Indigenous Peoples’ Day Celebration: Our hearts are full after Monday’s Indigenous Peoples’ Day event! With over 800 people gathered at the Wex’liem Community Building at Lummi Nation, the night was a packed house celebration of our Indigenous neighbors and a beautiful way to come together in respect and unity. We were honored to be a part of bringing this celebration to life. Hy’shqe to everyone who contributed – event organizers, volunteers, drummers, singers, dancers, speakers, cooks – and everyone who attended! If you missed it, you can see highlights in this Facebook reel from Children of the Setting Sun Productions or watch the recording of the full event on their YouTube channel.
Housing Week: We’re gearing up for Housing Week 2023, are you? From October 17-21, join us and other Whatcom Housing Alliance partners for a series of events that build awareness and support for innovative housing solutions. From eviction prevention to parking reform, an overview of housing subsidies to ADU design competition awards, Housing Week is your place to learn, engage, discuss and be empowered.
Supporting housing and shelter agencies: Recent years have brought tremendous strain to organizations and staff providing housing and shelter services in Bellingham. Maintaining organizational capabilities has been challenging for many agencies, while the need for shelter and services has grown. Capacity support is clearly a need. Those sentiments became clear in a recent survey of nine of Bellingham’s small and mid-sized housing and shelter agencies. In recognition, the City recently set aside $200,000 to support the nine agencies in building capacity. The Bellingham City Council will hear more about these needs, and the kinds of support City funding will provide, at the City Council’s October 16 Community and Economic Development Committee meeting.
Celebrate Make a Difference Day: Join the City and Nooksack Salmon Enhancement Association (NSEA) to celebrate Make a Difference Day and Arbor Day by helping improve salmon habitat in Whatcom Falls Park! We will be planting native trees and shrubs and removing invasive species in the north end of the park along Whatcom Creek where we recently removed an abandoned railroad trestle. All ages and abilities are welcome, but participants under 14 must be accompanied by a parent or guardian. We will provide tools, gloves, coffee, and snacks. Please register in advance as spots are limited.
Answer the call: What-Comm 911 is hiring! We are looking for quality team members to play essential roles in our community. As a Public Safety Telecommunicator at What-Comm 911, you will process incoming emergency and non-emergency calls and dispatch emergency responders. Our dispatchers are the first of the first responders and no two days are ever the same! If you like multi-tasking in a fast-paced, supportive team environment, this is the career for you. These positions are City employees who provide vital county-wide services, with competitive salaries and benefits. See the Police Dispatcher page for more information.
Museum access for all: Free museum days are coming to Whatcom Museum in 2024, thanks to a recent “Access for All” grant from the Art Bridges Foundation. The grant allows the museum to waive admission, have special (free) programming, and extended hours one day a month starting in January. This opportunity makes museum exhibits, such as The Pet Show (open October 21, 2023 – April 14, 2024) and Bellingham National (open November 11, 2023 – February 25, 2024), accessible to all. Mark your calendars now for the first Friday of every month next year.
Free solar-viewing glasses: Are you ready for the annular solar eclipse tomorrow morning, Saturday, October 14? In Bellingham, the partial eclipse begins around 8 a.m. with the maximum at 9:18 a.m. Free solar-viewing glasses and eclipse-viewing information sheets are available at Bellingham Public Library until Friday at 6 p.m. The info sheet (available in English and Spanish) covers a basic explanation of the eclipse and viewing safety tips. The solar-viewing glasses are limited in supply and available to pick up at all Bellingham library branches on a first-come, first-serve basis.
By the numbers
How many millions? Twenty-five million dollars! That’s how much federal funding was awarded from the Washington State Department of Transportation Local Bridge Program to fully fund the replacement of the Eldridge Ave-Squalicum Parkway bridge, which was built in 1937. It will take several years of planning and designing before we see work on the bridge itself, but it’s worth celebrating since it’s not every day that we receive such good news. In addition to modernizing the bridge, the project will provide an important network connection for pedestrians and bicyclists, continuing our work to build a well-connected transportation network for all users. The project is one of 36 projects funded throughout the state.
