Who: Richard “Dick” Malin.
Neighborhood Association: Central Park.
Neighborhood Location: Central Vancouver, next to Clark College.
Position: President.
Tenure: Two years.
Lived in neighborhood: 17 years.
Outside job: Retired.
What he likes best about the neighborhood: Malin enjoys life in Central Park because of quality of life and sense of community. He said his fellow residents are always willing to volunteer, which makes for an effective neighborhood association. Malin also enjoys the convenience of being close to downtown Vancouver and the short travel times to Portland. “It’s a hell of a place to live: you have everything right there.”
The biggest challenge facing the neighborhood: Malin said one of his big concerns is preventing the neighborhood from getting overrun by development because of proximity to central Vancouver. “We’re drawing the line and holding it,” he said. Malin said he is watching the Columbia River Crossing closely and is cautiously optimistic about light rail. He acknowledges the convenience for the neighborhood, but at the same time doesn’t want trolleys traveling all around the neighborhood.
Listen up: “We should change the name of the town to ‘Fort Vancouver.’ I got an invitation recently and it didn’t say whether it was in Vancouver, B.C., or Washington.”
