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University Place reports steady small-business growth; 1,730 business licenses, 43 restaurants
Summary
City staff reported steady business-license growth to 1,730 active licenses in 2025, with home-based businesses now a majority and health care/social services the largest sector; staff recommended using the data in communications and publishing a restaurant list.
City economic development staff told the council on Sept. 2 that University Places business community has grown steadily over the last decade and that the city now records 1,730 active business licenses.
Becky Metcalfe, the citys business outreach liaison, and Kevin Brisky, Development Services and Economic Development Director, presented a profile of business-license trends. Metcalfe said the figure includes home-based businesses and storefronts and cautioned that one business license does not always correspond to a single storefront (for example, a chair-renter in a salon may hold an individual license).
Metcalfe said home-based businesses have grown: "By this time, the number of home based business licenses is 56% of that total." She told the council that from 2011 through 2025 University Place experienced roughly 63% growth in active licenses and that the number of licenses reached 1,730 in 2025.
The presentation broke down sectors and subcategories. Metcalfe said the single largest NAICS category is health care and social services (about 297 licenses), though dentists are a subcategory and rank sixth within that group. She said construction (about 196 licenses) and retail trade have also grown.
Metcalfe noted the COVID period produced an unusual spike in new home-based licenses as people started businesses while locked down; she also described the states temporary moratorium on automatic termination of licenses during COVID and the later state cleanup that normalized counts.
On restaurants, staff counted 43 establishments that serve meals (two McDonald's are counted separately). The team suggested the city publish a current restaurant list on its website to promote businesses and also prepare short videos profiling each business district; staff said businesses repeatedly praised the citys development-services experience and the communitys support during COVID.
Staff said the city receives business-license revenue (reported fee levels: $50/yr for non-home-based licenses; $25/yr for home-based) and that they perform quarterly checks on new licenses and terminations. Metcalfe said exit-survey response rates are low and recommended more periodic outreach and a short annual survey to collect business feedback before businesses close or move.
Council members praised the report and suggested the city create a restaurants list, do periodic surveys, and continue outreach; staff said they will consider more frequent reporting and expanded communications.
