buy a paper shredder, a white dress shirt, a bicycle seat post clamp, a life jacket, etc., come on; this isn't exotic stuff I'm looking for. The simple fact is that most business owners in this town expect my business, but are unwilling to get off their lazy asses and do what it takes to give me what I want. No amount of clean up, zip lines, amateur art, or twenty five thousand dollar studies can change the fact that most of these businesses deserve to fail. They would fail in Seattle, or Indianapolis or Beijing. It’s not about environment. It’s about they suck.
"Well, we have the perfect setting to have LEVX place their Monorail "demonstration project" along the Waterfront Trail (20 feet in the air so as not to bother the walkers)from Rayonier to the Estruary, and somewhere in the middle of that run place the base of a gondola ride up to Hurricane Ridge (just like the Palm Springs Aerial Tramway, or the one in Kellog Idaho, or many, many places throughout Europe and South America)"
But these ideas are dependent upon people driving long distances to get here. The 18,000 people in Port Angeles are not enough to keep these types of projects going.
I saw that the "Sprint Boat" promoters are still trying to get that going here. Another totally fuel dependent project. They envision people coming from far away in their motorhomes to stay for a weekend of racing around.
But, if gas really does hit $5 a gallon as predicted, will that really fly? Remember how severely the last sharp increase in fuel prices affected everything?
It seems that there are alot of "signs" out there pointing to the need to change the way we've been doing things. Planning for a future for this town needs to pay attention to these things.
How many people are going to drive hours to Port Angeles, at $5 a gallon, to ride a LEVX tram to the Rayonier site to visit the huge "tank o'crap" ? (You know that tank is not even going to have a cover on it?!)
Are we just going to waste away into ??
"How many people are going to drive hours to Port Angeles, at $5 a gallon, to..."
I suspect not enough. I still believe the plunge in tourism coincided with the gas tripling, the ferry rates rising and the cost of living rising. Gas fell only when the economy fell apart.
That said, there are plenty of places that offer the same thing we do and they DO get tourists. Clean up the town, finish the ODT, get that zipline going, revamp Hurricane Ridge as a tourist destination, start a logging camp, kayak racing, gondolas, whatever else. People COULD come up here for that. But these things alone won't solve things.
My biggest complaint about this town, similar to any friends who come up to visit, isn't that it's out of the way or it costs too much to get here... it's that it seems like it's dying, it's not dynamic.
For visitors, there are few people on the streets, no street musicians, no events, empty lots all over the place, dirt and grim, disproportionate number of homeless, disabled and wasted types. For residents, the job market sucks, everything shuts down at 6, there aren't many ways to meet new people, the cost of living is high, the amount of hope is low.
Conservatives may mock Obama's emphasis on "hope" but they really shouldn't. Having hope and optimism can lead to wonderful things. Not having hope can lead to Port Angeles.
Tourists visit places for the experience. They expect to have a good time, not a lifeless, depressing one. That, I believe, is the main problem Port Angeles has.
"We could have had a shot at enticing software companies relocating, or starting out here"
OMG, this is SO not a nerd-friendly town, anime store excepted. Nerds would go crazy here. Trust me, I know.
Nerds are not programmers. Programmers would have everything they need: NO DISTRACTIONS, no nightlife, no fun things to do. That's how many software companies have started...find an out-of-the-way boring place and make work seem like the most happen' thing in town
"That's how many software companies have started...find an out-of-the-way boring place and make work seem like the most happen' thing in town."
Yep! And despite Port Angles being the number one spot of nothing happening in the state, despite the non stop marketing efforts of Russ, the Chamber, the PADA, PABA, Karen Rogers, CPI, and Cherie Kidd, NO software companies bothered to set up shop in Port Angeles.
Com'on folks, we're not trying hard enough at it. We really CAN be more worthless than we appear to be!
