It is a serious blow to the prestige of Seattle and our state for a company that grew up here to suddenly pull up roots and leave home. The fact that Boeing is moving should serve as a wake-up call to Seattle and our state. The continued economic health of Washington State and our communities depends on sound planning for economic growth and continued employment opportunities for our citizens. Further, many jurisdictions are failing to properly plan for the development of homes to accommodate growth. The resulting loss of affordable housing affects the entire region.
High prices keep average working people from buying a home near their job.
Young families move out, school enrollment suffers and employers find it difficult to fill jobs because workers can t afford to live near their jobs. Exacerbation of our traffic problems is caused by people buying homes far from where they work creating traffic hardships for businesses delivering goods and services, and slowing freight mobility, often meaning the region loses business to another location strangling the economy . The question now is what can our state and local governments do to make sure that Boeing and its 85,000 jobs stay here. We should be thinking about how we can expand that employment base because they are the good family wage jobs we all want. But acquiring these things collectively means beginning with a good plan-like a business plan for communities.