Here at the Chamber, sometimes it seems like we have our heads down, focused on the business of addressing issues like public safety and affordable housing, analyzing government policies and budgets, and working to bring more opportunities to our region with events like the MLB All-Star Game.
But we’re also focused on being present in our community: visiting members, learning from others, and celebrating the big wins.
And we’ve done all of that in the last few weeks. In Snohomish County, we met with member Shubert Ho from Feedme Hospitality to hear about his priorities, visited with leaders from the City of Everett on light rail expansion plans, and talked about economic development strategy with our partners at the Economic Alliance of Snohomish County.
On the east side, we attended OneEastside’s Economic Outlook Summit on the Microsoft campus and joined our partners at the Kirkland Chamber of Commerce for their State of the City with Mayor Kelli Curtis.
In Seattle, we watched the M’s on opening day, spoke at Seattle 4 Rotary, held a dinner with healthcare industry leaders, and participated in Mayor Bruce Harrell’s public safety forum. And in between all that, we were on KUOW’s “Week In Review,” met with the Shoreline City Council on economic development, spoke at a downtown revitalization event at K&L Gates, joined a panel on public safety with Seattle Police Chief Adrian Diaz and Bank of America, and joined our partners at the Seattle Sports Commission at the Region Ready summit.
We believe working together and showing up is what leads to success and prosperity for everyone in our region.
Last Friday, we also showed up by standing with Mayor Bruce Harrell and our partners at Transportation Choices Coalition at a press conference about the $1.45 billion transportation levy for a safe, reliable, and connected Seattle. I issued the reminder that a thriving, equitable, and inclusive regional economy is predicated on Seattleites being able to safely and reliably get to work and school and back home to their families, as well as enjoy the natural beauty and recreational opportunities that surround us.
And I was thrilled to join more than 17,000 people at the opening of the 2 Line in Bellevue and Redmond. This project is especially important to me – I’ve been working on it since 2005. And it is a testament to how the private and public sectors can work together to deliver quality transit service to the region. Microsoft contributed funding to Sound Transit to build a pedestrian bridge across SR 520 and made its own investments on campus to expand the number of people able to easily get to light rail. And at the opening, Amazon announced its investment in 20,000 commemorative ORCA cards to be distributed to nonprofits and community-based organizations.
The Chamber has been a champion of investments in our transportation system because we believe it supports a healthy state and regional economy. Our members were some of the largest supporters of the Sound Transit 2 and Sound Transit 3 campaigns, which is why we will be celebrating the Lynnwood Link opening in just a few short months. We also show up in Olympia to support state investments, like Move Ahead Washington. And we advocated in D.C. for federal investments in Washington state.
And, we recently expanded beyond our region’s boundaries to learn from others.
Last month, Washington business and government leaders visited Vietnam to strengthen the state’s cultural, economic, and educational ties. The Chamber team, in partnership with the Governor’s Office and Department of Commerce, produced the trade mission, met with Vietnamese leaders, and visited manufacturing facilities in pursuit of increasing trade and collaboration in agriculture, clean energy, and artificial intelligence.
Also in April, in partnership with Greater Seattle Partners, Chamber staff and members strengthened and advanced our ties with South Korea in both the public and private sectors. Issues around workforce and talent attraction were a through line for this mission. We also gained a greater cultural understanding of the history of Korean K-Pop and more.
We rested just one week after Korea and then grabbed another flight to the U.S. Capitol for our 2024 D.C. Fly-In hosted jointly with the Portland Metro Chamber. For the second year of this trip, we brought together 150 business leaders from Seattle, Portland, British Columbia, and across Cascadia to meet and advocate with federal elected leaders and Seattle Metro Chamberistrators. We packed so many meetings in this 4-day trip and members said they loved the value of connections.
Next, we are off to Detroit for our Intercity Study Mission May 21-24. Much like the Emerald City, Detroit is well known for its arts, culture, heritage, science scene, innovative legacy industries, and economic growth. There is still a small handful of spots left on this trip – we’d love to have you join us.
Advocating close to home and far and wide on your behalf,
Rachel
Rachel Smith
President and CEO