City Council Approves $3.9 Million for Esplanade
The Port Angeles City Council voted 6 to 1, with Max Mania voting No, to OK $3.9 million for the Esplanade phase of the waterfront improvement project. The contract is going to Primo Construction of Carlsborg.
posted by Tom Harper at 1:40 AM
21 Comments:
Oink, oink, bend over PA....
It will look better when a quake takes it out.
I like the quote from Mayor Kidd about how "inflated" she feels when she arrives in Victoria, and how "deflated" she feels when she returns to Port Angles.
Also, ya gotta love those pretty pictures of what it is going to look like when it is done. Notice all of Port Angeles that normally would be visible, is excluded. Who wants to see the reality of what Port Angeles is? Just look at this pretty picture, presented in a vacuum.
AND! Do you notice TREES in the picture, lining the street? Do you remember when the past City Council considered a suggestion to plant trees along the streets in Port Angeles? They were voted down, because the City would have to pay for someone to pick up the leaves in Fall.
Has anyone else noticed how the new biomass tower is perfectly framed in the distance as you drive into town on Front street? It should really make a good impression on tourists when they arrive in town and see it pumping out smoke and steam.
Primo Construction will do an amazing job, and the finished result will be beautiful. The problem is the Bio-Mass Generator that will be spewing micro-particles into the lungs of citizens, tax payers and visitors while they attempt to enjoy the esplanade. The esplanade will be as empty as downtown. Once again, you put the cart in front of the horse, Ms. Mayor.
Why is the city so focused on "improving" the image presented to tourists arriving by boat from Victoria? The vast majority of people visiting Port Angeles arrive by car, driving down Front Street. What they see is a pollution emitting industrial skyline in the distance, a huge log-dumping ground closer in the foreground, and the charming Gateway bus stop with its ugly adjacent parking ramp and assorted loiterers.
How is $3.9 million spent on the waterfront "esplanade" going to improve the city's image for these people (and locals)?
not to mention the street trees that have been taken out on First street with the most recent sidewalk replacement. This is such an unbelievable waste of money.
Meanwhile, raise our utility rates again..what is this the 12th year in a row? I love the propaganda "it's only a $3.00 increase on a $90.00 utility -- who has a $90.00 bill? Most homes are in the $300-400 range, many considerably higher.
It's stupid to think that PA could ever look as cool as Victoria when you enter it, from any direction, they are so far ahead of us.
BTW, just how often does Cherie go to Victoria on her escapes from PA?
We are just a gateway to other places, deal with it and capitalize on that.
"We are just a gateway to other places, deal with it and capitalize on that."
Billy has this one right!
It is SO rediculous to think people with travel plans, reservations and time deadlines are going to change those plans just because Port Angeles has a cement sidewalk a few hundred feet long. What? So that they can stroll along this esplanade to view the smokestacks, log yards and other marine/industrial uses the Port and Port Angeles business community keep pushing?
I know when I'm traveling, and have a destination in mind, a little sidewalk in a seedy little town will stop me every time!
"The pedestrian walkway will include seating and be built north of Railroad Avenue toward the shoreline." - the most descriptive sentence in the article.
Tsk, tsk, city... Looks like you pissed off the local advertising, journalism, and print lobbies squandering the promotion budget like that!
And the picture? Are we planning on beaching a decommissioned aircraft carrier on our shores?
It's like QUICK! Where's the pic of the new esplanade, press time in five minutes!? I think someone left a copy of it in the copy machine! There it is! Dust off that footprint! Where are my scissors?
Because of global warming and rising seas some folks are wisely relocating to higher locations. I'm not seeing any wisdom here when it comes to the waterfront.
I travel back and forth from Port Angeles via boat all the time.
The things that look ugly from the water are as follows:
1. The coho ferry dock
2. Westport shipyard
3. K-Ply's smoke stack
4. The Nippon paper mill
and worst of all and it's worse than ever
5. The log yard
The best view I've seen, is when the huge fog bank rests right in front of town.
Billy sez: "Because of global warming and rising seas some folks are wisely relocating to higher locations. I'm not seeing any wisdom here when it comes to the waterfront."
You are right again! If you look into it, you will see that governments around the world are doing just as you suggest. They know they are spending limited public funds, see the writing on the wall, and are doing things recognizing the growing impacts of global warming.
But, we're talking about Port Angeles. If it can be done wrong, they'll find away, here.
I've taken the ferry to Victoria a few times. As it pulls into the Inner Harbor, the people often go quiet, stand up, and go to the windows to look at different things. The cameras come out, and the excitement is obvious.
Kinda like what Port Angeles Mayor Cherie Kidd said in that article.
When the ferry pulls into Port Angeles, most are already down in their cars, waiting to get going. A few are at the windows.
If you stand at Railroad Ave by the ferry terminal when the boat comes in, you see virually every car head out of town immediately after clearing the Border guys.
Port Angeles is not a pretty town, has next to nothing to offer visitors, and most are here on their way to someplace else.
What a waste.
You know it is a crappy town when even the Mayor, a professional motivational speaker, says they find the town depressing!
Nice try tea party/hall monitor. PA is amazing. Truth is, and we all know it (the law abiding people who live here) - we yearn for the MANY nice days each year when few tourists are on the road and in our stores. Doesn't matter the season. But we know it's a compromise and people have to eat. Great views, no vision. We get what we pay for. As far as an earthquake taking it out, or it getting the dunk n' sunk, I'm sure the insurance premiums we pay on it will take care of that. Furthermore, where the crap is fall? Sort of nice here, without all the smoke. It's a good time to buy in PA. Or visit. Unless you like shopping malls. Then, don't come.
Just because a town isn't pretty in some respects doesn't mean it's a piece of shit town. It only means that it needs other things going for it, like some decent fucking jobs and places to party at night.
Like back in the good old days of this town.
@5:39 PM
Hunh? What ARE you talking about?
You holding your breath, Billy?
You holding your breath, Billy?
Not at my age. :-)
Hey, anyone want some wild blackberries? I got a gazillion of them here.
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