Amid all the talk of golf courses and swimming pools, I want to raise a respectful hand and ask, “Um, potholes?”

The large and small craters that pepper the side streets of our otherwise wonderful town are not just a slight inconvenience or a PT joke. They present serious safety hazards to children, cyclists, drivers, and to all of us who have to walk in the streets, given the lack of sidewalks. Especially to elders or those with mobility issues.

I overheard an older neighbor complaining to a friend that he no longer feels safe walking down our street to the bus stop on San Juan. I can vouch for the number of craters here near Froggy Bottoms. We have one three feet wide, several inches deep, in front of our mailboxes, where the postal carrier drives their truck.

At some point the side streets of our town were obviously paved properly — when was that? Why the delay in repairing unsafe surfaces that many of us use daily? What is the point of envisioning new parks and wellness centers if we can’t even make sure that elders and others can get to the bus stop? If potholes were reframed as obstacles to those with mobility issues, would that help the city get a move on to fixing them with all possible speed?

Like many, perhaps, we have called the city to ask for help with the potholes on our nearby streets. The sympathetic if slightly harassed-sounding woman on the other end told us to fill out an online form and join the queue.

That was a month ago. I worry about another fall and winter of inaction. At some point you can’t just put another patch on a crater when the whole street is crumbling.

Barbara Sjoholm

PORT TOWNSEND