But since most of the dot-com phenomenon that helped spark the late-'90s economy of the Puget Sound area bypassed Spokane, the current downturn hasn't hurt Spokane as it has the west side of the state. 

In fact, the Spokane area has held its own, as I learned during a visit there this week. New investments and expanding industry segments are helping the area known as the Inland Northwest position itself for growth when the economic rebound comes. 

Some recent successes include: 

MatriCal Inc., a biotech instrumentation firm, has announced plans to move its headquarters from Pennsylvania to Spokane and open a manufacturing facility, after considering a number of possible West Coast sites. 

IBQ Systems, a small software development company whose product is aimed at the insurance industry, has moved its headquarters to Spokane from Chelan County. 

All of Spokane County's four hospitals have announced expansion plans. 

And Spokane-based WestCoast Hospitality Corp. is on an expansion binge that has CEO Don Barbieri setting his sights on growing the company to 200 hotels across the country. 

About $350 million in construction and restoration projects are planned or under way in downtown Spokane. And additional development throughout the Inland Northwest is expected to push that total beyond $500 million. 

"While we've not come through the downturn unscathed, the level of investment going on here shows real optimism about the future," says Mark Turner, president and CEO of the Spokane Area Economic Development Council. 

"Our recruitment efforts haven't been impacted," Turner says. "We set a goal for 2001 of 1,400 new jobs, and we exceeded that." 

As a Spokane native, I grew up watching insular attitudes and the clinging to old ways of doing things impede the area's economic growth. 

Indeed, conflicts between the established leadership of the area and some of the innovative new breed who have moved to Spokane, or in some cases returned to the city of their roots, continue to hamper efforts toward progress. 

One of those is the current effort by officials in Spokane to guide the city's growth through what would be its first ever annexation of some Spokane County areas. Forces in the Spokane Valley strongly oppose such ideas. 

But some, like Barbieri, who grew up in Spokane and currently chairs the Spokane Chamber of Commerce, see collegiality of efforts by an array of industries as the key to future success for the region. 

Part of Barbieri's vision is to get the chambers throughout Spokane County and neighboring Kootenai County of North Idaho to work toward creation of a single statistical market area whose current population is 550,000. 

"One of the biggest challenges for Spokane, the Valley and Coeur d'Alene is can they all check their egos at the door and carry a message of area cooperation" to other parts of the region and the rest of the country. 

He sees that as a key to long-term growth and opportunity for the Inland Northwest, of which Spokane is the hub. 
 

MIKE FLYNN is publisher of the Business Journal. Reach him at mflynn@bizjournals.com.