This week marks the end of my 30th year as Chinook Observer editor — but not, I hasten to add, the end of my career here.

Some of the high school students we covered in the fall of 1991, my first in Pacific County, are to the point of being grandparents. Last night I walked my new puppy Leif down an elegant street in Discovery Heights, flashing back to my first hikes along the same route when it was still a rutted dirt logging road through a scruffy forest. Saplings planted along Pacific Avenue in Long Beach are growing into mature trees.

Asked in my job interview to identify what I regarded as the biggest issue this area faced, with no hesitation I said “growth.” Such a spectacular and interesting place couldn’t help but rapidly grow its population. The key would be finding ways for those with a long-term commitment to the place to be able to afford living here.

After a couple decades when our vacation-home inventory gradually increased but the year-round population didn’t budge much, my growth prediction is finally coming true.

My older brother Greg used to be a U.S. Navy chief petty officer whose first-rate mechanical skills and instincts led to a much longer than usual posting at Naval Air Station Key West. Visiting him in the 1980s, I was struck with the impression that the island was like an M&M candy — a glossy exterior near the saltwater, surrounding a dark interior. The same pattern has been true in south Pacific County, with more affluent homes clustered along the ocean, bay and river. It used to be that you didn’t have to go very far inland to find much more affordable housing options. While this remains true to some extent, it’s rarer to find real bargains anywhere.

I’m no stranger to trailer house living. Partly determined to not give up my dogs, I lived in a 24-foot travel trailer for three years in college before upgrading to a classic circa-1960 New Moon land yacht that I wish I still had; it was my all-time favorite residence. (A New Moon is pictured.) So I have great empathy for the people fighting for some sort of housing justice in Ilwaco’s Beacon RV Park. Even a crappy RV can be a cherished home. Ultimately, I suspect it is inevitable that the park will be gentrified and dozens of residents will be left to find other accommodations — a deeply fraught task in an area that has been “discovered.” We’re still a long way from Key West-style development, but a formerly affordable place is becoming ever less so.

We’ll carry on covering the Beacon issue as a symbol of larger issues and because it is important in its own right for the residents living there.

The Chinook Observer is a community project that relies on your continuing support. For a few more years, I hope to continue ensuring it is a true reflection of community life. I appreciate your partnership in this mission.

Thank you!