2010 promises to be a year of change on Capitol Hill. While Sound Transit moves forward installing a solid construction fence around the light-rail site and recruiting artists to manage a construction art-wall project, our community is actively engaged in shaping decisions ranging from routing a streetcar on Broadway to transit-oriented development (TOD) above the Capitol Hill light-rail station. As executive director of the Capitol Hill Chamber of Commerce, I’d like to highlight how the chamber is working diligently on these issues, which impacts the health and vitality of our small business community on the Hill. Sound Transit partnerships In July 2007, after consultation with business-community stakeholders along Broadway, the chamber finalized a multi-million dollar mitigation agreement with Sound Transit to aid small businesses during the 6 1/2 years of Sound Transit construction. The funds are used to create programs to assist small businesses in operating efficiently, generating sales and increasing profits. Twenty hours of free business seminars in marketing, website development and social media, in addition to 30 hours of free one-on-one consulting, are offered in partnership with Seattle University’s Albers School of Business and the Business Information Technology program at Seattle Central Community College. More than 50 small-business merchants participated last spring. These opportunities for small business were first offered in spring 2009 and will happen again in April 2010. Priority is given to those closest to the Sound Transit construction dig, with remaining slots offered to businesses farther away from the site. The chamber wants to ensure merchants have the tools to build on their successes so that when the station opens in 2016, they will be on firm footing and ready for the thousands of daily commuters using light rail and visiting our community. The chamber, in another partnership with Sound Transit, hosted five forums, numerous stakeholder meetings and a community design charrette last summer, encouraging residents to envision the best use of the land above the Broadway and John Street Station. We made sure multiple options, including a permanent home for the Broadway Farmers Market, were examined and explored so that Capitol Hill has the chance to create an elegant gateway over the station. The chamber was the Capitol Hill organization with the vision and energy to persuade Sound Transit early on to change course on the site. We convinced Sound Transit that — contrary to their engineering claims — multi-story retail, housing and community center amenities could be built over the station. Our advocating for these amenities contributes to more people on the street who will patronize our businesses and preserve a vibrant, dynamic street life. Other projects In addition to these large-scale efforts, our volunteer-driven Street Sweeps in May and October attract more than 100 community residents per event and contribute to neighbors taking pride in cleaning up Broadway and other Capitol Hill business districts. Partnering with the Broadway BIA we are ensuring that daily litter pickup and graffiti removal enhance the experience on the street and encourage people to patronize small businesses in a neighborhood that feels clean and safe. Our volunteer-driven BLITZ Arts Walk, which occurs the second Thursday of the month and features work of Capitol Hill based artists, has drawn 52 participating small-business sponsors on the Hill. And thanks to Sound Transit mitigation funds, we are working with a Capitol Hill-based website developer to launch a new Capitol Hill neighborhood website in the spring, promoting small businesses with events, contests and special offers. The chamber is committed to supporting our local businesses and employing the talents of our residents and local workforce whenever and wherever possible.
JACK HILOVSKY is executive director of the Capitol Hill Chamber of Commerce and administrator of the Broadway BIA (Business Improvement Association).
