Tourists and local residents in Seattle, Washington who haven’t recently been to Pioneer Square, the city’s oldest neighborhood, will be pleasantly surprised at how vibrant, clean, and active this previously dirty and crime-ridden area has become.
Pioneer Square is bustling. Tourists mingle with high tech workers, hipsters and the homeless. Businesses are also booming.
“We have over 50 new restaurants alone in the last two years,” said Lisa Dixon, chief operating officer for the Alliance for Pioneer Square.
The business-funded advocacy group has worked its tail off for more than a decade to bring new life, people, and businesses to the neighborhood.
And it’s working — day and night. The number of residents has nearly doubled since the opening of several new apartment and condo buildings near CenturyLink Field.
The Alliance for Pioneer Square is devoted to the betterment of Pioneer Square through advocacy, programming, marketing, and community action. Since its inception, The Alliance has been working with neighborhood stakeholders to implement a Main Street model of economic development; building community capacity for sustained neighborhood revitalization.
A program of the National Trust for Historic Preservation, Main Street provides a framework for community driven economic revitalization with a proven track record of more than thirty years of successful implementation.
As the neighborhood organization focused on revitalization, The Alliance works to build relationships and increase our engagement with community stakeholders. Alliance Board members include residents, business and property owners; the National Park Service and local human services are also represented.
Volunteers and staff expertise includes the arts, branding and advertising, real estate development, architecture and planning, historic preservation, small business assistance, outreach and organizing, politics, and communications.
Committees work to engage volunteers; to obtain neighborhood input; to leverage existing assets, and to build capacity within the neighborhood. Activities include promotion of neighborhood assets and history; business outreach and communication; activation of parks and public spaces; economic development and marketing; and advocacy on behalf of Seattle’s historic neighborhood.