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News from Seattle's Office of Economic Development

Mayor welcomes Facebook to Seattle

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This Tuesday, Seattle’s Office of Economic Development, together with the office of Mayor Mike McGinn, welcomed Facebook’s senior engineering team to Seattle in a private reception at City Hall alongside numerous local business and technology leaders.  Facebook announced last month that they would opening an engineering office in Seattle and will be hiring approximately 30 staff in the coming year.  The company’s decision to expand here – the company’s first office outside its headquarters in Palo Alto, CA – underscores Seattle’s wealth of technical talent and engineering expertise.

The welcome reception was attended by Mayor Mike McGinn; City Councilmembers Mike O’Brien, Nick Licata, and Sally Clark; representatives from the city’s Office of Economic Development and Office of Film + Music; Greater Seattle Chamber of Commerce; enterpriseSeattle; the University of Washington; Seattle Sports Commission; Alaska Airlines; Fuzed Music; Amazon.com; and many more.

Read about Tuesday’s event in these articles:

The Seattle Times: “Facebook’s move to Seattle: The backstory” *

TechFlash: “Video: Seattle Mayor Mike McGinn welcomes Facebook”

Seattle P-I: “Why we’re rolling out the red carpet for Facebook”

The Prosperity Blog: “Economic Development:  A Love Story”*

*This story was featured in our Daily Digest.  Find out more about the Daily Digest and subscribe to receive the daily business newsletter here.

Washington state unemployment rate drops

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Washington state unemployment rate drops
Puget Sound Business Journal
Washington’s unemployment rate in April improved to 9.2 percent in April, the first time the state has seen a decline in three years. The Bellevue-Seattle-Everett’s unemployment rate in April was 7.9 percent, down from March’s jobless rate of 8.6 percent.

Broadway, Pike/Pine eligible for city’s $40 million tax credit program 
Capitol Hill Seattle Blog
Thanks to new federal economic initiatives, Capitol Hill businesses and others across Seattle can now apply for millions of dollars in project investment through the New Market Tax Credits (NMTC) program. The Office of Economic Development, which led the city’s application for the credits, will manage the investment of NMTCs through a city-created entity, the Seattle Investment Fund LLC.

Study: Tech Sector is a jobs engine for Washington state 
TechFlash
Nearly half of all jobs in Washington state are tied to the technology industry, according to a new study released today by the Technology Alliance at the group’s annual luncheon.

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As a service to the Seattle business community, the Office of Economic Development curates a daily business news blast, Daily Digest. As a new trial feature on Bottom Line, we’re posting a handful of stories from the Daily Digest every day.  Find the stories informative or helpful? Keep checking Bottom Line or sign up for Daily Digest to receive the full version in your inbox every day. Subscribe to the Daily Digest here.

Retailers prepare for consumer comeback

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Retailers prepare for consumer comeback
Seattle Times
Shoppers have started to show they’re willing and able to spend more, and stores are tweaking their merchandise to accommodate them.

Economic plan aims at bringing new industry cluster opportunities to King County  
enterpriseSeattle
For the past five years, enterpriseSeattle, a public-private economic development partnership for King County and the 39 cities, has focused its attention on five top “industry clusters” where this region exceeds the national average in terms of job concentration.

Event season has arrived in Seattle  
Xconomy
Upcoming events like Seattle 2.0, Twiistup, and the State of Technology Luncheon will attract start-up companies, tech investors and entrepreneurs, and business advocates from all over the Pacific Northwest.

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As a service to the Seattle business community, the Office of Economic Development curates a daily business news blast, Daily Digest. As a new trial feature on Bottom Line, we’re posting a handful of stories from the Daily Digest every day.  Find the stories informative or helpful? Keep checking Bottom Line or sign up for Daily Digest to receive the full version in your inbox every day. Subscribe to the Daily Digest here.

Retail sales, industrial output exceed forecasts

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U.S. Economy: Retail sales, industrial output exceed forecasts
BusinessWeek
Retail sales and industrial production in the U.S. climbed more than forecast in April, indicating the economic recovery gained momentum at the start of the second quarter.

