Remote US town reliant on northern border crossings struggling to survive

POINT ROBERTS, Wash. (SOA) — For many communities, the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic are in the rearview mirror. But for others, especially those located on US borders, are still struggling to recover. One remote Washington state town is concerned about a new federal requirement that could make things worse.

Point Roberts, Washington, is located in a pocket of the country that is rare in its geography and its beauty.

Justin Brunsvik chose to live there to raise his children and a new litter of chocolate lab puppies.

"For us, it was about the kids," said Brunsvik.

Point Roberts is one of a few American "pene-exclaves," only accessible by land throughout Canada.

There, gas is still sold by the liter, and the local grocery store keeps two tills of currency.

However, evolving border restrictions have taken their toll, according to Director of the Border Policy Research Institute at Western Washington University Laurie Trautman,

“It really shifted people’s consumer habits, their behavior, and that impacted these cross-border economies that depend on that border functioning," said Trautman.

Trautman told the Spotlight team that northern border traffic volumes have dropped across the U.S. since the start of the pandemic, from Washington state to Michigan and New York. Small towns that rely on the tax revenue from tourism have felt the impact.

Many of them are now bracing for a CDC guideline taking effect August 1. It requires dog owners crossing the border to provide proof of rabies vaccinations, microchipping and recent travel history.

Laurie Trautman said that guideline will cause a lot of confusion, and potentially be another deterrent to those who may want to cross into Point Roberts.

Point Roberts Chamber President Brian Calder told the Spotlight team that the new guideline is "ridiculous."

He pointed to the struggles already happening in his ton, where a gas station recently closed, and the grocery store is hurting too.

Store owner Ali Hayton told us her store is not back to where it was before the pandemic, or even close to it.

Hayton would like to see certain rural communities have a special exemption from the CDC guidelines.

“Some of those restrictions that they have coast to coast shouldn’t apply here," she said.

Justin Brunsvik is still trying to figure out how to navigate starting a potential breeding business for those chocolate labs, or how to get them to the vet since there isn't one in this disconnected, small border town.

He and others value the relative peace and serenity of Point Roberts but are left to wonder if, after a few painful years, the feds will throw them a bone.

There have been letters written, and pushes by residents, along with meetings with local political leaders, but no exemption has been granted.

In a statement to Spotlight on America, the CDC said:

"CDC is updating its dog regulation to protect the health and safety of people and animals and prevent the re-introduction of dog rabies to the United States. Dog rabies was eliminated in the United States in 2007. This update keeps Americans and their pets safe and will address recent challenges seen with international dog importations, including the challenges posed by fraudulent documentation and dogs housed in unsafe conditions. The rule will also more closely align with the World Organisation for Animal Health’s standards for the international movement of dogs from rabies-endemic countries.

Please see the information in the final rule posted on the federal register that documents the numerous challenges we’ve seen over the past 5 years."