Meet and welcome with the president of the Association des Affaires de Spokane Brad Barnett

Brad Barnett moved to the city of Lilac earlier this year to lead the Spokane Business Association, an organization formed last year to defend commercial interests in the region.

The newspaper sat with Barnett to find out more about its history, the management of the association and some of the field button problems with which it is involved.

Can you tell us about your history?

Over the past 12 years, I have worked in two chambers of commerce in Texas. In Midland, I directed tourism and supervised the construction of the New Bush Convention Center. And then in Kerrville, I was president and chief executive officer of the Chamber of the Kerrville region for about 3 and a half years in Texas Hill Country, north of San Antonio. I am really excited to bring this expertise here.

Are people saying that the Spokane Business Association is a room? Well, a room is a business association, but one of the things I think that the rooms do well when they are really focused is this plaid piece. And the emphasis placed on SBA is to make sure that we are pleading on behalf of our members.

What attracted you to this position?

The Spokane Business Association is around nine, maybe 10 months. WThe hat really attracted me to this position, it was being able to build something from scratch.

When I teach video production, a long time ago in a past life, I went to Lamar University in Beaumont, Texas, and I rebuilt the program from zero. I started with 12 students in 1995, and I think they are up to 350 now.

So, it is to be able to enter into a way at the ground level, to build this foundation, then to see this success later. I probably have 15 years of retirement. I would love to be able to spend all this time here in Spokane and get SBA on a good base. And then, maybe in about 15 years, continue, keep enjoying Spokane and watch someone else take it from there.

During the training, the Spokane Business Association had Gavin Cooley as CEO, and Gavin came with what seems to be a kind of skill different from what you bring to the table. It is well linked to the community of Spokane and known for its ability to reach in the political aisles, so to speak. Do not suggest that you cannot do this, but you come with a traditional room role. Can you give us a little overview of the reflection process in terms of, why did the organization believe that it needed someone with your skills at this stage?

I think when you start in a new organization, there is always growing pain. As you enter it, you sometimes realize that you don't know what you don't know.

I love working with Gavin (now director of strategic initiatives). His relationships in the community are phenomenal. One of the first zoom interviews I did before coming here in person was with Gavin. One of the things I told him is that his skills and relationships were one of the reasons why I wanted to take this position.

If I arrived in a whole new organization, moving 2,000 miles, and I could not have somehow fill this gap in the community and already do the work, I think I would have much more hesitant to take the position.

Again, many good connections, but as you get an operational non -profit organization, you need someone with this background that can really build something. If you are going to build a building, you want to make sure that the foundation is solid, and that's what we want to do at SBA.

We have already had great support for the fundraising they did when they launched the organization, and I think we have had a lot of victories in the last nine months. We already make a difference. Get someone with Gavin's connections and my history by really doing things from scratch, make us a very good team.

I think that a concern when the association began was that it would be duplicating. We have more of the Incorporated Spokane and a few other rooms in the region, as well as other commercial organizations.

One of the things I did in my first five weeks is to meet GSI's leadership, the Downtown Spokane Partnership, Spokane Valley Chamber and others. I really get their comments on what's going on in the community. We are not here to duplicate. If Greater Spokane Inc. has a program that works, we are not going to duplicate. We want to support what they are doing.

With a regional room like GSI, they cannot focus on each problem, so I think there is certainly a place for SBA. One of the big things is to try to clean the city center and really be that voice, and Gavin has done a phenomenal job of, for lack of a better term, by thinking of the alarm sound of here what is happening in our city center. Here are the dependence problems we face. Here is the problem of the homeless. Correct the problem.

I think that is what business associations and rooms do well. We are organizers. We bring together various groups. At the city level, this should really not be a republican or democratic problem. It should be non -partisan. What could be better for Spokane? Let's have a debate. Let's talk about it and produce a solution that advances our community.

On the problems concerning the city center, when will we know that we are progressing?

When some figures improve. With the quantity of death by overdose in our community because of drugs, we are on the right track, if we do not do something soon, to have a record, I think, 500 deaths this year. It's sad.

Fentanyl is much worse than other drugs. Whenever I visit the family in Virginia-Western, I mean, the whole state has treated it. Fentanyl and drug addiction tend to occur when you have people who do not have a job, where there is nothing to do, and it is a way for them to escape what they consider a desperate future. We must make sure that there are paths to get people out of dependence. When we start to see these figures turn around, I think it will be a good indication.

What are the other brilliant shots that the Spokane Business Association is currently considering?

Transport is a big problem in any community. We want to be part of this conversation, because at the moment, they are working to reduce certain ways on rue North Division. I just haven't seen any figures in any community, whatever the cities trying to do, where it really increases traffic.

We really want to make sure that city leaders really look at this and go: “Is it a pipe dream?” Do we do this simply because we have money in the Transit Authority spokane to do it? Or do we really think it will help you?

My fear is that by narrowing these ways, it will make people more difficult for people to enter some of these companies. They will say: “Well, I could stop here, but then I have to turn around and go back. Or I can just go elsewhere to eat.

We really examine this from a holistic point of view of, if this domino falls, what are the potential negative impacts?

This interview has been modified for duration and clarity.