Washington moves up on CEO list of best states for business 
Puget Sound Business Journal
Washington moved up 10 spots on a list of CEOs’ best states to do business – the biggest gain of any state – but only jumped to number 30 on the list.

Look into the first quarter of 2010 results and trends for the economy and small business 
Small Business Administration
Real gross domestic product increased at an annualized 3.2 percent in the first quarter of 2010, its third quarter of positive growth and a sign of continued economic recovery. Overall output was buoyed by higher expenditures across the board, as consumers and businesses began to spend again. 

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As a service to the Seattle business community, the Office of Economic Development curates a daily business news blast, Daily Digest. As a new trial feature on Bottom Line, we’re posting a handful of stories from the Daily Digest every day.  Find the stories informative or helpful? Keep checking Bottom Line or sign up for Daily Digest to receive the full version in your inbox every day. Subscribe to the Daily Digest here.

U.S., Seattle port traffic increasing

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U.S., Seattle port traffic increasing 
Puget Sound Business Journal
Cargo volumes at ports across the U.S., including the Port of Seattle, are rising compared with last year and are expected to continue to rise.

Mantra for Seattle summer: ‘Tourism Matters’ 
KOMO News
Tuesday was the official launch of the tourist season in Seattle, and the city’s tourism industry is fighting for a comeback. The launch was marked with a flag atop the Space Needle that read “Tourism matters.”

‘Walk & Talk’ with Councilmember Sally Bagshaw – May 18th
Feet First
Join the quarterly Feet First Walk & Talk with Seattle City Councilmember Sally Bagshaw this May 18th and learn about public space plans for a redeveloped waterfront.

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As a service to the Seattle business community, the Office of Economic Development curates a daily business news blast, Daily Digest. As a new trial feature on Bottom Line, we’re posting a handful of stories from the Daily Digest every day.  Find the stories informative or helpful? Keep checking Bottom Line or sign up for Daily Digest to receive the full version in your inbox every day. Subscribe to the Daily Digest here.

Study: Seattle has nation’s best economy

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Study: Seattle has nation’s best economy 
Puget Sound Business Journal
A study by Florida research firm Policom says that the Seattle-Tacoma economy is the strongest in the country, beating out 366 other metropolitan areas. According to Policom, the highest-ranked areas have had rapid, consistent growth in both size and quality for an extended period of time.

City Council designates ten new Seattle landmarks 
Puget Sound Business Journal
Ten architectural sites in Seattle have been designated “landmarks” by the Seattle City Council. Since 1973, Seattle has designated more than 400 sites, buildings, vehicles, vessels and street clocks as landmarks subject to protection by city ordinance.

May 2010 Economic and Revenue Update now available 
Washington State Economic and Revenue Forecast Council
According to the May 2010 Economic and Revenue Update, the economic recovery appears to be gathering momentum, although the financial sector remains jittery. The April jobs report was encouraging, showing 290,000 net new jobs created that month.

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As a service to the Seattle business community, the Office of Economic Development curates a daily business news blast, Daily Digest. As a new trial feature on Bottom Line, we’re posting a handful of stories from the Daily Digest every day.  Find the stories informative or helpful? Keep checking Bottom Line or sign up for Daily Digest to receive the full version in your inbox every day. Subscribe to the Daily Digest here.

Washington’s high-tech industry adds jobs

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For fifth consecutive year, Washington’s high-tech industry adds jobs 
TechAmerica Foundation
TechAmerica Foundation recently released its 13th annual Cyberstates report detailing national and state trends in high-tech employment, wages, and other key economic factors. For the fifth year in a row, Washington’s high-tech industry added jobs.

Hiring jumps, while job openings edge up slightly 
Seattle Times
New hiring rose in March to its highest level in more than a year while job openings moved up slightly, signs the job market is slowly improving.

Seattle tourism took a hit but should rebound this year 
Seattle Times
The local tourism industry took a hit in 2009, but is already experiencing a rebound this year. According to officials at the King County Convention and Visitors Bureau, the impact to Seattle tourism from the global economic recession was less severe here than around the country.

