Aberdeen mayor wants to give the city a facelift
ABERDEEN, Wash. -- The mayor of Aberdeen is tired of the eyesores in his town, and he's now making it his mission to go after the dilapidated buildings and their owners.
Everyone is welcome in Aberdeen, as evidenced by the famous "Come as you are" sign posted at city limits. What's no longer welcome in the city are the rundown buildings that dot the landscape.
Mayor Bill Simpson's had enough with the ugliness, and said Aberdeen needs to shape up.
"It's just been a real eyesore," he said. "Its become a real chain around my neck."
Simpson's tired of hearing his town criticized and mocked because many of its buildings have seen better days. The yellow and purple Morck Hotel in downtown Aberdeen is at the center of it all.
The hotel was once a beautiful landmark, but has since become a rundown disaster. It's one of several buildings on Simpson's mailing list.
"We're going to send letters out to these property owners and encourage them to work with us," he said.
The letters will go out on Friday, and Simpson is hopeful property owners will get on board with the request. It doesn't hurt that Aberdeen has $200,000 in grant money to loan out for the repairs and upgrades.
Many in town are hopeful the plan will work, but others say they've heard it all before.
"We peaked out many generations ago. There's always rumors there going to fix it up, and it's just not happening," one resident said.
Simpson said his goal is to make Aberdeen look as welcoming as it feels.
"We don't want people to pass through," he said. "We want people to stop and see what a great community this is."
Simpson said if his letters don't work, the city will look to take additional actions against the properties.
The group that owns the Morck said it believes the hotel is an important piece of Aberdeen and the rebounding economy will allow them to restore it.
Everyone is welcome in Aberdeen, as evidenced by the famous "Come as you are" sign posted at city limits. What's no longer welcome in the city are the rundown buildings that dot the landscape.
Mayor Bill Simpson's had enough with the ugliness, and said Aberdeen needs to shape up.
"It's just been a real eyesore," he said. "Its become a real chain around my neck."
Simpson's tired of hearing his town criticized and mocked because many of its buildings have seen better days. The yellow and purple Morck Hotel in downtown Aberdeen is at the center of it all.
The hotel was once a beautiful landmark, but has since become a rundown disaster. It's one of several buildings on Simpson's mailing list.
"We're going to send letters out to these property owners and encourage them to work with us," he said.
The letters will go out on Friday, and Simpson is hopeful property owners will get on board with the request. It doesn't hurt that Aberdeen has $200,000 in grant money to loan out for the repairs and upgrades.
Many in town are hopeful the plan will work, but others say they've heard it all before.
"We peaked out many generations ago. There's always rumors there going to fix it up, and it's just not happening," one resident said.
Simpson said his goal is to make Aberdeen look as welcoming as it feels.
"We don't want people to pass through," he said. "We want people to stop and see what a great community this is."
Simpson said if his letters don't work, the city will look to take additional actions against the properties.
The group that owns the Morck said it believes the hotel is an important piece of Aberdeen and the rebounding economy will allow them to restore it.
The only time I go through Aberdeen/Hoquiam is driving to the coast like everyone else. It really is quite depressing driving through. Perhaps if the owners of these buildings don't fix them up then can be declared unsafe and torn down. The mills were the heart and soul of that area and now that they are closed the good jobs are gone. I'm sure the Stafford Creek Prison has brought some good jobs but it's just a scratch on a dent of the problem.
They need to get some businesses in there and clean it up. I know we drive through it when we head out to Ocean Shores. We have chosen not to ever stop there for breakfast or lunch because most of the restaurants are either shut down or look really run down -- ick factor. It looks like it was once a pretty nice place, I hope they can freshen it up.
Aberdeen has always reminded me of the opening scenes of "The Meaning of Life" where they jokingly refer to Glasgow as the third world. Â
Having said that, fixing the buildings first is a lot like putting poorly built pontoons under a new road... It wastes you time and annoys the pig. They really do need to build a better foundation for their community first.
Now that the world has seen the high quality of the pontoons manufactured there, a jealous industrial giant would sorely be tempted to rush right in and snap up that alert and meticulous labor force before somebody else snatches it away.
@Getov MylonÂ
I would agree with you, but........and this is the not so secret secret about the Pontoon Project in Aberdeen........the percentage of people IN the harbor hired for the project is less than 10%.....Almost ALL of the labor is from out of town brought in by the companies doing the work.....They promised a ton of local jobs......it didn't happen......Now, I do live in Aberdeen, I did not grow up there, and I will tell you that NO employer with technical jobs will locate in Aberdeen.  There is NO educated or skilled work force. I work 250 miles away from home. There are no jobs in Aberdeen if you make 50K + a year and want to live where you own a home.  I agree with you Mr. Mylon that there is no company going to move to Aberdeen....Hell, we can't even get a Costco or a Target......OH, but we are getting an Aaron's rent to own......excuse me while I don my A-shirt and go to Wal-mart : )
Aren't our meth cities quaint?
