About PARD

The Pullman Alliance for Responsible Development was founded in the winter of 2004. As our Mission Statement makes clear, PARD seeks to increase the economic and cultural vitality of the city and the region through thoughtful, socially and environmentally responsible growth.

While we are best known for our work opposing the proposal to locate a Wal-Mart Supercenter on Bishop Boulevard, PARD’s concerns are much broader. Far from being “anti-growth,” as Wal-Mart’s local representatives claim, PARD has supported all but three of the more than 20 development projects in Pullman over the last several years. Growth is neither inherently good nor inherently bad. Growth must be of a kind that is healthy for the future of all elements of the community and for the environment.

We are currently examining several other major projects in the area, including, the Whitman County Commissioners' plans to develop business along the Pullman-Moscow highway corridor, and some plans commercial/residential growth surrounding downtown Pullman.

We applaud the decision of the Pullman City Council to resist County Commission pressure to extend services to the Moscow-Pullman highway. We believe a far more prudent and economically lucrative option for Pullman would be to push development of any county properties south of town on the route to Lewiston/Clarkston.

One of our chief concerns is the lack of affordable housing in Pullman. We believe this should be a major priority of the Planning Department and the City Council. One key component would be to require all developers of major new residential projects to include some low-income elements in their plans. This approach has worked well in many other towns and cities across the state and the nation.