The Excellent Lumber Town Of Hoquiam Recognizes The Future And Keeps Up With Its Neighbors

Towns sometimes seem to grow all on their own, to become their own people, so to speak, practically independent of the people living in them. This is of course only an illusion, but the way time and culture shape a town, especially a small one, says a lot about the culture at large, and about the people who are shaping it, day by day, through thousands and thousands of decisions large and small. Sometimes, though, it is necessary to make a decision on some big changes.

Up in the Pacific Northwest is a town called Hoquiam, Washington. It was born and raised a logging and exporting town. It has maintained this identity through annual events like parades and logging competitions and an internationally popular event called Loggers’ Playday. All of which has served it well enough, but what will it do when faced with the possibility for growth?

This growth would occur along the Hoquiam waterfront, the part of downtown running along the Hoquiam River. What to do with riverside property is a question many towns face, and for cities with developed waterfronts like San Antonio and Baltimore, the investment was met with great success. An underused area became, in a few years, a popular area full of restaurants and bars, hotels and shopping, entertainment of all kinds.

The waterfront hasn’t been much in vogue since the 1980s, but recent development interest has revived a discussion about how best to use that area. There is a lot to consider, because of course this is tax money going into any new project. It’s important to review options and decide, as a community, how best to use and area, and who best to head up that development — a decision that can’t be taken too lightly.

As a small town, it has to decide whether it wants to stay small or make some growth decisions. It’s already got a rivalry with its larger neighboring city Aberdeen, and friendly competition often spurs some of the best kinds of growth, personal and otherwise. Sometimes the bigger towns get all the tax money, all the tourism, so if the town decides its identity is as a larger town, it may suddenly make the rivalry that much more interesting.

But Hoquiam must proceed cautiously. It is interested in preserving its past, as is evident in the 2009 revitalization of its train depot. So it knows how to preserve and honor its past; now it must seriously consider how it wants to carry that history forward, what kind of city it wants to become.

Ascertain moreover about Wade Entezar.