Downtown Decline, Digital Dogpiles, and the Week That Was Online
From vacant storefronts to Facebook flame-throwers, here’s what Clallam County was talking about this week.
Downtown vacancies are climbing. Business owners are quietly cleaning up drug debris before opening their doors. A longtime local voice was banned online for defending an article. And the county scanner lit up again with the kinds of calls that rarely make it into the local paper. This week’s Social Media Saturday pulls together the posts, the pictures, and the uncomfortable questions that deserve more than a scroll-past.
Empty Windows, Full Sidewalks
The Peninsula Daily News reports a staggering 90 vacant storefronts in the downtown core. That’s not just an aesthetic problem. Empty commercial space means:
Fewer jobs
Less sales tax revenue
Lower property values
A visible signal that something isn’t working
Downtown business owners aren’t just competing with online retail and inflation. They’re navigating something more immediate.
In recent weeks, social media posts have shown:
Evidence of fire damage in a breezeway near operating businesses
Encampments along trails and walkways that shoppers use near downtown stores
Trash accumulation behind storefronts adjacent to camping activity
Several business owners have publicly commented about cleaning doorways each morning before customers arrive. Others have reported an increase in visible drug use nearby.
In one image, a glass pipe is visible outside a local storefront only blocks from the county’s harm reduction facility.
Critics argue this reflects unintended consequences of distribution policies. Supporters would counter that harm reduction prevents overdoses and saves lives.
But here’s the tension that keeps surfacing online:
The very businesses generating tax revenue are asking whether current policy choices are accelerating their own instability.
It’s a fair question. And it isn’t going away.
When Online Debate Turns Personal
For months, Marge — a familiar name to those who listened to her interview with Clallamity Jen — engaged regularly on Nextdoor. She often defended CC Watchdog articles, acknowledged opposing viewpoints, and thanked commenters for civil discussion.
Her account was recently suspended after she wrote about The Strait Shooter:
“Just because a story makes you laugh does not mean it isn’t true.”
She has filed an appeal.
In the meantime, the discussion shifted onto Facebook, where she posted:
“I wish the Port Angeles City Council would work together to better understand the needs of the diminishing tax base.”
That post sparked heated replies. One commenter told her she should “go back to California” or move to a remote cabin and never leave.
Screenshots show additional personal insults exchanged in private messages. The messages included language that many would describe as demeaning and hostile.
The situation illustrates how quickly local policy debates can devolve into personal attacks.
The individual involved appears to be an employee of the Port Angeles School District and has posted classroom supply requests online.
What’s troubling isn’t partisan disagreement. It’s the normalization of threats and dehumanizing rhetoric in community discourse.
If someone disagrees with a policy on homelessness or taxation, debate it.
But once the conversation shifts to personal intimidation, the civic fabric frays.
Scanner Reality Check
Meanwhile, the Clallam County Scanner page documented another steady week of calls:
Aiden Hamilton, the high school student campaigning to become the youngest person ever elected to the state legislature, said he had a front-row view of a disturbing incident in Port Angeles. In a Facebook post, Hamilton described a man allegedly hurling a rock through a Domino’s window, reaching into a vehicle to assault a driver, and then throwing rocks at additional nearby businesses.
These posts rarely make front-page news, but they shape how residents experience their neighborhoods.
When storefronts close, when police calls rise, when online conversations harden — these aren’t isolated phenomena. They intersect.