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closeIn tough economic times, it’s easy for people to become so discouraged that their actions make matters worse.
We encourage Whatcom County residents not to fall into that economic trap. Despite bad news both locally and nationally lately, there are still many positive things happening in our community that show we have a bright financial future. First, let’s be honest about the bad news:
The May unemployment rate for our county, before seasonal adjustment, was 4.9 percent. That is up from 4.5 percent in April and 3.9 percent in May of 2007. Officials say more concerning is the fact that only 200 new jobs were created in May. Between April and May of 2007, 1,000 new jobs were created in the county.
The Northwest Multiple Listing Service reported that May home sales were down 24 percent from May 2007 and the median price was down 9 percent compared to the same period last year. The nationwide real estate slowdown seems to have finally hit home.
Gas prices continue to set record highs, with an average price in Whatcom County of $4.32 per gallon for regular unleaded gasoline on Thursday, up from just $3.12 the same day in 2007. Those higher prices are eating into the spending power of county residents, and their ability to pay their bills or save for their futures.
Some governments are reporting projected budget shortfalls, including Whatcom County, where officials announced recently they expect that they are $5 million short in their projected 2009-2010 two-year budget thanks to lower receipts from sales taxes and building permits. Expect talk of layoffs or increased taxes to continue into the fall budgeting season.
Media, including The Bellingham Herald, are experiencing slower economic times too, and have been forced to cut staff as part of that. We are also experiencing an explosion of readership growth online, causing us to restructure our operations.
So on the surface, many indicators do not appear positive.
But behind the scenes there are many things to still be positive about. Our newspaper and Web site are filled with stories of new businesses opening and thriving businesses expanding or adding employees. Whatcom County’s strong spirit of entrepreneurship remains alive and well.
For example, the Silver Creek Business Park in Ferndale is expanding now to make room for German company Schwalbe, which is opening a storage and warehousing facility for their bicycle tire manufacturer who is moving to the county from Victoria, B.C.
In Bellingham’s Sunnyland neighborhood, several businesses have moved in to what is becoming a busy new urban center in and around Sunnyland Square, the remodeled center that is home to Trader Joe’s.
Ferndale’s new retail center, Ferndale Station, is under construction and expected to open in December or January. The Bakerview Square center on East Bakerview Road in Bellingham continues to add buildings and small businesses.
There is even talk for the first time in years of a large-scale industrial development at Cherry Point, with Canpotex International of Canada considering the site for construction of a new terminal for ships to load potash for worldwide shipping. Company officials say the terminal could be a $300 million to $500 million project.
Some of the bad news can be looked at positively as well.
While the rising unemployment rate is a concern, it’s important to note that six years ago, in 2003, the unemployment rate for May was 6.5 percent. If you go back to the 1990s, rates for that month were as high as 7 percent. Things have been much, much worse here.
And the drop in home prices can be seen as a logical adjustment after years of record high price increases. Those increases led a national economic report to rank our community as having the sixth highest most overvalued home prices out of a national survey of 330 metropolitan areas. Those kinds of unrealistic prices are not only hard to maintain over a long period of time, but also not healthy for those in the community who can’t afford to buy homes.
Even government financing woes won’t be terrible if our elected leaders deal with the shortfall in the right way, by cutting back services to match only what they can afford.
Economic fortunes always rise and fall. What’s important now, in this slower time, is to keep some perspective and to keep believing in Whatcom County’s future, which remains bright indeed.
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