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As a service to the Seattle business community, the Office of Economic Development curates a daily business news blast, Daily Digest. As a new trial feature on Bottom Line, we’re posting a handful of stories from the Daily Digest every day.  Find the stories informative or helpful? Keep checking Bottom Line or sign up for Daily Digest to receive the full version in your inbox every day. Subscribe to the Daily Digest here.

Seattle is the 13th-best U.S. city for job seekers

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Seattle is the 13th-best U.S. city for job seekers 
Puget Sound Business Journal
Seattle is the 13th best large U.S. city for job seekers, says a new ranking from search engine JuJu.com. Washington is in 26th place among the states.

Upcoming IRS open house helps individuals, businesses with taxes 
IRS
The Internal Revenue Service will host a special nationwide Open House on Saturday, May 15th to help small businesses and individuals solve tax problems. Approximately 200 IRS offices, at least one in every state, will be open May 15 from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. local time.

Upcoming ban on plastics causing restaurants and retailers problems 
Seattle Times
Beginning July 1st, the city will ban meat trays made from polystyrene foam – commonly known by its Dow Chemical trademark, Styrofoam – and will require retailers to use recyclable and compostable service ware and provide appropriate bins for their disposal.

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As a service to the Seattle business community, the Office of Economic Development curates a daily business news blast, Daily Digest. As a new trial feature on Bottom Line, we’re posting a handful of stories from the Daily Digest every day.  Find the stories informative or helpful? Keep checking Bottom Line or sign up for Daily Digest to receive the full version in your inbox every day. Subscribe to the Daily Digest here.

Facebook looks to Seattle for recruitment of tech talent

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Facebook to open Seattle office 
TechFlash
Facebook is opening a new engineering office in Seattle, a move that the social networking powerhouse said would allow it to tap the region’s “deep pool of technical talent.” It marks the first engineering office for Facebook in the U.S. outside of the company’s headquarters in Palo Alto, Calif.

Seattle City Council approves First Hill streetcar line 
Seattle Times
A First Hill Streetcar route on Broadway was unanimously approved Monday by the Seattle City Council. The $130 million line is to open in 2013, connecting the International District/Chinatown light-rail station to the train station on Capitol Hill scheduled to open in 2016.

Washington small businesses can grow through export sales in 2010 
Bellevue Reporter
Small businesses account for 30 percent of all U.S. exports – a staggering $500 billion per year. The fastest growing segment of U.S. exporting companies are firms with 20 or fewer employees, demonstrating that size is no longer a requirement for success in global markets. 

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As a service to the Seattle business community, the Office of Economic Development curates a daily business news blast, Daily Digest. As a new trial feature on Bottom Line, we’re posting a handful of stories from the Daily Digest every day.  Find the stories informative or helpful? Keep checking Bottom Line or sign up for Daily Digest to receive the full version in your inbox every day. Subscribe to the Daily Digest here.

U.S. Dept. of Commerce announces innovation competition

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Seattle communities project provides online resources for neighborhood groups 
City of Seattle
Neighborhood groups now have a place where they can go to get information to actively engage their community members using online tools. The new Seattle Communities Online portal includes features like “Neighborhoods on the Net,” a list of blogs, wikis, websites, Facebook pages, and Twitter feeds associated with specific communities and neighborhoods in Seattle.

Prosperity Partnership investigates creation of integrated energy efficiency center 
Prosperity Partnership
Seattle-based Prosperity Partnership wants to optimize the Puget Sound region’s capacity to sell energy efficiency goods and services to the world. This week, the Partnership announced next steps toward the formation of an integrated energy efficiency center for the region.

Bring innovative ideas to market for the i6 Challenge 
The White House
The U.S. Department of Commerce’s Office of Innovation & Entrepreneurship today announced the i6 Challenge. The Dept. of Commerce will award up to $1 million each to six winning teams with the most innovative ideas to drive technology commercialization in their regions.

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As a service to the Seattle business community, the Office of Economic Development curates a daily business news blast, Daily Digest. As a new trial feature on Bottom Line, we’re posting a handful of stories from the Daily Digest every day.  Find the stories informative or helpful? Keep checking Bottom Line or sign up for Daily Digest to receive the full version in your inbox every day. Subscribe to the Daily Digest here.