Current Projects
Heritage Farm, a community food system, and the role of a public asset in Clark County
The Metro Center is helping Federal Way assess the current state of its tourism industry and recommend new opportunities for increasing off season tourism that takes advantage of the city’s accessible location and local amenities.
Increasing Off-Season Tourism in Federal Way
The Metro Center is helping Federal Way assess the current state of its tourism industry and recommend new opportunities for increasing off season tourism that takes advantage of the city’s accessible location and local amenities.
Downtown Arlington; Resilience in the Era of COVID-19
The Need to Adapt The Metro Center helped the City of Arlington, WA support downtown businesses through the course of the COVID-19 pandemic and the ensuing economic recovery. The project encouraged businesses to be adaptive…
Past Projects
2019 National Urban Extension Conference
May 20-23, 2019 Motif Hotel – Seattle, WA Washington State University Extension’s Metro Center was proud to coordinate and host the 2019 National Urban Extension Conference on “Innovation in the City: A Land Grant University…
Everett CHART – Assessing Financial Return & Program Effectiveness
Overview The City of Everett’s Chronic-Utilizer Alternative Response Team (CHART) was designed to address the needs of Everett’s most vulnerable residents who have overlapping health, mental health, legal and substance abuse issues. The Metro Center…
SUSTAINABLE URBAN SYSTEMS
July 30-August 1, 2019 – Talaris Conference Center in Seattle, WA. Funded by the National Science Foundation, this by-invitation only workshop brought together a select group of 40 experts across an array of disciplines, sectors, and…
Stanwood and Camano Island Community Survey
The Metro Center is helping the City of Stanwood implement a targeted outreach approach to engaging community in strategic planning, by creating and analyzing a community-based survey.
Yakima Equity Study Analysis
The Metro Center was contracted by the Yakima City Council to conduct an evaluation and statistical analysis of specific data compiled for their Equity Study. The results of the analysis gave the city a comprehensive baseline to support data driven decisions, and tools for equitable decision making.
Age-Friendly Housing Assessment
In 2009, King County’s Aging and Disability Services (ADS), released the report Quiet Crisis: Age Wave Maxes Out Affordable Housing, King County 2008-2025 (pdf). The report indicated that the need for age-friendly housing has outpaced the…
Promoting Urban Food, Energy and Water Resource Resilience via the Regional Food System
Urban areas are major consumers of food, energy, and water (FEW). While the water and energy generally originate within an immediate geographic region, the food may be sourced globally. The Washington State University Metro Food…
Measuring Changes in the Restaurant Industry
The restaurant industry has been experiencing major regulatory, cultural, and technology changes in the past few years, which are impacting much of the status quo for workers and operators. The Washington Hospitality Association has engaged…
STEM Mentor Training
With the number of aerospace jobs outpacing the amount of trained engineers to fill them, the Metro Center, in collaboration with Pierce County, created the online curriculum: STEM Mentor Training. This curriculum encourages companies in the aerospace and STEM-based sectors to support the growth of their industry by mentoring the next generation of engineers. Over…
America’s Best Communities Competition
America’s Best Communities (ABC) is a three year $10 million competition that aims to increase economic development in small communities. The Metropolitan Center for Applied Research and Extension has provided leadership for the City of…