MetroSpokane

Local Spokane designers plentiful on Etsy.com

If you find yourself wanting to support the local economy and to keep those dollars circulating within our borders just a little bit longer you might try Etsy.com.  Basically Etsy.com is a clearinghouse for handmade goods people can create and put up for sale. 

We found that Etsy's Shop Local search option a great way to see what people around here were making.  Spokane has over 95 individuals with their own storefronts up on Etsy.com and the variety of products being sold was pretty cool.  We even found our fave Spokaloo T-shirts had items listed for sale as well.  So what are you waiting for?  Support your local designers.

• Etsy.com - Your place to buy and sell all things handmade [Etsy.com]
• Spokaloo Suction Goat [Spokaloo at Etsy.com]
• Year of Plenty [Spokane Locavore blog]

USA Today - Please. Stop. Don't.

Dear USA Today, 

Please, no more favors.

We read with great earnest your article on the housing and economic conditions in the Spokane area.  We've always been big fans of your cute little graphics/charts on your front page, however we think your in depth analysis should really stop there.  We're not quite sure what elite group of writers you have working on this drivel, but the comparison of the most expensive house for sale and a median-priced house was classic.  As one commenter put it, "A 1949 house with bars on the windows for $177,000. Hold me back."

Best Regards,

MetroSpokane

 

• Diversified Economy helps Spokane home prices hold up [USA Today]

Question: Gas prices have you second-guessing yet?

[Photo courtesy of the Bicyclists next to Gas Stations pool on Flickr]

We're curious:  Where are you at with this whole gas price thing?  Low prices for Regular gas are hovering around $3.45 while Premium is upwards of $3.89.  So the question is, have prices hit a point where it's changing your behavior or approach towards driving in any way?  Seeking alternatives?  Driving less? Carpooling?  Transit? Cutting back elsewhere, but driving the same?  If not, what level do prices have to reach to begin to affect your current routine?  Complete the poll and leave your comments below.

'SLIP' to train 'green' lenders

[photo courtesey of Jeremey Brooks via Flickr]

Sometimes being 'sustainable' means getting others to buy into your vision.  More often than not incorporating sustainable practices into your business plan isn't the first thought to come to your mind especially if your a small business.  Realizing this SLIP (Sustainable Local Investments Project) is offering free one-day training to lenders and other community development professionals. 

The idea is to show how lenders viewing projects and proposals with a view towards sustainability can help smaller businesses prosper while developing our region's long-term livability.

• Spokane sustainability group to train lenders in “green” development [Ecology - press release]

Details:

• Time:  11 a.m. to 4 p.m.
• When:  Monday, April 21
• Where:  Avista technical training center -  E. 1411 Mission Ave.

William McDonough on Mobius

We stopped off at the celebration for the fund raising milestone set by for the Mobius Science Center.  On his way to speak at Boise State University's Distinguished Lecture Series, William McDonough dropped by the celebration to say a few words about our center.  Mostly he delivered on his message of sustainability and the current state of the environment and world economy; an abridged version of a presentation he gave at TED some time back.  We could go on, but for a better understanding of his message (you'll better understand the correlation to the Mobius Science Center) watch the edited and abridged version of his TED presentation on YouTube above.  It's worth it.

People still migrating to Spokane - UHAUL

U-HAUL released it's top growth cities data this week, and Spokane is again in the top 25.  Number 14 to be exact with a 2.72% increase in families renting a U-HAUL and schlepping it to our little slice of heaven.  We last made the list in 2005 coming in at #10 with 5.5% growth.  Other Northwest/Rocky Mountain Cities close to us on the list were Boise at 3.68% and Eugene at .57%.  U-HAUL looks at cities having more than 5,000 families moving to them and then calculates the percentage of inbound moves vs. outbound moves for each area.

So for fun we checked some online rates for renting a standard 17' truck (2-3 bedrooms).
To Spokane:

• From LA - $2,108
• From Seattle - $347
• From Portland, OR - $293
• From Chicago - $1,108

From Spokane:

• To LA - $560
• To Seattle - $207
• To Portland, OR - $177
• To Chicago - $961

• U-HAUL Migration Trends - 2007 [U-HAUL pdf]
• U-HAUL Migration Trends - 2005 [U-HAUL -pdf]

Population growth in Spokane County

[Interactive Chart - Population Growth 2000-2007]

The Census Bureau released annual population estimates yesterday and a quick look shows that from July 1, 2006 to July 1, 2007 Spokane County's population grew 1.9% or about 8,800 people (456,175).  This was slightly higher than the state's growth rate of 1.4%.  Looking back to 2000, which is the base year, our growth has remained pretty steady varying between .2% and last year's 1.9%, and has tracked the state's growth quite closely.

