By Aaron Allen, The Seattle Medium
Last week, Seattle Mayor Harrell, in collaboration with the Consulting and Business Development Center (CBDC) at the University of Washington’s Foster School of Business, the Albers Business Foundry (ABF) at Seattle University’s Albers School of Business, and Tabor 100, announced the launch of a new project to support minority-owned businesses.
According to Harrell, this groundbreaking business growth program—the Liberty Project—will drive economic growth and opportunities for Seattle’s minority-owned business community.
Named after Liberty Bank, a Black-owned bank that served the Central District during the 1980s, the project seeks to address economic disparities faced by underserved communities in Seattle and provide tools to support economic empowerment, with a particular focus on Black-owned businesses. Liberty Bank once served as a lifeline for businesses and residents of the area, who were previously left out of investment opportunities and financial services, and it is believed that this initiative will provide a similar lifeline for businesses today.
“It is my honor to introduce something that the city of Seattle couldn’t be more excited about,” says Harrell. “This is an exciting collaboration aimed at fostering the growth of our local businesses and that is critically important in what we’re trying to do in this new chapter of Seattle.”
Currently, Black/African Americans account for approximately 7.9% of Seattle’s population but earn revenues at a rate well below their share of Seattle’s population. Statewide, Black-owned businesses earn less than 1% of total business revenues. Leveraging the proven track records of the CBDC, Tabor 100, and the ABF in supporting underserved businesses, this initiative will annually serve a minimum of 30 Black-owned businesses in six prioritized industries: retail, personal services, commercial construction, food and beverage manufacturing, restaurant, and power utilities contract industries.
“We are proud to introduce the Liberty Project,” says Harrell. “It’s a groundbreaking program designed to empower entrepreneurs who face significant challenges barriers to success due to systemic racism and the legacies of inequitable policies and practices.”
“For nearly three decades our fine academic institutions—the University of Washington, Seattle University, and Tabor 100—have worked somewhat independently, somewhat collaboratively, but all with a very core focus on nurturing the growth of black-owned businesses and underserved businesses in Seattle and the Puget Sound region,” Harrell reiterates. “Now the city of Seattle wants to be a strong partner of this.”
Additionally, as part of Mayor Harrell’s Downtown Activation Plan, the Liberty Project will partner with the Office of Economic Development’s Seattle Restored program to assist restaurant, personal service, and retail businesses with downtown Seattle site locations.
“We are standing here because approximately 55 years ago right here in what we still refer to as the Central District, Liberty Bank became the first Black-owned bank in the Pacific Northwest,” said Harrell. “Liberty Bank always symbolized resilience, empowerment, and opportunity, and now the Liberty Project will build upon that rich legacy.”
