I'm glad to see that some attention is being paid to the "blah between the bridges." Personally, I think we should base our rivershores much like other waterfront cities. With the dikes reduced in height or even eliminated, the Kennewick side could be planned much like the Harbor Drive area in San Diego, plus some of their Gaslamp Quarter, with eateries, coffee shops, wineries, theaters, nice hotels, etc.

The Pasco side of the river could emulate Puerto Vallarta's waterfront, with it's beautiful stone streets and walkways open to the river, along with classy boutique shops and restaurants patterned after the vacation destinations south of the border.

We also need to make better use of one of our biggest assets, Columbia Park. One of the joys of my youth was swimming at the lagoon, with its sand beaches and dock. If it were to be filled with water from the Columbia rather than irrigation runoff, it would a great area for desert sun and water fun again. Our own version of Stanley Park could be created in the middle, but showing off the beauty of the desert.

With improvements similar to these, we can make the Tri-Cities a great vacation destination!

-- ROY WIPRUD, Kennewick