Dear Editor,
It was with interest I read about the record amount of hotel/motel and sales taxes that came into our city’s coffers last year, due in large part to people coming to check out Twilight’s ‘birthplace’. It seems only fitting that the city, which supports our Chamber of Commerce and the Visitor’s Center, use some of that money to help with traffic control along K Street as hundreds of these visitors come to view the so-called “Swan House”.
They come in cars, large vans, RVs, and tour buses. They drive fast, they block driveways, cause traffic jams, litter, walk around and trespass, disrupting the peace and quiet along what used to be a quiet street. Although many are friendly and cause no problems, the traffic is a major disruption.
On weekends during the winter and into spring, hundreds of vehicles arrive on K Street. On holiday weekends, such as the latest President’s Day 3-day weekend, up to 500 vehicles visited the Swan House from Saturday morning through the following Monday.
Last Memorial Day weekend over 700 vehicles were caught on my cameras stopping on K Street in front of my house and the Swan House. From Memorial Day to the end of October this is a heavily trafficked area with literally hundreds of vehicles per day coming to view a house that has nothing to do with Twilight but which is supported by, once again, the Visitor’s Center, the Chamber of Commerce, and the City of Forks.
Six months ago I wrote a letter to the city asking for signage to help prevent vehicles from parking across driveways and blocking traffic along the road in front of the houses in the vicinity of the Swan House. Such signs may or may not make a big difference, but at least it is proactive and would most likely help the situation. My letter was ignored and I was never contacted or responded to.
I made subsequent phone calls (3) which resulted in no action whatsoever. I was told it was ‘being looked into’. It has now been over 6 months since I contacted the city, with no result. It seems that someone who pays taxes and has lived and worked for over 45 years in this community, proudly calling this town their home, could at least be listened to and see some action by the city on a problem created by them in their support of Twilight.
Sherry Schaaf
