Olympia Strong identifies 7 focused areas to develop a strong economy

Olympia's Economic Development Department has identified seven focus areas to help the city develop a strong and inclusive economy over the next 20 years, strategic project manager Amy Buckler said.

Buckler spoke at the Planning Commission meeting on Monday, December 5, to give an update on Olympia Strong.

Olympia Strong kicked off in July. According to Buckler, they have done various surveys such as online and around-the-town surveys, focused listening sessions, community groups, and advisory board meetings to form a strategy to support economic strength and opportunities for residents, businesses, and the community.

According to the timeline table Buckler showed at the commission, the public engagement will continue from December this year through April 2023. Buckler said they would present the final report to the city council in late spring.

She said the focused areas they need to do, include:

• Closing the equity gap
• Boosting affordable housing and home ownership
• Elevating more people out of poverty
• Championing youth
• Cultivating career pathways
• Supporting entrepreneurship and small businesses, large employers, and industry sectors
• Fostering community vitality

Close the equity gap

Buckler said they have data that people who are black, indigenous, people of color (BIPOC), immigrants, refugees, people who are disabled, and people who are LGBTQ are disproportionately facing barriers to economic security.

"We understand and recognize that the equity gap results from systemic racism and discrimination in our society,” said Buckler.

She said they had involved people from these communities in the public process to help create a plan for these groups.

As for closing the equity gap, Buckler said one step they took was to allocate specific grant funding through Thurston Strong program. The grants targeted zones within the county where there were higher instances of poverty or higher instances of businesses or workers who were susceptible to closure or not being able to work due to COVID.

"The funds were intended to provide access to capital for people who either live in those districts or sought to open a business that would create entrepreneurial or employment opportunities in those districts," Buckler explained.

She added that the grant helped launch ten new small enterprises, most of those owned by BIPOC people.

Housing

According to the Olympia survey, affordable housing should be the economic goal for the city.

Buckler said about 500 people participated in the survey, and 58% of respondents indicated they wanted the city to work on affordable housing. She added that they also heard the same thing during community interviews.

"We hear from colleges that people are delaying school because they can't afford the housing. We heard from businesses that they are having a hard time hiring or recruiting workers because they can't afford housing,” Buckler shared. “Seniors on fixed incomes are extremely stressed about rising rents and scared about being evicted. It's just affecting people up and down our community.".

Buckler said Olympia Strong is exploring building opportunities that come with homeownership and dwindling opportunities for homeownership. They are considering developing a plan like a down payment assistance program. 

Through Habitat projects, Buckler mentioned a plan to build about 100 affordable housing units.

Major shift in the workforce

Buckler shared that there is a significant shift in the workforce. She said more jobs are going to be requiring skills training.

She added that there is also a considerable demand for trades in fields like maintenance, construction, and carpentry.

"We did a five-year forecast, showing there would be demand for over 1,500 trade jobs. We will be talking to our union reps and other schools about what opportunities and what we can do to grow training programs here locally," Buckler said.