Curiosity led use to compile the data since 2000 for some of our friends inside and outside of our region.  Let's just say if you're in Franklin County (Tri-Cities) you've probably new neighbors.  They've been maintaining a growth rate of at least 5% since 2003.

• Interactive chart-Comparitive growth rates of selected counties [metrospokane]
• Pasco area growing at a fast pace [Seattle Times]

Forbes: Best Places for Business and Careers - Spokane #9...

We've always known Spokane's a great place to live (we have our own selfish reasons), but actually Spokane's a great place for your business and career...at least Forbe's thinks so.  Forbe's, one of the ultimate aggregators of arbitrary "Best of" lists has once again released it's Best Places for Business and Careers and in doing so has anointed Spokane as #9.  Yes #9 - there's no '0' missing, and that's up from #20 last year.  But hey, compared to 2000 (#159) and 2003 (#100) we'll take it.

Fourth Quarter 2007 Median Sales Prices up...

Well the National Association of Realtors released the figures yesterday for Q42007 Median Sales Prices in metropolitan areas across the U.S.  The good news is sure-n-steady Spokane is still holding our own here in the Inland NW.  The Spokane/CDA metropolitan area fell in the middle of other northwest cities with a 2.6% increase over the same quarter last year (table above) to a median price of $194K.  That increase paled in comparison to Yakima who was the shiny bright spot in Washington with an 18% increase followed by Kennewick-Richland-Pasco with a 14% increase.

From 2005 to 2007 the median price here in Spokane has jumped from $156.4k to $193.7k a $37,000 increase(24%).  Suh-na-fah beyatch.

• link - Q4 2007 Median Sale Prices -[pdf-National Assoc. of Realtors]
• press release [National Association of Realtors]

Write this down: The Masdar Initiative

[Just take the 5 minutes to watch this...]

So, with each passing month it seems like another building is going for some kind of LEED certification here in town.  Sustainable design is here and even the SHBA are pushing ahead with their own Built Green initiative.  Downtown, the Saranac Hotel's emphasis on sustainable design is impressive.  If you haven't walked through it you're missing out.  We're doing some things well here in Spokane. 

Then we heard of the Masdar Initiative and the scale of Abu Dhabi's efforts to reinvent itself as the world leader in renewable and sustainable energy.  The city they're building - Masdar- will be all new and by 2016 will be home for roughly 50,000 people.  Masdar will have:

• Zero carbon emissions
• Zero waste
• Fossil fuel consumption will be zero
• All waste produced will be recycled
• No one will live further than 600ft from essential services

Oh, did you hear that Dodge is rolling out a completely redesigned Challenger?  It's friggen' sweet...

• Solar City to Rise in Persian Gulf; Why Not Arizona? - [NY Times]

Armed Forces & Aerospace Museum - Who knew?

[NOTE: Embedded video was disabled on YouTube-you can view it via this link ] WEST PLAINS - OK, let's see a show of hands:  How many of you out there were aware we're in the process of fund raising for a new museum...ahem...an aerospace museum?  That's what we thought.  We'd heard bits and pieces but only recently saw the sweet 3D video-clip on YouTube of what the place might look like, and we like what we see.  It's to be located on the West Plains adjacent to I-90 at the intersection of Electric Ave & Geiger Blvd [GMAP]. If you've ever driven by the Spruce Goose down in McMinville, OR you'll understand why.

The complex is big measuring in at around 123,000-square-feet when all phases are completed, and will have loads of glass that should help display the thirty-two suspended and parked aircraft from the collection.  One that won't be 'under-roof' will be the massive B-52 parked out in front of the building.  Still, it should make for a pretty memorable landmark for visitors entering Spokane from the West (e.g. "...and take the exit after the big plane...").  To date only $1.3 million of the $5.8 million Phase I cost has been raised.  The project overall is expected to run upwards of $30 million when complete.  It's also expected to attract between 50,000 and 100,000 visitors annually according to the Journal of Biz.  If you're interested in seeing  what local players have kicked in to help this thing get built you can view the list [pdf].  If you're interested in having your name added feel free to donate.

