Crowd ponders how to spark vitality, growth in Clinton

Published 4:12 pm Friday, October 24, 2014

Island County’s comprehensive plan, the Clinton Community Council’s goals and the Clinton area’s desires and needs all intersected at a meeting Thursday night.

Hosted by the Clinton Community Council and the Clinton Progressive Association, 28 people took part in a presentation and discussion that was part reflection of past successes and part projection of things to come. The attendance was well below the 80 or so people who showed up at a similar council meeting last year, though council President Jack Lynch said they did not have the $800 to mail out notices to every household in the 98236 ZIP code.

Still, those inside the Clinton Community Hall had plenty to say about what should be done with Clinton. Helping to formalize those ideas was Island County Commissioner Helen Price Johnson, herself a Clinton resident and a community council member, and county Director of Planning and Community Development David Wechner. He shared the county’s comprehensive plan update schedule and invited Clinton residents to take part in envisioning what work should be done to help boost the area’s business community.

Wechner told the crowd that part of his duties and the role of the comprehensive plan is to accommodate for projected changes in population numbers and demographics. He said the county is generally expecting to get older, which may affect how his department plans its density and projects. Making Clinton more walkable with sidewalks, well-lit crosswalks and other features such as benches, for example, could be added to the plan.

“It’s not just population growth, it’s what is the vision we want to have for the county,” Price Johnson said.

One of the major tasks ahead for the Clinton groups is the proposal for the Food Shed. Its name has several variations, depending on who is talking, from the Clinton Food Shed to South Whidbey Food Shed to just Food Shed, but the idea remains the same. Create a space that is part farmers market, part cafe/deli and part education and event center, and spark an economic uptick for business, tourism and local agriculture.

“As soon as we do something, other things will happen,” said Carol Flax, a woman of many roles, all of which aim to help Clinton thrive. She is a member of the Clinton Community Council, president of the Clinton Progressive Association and director of the Clinton Thursday Market.

Flax said the council, a nonprofit, will be the entity running the Food Shed at first to help secure grants. Eventually, it may break off on its own, but for now it needs help — volunteers to assist in the creation of graphic designs, grant writing, public relations and area promotion, training and to provide financial support. Flax told the crowd that the council is in negotiations for a lease and space in Clinton, but nothing was signed so she declined to say where the Food Shed may be located.

She was excited at the prospect, however, of having a place to get a latte and visit with her neighbors, which is something Clinton lost after Anchor Books & Coffee closed earlier this year.

“We’ve got nowhere to grab a cup of coffee and talk to our friends,” she said.