Pros And Cons Of Yakima

“Why Yakima?”

When Kyle asked me to give him an article, I agreed, and wanted to know what topic he’d like me to ramble about. His response was quick, but vague: “Yakima.” I prodded to see if he wanted me to focus on anything specific: the culture, economics, industry, or the politics. Nope. Just… “Yakima.” Anyone who knows me, knows I’ll give you a discussion about any topic under the sun, but I was curious as to why he chose that (vague) topic, and why he specifically wanted ME to write about it. “Because. You have an outsider’s perspective.” Now, I have spent nearly fifteen years of my life periodically living in the Yakima Valley, and my extended family has been here for nearly twenty-five years. I visit the area on a monthly basis,

This got me thinking about perception and what people from beyond the hills that frame the Valley think about this area and the city of Yakima. I have a fairly cut-and-dry mindset, so I just started listing what I felt were some of the pros and cons of Yakima and the Valley, in terms of what people from other parts of the state might consider. Pros: it’s an important agricultural center, the cost of living is decent, there are thriving vineyards and a world-class specialty wine industry, a growing craft brewery scene, a wide range of cultural variety and ethnic diversity, a “quieter” pace of life, a small town atmosphere, more coffee shops per capita than the inside of a Starbucks, a burgeoning cutting-edge medical community, and lots of nature and outdoor pursuits. Most importantly, there is a growing population of young people who are interested and increasingly involved in Yakima area politics, culture, and industry. These are just a few of the many benefits to Yakima and the lush valley that it sits

Well, partly from Yakima residents themselves, discouragingly. An online “Time” article a few years back (2014) claimed that based on two year’s worth of Gallup Poll surveys, they determined that only 51.3% of Yakima residents feel safe at night. Local radio station KATS quipped on its website that it’d be hard for people believe that Yakima was NOT “the worst city or town to live in the state of Washington.” Another Yakima station, KFFM, ran an article just earlier this year entitled, “Yakima Listed One of the Worst Places to Raise a Family in Washington.” Yes, these are cherry-picked examples of negativity. But admit it, Yakima Residents… at times, there seems to be a pervasive mindset of “Well, that’s just the way things are here”. To carry it into the political realm, there is an “us versus them” chip-on-the-shoulder mentality bred by the feelings that Yakima has little political influence throughout the state, indeed, that it is manipulated by the “West Side” of the state. Having a singular regional newspaper that is owned and controlled by Seattle interests surely doesn’t help break out of that