Editing Blaine, Washington (section)

===Canada–U.S. border===
Blaine is home to two main West Coast [[port of entry|ports of entry]] between the United States and Canada. The [[Peace Arch Border Crossing]], which is the northern terminus of [[Interstate 5|I-5]] and southern terminus of [[British Columbia Highway 99|B.C. provincial Highway 99]], serves as the primary passenger vehicle port of entry. The [[Pacific Highway Border Crossing]], approximately one mile to the east, serves as the primary point of entry for heavy truck traffic, and thus is also known as the Truck Crossing. The latter is reached via [[Washington State Route 543]] which departs I-5 on the south side of Blaine and connects at the border to B.C.'s Highway 15 (Surrey's [[British Columbia Highway 15|176th Street]]) and then to the [[Trans-Canada Highway]].

Construction of a new Land Port of Entry (LPOE) was completed by the U.S. [[General Services Administration]] in 2011.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.gsa.gov/Portal/gsa/ep/contentView.do?contentType%3DGSA_BASIC%26contentId%3D23738%26noc%3DT |title=Peace Arch Project News |access-date=July 6, 2010 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100616091247/http://www.gsa.gov/Portal/gsa/ep/contentView.do?contentType=GSA_BASIC&contentId=23738&noc=T |archive-date=June 16, 2010 }} Peace Arch Project News GSA page retrieved July 5, 2010</ref> A large public art installation entitled "Non-Sign II" was erected near the crossing booths. The art piece is a "blank space" in the shape of a [[billboard]] sign, surrounded by a mass of twisted metal rods.<ref>[https://www.wired.com/underwire/2010/10/ghost-billboard/# Ghost Billboard Erected on US-Canada Border]. [[Wired.com]], October 22, 2010.</ref> On the Canadian side, a new Port of Entry building was constructed by the [[Canada Border Services Agency]]. It was officially opened by [[Minister of Public Safety (Canada)|Public Safety Minister]] [[Peter Van Loan]] on August 20, 2009.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.cbsa-asfc.gc.ca/media/release-communique/2009/2009-08-20-eng.html |title=Public Safety Minister Peter van Loan opens Douglas border-crossing facility |access-date=July 6, 2010 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100704065403/http://cbsa-asfc.gc.ca/media/release-communique/2009/2009-08-20-eng.html |archive-date=July 4, 2010 }} CBSA news release Public Safety Minister Peter Van Loan opens Douglas border crossing facility retrieved July 5, 2010</ref>  It was built partly to reduce delays for travelers coming to the [[2010 Winter Olympics]] which were held in [[Vancouver]] and [[Whistler, British Columbia|Whistler]] February 12–28, 2010.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.vancouver2010.com/olympic-spectator-guide/celebrations-and-ceremonies/ceremonies/ |title=Ceremonies : Vancouver 2010 Winter Olympics |access-date=July 6, 2010 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100409005026/http://www.vancouver2010.com/olympic-spectator-guide/celebrations-and-ceremonies/ceremonies/ |archive-date=April 9, 2010 }} VANOC site Ceremonies page retrieved July 5, 2010</ref>

International border intrigue has always been a part of Blaine's ambiance. Smuggling became an underground industry in 1919 with the passage of the [[Volstead Act]] banning liquor sale and use in the United States. [[Rum-running]] and border jumping thrived along Blaine's shared coastline with [[British Columbia]], due in part to the area's largest whiskey still<ref>{{Citation |last=Lambert |first =Barbara Ann|title=Rusty Nails and Ration Books: Memories of the Great Depression and WWII 1929–1945 |publisher=Trafford Publishing |year=2002| isbn=1-55369-853-3}}</ref> being located on [[Texada Island]], which is located in the northern [[Strait of Georgia]] offshore from the city of [[Powell River, British Columbia]]. This continued until Prohibition was repealed in 1933 (coincidentally, the US Congressional law which re-legalized alcohol is named the [[Blaine Act]]). In subsequent decades, the situation was reversed due to restrictive drinking and entertainment laws in British Columbia, notably a ban on Sunday drinking, which led to Blaine and its sister border towns of [[Point Roberts]] and [[Sumas, Washington|Sumas]] booming with taverns and adult entertainment of various kinds. Those days are long gone and now Blaine's retail sector consists of goods such as gasoline, dairy products and clothing outlets, as these goods are cheaper in the U.S.

