Trivia time! What do the following businesses have in common? Café Moro, Java Llama, Corner Drug, White Drug, Coast to Coast, Mimosa, Quiznos, Baskin-Robbins, Audian Theatre, The Combine, Top of China, Cougar Barbershop and Radio Shack.
Answer: Each business, during my time in Pullman, used to have a downtown Pullman presence but has since gone away.
In no way am I hoping for any business to struggle and go under. The point is, there are many reasons why businesses come and go. Our downtown today is different than the one that came before and will be different from the one that comes after.
As a city, we shouldn’t purposely chase away businesses. We should encourage our fellow citizens to take reasonable risks to start a business. The rest of us should be willing to support those businesses by shopping there.
So, I’ve stated I don’t want to see businesses go under and I listed a number of businesses that have left our downtown. What’s the point?
The point is no matter what the Pullman City Council decided in their meeting last week, the outcome will not change the fact that businesses will come and businesses will go. Yet, having an ineffective downtown area may make it less likely they come and more likely they go.
In a January city council meeting a number of people spoke passionately against Project Downtown Pullman. It was suggested the city council allow another public comment period prior to the vote Feb. 6. Councilman Eric Fejeran stated: “Our community has really repeatedly voiced, as we can see, concerns that they’re feeling unheard.”
Fejeran, one of the two who voted against a better Pullman, came to the meeting with a prepared statement while stating the residents feel unheard. It is hard to claim to be objectively listening to people if you already have made up your mind as evidenced by a prepared statement against the project.
Five of the members of city council made the very difficult decision to vote to move forward with the downtown project. Next election season, remember the two who didn’t. For some reason their vote was to allow Pullman to fail. That is not the leadership we want on our city council.
While it might seem like a step backward to some people, this project will open new doors and opportunities on the other side. Imagine a more intimate downtown setting. Imagine sidewalks that are inviting. Outdoor seating. Short street crossings. All of these things will allow Pullman to move further ahead than we are now.
We have reached the end of a dead-end path. Taking a step or two in a different direction will lead to a path that goes much farther. Bravo to the brave members of the city council who said yes. Prior to the vote I told some friends that this is one of those issues over which members of the city council needed to be ready and willing to lose their seat.
Sometimes an issue is bigger than one election cycle and bigger than any one person on the city council. This is one of those times that years, if not decades down the road when Pullman is still thriving, people will look back at the five brave members of the 2024 council and thank them.
Will it cause a loss of business? I think it may. When Colfax had a major Main Street project, it cost them. In fact, a long-term, well-known business in Colfax, Fonks, went out of business after 72 years and one of the factors, according to the owner, was the Main Street project.
I don’t always give a lot of praise to our city council but they earned it today. I believe the residents of Pullman in 2030, 2060 and 2090 will also be thankful for their vote.
Anderson is a former co-host and producer of a conservative talk radio show. He has a degree in philosophy and enjoys photography, woodworking, and sports. When not computer programming, he volunteers in the community. He welcomes feedback at crier@cityofpullman.com.
