Everett mayor says city should focus on business

Published 10:13 pm Thursday, January 21, 2010

EVERETT — Everett has done a good job of watching its spending, now it needs to do a better job of identifying the right new businesses to help it grow. And adding commercial aviation would make that job easier, Mayor Ray Stephanson said Thursday.

Stephanson gave his state of the city address to the members of the Everett Area Chamber of Commerce on Thursday, saying the city is in decent financial shape.

“We have really weathered the downturn remarkably well,” he said. “Now we have to focus our attention on making sure business is financially strong.”

Stephanson said he’s trying to think strategically at Everett’s “long-term survivability.”

He said he had asked a team of business leaders to plan an economic development strategy for the city that would look at what businesses the city needs. The group held its first meeting Thursday.

“In the past, we had been accommodating to anyone who would come,” he said. “We were not very focused. We need a laserlike effort that identifies the growth industries.”

Stephanson said that health care is one of them, saying he was excited about the ongoing expansion at Everett’s hospitals. But he wants the group to identify other sectors so that the city can more effectively use it limited resources for growth.

Stephanson talked about the city’s investments in streets, its water system and other services. And he lauded Naval Station Everett for its investment in the community with new facilities.

Saying the Navy base is very important to the local economy, he suggested that members of the business community and others lobby Navy officials for a replacement ship or ships when the USS Abraham Lincoln is taken out of service to be refueled.

“We need to stay focused on seeing that we have a replacement ship to cover the $200 million in salary every year,” Stephanson said.

He also said that commercial air service at Paine Field was very important because businesses interested in relocating here want it. “In our recruitment efforts, one of the top five questions is: ‘Do you have regional commercial air service?’ ” Stephanson said. “It really is a no brainer. I can’t see why we don’t embrace this in a more significant way.”

Two regional carriers are interested in flying out of Snohomish County’s Paine Field in Everett, but many residents of the area oppose such a move.

Stephanson told the crowd to “stay vigilant to ensure that commercial air service comes to our city and our county.”

The mayor said that in general, he believes Everett faces a bright future and just needs to stay focused. He noted that he was sad to recently read that young people spend seven hours a day using electrical devices.

“We need to start talking to each other and start working together to solve our differences,” he said.