Seattle
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12/29/2006
I lived in Seattle for over 50 years and loved it. Then, something happened. It seemed like suddenly, Seattle started disappearing, from the skyline to the waterfront character. Now, there is almost nothing left of the Seattle I remember, the Emerald City is still emerald, but from money, not trees. The Pike Place market is nothing but a boutique with little left of the small farmer and small shopkeeper and their wonderful wares. They have been priced out of the Market. Very expensive condos are being built, ripping out old historical buildings for apartments that only the very rich can afford. The character of downtown is disappearing beneath the money and desires of the very rich, i.e. Paul Allen, who is responsible for the loss of Seattle. The pleasure craft industry has been overswept with people who must have huge yachts and places to keep them - no room for the small weekend boater, no room for the little guy. Ocean cruisers come into Puget Sound, dropping their tons of waste into our waters, causing pollution that threatens all the fishes of the sea. Traffic is a nightmare every day of the week, 24-hours a day. Building continues at an uncontrolled rate, higher skyscrapers, more condos, fewer trees. A mayor who panders to the rich. A city that used to be a multi-faceted fabric of personalities, encompassing all, now has booted out all lower-income housing and turned its nose up to controlled growth.
Seattle? Simply L.A. North; there is nothing left of Seattle but phonies and fakes. Drop into any Starbucks and there they are.
Cheryl | Lake Stevens, WA