It has been a year since Seattle Mayor Bruce Harrel introduced his “Downtown Activation Plan.”

He can boast an ever-growing list of successes. But so far the economic recovery has proved hesitant and deceptive.

The mayor’s downtown revitalization plan includes 46 measures, from more murals to better street lighting. His office says 27 of those initiatives are in progress and 16 are complete.

The plan includes mural artists, satellite farmers markets and pickleball courts.

The city is working on an opioid overdose rehabilitation center, rule changes to encourage the construction of new multifamily housing, and a tribal information center on the new downtown waterfront.

The city’s program to fill vacant storefronts with artists and small businesses has expanded. Today, if you walk along Seattle’s waterfront, you’ll see tiny shipping containers lined up on the sidewalk that house pop-up businesses.

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So have these efforts helped? It is too early to say.

The number of tourists and residents is increasing, but seasonally adjusted the improvement is so small that it is barely noticeable. And the number of visitors to the city center was slightly lower in July than a year ago.

SOURCE: Downtown Seattle Association Economic Recovery Data for August 2024

But other signs are more positive: the number of people coming to work in downtown offices increased by 14% compared to the previous year.

It may take a long time for some of the city’s strategies to bear fruit.

For example, upcoming rule changes are intended to make it easier to build housing in the city center. While these changes may be helpful, many developers will not start implementing their projects until interest rates fall.