People come to soggy, seaside cities for many reasons. A splash in the surf. Filling up on seafood which may have been swimming or crawling a few hours earlier. To soak up the sun on those rare, bright, ultraviolet days. To sit on the beach – and look longingly at what appears sometimes to be the still, blue ocean – depending on the angle of the sun which can temporarily hide the pollution. Even a hike or two.
Yep. To most folks, escaping to the shore of the Pacific is just about the same as a sojourn to Disneyland. Escape from the usual. Relaxation. Good food. Peace. Just a very pleasant, different place. And pace.
Sorry to upset your dreams, dry-landers. But they’re just another troubled place on the continent if you take off the shades and get into the local “culture.”
The basic problems are twofold. For the most part, coastal communities are small. Many under 10-thousand locals. And, two, they’re all very, very independent. Each doing many things – often the same things – differently. The proffered excuse for that is “uniqueness.” So, there’s a lot of duplication and not much cooperation on a lot of things.
Lincoln City was an example. For many, many years, six very small, contiguous towns fiercely competed against one another for tourists and their dollars. None had a significant business base other than tourism. The local barometer for success or failure could be read in the “vacancy” signs. Everything economic rested on the tourista rock.
But, in the 1960’s, some smarter heads got together and the six became one – Lincoln City. Still, even now, some 50 years later, each burg has signs along the highway using the former names in a bid to hang onto some individuality. It may be one city – Lincoln City – for business and survival purposes. But, to a lot of locals, it’s still Taft, Nelscott, Ocean Lake, Neotsu, et al. And some want to go back. Still deep divisions.
There are many local, coastal issues but several communities are now involved in a mess that won’t go away – VRDs – vacation rental dwellings. Lincoln City fathers and mothers have been trying to solve that one for decades. No success and lots of hard feelings. Recall elections, demonstrations, public accusations, character assassinations.
In a nutshell, here’s the issue. VRD owners know ocean views and ocean smells lure tourists with bucks to spend. So, they want seaside property. Or as close as possible. On the other side of the fray, people who’ve come to this small town with bucks – big bucks – wanting their million dollar+ homes on the same land. Ocean front.
So, you put a million into a big home. And some guy comes along and builds a five bedroom, five bath, single garage dormitory masquerading as a “house” next door. A VRD. You’re seeking solitude, peace and quiet. But, eight months out of the year, multiple families with six kids each are partying next door with cars blocking your driveway and music machines on balconies splitting the night air.
VRD owners want their income properties where they want them – prime spots that will bring in the business. Full time residents, investing their retirement dollars and long-held dreams, say “not in my back yard” – or next door. They want that serenity and peace they’ve dreamed about for decades enforced with tight zoning controls. But, the VRDers say tight restrictions, limited placement locations and more controls are bad for business.
Lest you think this is no big deal, Lincoln City’s population is about 10,000. And there are dozens of VRD’s. It’s a BIG problem.
There are also the major law enforcement problems because of both the attraction of the ocean and the transient nature of some folks who think they can get away with things there they wouldn’t do at home, then leave town. Law enforcement is kept busy. The relatively moderate climate also brings a lot of homeless people. Often homeless families. What few services there are in these small towns are stretched and, sometimes, they go broke themselves.
Some communities – Astoria and Newport, for example – have larger economic foundations with lumber, commercial fishing, government investment like NOAA and international shipping. But most, like Lincoln City, Florence, Harbor, Pacific City, Reedsport, Cannon Beach and more than two dozen others rely almost entirely on tourist spending. They do what they can in the good years and hang on tight during the bad.
Next time you come over for a few days of R&R, take some time to get past all those “antique” stores, candy shops, golf courses, seafood grills and other coastal delights. Dig around a bit. Talk to some locals. Get a better “feel” for your vacation haunt. Might give you a new perspective on things coastal if you know more about the neighborhood.
You should know a bit more about what really goes on in your dream vacation destinations. Like Disneyland, a lot of time, effort and money go into making it all seem “different,” peaceful and a bit escapist. Nothing wrong with that.
Just keep in mind, not everything there is as real as, say, Space Mountain.
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