Washington Business Winter 2018 | Washington Business | Page 40

washington business
the urban-rural divide by the numbers
Rural: 24
Metro: 15
Counties not included in U.S. Census
Bureau definition of metro
Counties in metro areas of Bellingham,
Bremerton, Longview, Mount Vernon,
Olympia, Portland, Seattle, Spokane,
Tacoma, Tri-cities, Wenatchee and Yakima
from 2005 to 2015, personal income grew
23.1%
19.3%
Metro
Rural
from 2005 to 2015, population increased
6.8%
2.0%
Metro
Rural
per capita net earnings
Nearly
$35,000 Roughly
$20,000
Metro Rural
20
Rural counties had slower
population growth than
the state as a whole.
20
“Many … rural communities have seen an exodus over several
generations of the traditional [natural resource-based] rural
jobs,” she says, “a disinvestment in … critical infrastructure …,
and a challenge in diversifying their economies.”
Franz advocates a two-tiered strategy, combining “broad
statewide policy changes to unlock opportunities across
communities, and a sustained, localized focus on realizing
specific opportunities,” she says. At the state level, incentives
and policy changes can pave the way for local activity.
She cites opportunities to promote use of cross-laminated
timber in construction, expand water resources, and put unused
state-owned commercial and industrial land into active use to
stimulate development.
Jonathan Smith, executive director of New Vision, the Yakima
Economic Development Association, says cities often have an
infrastructure advantage.
“But [with] strategic investments in infrastructure … in rural
communities, it’s been demonstrated that businesses you’d only
see in urban [areas] will go to the rural parts of the state.”
To illustrate the point, he cites the abandoned Air Force base
that left Moses Lake a 13,000-foot runway that was essential
to landing Mitsubishi Regional Jet in the community. A
small community couldn’t make that investment; the federal
government did. And it paid off for the region.
Steve McFadden, head of the Adams County Development
Council, knows first hand the importance of having the right
stuff in place. Shortly after the council was formed in 2007,
the group contracted with site selection consultants to identify
growth opportunities. One key industrial prospect — food
processing — would require a new wastewater treatment facility.
“In Adams County water is our golden commodity,”
McFadden says. The community wants to build a $3.5 million
treatment plant, a partnership between the Port of Othello and
Adams County. The state Community Economic Revitalization
Board funded a feasibility study; additional support is
anticipated in the state capital budget.
Smith says there are statewide benefits to public investment
in rural communities. Distributing economic activity can ease
urban traffic congestion, reduce stress on urban infrastructure,
and lessen the housing affordability pressures in metro areas.
skilled employee base
Rural counties had slower
employment growth than
the state as a whole.
Source: Steve Lerch, Washington State Economic and Revenue Forecast Council
40 association of washington business
Employers need employees. In some small communities, even
those with relatively high unemployment rates, finding enough
people with the skills required by a prospective business can
be a challenge.
“Large employers regularly point out to me that the
population is declining in three cities [in the county],” says
Steve McFadden. “While there’s growth in Othello, it’s not
enough to support a plant with 250-300 positions, many of them
highly-skilled positions.”