• Spokane Armed Forces and Aerospace Museum [main site]
• Aerospace Museum Worth the Hard Effort [JOB]
• Backers of aerospace museum prepare for takeoff [SR]

Would you work in a service job?

[Photo 'leveraged' from Cinemafia]

Spokane is in the midst of reinventing itself.  We're attempting to migrate from the resource-based economy of yesteryear to one more focused on knowledge (read research, patents, biotech, etc.).  One thing is for certain and that is our region's economy gets dissed a lot because of an abundance of service industry positions. 

At first glance it seems like a dire situation.  The real money is in recruiting the Blue-Rays or whomever to settle in our fertile valley here in Spokane...or is it.  Richard Florida, known for his astute observations and research on the creative class, thinks service industry-based economies may have something more going for them.  He's raising some interesting questions regarding service economies up in Toronto.  Can they be the well paying manufacturing jobs of today?  Why or why not?  He questions:

"Why not say, from a research and development standpoint, from an innovation standpoint, from a job security standpoint, from a flexible work environment standpoint: How do we make our service sector thrive?

"How do we develop a regional strategy to strengthen this? No one's ever done this."

It's an interesting topic to ponder.  We have a lot of service work here why not embrace it and do as he says.  If you could make $23/hour+ in a service position would you work it?

• Article - Creating better McJobs gives food for thought [TheStar.com-Toronto]

The future is Metro...

Well it finally happened.  At some point over the last 50 years we became a metropolitan nation. 
Recognizing this the Brookings Institute last month kicked off a multi-year program called Blueprint for American Prosperity.  The program is aimed at using those critical assests - innovation, human capital, infrastructure, and quality places - that tend to be located in major metropolitan areas.

Consider for a moment these stats:

• The nation's 100 largest metro areas account for 75 percent of the nation's gross domestic product
• More than four out of every five Americans live in metropolitan areas
• Washington has two of the nation’s 100 largest metropolitan areas—Seattle and Portland/Vancouver
• Seattle and Portland/Vancouver alone account for 58 percent of the state’s population, 62 percent of the state’s jobs, and 71 percent of the state’s gross domestic product
• Spokane ranks 105 out of 363 metropolitan areas in terms of number of jobs

We're close to breaking into the top 100.  Ahead of Spokane are: Palm Bay-Melbourne-Titusville, FL (MSA), Winston-Salem, NC, Lakeland, FL, Reno-Sparks, NV, and Fort Wayne, IN.

• MetroNation Profile:  Washington's Metropolitan Areas(pdf)
• Blueprint for American Prosperity [Brookings Institute]

Subprime Spillage - How might it play out in Spokane?

Oh what a difference two years makes.  Last week the Center for Responsible Lending (CPL) released an analysis of the ripple effects of forclosures on surrounding properties and communities overall.  As usual, we pulled out the data speaking to our neck-o-the-woods and compared it to others in the region.

SIA Dominates 2007 airport concessions contest...honestly

[Photo of Spokane International Airport via Diaverde238]

Well friends the 2007 RICHARD A. GRIESBACH EXCELLENCE IN AIRPORT CONCESSIONS CONTEST passed with nary a mention last week in the local news.  The contest appears to be big in airport circles however as it strives to, "recognize the best and brightest in airport retail, food & beverage and overall concessions."  We know you're intrigued.  How did we fare?

Spokane pretty much kicked ass this year as we dominated the small airports category bringing home three (count 'em) awards across multiple categories.  These included:

• Best Specialty Retail Program in North America
• Best Convenience Retail Program in North America
  and last but not least...
• Best Food and Beverage Program in North America

Seattle-Tacoma took top spot winning the overall concessions contest.  DAMN YOU SEA-TAC!  We've yet to make it out there for a look, but after the remodel and with these awards there has to be a dramatic improvement.  So this holiday season when you're considering all you have to be thankful for at the terminal waiting for your delayed flight to begin boarding, explore the bounty that is Spokane International Airport Concessions.

Press Release from Airports Councils International

Forbes points to Spokane...again

A one year increase in housing values of 10.4% has landed Spokane again on a Forbes list.  This time - Ten Sizzling Housing Markets.  The article boasts:

"Californians are moving up to this valley in inland Washington, driving up prices and leaving locals grumbling about crowded new developments and the lack of affordable housing. Though fewer new homes are under construction, and more "For Sale" signs crop up daily, Spokane is still a bargain. Median prices here are less than a quarter of those in San Francisco and a third of those in Los Angeles."

