Downtown revitalization group looking for public input

By Oliver Lazenby

Want to help Blaine’s business district reach its potential?

The Blaine Downtown Alliance (BDA) is looking for new board members and volunteers to work towards its goal of revitalizing the economy and appearance of downtown Blaine. The group is looking for volunteers with a variety of skills and interests.

“Diversity is key to making this work, so we want everybody to be a part of this. We’re finding we have a community with a diverse background and diverse professional experience and it gives us this rich tapestry of skills and ideas to work with,” said Alicia Rule, outgoing BDA board president. Rule resigned this month to focus on her work on Blaine City Council. She plans to support the alliance while it recruits new board members and selects a new president, she said.

The alliance, which formed in late 2017, currently has seven board members. The board positions require about 4-10 hours a month, Rule said. The group currently has about 50 volunteers, according to recent press release.

“We have collectively volunteered approximately 4,000 hours so far and things are ramping up, not slowing down,” the press release said.

Volunteers work in four different committees – an executive committee, a design committee, an economic vitality committee and a promotional committee. A history subcommittee works with all the committees to ensure that Blaine’s history is incorporated in all aspects of the project.

BDA is an affiliate of Washington state’s Main Street Program, which works with towns and cities throughout the state and provides an outline for downtown revitalization based on past successes.

“We don’t have to reinvent the wheel here, we can just tweak it to make it work really well for Blaine,” Rule said.

So far, the downtown alliance has formed a 503(c)(3), partnered to host several summer Splash Days for kids downtown and laid much of the foundation for its future work.

BDA is working with downtown property owners to keep storefronts clean, attractive and rented, and helping would-be business owners find locations to rent. It has a website (Blainedowntownalliance.com) and started a Facebook page called Coastal Blaine WA.

The group has plans to beautify downtown that include bringing art and planter boxes to downtown, and refurbishing and painting benches.

To volunteer or learn more, contact BDA secretary Carrie Stephens at chillhskr@msn.com. Learn more at the group’s website, blainedowntownalliance.com, and on its Facebook page, Coastal Blaine WA.