The Spokane City Council on Tuesday adopted Resolution 2025-0117 declaring 2025 the 'Year of Cooperatives' in Spokane.

Public testimony included Robert Teal (District 2), who told the council he supports expanding cooperative development and urged the city to extend support into 2026. Victoria O'Banion, cooperative housing development manager for the Northwest Cooperative Development Center, thanked the council and said Spokane is home to about 20 cooperatives and needs education and partnership to grow that sector. Emily Daley, a cooperative organizer, said Spokane would be the second city in Washington to adopt the UN-backed declaration and called for an employee-ownership ecosystem.

Council members expressed unanimous support. Councilmember Dylan said the resolution helps "queue up the conversation for 2026" and emphasized education and further work to support cooperative businesses. Council members noted evidence cited in the resolution about cooperative resilience and lower turnover.

The council recorded a voice vote of 7-0.

Next steps suggested during the meeting include education and outreach to co-op boards, potential programming in 2026, and coordination with local cooperative development organizations.