Spokane “GDP” growth rate
June 21, 2011 1 Comment
The U.S. Mayors organization just published a comprehensive review of 363 cities and metro areas nationwide.
- Spokane’s share of the Washington State GDP is 5.2% (or 5.5% of metro areas) – but the Spokane MSA has about 7% of the state’s population.
- Spokane’s 2000-2010 GDP growth rate ranks at 252 out of 363 cities, or in the bottom 31%.
- I suspect almost all, if not all of the growth in Spokane, is due to the non-sustainable growth of health care prices.
This helps us understand why we see vacant store fronts and office buildings, and for sale and for lease signs all over the area. The economy in Spokane is in extraordinarily bad shape.
Check the Tri-cities, Moses Lake or the west side – we don’t see the widespread business retail and office vacancies like we see here. Not even close. A relative just traveled by car from Washington to northern California, stopping in on several towns and cities along the way. Little to no vacancies were seen. Even in hard hit California.
Spokane is in a uniquely bad economic situation caused by failed leadership at all levels.
Local citizens should be screaming and shouting and local leaders should be held accountable. But do the people even know? Since the fall of 2008, local media embarked on a “happy news” spree to focus attention on friendly human interest stories.
During the Great Depression, local media in the mid-west made a decision to cover happy news only, to help people cope with the misery a little easier. Is this what has happened in Spokane?
Spokane Economic And Demographic Data 
I will go one step further than Mr. X. While Mr. X is correct that the cause is a failure of local leadership, I would argue this lack of leadership is the direct result of the continued operation of a criminal enterprise by the powers that be in this town to personally benefit those associated with this enterprise at the expense of the citizens of Spokane. This is not a normal economy. Because the ruthless unfair business practices employed by this enterprise to maintain the status quo, new business that would bring the other sector jobs other than service sector jobs that would increase the prevailing wage base are deterred from locating here because of the high entry costs associated with this environment. If they come they soon leave and or simply go elsewhere and the people of Spokane suffer as the result.
I would argue Mr. X’s is hard data that shows the deleterious effect of the organized crime element in this town that is literally sucking the life’s blood from Spokane like some engorged river leach. I too wonder why the peasants aren’t up in arms and storming the walls of the Bastille in this feudal system?
In my opinion the fundamental factor is the ownership and control of the old media in this town by the powers that be that would in an otherwise in normal environment would be a check on this abuse of power and corruption and drive public opinion.
This blood sucker needs to be removed and destroyed before Spokane will be healthy.
I base my opinion on the collective works of Tim Connor and Larry Shook as written by Mr. Shook at his blog:
http://www.larryshook.com