[[Image:Peace Arch, U.S.-Canada border.jpg|thumb|right|The [[Peace Arch]] is a monument on the [[Canada–United States border|Canada–U.S. border]], where I-5 becomes [[British Columbia Highway 99|Hwy 99]] and enters [[British Columbia]].]]

In the 1990s, smuggling again reached a zenith with exports of high grade marijuana from neighboring British Columbia, and corresponding flow of cocaine and handguns from the United States into Canada. As the production of '[[BC Bud]]' grew across [[British Columbia]], a sometimes dangerous game of cat and mouse played out along Blaine's border with Canada. Smugglers used every technique, from backpacks to helicopter aerial drops to bring tons of the marijuana crop into the U.S., while a growing phalanx of local, state, provincial and federal law enforcement from both sides of the border sought ways to stem the tide. Following the [[September 11 attacks|terrorist attacks of 2001]], the addition of hundreds of federal agents and millions of dollars in enforcement technology have pushed much of the smuggling activity into the rugged interior of Washington.{{Citation needed|date=September 2009}}

The International Peace Arch, dedicated September 6, 1921, by [[Samuel Hill]], is located within [[Peace Arch State Park]] in Blaine and is occasionally used as a focal point for peaceful demonstrations and debate, such as the annual setting of crosses for each American killed so far in the Iraq War. But most of the people who visit or pass by the park each year remember it for its beauty and peaceful shoreline setting (although the beach is not officially accessible from the park).

The [[Interstate 5 in Washington|Interstate 5]] freeway extends from the U.S./Mexico border at San Diego, northward to Canada, and terminates in Blaine at the city's [[British Columbia|northern border]]. The country's only pedestrian crosswalk to cross an Interstate freeway exists in Peace Arch State Park, the Washington portion of the binational [[Peace Arch Park]]. The Canadian side of the park, designated as Peace Arch Provincial Park, is in [[Douglas, British Columbia|Douglas]], the Canadian port-of-entry and part of the city of [[Surrey, British Columbia]]. The [[Peace Arch|Peace Arch monument]], located in the park, symbolizes lasting peace and amity between the U.S. and Canada. One innovative feature that has never been abrogated even during the days since 9/11 is that people entering the park from either side may have the unique experience of strolling to the opposite park's boundary amid flowers, ponds, and works of art, without having to go through customs facilities. The park has been described as a place of bi-national mingling and also hosts wedding ceremonies.

In 2006, a local group called the Blaine Peace Alliance unsuccessfully solicited City Council support to formalize a sister-city relationship with [[Pugwash, Nova Scotia]], where promotion of world peace had been an ongoing effort for 50 years. Because Pugwash affiliated itself with the [[Pugwash Conferences on Science and World Affairs]], the Council ruled such a connection would be "political". Shortly thereafter, the Alliance disbanded.

Since 1937, an annual celebration known as "Hands Across the Border" has been held at the park, sponsored by the International Peace Arch Association. Hundreds of Scouts from the U.S. and Canada are in attendance and the highways and Ports of Entry on both sides of the border are closed for several hours for the event. There is a procession of Troops and world flags through the Peace Arch, signifying Scout unity around the world. Speeches are made by honored Scouts from Washington and British Columbia, and State, Provincial and local dignitaries attend. On February 28, 2013, after 90 years, the event's former organizers announced that "Hands Across the Border" had been cancelled.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.peacearchpark.org/peacearchcelebration.htm |title=Hands Across the Border / The Peace Arch Celebration |access-date=March 20, 2013 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120905152117/http://www.peacearchpark.org/peacearchcelebration.htm |archive-date=September 5, 2012 }}</ref> However, following public support the annual program was re-established in 2015.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.handsacrosstheborder.info/photos|title=Hands Across the Border - a Peace Arch Celebration|website=Hands Across the Border - a Peace Arch Celebration}}</ref>