Thanks for the glowing review Forbes, and an even less flattering picture .  The brunt of their crack analysis:  Move here; we're cheaper.

Mountain Gear: Wins state award for sustainable 'RE'-development

Spokane area businesses seem to be getting more and more recognition lately for innovations in sustainability.  For starters there's Commuter Cars, manufacturer of the innovative electric vehicle The Tango (located in the University District) and the uber-sustainable Saranac Hotel.  We can now add to that list the new Mountain Gear facility.

Just like the Saranac, Mountain Gear took a long under-utilized building and retrofitted it with a keen eye towards sustainability.  The company's efforts were noticed as last month the State of Washington awarded Mountain Gear the Governor's Award for Pollution Prevention and Sustainable Practices.  According to the Department of Ecology website, "Mountain Gear was the first commercial company, and is still the largest private company, to remodel their building in Eastern Washinton following the Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design standards."

The impact of Mountain Gear integrating sustainability into their project?  How about:  Conserve 248,000 gallons water/year, remodel reduced energy use by  60%, and salvaged or recycled 50% of their construction debris.  Nice!

Spokane & Coeur d'Alene's GDP up over past few years

Last month the Bureau of Economic Analysis released prototype estimates of Gross Domestic Product by metropolitan area.  Today, we break it down for you and compare Spokane and Coeur d'Alene to the rest of the Northwest.

Best Performing Cities - How Does Spokane Stack Up?

Most 'Best of' lists tend to be based on input data that can be subjective and highly variable from year to year (e.g. crime stats, commute time, cost of living, etc.).  The Miliken Institute offers an alternative.  They've just released their 2007 Best Performing Cities list (pdf) which is based on outputs such as job growth, wage salary growth, and high-tech GDP growth, providing a more meaningful measure of how a city's economy is demonstrating economic performance.  According to the Institute, "...it measures where jobs are being created and maintained; where wages and salaries are increasing; and where economies and businesses are growing and thriving."

Famous Spokanites: Chuck Jones

So what do Pepé LePew, Wile E. Coyote, Rikki-Tikki-Tavi, Tom 'n' Jerry, and The Grinch all have in common?  They were all characters Chuck Jones worked with in productions he either wrote, produced or directed during his extensive career in animation.  The first two, Pepé LePew and Wile E. Coyote are characters he actually created along with the Road Runner.  What does Chuck Jones have to do with Spokane?

Taxes and low-income workers in Spokane

By now you've all probably spent or reinvested your tax-refunds...that is if you received one this year.  With an increasing amount of attention being focused on the low-income residents of our community, we took a look at who's receiving the Earned Income Tax-Credit (EITC) in Spokane.  The EITC, "is a refundable federal income tax credit for low-income working individuals and families," and can be an important injection of cash for low-income working households. 

Quite often these low-income working individuals and families turn to a third party to prepare their tax returns.  This alone isn't a problem.  What is a problem is when they choose to get their tax-refund almost immediately using Refund Allocation Loans (RALs).  These quick refund loans (1-2 days) actually have fees in the triple-digit interest rates when annualized, taking a big chunk out of the refunds of those who need it most in our community.  We dug into the data for Spokane to see how those low-income workers receiving the Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC) fared for tax year 2004. 

Parking meters for the homeless..

This may be old news for some, but the unique idea Denver, CO unveiled this Spring caught our attention.  In March the City of Denver installed 36 refurbished parking meters randomly on sidewalks across downtown in an effort to reduce panhandling.  Instead of forking over change directly to panhandlers people can make a point to drop spare change into the meters.  The contributions are then directed to food and services to help homelessness.  The idea was based on a similar effort in Baltimore, MD apparently.  In it's first month over $2,000 had been raised.  What a simple and creative approach.

Little Yellow Postcards: Let the bottom-feeding begin...

Fast on the heels of last week's market dump correction, little yellow 3x5 postcards began showing up in the mailboxes of some Spokane residents in the 99201.  Now this could either be just the best freakin' timing ever, or a shrewd maneuver by the folks over at Northwest HomeBuyers.  We tend to think it's the prior.

Spokane housing market update: Small is the new big

Time for housing data, friends.  With the Zillow 2007 Q2 update in hand we explored a new offering:  home type.  It's a handy way to peel back the proverbial onion and see how condos are performing versus single-family homes.  No need to dirty your hands, we did the work for you.

Why the Great Spokane River Gorge Park Plan will save Highbridge Park...

