Editing Point Roberts, Washington (section)

==Economy==
[[File:Point Roberts United States Post Office.jpg|thumb|Point Roberts Post Office]]

Many of the area's businesses serve weekend and recreational visitors from [[Greater Vancouver Regional District|Greater Vancouver]].<ref name="bbc"/> [[Canadians]] visit for cheaper American gasoline, alcohol, and food when the [[Canadian dollar|Canadian Dollar]] is strong; [[Americans]] from Point Roberts do the same in Canada. Many Canadians visited its bars and nightclubs on Sundays until Sunday drinking was legalized in British Columbia in 1986.<ref>{{cite hansard |jurisdiction=[[Legislative Assembly of British Columbia]] |url=http://www.leg.bc.ca/hansard/33rd4th/33p_04s_860526p.htm#08353 |title=Estimates: Ministry of Consumer and Corporate Affairs |date=May 26, 1986 |department=4th Session, 33rd Parliament |page_start=8353 |page_end=8357 }} {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070509204615/http://www.leg.bc.ca/hansard/33rd4th/33p_04s_860526p.htm#08353 |date=May 9, 2007 }}</ref> The local post office and several private companies rent many [[post office box]]es to individuals and businesses from the Greater Vancouver area, who find it a convenient and fast way to receive mail and parcels from the United States without paying for cross-border shipping costs, or as a delivery point for online purchases when American sellers do not ship outside the U.S.{{r|pointbob}}<ref name="bbc"/> The U.S. Consulate General in Vancouver also used the Point Roberts post office,<ref name="consulate">{{cite web | url=http://vancouver.usconsulate.gov/about-us/consulate-information.html#address | title=Consulate Information | work=Consulate General of the United States, Vancouver Canada | access-date=February 17, 2012 | url-status=dead| archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120217053805/http://vancouver.usconsulate.gov/about-us/consulate-information.html#address | archive-date=February 17, 2012 | df=mdy-all }}</ref> but it has since changed to using one in [[Blaine, Washington|Blaine]], on the contiguous border.<ref name="consulate2020">{{cite web | url=https://ca.usembassy.gov/embassy-consulates/vancouver/ | title=Consulate Information | publisher=Consulate General of the United States, Vancouver Canada | access-date=January 16, 2020 | url-status=dead | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200110211114/https://ca.usembassy.gov/embassy-consulates/vancouver/ | archive-date=January 10, 2020 | df=mdy-all }}</ref>

Because entry to Point Roberts from the rest of the U.S. requires two international border crossings, it has sometimes been described as "the best gated community in the U.S."<ref name="pointbob"/> Residents enjoy a low crime rate, with a high local security presence.<ref name="natgeo">''[[National Geographic Magazine]]'', August 2004.</ref> Popular folklore describes the town as a popular resettlement site for the [[United States Federal Witness Protection Program|US Federal Witness Protection Program]], assisting informants who testify against criminals to relocate under new identities for their protection.<ref name="bbc"/>

While there is one doctor's clinic, there is no hospital, dentist, pharmacist or veterinarian, and because American health insurers will not pay for treatment from Canadian providers, Point Roberts residents usually seek medical care in [[Bellingham, Washington]], although Vancouver is closer.<ref name="pointbob"/>

Point Roberts has a single grocery store, which threatened to close in July 2021 due to the prolonged COVID-19 travel restrictions. An emergency grant of $100,000 from the state government was approved in late June to prevent its closure.<ref>{{cite news |last=Rasbach |first=David |date=June 29, 2021 |title=With border still closed, here's what Inslee is doing to keep Point Roberts' grocery open |url=https://www.theolympian.com/news/state/washington/article252455003.html |work=[[The Olympian]] |accessdate=June 29, 2021}}</ref>