Chilkat Valley News - Serving Haines and Klukwan, Alaska since 1966

They paved paradise and put up a parking lot. This is the song I sing to myself every time I think of what might happen to Picture Point. They are planning on paving a large area of the beach this year. I care about this beach because I live very near it and I often go there to walk with my family. In the summer, I like to go barefoot in the tide pools and look for fish and shells. Paving Picture Point could be dangerous for the environment because they might have to cut down trees, and fill in some of the pools. Animals live there and we like to pick goose tongue, rose petals and rose hips there. Rose bushes have already been removed and a road put in. I understand that this is a place we should all share because it is beautiful and you can see the ocean, and the town of Haines. My solution is to forget about pouring concrete on this beautiful area and put down some extra pebbles, some picnic tables, and maybe even a few fire pits. It would be good to have some trash cans to keep the place tidy and to not hurt the environment. I think we only need to add a little to something so beautiful. Like the song by Joni Mitchell says, “Don’t it always seem to go that you don’t know what you’ve got till it’s gone. They paved paradise and put up a parking lot.”

Matilda Rogers