Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Economic Development topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Snoqualmie, North Bend push 'creative economy' plan with Port of Seattle grant
Summary
The EDC discussed a joint creative-economy effort with North Bend funded by a Port of Seattle grant; staff said the cities expect to select a consultant to convene stakeholders and deliver a plan by November for grant reporting.
Snoqualmie's Economic Development Commission discussed a joint 'creative economy' planning effort with North Bend that the cities are pursuing with funding from the Port of Seattle.
Nicole Weedy, the city’s community liaison, said both cities received Port of Seattle grant funds and are rapidly selecting a consultant to convene stakeholders and produce a strategy. "We're working rapidly to settle on a consultant to do the evaluation of getting stakeholders together," she said, noting the work must be delivered by November for grant reporting.
Commissioners described the project as an opportunity to coordinate tourism, events and arts programming across both cities. One commissioner suggested the process should define precisely what a "creative economy" means for local businesses and not default to a single interpretation. "When you start putting mission labels on things, you gotta be careful on what that mission label's really defined as," the commissioner said, urging clear definitions.
Staff outlined next steps: select a consultant, convene stakeholder meetings and inventory creative assets in both communities to identify short-term actions and longer-term priorities. Commissioners recommended linking merchant engagement and existing events (for example, coordinated merchant calendars and joint meetings) to the consultant-led outreach.
The commission said it will continue coordinating with North Bend staff and share merchant-survey results and event schedules to align outreach and low-hanging, implementation-ready items with the consultant's scope.
