Olympia Strong economic development strategy approved, addressing economic disparities  

Economic development has been turned on its head in the sense that if you are not a community that is investing in that livability and lovability, you're missing the boat”

Olympia's Economic Development Director Mike Reid told the city council.

On Tuesday, September 10, the Olympia City Council unanimously approved the “Olympia Strong” economic development strategy, a comprehensive plan aimed at addressing economic disparities and creating pathways to opportunity for all residents. 

The Olympia Strong plan establishes a new guiding framework for economic development efforts, targeting four focus areas or pathways: 

• Education and workforce pathways – initiatives to develop education and career pathways to support upward mobility.  

• Housing and sense of security – efforts to address housing affordability and the broader "sense of security" that stable housing provides.  

• Business enterprise resources and support – programs to maintain and grow Olympia's base of locally-owned businesses.  

• Community pride, livability, and resiliency – investments in the city's overall livability and community identity.  

"This is a people-centric plan that recognizes the need to facilitate pathways to economic security for our residents," Olympia's Economic Development Director Mike Reid told the city council.  

The plan aims to facilitate pathways to economic security for residents, track industry and job trends, support local businesses, and invest in the "vibrancy and resilience" of the Olympia community. "Economic development has been turned on its head in the sense that if you are not a community that is investing in that livability and lovability, you're missing the boat." 

The plan was developed over the past two years through extensive community engagement, including surveys, interviews, and listening sessions. Reid highlighted significant economic challenges facing Olympians, with 13.3% living below the federal poverty line and 30% of households considered housing cost burdened. Of those, half are severely cost-burdened – spending more than 50% of their income on housing. 

According to Reid, there was a variety of economic needs identified through the community outreach process. He said there was one issue that was elevated to the top – housing affordability and housing homeownership opportunities.  

"We heard that housing affordability and home ownership opportunities were the top priorities for our residents, businesses, and community partners," Reed said. "This plan is designed to address those persistent challenges." 

The Olympia Strong strategy includes 44 proposed initiatives. Reid stated that 33 of those are already underway.  

He mentioned that the city has already taken action in the education and workforce pathways by partnering with the Thurston Chamber to launch the Olympia Career Hub program.  

Though the pilot project has now concluded, Reid noted that it put over 90 graduates through the program, with an 80% employment rate among participants. 

The economic director claimed that Olympia has already made progress on the housing front, transitioning the Plum Street development to a workforce-based housing model. This was achieved through a grant which the city's Director of Housing and Homelessness, Darian Lightfoot, secured. It incorporated workforce development components into the project. 

On the business support front, Reid said the Community Livability and Public Safety (CLPS) recently discussed the local childcare situation with the Childcare Action Council to address the crisis. "We learned about ways that we as a city can advocate for childcare in our community. It may not be that we're the ones that are going to solve the childcare crisis, but we can add it to our legislative agenda and think about ways that we can push things forward outside of our doing the work ourselves." 

In the area of community pride, lovability, and resiliency, the city launched the "Inspire Olympia" program, providing funding to 60 local nonprofits in the arts, culture, and science sectors. According to Reid, this investment helps these organizations continue their work. 

When implementing the Olympia Strong plan, Reid emphasized that the approach will be continuously framing the city's day-to-day efforts, projects, and overall impact through the lens of the four focus areas. He noted that this integrated approach will be crucial over the 10-year timeframe of the Olympia Strong strategy, as the specific initiatives and programs may evolve, but the overarching focus areas are expected to remain the guiding framework for the city's economic development work. 

According to Reid, the city currently has an "economic development reserves" account that was used to support economic recovery efforts during the pandemic. He recommended transitioning this fund into an "Olympia Strong reserves" account. It currently holds $1.8 million.  

Reid also suggested the city set a target for growing this Olympia Strong reserves account, which could be achieved by "establishing a practice of replenishing that account with a percentage of proceeds from the sale of city-owned property." 

Tackling “systemic challenges” 

During the discussion, Councilmember Jim Cooper expressed appreciation for the work done on the Olympia Strong plan, stating that it provides the city with a lens and strategy that focuses on supporting the workers and residents who make up the local economy. 

"What you've designed is a strategy that meets people where they are, as individuals and as families to find the supports that they might need… to get them on a better path," Cooper said.  

But Cooper pointed out that it does not address so-called “systemic issues.” "No matter how many individualized programs we put out there, unless we get to the root of the of getting a living wage income for working one job, or the cost of housing, food, child care, transportation, health care… unless we can lower those costs to make them fit within one job, for one family, for one working adult, then we have a lot of work to do." 

While Cooper did not want to "belittle" the work that went into designing Olympia Strong, he stressed the need to influence state and federal policy as well, in order to tackle what he called systemic challenges. 

Councilmember Lisa Parshley expressed support for the Olympia Strong plan, stating that it provides a useful lens for the city's economic development efforts.  

Parshley encouraged the council and staff to consider incorporating an "Olympia Strong lens" when evaluating potential policies and investments, similar to how the city uses a climate or equity lens. This focus would lead to decisions prioritizing the goals and emphases outlined in the Olympia Strong strategy.