Even if something is good, there's always room for some improvement—and that's why the nonprofit Downtown Seattle Association’s mission is to champion an even more vibrant urban core. It’s a remarkable time for Downtown Seattle, says its chair Mark Barbieri, because everything has aligned to make it a place where businesses and people want to be. The city has strong environmental ethic and economic strengths: not only for tech and other industries, but as the hub of an economic and transportation network from San Francisco to Alaska, and west to the Pacific Rim. A little less tangible, but just as important, is the city’s sense of authenticity in culture, arts, and the built environment. All of these factors work together to bring innovative businesses and talented workers to Seattle, he says.
DSA focuses on Downtown’s health through advocacy, economic development, and marketing, Mark says, as well as a variety of neighborhood cleaning, hospitality, and safety services (snapped: its 2014-15 board of directors). Among other DSA initiatives: a retail recruitment and advocacy program to retain and enhance the city’s retail mix; a parking program is to create a common supply, brand, and perception of parking Downtown; and public space improvements, such as the pedestrian and transit experience of the Third Ave Corridor, to upgrade the physical experience of being Downtown.
The DSA believes that a school Downtown would be a major quality-of-life improvement for the urban core and make it more family-friendly, he says. “There hasn’t been a school in Downtown Seattle in decades, and a new one would be a major component in attracting families to live in the neighborhood,” Mark says. The urban core should be a better transit nexus, too, so the association is advocating the cancellation of funding cuts slated for local transit systems.
Mark's other role: Washington Holdings' EVP, where he's responsible for executing the company’s strategy for its stabilized assets. (It invests in office, industrial, and some hotel in the Western US, with the majority in the Pacific Northwest, and currently holds about 5.5M SF, including a number of assets Downtown.) Many of the company’s partners have worked together since the early ’90s, since before the company was founded in 2002. He's an enthusiastic hiker, kayaker, and paddleboarder, and supports Seattle pro and college sports as a season ticket holder. He's also a traveler, visiting Morocco recently.
