Article a disservice to community

I wish your Wednesday story about leases on Tulalip land had described the whole picture (“Tulalip homes for cheap – with a view and a catch”). I recently sold a house on the reservation which sits on the Fryberg estate leasehold property. These leases are across the bay from Mission Beach and completely separate from the Tulalip tribal leases. Fryberg leases are controlled by the Bureau of Indian Affairs and federal leasing guidelines. They run for 50 years, and the annual lease payments are re-figured every five years under a set formula.

I still live on the reservation in another Fryberg estate property; my lease expires in 2056. As we eat breakfast in the morning we watch the seals eat their breakfast and the eagles often fly by. In the evenings we sit on the bluff and watch the sailboats glide through Port Susan. Occasionally whales show up and then the sun sets in a display that takes one’s breath away. As your article states, it is a million-dollar lifestyle that we certainly couldn’t afford otherwise.

Thank goodness I sold my house before your article was published. Incomplete reporting such as this will mislead some buyers into staying away from a great value on the Tulalip reservation. You’ve done a disservice to those who have houses on the market on Fryberg property.

Fred Wade

Tulalip

Talk to us

More in Opinion

toon
Editorial cartoons for Wednesday, May 31

A sketchy look at the news of the day.… Continue reading

A map of the I-5/SR 529 Interchange project on Tuesday, May 23, 2023 in Marysville, Washington. (Olivia Vanni / The Herald)
Editorial: Set your muscle memory for work zone speed cameras

Starting next summer, not slowing down in highway work zones can result in a $500 fine.

Comment: Regulating social media to help kids won’t be easy

The concerns are justified but any regulation will have to find a way around the First Amendment.

Comment: U.S. needs more housing, just not public housing

What government can do, as Washington state is doing, is get out of the way of private developers.

Comment: Why the GOP is holding on to its racial resentment

Republicans, rather than adapt to a multicultural society, have elected to undermine democracy itself.

Comment: Anti-trans boycott of Target misses its target

Those upset by the presence of LGBTQ+ communities seek comfort in denying their existence.

toon
Editorial cartoons for Tuesday, May 30

A sketchy look at the news of the day.… Continue reading

File - A teenager holds her phone as she sits for a portrait near her home in Illinois, on Friday, March 24, 2023. The U.S. Surgeon General is warning there is not enough evidence to show that social media is safe for young people — and is calling on tech companies, parents and caregivers to take "immediate action to protect kids now." (AP Photo Erin Hooley, File)
Editorial: Warning label on social media not enough for kids

The U.S. surgeon general has outlined tasks for parents, officials and social media companies.

Anabelle Parsons, then 6, looks up to the sky with binoculars to watch the Vaux's swifts fly in during Swift's Night Out, Sept. 8, 2018 in Monroe. (Olivia Vanni / The Herald)
Editorial: Birders struggle with legacy, name of Audubon

Like other chapters, Pilchuck Audubon is weighing how to address the slaveholder’s legacy.

Most Read