Add it in the comments below if I’ve missed one, but we’ve been told Bremerton could be: Bellevue, Bellingham, Green Lake, Fremont and, repeatedly, Sausalito* (Google that one yourself for links, they’re aplenty).

Finding a city to benchmark one’s future against is nothing new in politics or urban planning, so I’m not picking on anyone who’s suggested Bremerton’s  match. You could find worse comparisons. But if revitalization is focused on attracting folks who want the glitzy comparison city, there’s also some town along that way that no one wants to be like, and who isn’t going to get a Whole Foods.

At least right now, those cities are Youngstown, Ohio, or Detroit, or any Rust Belt burg dying along with the stumble of post-war industry. That’s at least what this post from the Economix blog on the New York Times discusses, along with the suggestion that government should spend time and money on something other than building population. Kind of reminds me of an argument in a certain city on Sinclair Inlet with a new tunnel and subarea plan. Here’s the excerpt that got me thinking:

“After all, the job of government is to enrich and empower the lives of its citizens, not to chase the chimera of population growth targets. Just once, I want to hear a Rust Belt mayor say with pride ‘my city lost 200,000 people during my term, but we’ve given them the education they need to find a better life elsewhere.'”

I’m not saying Bremerton is dying (or that any of it should be bulldozed as a solution), I think that already happened to an extent when downtown up and left (and there already have been bulldozers in Westpark recently). Nor do I mean to say our city shouldn’t attract folks who sustain the economy and add to the local quality of life — after all, new degrees at Olympic College or continued hiring at the shipyard should make that inevitable. I’m not even saying I agree with the statement. But it’s an interesting way to look at what’s going on.

The blog post hints that the mantra “growth is always good” may not fit quite so nicely into our country’s mainframe anymore. Cities may have an optimum size that’s smaller than what a mayor promised upon election, or a vision that’s appropriate to a city’s demographic makeup. Maybe those questions should play a part in this city’s planning.

I wouldn’t be surprised if this, or something along these lines, comes up during the mayoral campaign. A few weeks ago Mike Shepherd said something to me about putting the city’s youth at the top of his platform. That’s nothing new from a politician either, but maybe a more important consideration given the circumstances this time around. You need good families to come into a neighborhood to support schools, for example, but maybe there already are good families that need a little encouragement. I know I’ve always been taught that ya dance with who brought ya.

The next Bremerton? Maybe it’s Bremerton.

*Gardner is on vacation right now. Driving through Northern California. With a day to spare and some time to take a ferry ride to a seaport that could compare… ah, I’ve said too much already.

— David Nelson

After hearing a rumor that August Wynn in Manette had closed, I walked over to check. Sure enough, black plastic covers the windows and doors this afternoon and no one was around the renovated Perry Avenue garage. Also, the August Wynn website has been taken down, and I know they had cut dinner service a few weeks ago.

Losing the neighborhood eatery would mark the second closure in as many weeks for a fledgling small business regarded in the Bremerton food culture. Luigi’s Bakery on 15th Street also is no more, after the untimely death of baker Luigi Ferrari on May 22.

My weekend mornings usually included one or both of those places, so I’m sorry to hear the news, especially considering the circumstances surrounding Ferrari.

Breakfast at AW was a treat, and you could say the same for every loaf, roll or pastry that came from Luigi’s oven. Both seemed the offer the quality and friendly service that captured a core following, traits of any good local businesses. But running a small restaurant or bakery is tough, no doubt, and closures are unfortunately common enough that it isn’t big news, no matter how skilled owners may be at their crafts.

Despite that failure rate, it’s also a profession that seems to have an unending supply of hope. We’ll see new places again, and hopefully something in those storefronts someday. And I’d be remiss to not point out some successes (or at least potential successes) in the breakfast game right now.

In Manette The Patio, just off the bridge at 11th Street, celebrated its first anniversary recently and is keepin’ on serving that neighborhood’s brunch crowd. And downtown Bremerton has a new breakfast (and lunch/dinner) spot with the Coffee Club, just open in May in the Park Avenue Diner’s greasy vacated digs at Fifth Street. (It’s less greasy now, though that may not suit all tastes.) And the reigning champ of freaky breakfasts, the 15th Street Hi-Lo Cafe, now has a VW bus dressed up so you can sit in it and enjoy your Moon Biscuits. (And I do enjoy my Moon Biscuits.)

So, maybe this is just a reminder to cherish your favorite little spot, or to help keep the local guys alive. And for the closures, well, you natives have two new additions to the Bremerton parlor game ‘This place used to be …’

— David Nelson