What the heck are commercial property owners supposed to do when they can't get tenants? Â The number of vacant storefronts here is truly depressing. Â On entry into the city, there is a mini-jungle of fast food franchises and then a long stretch of dilapidated, vacant commercial buildings. Â
As far as addressing the fundamental economic problems here, getting commercial property owners to spruce up their buildings is akin to placing colorful Band-Aids on leprosy sores. Â
@Opus8no5 Yep... then the mutts spray paint all over them again.... drunks loitering the storefronts etc! Drug deals at several of the roach coach inns etc.! :(
"Everyone is welcome in Aberdeen, as evidenced by the famous "Come as you are" sign posted at city limits. What's no longer welcome in the city are the rundown buildings that dot the landscape.
Mayor Bill Simpson's had enough with the ugliness, and said Aberdeen needs to shape up."
How about working on running the crack and meth heads out of town? They cause far more damage than a few run down and delapidated buildings...
@what? Â
I agree, some how with a small population we support a bunch of homeless. Don't forget that the Dept. of Corrections routinely drops people off at the bus station downtown. No address on file? they get dropped off. Also, look into the state's history of dumping strange people from across the state into Aberdeen in the 50's, 60's, and 70's.......Those people stayed, and had kids with each other.  I've never seen a town with so many odd people. I've seen naked people changing clothes on a corner.  Â
@Agent73Â @what? some parts of Aberdeen and Hoquiam are scary, even during the day time.
@what? I agree, I also think my family would be more inclined to visit if the town looked nice....
@what? That sign is a tribute to the Nirvana song of the same name. They are proud of Curt Cobain.
Mr. Mayor: I am by no means laying all of the blame on you.... As a community the responsibility for success belongs to all... I am by no means a saint.... I am a lemming in the scheme of things! I kinda like the mighty lemming... Good luck, good journey and keep your head up!
"We don't want people to pass through,"Â [Simpson] said.
I don't want to pass through either, Bill, but unfortunately I have to sometimes. I've been to favelas in Sao Paulo that were more inviting and vibrant than Aberdeen. If Washington needed an enema, Grays Harbor is where they'd stick the tube.
@The Undersigned When we're heading out to the trailer lot in Ocean Shores we call it 30MPH Forced Flea Market.
@The Undersigned, Thank you. Thank you very much. I was considering how to say that if Anahiem was the armpit of the USA; Aberdeen had to be the........ You've done so well. Thank you.
And you are right. So much filth would run....
 The only time Aberdeen excelled is when Walt Failor was Mayor and ran the City properly. Since that time they have had a bunch of mayors and councilmen/women who have run the City into the dirt. As for the Morck Hotel it was once one of the finest Hotels on the Coast but the elected also helped run it into the ground
 Aberdeen does need help, and a new mayor. They have really screwed the pooch too many times.
I'd say there was nothing wrong with Aberdeen that a match and a can of gasoline wouldn't fix, but the whole place is so waterlogged that it wouldn't burn with gas poured over the whole mess. Then, that still wouldn't fix the unemployement problem. At least the thieves won't be robbing JC Penny anymore, come August.
@SargeMcCÂ Â That was funny.... and true.
Aberdeen just has a haze of depression around it, I think it is pitiful.
It would be nice if they didn't chase away all the industry that wants to use the port down there. Â Maybe then the other businesses wouldn't be going under all the time. Â the only one that does any good is Walmart.Â
Aberdeen reminds me of crippling economic depression.
@Sanctuary If it were any different Nirvana wouldn't have had anything to sing about.
How about a FREE METH WORKDAY!  Get a big bag of meth and a bunch of paint rollers and they'll all come runnin' that place will be painted in a day.
the aberdeen Mayor has made it impossible for new business to open up. And he's driving the current businesses out of town. The so called "mall" is a joke. And now it's a laughing stock now that Jc Penny has had enough. Only thing worth going to there is the movie theater. He and the city need to be bending over backwards courting places like Target and Costco.
Komo: You should investigate how many businesses Mr. Mayor and company have ran off...... so they could have an absolute dump for a town. In their tiny minds they're stopping progress and nurturing small businesses which boils down to thrift stores etc.! The friggin' mall has become an absolute flea market and damn near vacant!
This coming from the taxem till they leave town mayor. The DNR theater closed because of over burdensome taxations and city regulations. His reply I did not see a problem with it. The mall highest B&O Taxes in the County only what three stores in it and JCP leaving. The best thing is to condem the properties tear them down. quit refusing to let Box stores like Costco sams club lowes ect.. from coming in.
@Exiled_Patriot, The last big name store there is Sears, and the only reason they're still there is because they actually own that portion of the building, not lease it. With the floors settling into the swamp the whole thing was built on, a lot of the roll-up doors, and just plain doors, are cocked so badly or twisted in their frames that they can open or close. The floor is so uneven that you feel drunk when you walk across it.
@Exiled_Patriot You're on fire.... Bravo!Â
There are some really beautiful masonry buildings there. I hope they would get them repaired back to original.
@swansong68Â I am not sure which buildings you're referring to in Aberdeen.... I guess there might be one or two...
@swansong68 they are so bad the only thing good for them is the wrecking ball.
Coming from the same Mayor who along with others refuse to accept any responsibility for driving businesses away.... Aberdeen is a truly messed up community full of poverty, dependents and drug addicts/alcoholics.