PORT ANGELES — RU-ral! RU-ral! RU-ral!
If the Black Diamond neighborhood had a cheering section, that’s what it would shout on Oct. 25.
That’s when Clallam County commissioners will hold a public hearing on residents’ requests to preserve the farms, forests and homes that nestle between Port Angeles and Olympic National Park.
The neighborhood is bounded by Valley Creek on the east and by Dry Creek and the Elwha River to the west.
The proposed changes would not alter the Regional Comprehensive Plan — and that’s the point. They would keep the area largely the same in the face of urban growth and pressure for traffic improvements.
The Black Diamond Community Club — its hall was built in 1940 and still serves as a neighborhood nexus — decided in 2003 to help design the neighborhood’s future. It took a survey answered by 56 percent of its 200 households.
The group’s thinking, its president Tom Shindler said Sunday, was “we could have an opportunity to help shape our community if we did something.”