Sorry 7:44, I'm going to have to disagree. Programmers DO tend to be nerds and geeks, but Port Angeles isn't the town for any of the above. It's true, we're not the most social types, locking ourselves away, slamming back Dew so we can write more code. No distractions? Your lack of faith disturbs me, my friend. If we're locked in code mode, then we are very good at finding ways to avoid people, even in the middle of a crowd.
Problem is, we aren't always in code mode. No nightlife? No fun? No human contact of any kind? Oh, man, come ON! We like to get out and have a good time like anyone else. Maybe not when there's an upcoming milestone, but that's not a 24/7/365 thing.
Thing of it is, we pretty much have our own culture, and it ain't the Port Angeles culture. I constantly feel lost whenever I go out here. I like the bookstores, but most of my shopping either comes from the Internet (thank you Newegg!) or Seattle (and if I'm shopping in Seattle anyway...) Everyone seems so serious all the time, or miserable or wasted. I don't know, that part is hard to articulate without coming off as insulting, but I'm used to other programmers who know what they want and work hard to get it, but who don't mind taking a break for an Epic Nerf Gun Battle now and again. It's an odd mix of work ethic and childish fun. Maybe that exists here somewhere...
Here's another thing: we actually aren't anti-social. We like people. We do. But like anyone else, we tend to cluster around people like ourselves. Who would want to move away from all their friends? Yeah, friends can sometimes be a distraction, but if you think we like being lonely all the time just so we can add to your tax base, think again. (cough, sorry, personal issues here.) Most of my friends are in Seattle. I don't know of any other programmer in Port Angeles who didn't leave first opportunity.
Yeah, okay, original point was PA dropped the ball with trying to get programmers out here. True. I just don't think PA had much of a chance getting software companies here in the first place. The culture of the town would have to change drastically to accommodate a bunch of us code monkeys. I just can't see that happening.
All right, I've spent enough time here. Back to coding. Hope to finish a sweet program so I have something to tack on a resume. And, you know, there isn't a Port Angeles software firm to send that resume off to. Funny thing that.
Okay, that was a long rant that came off kind of weird and I apologize for that. You and I will probably agree 95% of the time.
Programmers could set up shop here, sure. I hear rumors some do, who knows where they are though. Rent a house, live upstairs, turn the basement into a computer lab. You'd know that house by the constant pizza and Chinese food deliveries. And Pepsi would be sending pallets of Dew right there. Hunker down, code tons, hope to strike it big.
But say the project grows and they need to add more programmers. Are they going to go recruit some from Peninsula College's computer science department? Eh, last I heard PC was more "soft sciences" when it came to computers. Are they going to set up a booth at the local job fair? At the tech fair? They'd probably try recruiting from the Seattle area, where you can throw a dead cat and hit someone in the software industry. What about funding? How's the VC market in Port Angeles? Say the project finishes, how's the business pipeline here? Marketing firms? Distributors? Probably have to go to Seattle. How about some off time? I covered that last post, extensively. Seattle, Seattle, Seattle. Might as well rent a house in Woodinville since you'd be running to Seattle all the time.
I doubt you disagree with any of that. My only disagreement is that, except maybe for the Alpha Geeks, programmers do get out occasionally, and there's nothing for them to do here. (Alpha Geeks like Gates and Jobs tend to be more business-oriented anyway, and I imagine they'd have to go to I-5 Corridor as well.) The culture just isn't here.
It could be here, yeah. Get enough code monkeys in town and I bet we'd get the Game Stop instead of Sequim, we'd get strip malls full of comic and game shops. Maybe there'd be tech fairs and networking for the geeks. But, Port Angeles would have to radically change its culture to do that. That's probably your point too. PA doesn't seem capable of doing anything other than running in circles and talking about how great the town was during the logging boom.
Okay, that was a long rant that came off kind of weird and I apologize for that.
What? A reasoned post that stays on topic, driven by logic, and supported by personal narrative? I’ll say you should apologize…
"...driven by logic..." ????
Here, in Port Angeles?
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