And just like that, another year begins. While it’s impossible to know the future, we already know this year marks a major anniversary of several impactful events that shaped Vancouver’s future, including:
- The 200th anniversary of the founding of Fort Vancouver by the Hudson’s Bay Company. The original fur trading post was located east and up the hill from the current spot, which was occupied in 1829.
- The 100th anniversary of Pearson Field. Although flight operations began at the historic Vancouver airfield well before 1925, it was in 1925 that it was named for Army Lt. Alexander Pearson, an aviation pioneer.
- The 50th anniversary of the announcement of plans to build Vancouver Mall. Its opening in 1977 led to relocation of the city’s retail core and triggered massive business and residential growth to the east.
While all of these milestones seem likely to be commemorated, there are a lot of other trends to watch.
Here’s our list of some of the local things that are in — and out — for 2025.
In: Food cart pods.
Out: More Thai restaurants.
In: Mandatory office days.
Out: Unlimited remote work.
In: Text messages that are actually scams.
Out: Telephone calls that are actually scams.
In: Shopping mall lifestyle experiences, like dining and exercising.
Out: Shopping mall retail stores.
In: $3,000 per month apartments.
Out: $300,000 starter homes.
In: Oswego Grill.
Out: Beaches Restaurant and Bar (sadly).
In: Removing lanes, narrowing roadways and adding more lanes for cyclists and pedestrians.
Out: Widening roads to accommodate more automobile traffic.
In: Local political moderates.
Out: Local politicians with extreme views.
In: Assisted living.
Out: Split-level houses.
In: Charging stations.
Out: Gas stations.
In: Baristas.
Out: Production workers.
In: Edibles.
Out: Cigarettes.
In: In-N-Out Burger.
Out: Shari’s Cafe & Pies.
In: U.S. Rep. Marie Gluesenkamp Perez, D-Skamania.
Out: Made-for-TV congressmen.
In: Portland International Airport.
Out: Seattle-Tacoma International Airport.
In: Portland’s new WNBA franchise.
Out: The Portland Trail Blazers.
In: Local news.
Out: “Fake news!”
In: Executive orders.
Out: “Lawfare.”
In: Columbia River hydropower and irrigation.
Out: Columbia River salmon recovery.
In: Sunflare apples.
Out: Red Delicious.
In: Bus rapid transit.
Out: Light rail.
In: $5 per dozen eggs.
Out: $5 per gallon gas.
In: Designer water for millennials.
Out: COLAS for senior citizens.
In: The Port of Vancouver’s Terminal 1 redevelopment.
Out: The Port of Vancouver’s still-vacant Terminal 5.
In: Talking about how Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson used to live here.
Out: Talking about how Willie Nelson used to live here.
In: Ground-floor primary suites.
Out: Second-floor master bedrooms.
In: Rebuilding Main Street.
Out: Building new shopping centers.
In: Columbian readers.
Happy New Year, and thank you for supporting our local journalism.