One big event last week was the news that the Friends of the Falls has met its funding goals for the whitewater park - a key priority of the Great Spokane River Gorge Plan (table of contents - pdf 3.3 mb).  For all the obvious reasons (final design, permitting, construction of the park) we're thrilled about this huge milestone.  Everyone knows that city planning often gets a bad rap when plans go unfulfilled.  Implementation, friends, is what it's all about and this should be suh-weet sound to our city's residents.  According to a quote from Steve Faust - Director of Friends of the Falls:

“Given the time needed to permit the project, we expect to begin construction of the whitewater features and support facilities no earlier than May 2008, with project completion in October 2008”

New Ruralism in Spokane?

[Photo courtesy Austinspace]

Question:  Any idea where the closest agricultural land is in relation to downtown Spokane (answer at the end of the post)?

There's a good chance you're familiar with New Urbanism as a concept (if not check out New Urbanism here).  A new movement hoping to strengthen the ties between cities and farms is called New Ruralism.  The concept is to blend sustainable agriculture with smart growth policies and it's something that is catching on all over the country.  In some places, people are paying dearly for homes in new ruralism-type developments.

Kendall Yards - Dirt Begins Moving on Monday

"It's kind of like preparing to swim the English Channel. We've planned and we've prepared, but today we're jumping in, and now we have to swim this mother."

Marshall Chesrown on what starting the construction phase of a project the size of Kendall Yards is like.

Yesterday the formal ground breaking for Kendall Yards took place and if you missed it, you missed a good one.  Hundreds of people braved crossing Monroe Street at Ide Avenue and gathered around the massive white tent.  Outside, renderings of the development, including some new views of the Phase 1 portion of the project (Monroe to Maple).

Best Cities for Relocating Families - Spokane hits top 10

And the rankings continue to pour in from all ends of the earth.  If you haven't tired of these faux news pieces, according to a study by Worldwide ERC and Primacy Relocation, relocating families would be wise to consider Spokane.  They feel so strongly that they put us up at number 9 on the list.

Apparently Forbes Loves Spokane

In one year, Spokane has jumped from #114 to #20 on Forbes list of best places to do business and to build a career.  Not only did we make the list, but we were one of three cities profiled.  Not too shabby, and we like the exposure.  High points in the article:  We scored well on income growth, job growth, and cost of doing business.  Low points:  Culture & Leisure and Crime Rate.

The importance of 3rd places in Spokane

Ray Oldenburg coined the term "The Third Place."  The first place is one's home; the second place is one's office;  Third places are those other public locations where informal gatherings and meetings occur.  Years ago relaxing and leisure took place in such public locations, and Spokane, like most cities, has a long history of well known ones.

West Plains with Less Water = Huge Opportunity

You may have heard the recent news about the West Plains issue with dwindling water supplies.  The area which includes Airway Heights, Cheney, Four Lakes, and Medical Lake is growing like crazy and new housing development is plowing ahead as Spokane and Liberty Lake are seen as pricey places, relatively speaking. 

The quote from the Spokesman that raised the hair on our necks:  "Water use exceeds recharge by at least 300 percent"  (cue the sound of a pin dropping).

Refugees and immigration to Spokane

While browsing about the Brookings Institution website, we discovered some interesting facts about immigrants and the Spokane area.  This study took a unique turn to actually consider and quantify the new gateways for immigrants in the United States.  According the Brookings Institution study - From ‘There’ to ‘Here’: Refugee Resettlement in Metropolitan America - an analysis of refugees as a percentage of overall immigrants, the Spokane area ranked fifth in a list of Medium-sized metropolitan areas.

REI: It's Not About The Outdoors...

Have you ever found yourself asking just how innovative Spokane is?  You're in luck.  A study released by the Small Business Association back in 2005 (yeah it's been out for awhile) ranks 394 regions on their entrepreneurial and innovation activities.  For your sake, we plowed through the seventy-one page document to figure out how Spokane fared.  Overall, not too bad.

So why is this showing up on MetroSpokane?  We like urban re/development, and a critical component to the type of urban development we enjoy seeing happen in Spokane is a strong economy.  And increasingly, a strong economy is dependent on innovation and risk-takers, a.k.a. entrepreneurs.

More Zillow Love: Spokane Housing Prices Up...But Where?

Last Friday we received an update from Zillow providing us access to their freshly released 2006 Q4 data on housing values in Spokane County (Zillow Quarterly Home Value Reports).  Today we take a closer look at how home values in some Spokane County neighborhoods have