Written by Patrick Pierce, Public Policy Director

Puget Sound Regional Council staff are wrapping up a multi-year study of how to create equitable, vibrant communities along existing and planning high-capacity transit (i.e. ST Link Light Rail, CT Swift BRT) corridors throughout the region. With Swift BRT already here, Link Light Rail scheduled to arrive in Lynnwood in 2023, and expansions of both systems anticipated in long-range economic development plans, how we best utilize these public infrastructure investments is of high importance to communities across Snohomish County.

Transit-oriented development (TOD) is one particular strategy that the Growing Transit Communities study examined. The idea behind TOD being that creating dense, vibrant communities along transportation corridors reduces the impacts of future growth on our roadways and environment. Projections show up to 1.5 million people, the size of metro Portland, will move to the Puget Sound by 2040. This is not an attempt to throw everyone out of their cars and into a bus, but simply the realization that a variety of transportation options will be needed to accommodate this growth given fiscal and geographic constraints.

Patrick Pierce served on the GTC’s North Corridor Task Force that examined transit station areas along I-5 and SR 99 from Seattle to Everett. Pierce and other participants from Snohomish County helped reinforce the need for strategies that were not one size fits all (i.e. what works in Bellevue, may not work in Seattle, Seattle in Everett, Mountlake Terrace in Redmond, etc.) and preserved local autonomy, as well as, the need to create a finished product that emphasizes the opportunities in each community, rather than focusing on challenges and limitations.

Public comment is currently being solicited on the draft GTC strategy through June 7. We encourage you to review the strategy and provided comments to ensure Snohomish County’s priorities are present in the final product due out later this year.

Written by Samantha Bowers, Marketing Support & Graphic Design

This morning, EASC held our quarterly "Good Morning, Snohomish County" breakfast where attendees heard a short speaker presentation and then broke into networking rounds. This morning's speaker was Mary Sass, Ph. D., a professor at Western Washington University. Mary spoke about strategies for growing your small business in a way that will be thoughtful and long-lasting. Click here to view her brief presentation slides.

Written by Patrick Pierce, Public Policy Director

Both the Senate and House released budgets over the past week with mixed reviews on Snohomish County priorities. These budgets are hot off the press and more time needs to be spent unpacking them as we move towards end of session negotiations. Here are some of the highlights we found upon our first reading:

Operating Budget

• Senate eliminated the Governor’s Office of Aerospace; House increased funding for the office by $200k for the upcoming 777X competition
• House funded a new Governor’s Office of Military Affairs; Senate did not fund this office
• Senate reduced statewide ADO funding (funds economic development orgs like EASC ) by 43%; House kept current funding levels
• Both funded additional STEM enrollments at universities and community and technical colleges
• Senate reduced support for international trade; House increased support for international trade
• Senate let B&O surcharges taxes on professional service expire; House made these temporary taxes permanent
  

Capital Budget

• House funded the $10 million request for a new University Center Building; Senate did not
• House funded $1.5 million of the Port of Everett’s $2.6 million Ro-Ro Berth request; Senate did not
• Senate funded the Mountlake Terrace Main Street Project at $2 million; House funded at $1 million
  

To read the budgets in their entirety, go to the State’ LEAP website: http://leap.leg.wa.gov/leap/archives/index_budgetsp.asp.

Written by Matt Smith, Industry & Resource Development Director

EASC had 250 registered attendees for our second annual update, keynoted by regional economist Michael J. Parks. Mr. Parks introduced a new acronym to the audience; N-ZIRP, which is the Federal Reserves’ Near Zero Interest Rate Policy.  The Fed’s aggressive targets for the Federal Funds Rate, the rate at which banks lend/borrow short term funds among themselves, have been historically low for the past four years.  He presented data documenting employment growth in Washington State has outpaced both national trends as well as those of California and Oregon.  Mr. Parks presented the remarkable growth in headcount and revenues for Amazon.  Though the job growth is in Seattle, the financial impacts are regional. His PowerPoint presentation is available here. 

Mr. Parks was followed by a panel discussion with executives representing higher education, finance, healthcare, hospitality and clean technology. The panelists presented an optimistic perspective on the economic future of Snohomish County and the Puget Sound region.  As a theme, all commented on operating efficiencies and the need to do more with less. For more complete program information, including panelists and sponsors, click here.

Also, EASC rolled-out our Economic Indicators Dashboard, a document to track key economic indicators which measure activity, employment, and overall vitality throughout the county.

Written by Patrick Pierce, Public Policy Director

Last week, Public Policy Director Patrick Pierce traveled to Washington, D.C. with public officials from City of Everett and Port of Everett to meet with our Congressional delegation and officials from Department of Defense, U.S. Navy, and U.S. Coast Guard. While Congress and the Department of Defense (DOD) continue to debate the need, there appears to be general agreement that Congress will convene another Base Realignment and Closure (BRAC) Commission to examine the effectiveness and efficiency of our nation’s military installations by 2020. Naval Station Everett continues to be one of the Navy’s most strategic and efficient bases as it is the newest and most energy-efficient, closest to Asia and the Arctic, and requires minimal dredging to maintain required depths. However, given its size relative to other installations, our community must remain vigilant in our advocacy and outreach efforts to DOD and the Navy as another round of BRAC approaches.