Growth, Farmers, and PMC

[kay henson <kay_henson@yahoo.com>]

To the Editor only.

Editor,  I realize that the following letter is nearly twice as long as
it is supposed to be for the letters section but, try as I might I just
count cut anymore out.  I would greatly appreciate it if you would go
ahead and print it anyway.

Thank you
Lori Sodorff

Dear Editor,

First I would like to give kudos to Jason Rubero for his September 1st
letter to the editor.

I was gone from Moscow for a while and on my return I was amazed to see
the changes.  I was unpleasantly surprised to see that even more growth
has taken place beyond Palouse Mall.

Seeing this continued growth spurred another of many conversations I’ve
had concerning growth and change in Moscow.  A colleague stated that
growth was necessary and unstoppable.  I however, have never been one
who has been very excited about the changes I’ve seen happening in
Moscow. Call me old fashioned but change is not always for the better
of all.

It seems to me that it is always the little guy who gets hurt in the
name of progress.  However with all of this progress we are, acre by
acre, destroying a very valuable resource not only locally but on a
world level.

I’m talking about Farmers.  Farmers on the Palouse are not only being
forced out of business as a result of low market prices but also by
‘urban sprawl’ i.e. progress.  Progress and change.  Change such as
that in the area of the Pullman-Moscow corridor.  

When I was just a small girl I remember when  west of 3rd and Line
there was just a smattering of business such as Tri-State, Arctic
Circle (now part of a car dealer ship), and Karl Marx ( now Branegans).
 So you can see that quite a lot has changed over the years and
continues to grow towards the west along the highway.  Sure their are
current limits in what can be developed along the corridor but, it is
only a matter of time before the loopholes that have been left in the
planning  and zoning ordinances are jumped through allowing for
amendments to this and that.  Before you know it you’ve gone from
Moscow to Pullman or visa-versa and you didn’t even notice the state
line.

With regard to the expansion of the PMC I did some searching through
the  vision 2020 archives where the first discussion I found concerning
the PMC on the v2020 list was on Wednesday, April 12th 1995.  In the
discussion Bruce Haglund shared with us a quote from Wallace Stegner
that was shared with him by one of his graduate students; Angry as one
may be at what heedless men have done and still do to that noble
habitat, one cannot be pessimistic about the West.  This is the native
home of hope.  When it fully learns that  cooperation not rugged
individualism, is the quality that most characterizes and preserved it,
then it will have achieved itself and outlived its origins.  Then it
has a chance to create a society to match its scenery.

I found multiple archives with more conversation about the corridor but
I will only share one other tidbit that I discovered.  It was in a
Summary and follow-up by Tom Hudson regarding the 4 week series of
lectures entitled, "Tale of 2 cities".  In his summary Tom discussed
what the top six most desirable elements of a vision for our two
cities’ future.  Second on that list was , "To Keep a distinct border
between city and country side.

Well the expansion, change and progress of our society has not done
much in the way of matching its scenery and before you know it there
will be no distinction between city and country side. And gone will be
the heart of the Palouse.  Its rolling fields and as Jason Rubero said,
‘…the amber waves of grain’.

Lori Sodorff
P.O. Box 117 
Elk River, Id 83827
208-826-3332


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