The ending of one year and the beginning of a new one always gives us reason to reflect on the past and look toward the new adventures that lie ahead. But 2008 hasn’t been what we could call one of the best years. A lot of people are struggling. A few of the businesses we used to know have gone away and some have trimmed way back on staffing and investment. The thread is pretty common throughout the country but in some ways, the Pacific Northwest has not been as deeply scarred as other regions.

That doesn’t mean a thing to someone who has lost their job or is battling just to stay afloat though. And, oh yeah, the weather over the summer wasn’t the best either, was it?

There are some encouraging signs locally. The project to turn the old firehouse into a theater/café venue is truly exciting and the old Jackpot station (Pay Day Loans to newer residents) is being renovated to offer a new burger joint to the neighborhood. A few other employers have been sniffing around to see if Kingston may be a place to consider for their businesses when growth and expansion return. And there have been a couple of new business pop up in town.

The vantage point of the port

Looking back from our vantage point at the Port of Kingston, 2008 was a pretty busy year. When we updated the master plan several years ago, one of the top priorities on a citizen survey was people wanted to see more activities down at the port. This year, we got that motor started and it seemed to run pretty well. The Downtown Kingston Association, Kingston Revitalization Association, Kiwanis, Rotary, the Chamber of Commerce, the Flowering Basket Water Brigade, Kingston Farmers Market, the Committees of the Kingston 4th of July Celebration and dozens of other volunteers got together and helped to create the beginning of a new era where there seemed to be something going on in Mike Wallace Park nearly every weekend.

Things seemed to start with that great March event, the first annual “Kites over Kingston” when dozens of flying creations soared over the community. Then we ripped up the driveway along the seawall and replaced it with an extended lawn area. Once that was planted, we started organizing summer events.

The old Tunes on Tuesdays was replaced with Saturday Concerts on the Cove. There were five of them! These events were all sponsored by local benefactors and enjoyed by everyone who showed up. The port obtained a really neat tent to place over the concrete area in the north end of the park and inside there, Kingston Rotary set up a beer garden with profits supporting the lights project for Kingston High School athletic fields. I think the Saturday concerts are here to stay. Paddle Kitsap brought five- or six-dozen people through town in their kayaks and that group had so much fun the event is already scheduled for 2009. The Kingston Farmers Market kept people supplied with fresh vegetables and flowers all summer.

Looking ahead, we have a couple of projects underway already as 2009 approaches. There is a new patch of lawn growing where the asphalt used to be near the park restrooms. That strip will connect the main park area with new level surfaces being developed where the current bio swale (grass ditches) exists. This should make the area very enjoyable for picnics and other family activities. FEMA plans to start the work to repair the North Beach sea wall in the middle of the summer and we are gathering design concepts and will hopefully build a nice permanent performing arts stage in the park.

As I am preparing this early in December, I have been notified that the permit for the long-awaited kayak dock is “in the mail.” We will also be getting to work on the concept and feasibility of expanding the marina. All of the community activities of last summer will be repeated and there are some new and bigger ones headed our way.

Oh yeah, we have not forgotten about the water-transit service either. The Port of Kingston commissioners and manager have been looking around at a few boats that could fit the bill for that service. Don’t be surprised if we bring one home one of these days. We will be working closely with our legislative representatives hoping to get a little help with some start-up funding for the service. If a few critical things go our way, the service could be running in 2009.

Your new chamber president

You may have heard that I have been asked by the Kingston Chamber of Commerce to be president for the year. I have accepted and my goal in that position will be to help businesses in town hang on and come out of these current rough times in a healthy and viable condition. The economic vitality of a community is very closely linked to the statutory responsibilities of port commissions. I hope all members of the chamber’s board of directors can help me promote a great business community here.

Speaking of economic vitality, if you still have some holiday shopping to do at the time you read this, I would encourage your to look within our community to make your purchases. A gift of services performed by a local craftsperson can often be one of the most thoughtful things you can do for someone else. There are dozens of ideas and services such as landscaping maintenance, housekeeping, painting and carpentry will be appreciated by recipients, with the money spent going right back into the community and other goods and services. And don’t forget we have some of the neatest gift shops of anyplace right here in Kingston. It is worth thinking about.

The editor told me I could use a little more space than usual this month. I have been waiting for just such a chance because I need to fit in this Nautical Term of the Month, but it takes a few lines to define. The term has some of the consonants in it that I need for the upcoming nautical term crossword puzzle. So here we go: LOBLOLLY BOY – A loblolly boy in 18th- and 19th- century warships was essentially a non-professional assistant to the ship’s surgeon. The name itself comes from the serving of loblolly – a thick, sticky, goopy porridge sometimes with chunks of meat or vegetables – to sick or injured crewmembers in an effort to speed their recovery. The loblolly boy’s duties not only included serving loblolly, but also anything that a ship’s surgeon was too busy (or of too high a station) to do. One can only imagine what all that entailed in the days before antibiotics and anesthesia. In the later 1800s, the term was altered to Sick Bay Tiffy and eventually evolved into the modern day term, Hospital Corpsman. During my first 10 years in the Coast Guard, I served as a Hospital Corpsman but I’ve never seen a bowl of loblolly in my life.

Well, that’s about it for this year. On behalf of the entire staff, our contract help and Commissioners Tom Coultas and Marc Bissonnette, I want to wish everyone a happy holiday season and a wonderful new year filled with good will, happiness and prosperity. As always, thanks for reading this stuff.

Contact Pete DeBoer, Port of Kingston Commissioner, at pete@petedeboer.com.