Whether Interstate 5 “killed downtown Tumwater” will never actually be answered, mostly because we don’t have a time machine and we can’t really settle on what “kill” or “downtown” means in this context. But the premise is one of the most widely accepted historical facts of our area. I take the counter-narrative position that downtown Tumwater was killed by a road, but it wasn’t I-5. In this episode, I take a walk with David Scherer Water to discuss the historical conflict and what it tells us about cities, growth and potential.

Here is also some background reading:

Why the Myth of Tumwater and Interstate 5 Matters

David Scherer Water: The Highway that Shaped (and buried) Olympia

David Scherer Water: Tumwater Strikes Back