Hear varying perspectives on economic and population growth in this introduction to the Seattle Growth Podcast - a 13 episode serial covering the rise of Seattle's tech sector, housing affordability, homelessness, schools, transportation and more.

In this episode: City Councilmember Mike O'Brien, Seattle lawyer Craig Sherman, Groupon CMO Vinayak Hegde, Walter Hudson, and Ty Sanders.

Seattle Growth Podcast

Introduction

A local investment group led by Chris Hansen has a proposal to build an NBA arena in Seattle’s SoDo neighborhood. Their proposal has the potential to impact you and life in this city. 

You will learn what the SoDo arena group needs from the city to proceed and what they hope a return of the Sonics will mean to Seattle.

In this episode, you can hear:

Pete Nordstrom, co-president of Nordstrom) describes what basketball has meant to him and how his experience as a team owner influences his efforts to bring the Sonics back to Seattle.

Wally Walker, former Sonics player and team executive, shares details of the proposal and what it was like to be a player on the first professional sports team to bring a championship to Seattle.

S2 Ep 2: SoDo Arena Group: Purpose, Plan, Next Steps

There are potentially three private groups vying to invest roughly half a billion dollars into a sports and entertainment complex in Seattle. The city is weighing a proposal for a SoDo arena and inviting proposals for a renovation of Seattle Center’s Key Arena. Decisions will soon be made and this episode helps you become further informed of the issues.

In this episode:

Get the scoop on how the city is approaching a potential Key Arena location from Brian Surratt, director of Seattle’s Office of Economic Development.

Get an inside look at Oak View Groups intentions to submit a proposal from Lance Lopes, director of special projects at Oak View Group. 

Hear the challenges and opportunities the surrounding neighborhood sees from Debi Frausto who serves on the KeyArena Subcommittee Chair for the Seattle Uptown Alliance and is also on the Mayor’s Key Arena Advisory Panel.

This episode will give you a better understanding of how a Key Arena renovation could impact you and life in this city.

S2 Ep. 8: Key Arena Remodel and the Transformation of Seattle Uptown

In the nearly 10 years since the NBA franchise Seattle Supersonics left for Oklahoma City, several people have been working tirelessly to bring the Sonics back to Seattle. This episode gives you a window into the hearts and minds of two people working for several years to return Seattle to the league of cities playing host to professional basketball. In this episode you will hear from:

1. Chris Hansen; the leader of a group of investors attempting to bring an NBA franchise to an arena in Seattle’s SoDo neighborhood. He discusses his motivations for continued efforts to bring Seattle an NBA franchise. He also shares rare insights into where his group is in the process.

2. Jeff Brown; a Sonics fan and leader of the Bring Back our Sonics movement. He shares why he continues to rally fans years after the NBA left the Emerald City.

Sonic Boom Day is coming April 17th. Residents from across Seattle will be sharing their voice with Seattle City Council on where they would like an arena to be developed. As City Council is in the process of determining where to pave the way for a return of the NBA, developing an informed opinion can help you achieve the outcome that is in your best interest.

This episode of Seattle Growth Podcast gives you unique insight into what the NBA can mean to the residents of Seattle and what the proposal for a SoDo arena would mean to you and life in this city.

S2 Ep. 10: Chris Hansen & Efforts to Bring Back the Sonics

Gain insight into the minds of real estate developers as they reshape Seattle’s streets and skyline. As you look ahead to where you live or might live, these interviews give you insight into the kinds of neighborhoods and properties that attract real estate developers. You will get an inside look into their development process and how you can influence it.

You will hear from Liz Dunn of Dunn + Hobbes, which specializes in the adaptive reuse of existing buildings as well as the construction of new urban infill projects. 

You will hear from Joe Ferguson of Lake Union Partners, which specializes in residential mixed-use and commercial projects.

These two interviews give you examples of the variety of developers reshaping the physical landscape of our city.

Seattle Growth Podcast Season 3

S3 Ep. 2: Real Estate Developers and Future of Seattle

Join University of Washington professor Jeff Shulman for a seventh season exploring the far-reaching impacts of Seattle's physical and cultural transformation. 

Notable guests from earlier seasons of Seattle Growth Podcast include Hall of Famer Lenny Wilkens, 3-time NBA All-Star Detlef Schrempf, NBA champion Wally Walker, Sonics legend Slick Watts, Pete Nordstrom, Craig Kinzer, Port Commissioner John Creighton, Paul Lawrence, City Councilmember Tim Burgess, SDOT director Scott Kubly, Tim Burgess, Kshama Sawant, and more.

S2 Ep. 8: Key Arena Remodel and the Transformation of Seattle Uptown

Seattle Growth Podcast

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