Bellingham Comments from Digital Recorder - EISs for the Proposed ...

GATEWAY PACIFIC TERMINAL EIS SCOPING HEARING VOL. I
COURT REPORTER: GWEN BRASS PROCEEDING DATE: October 27, 2012
Page 121
minds changing lives." It isn't young people trying to get
jobs at whatever cost.
So I'm saying as a student, I would not have chosen
Western Washington University if there was a coal train running
through every day. There's probably not a day that goes by
that I'm not down by the tracks. I'm walking the tracks every
day. I'm not going to be nearly as into it if there's coal
trains there.
And the only argument I've had, two years construction
jobs, great. Okay. After that, what's going on? We have this
permanent coal train. How many jobs are going to be there
permanently? How many permanent jobs? We're going to have a
permanent impact on the kind of people we're attracting because
what kind of people are going to want to come to Bellingham
then?
We have an atmosphere, we have a way of life. That's
our identity. That's who we are. And if we add coal trains,
you know, I just don't think the pros in any way outweigh the
cons.
Thank you.
MS. HULL: Thank you.
Next speaker, please.
THE SPEAKER: My name is Joell Robinson. I'm a fourth
generation Whatcom County woman. I grew up working summers
here in Cherry Point. I have seven nieces and nephews. But I