John Drebick bought the downtown Safeway property for $2 million and the property next door for $650,000. He is asking the city to buy these properties for $3.3 million plus two thirds of one percent for each month that passes without closing. He’s giving the city until September 24th to make a decision before marketing to others and intends to sell the property no later than November 1st. He also demands a non-refundable $200,000 deposit. Drebick now owns a block of downtown which could be utilized for purposes other than opening new businesses or hosting a new city hall. The city is contemplating buying the property for the latter. Essentially, we play no part in this decision making process.

I suggest we take back the land. It wasn’t Safeway’s. It isn’t Drebick’s. And it doesn’t have to belong to city counsel either. The property belongs to all of us. We now have a unique opportunity to reclaim a small piece of what has been taken from and sold or rented back to us. What we need is a clear assertion of our right to a downtown which is progressively being sold to developers, businesses, and the upper-class. We deserve a downtown that is our own. A space which is not owned by those who will continue to impose their bougie beliefs and ways of living on us. These people continue to make Olympia uninhabitable and inaccessible, especially for those of us who have no other place to live, sit, rest.

So, what can be done? How can we take back our town? And what should we do with that space?

It’s up to us to decide.

Any input is welcome.