Overview
The Three Rivers Community Roundtable was established in April 2001 to foster economic progress throughout the region. At that time, members of the roundtable developed a 10-year vision for the Tri-Cities. The Roundtable was created to act as a forum for community leaders to communicate, coordinate, integrate and facilitate their respective strategies for achieving the regional vision.
The vision called for a region that is a "family-friendly place where quality living is achieved through energetic people, advanced technology and a vibrant waterfront." Due to the tremendous fortitude of the members of the Tri-City community, the goals established in that vision have been achieved in only half the allotted time.
Over the last five years a new convention center has been built, a research district has been established and several new technology companies have moved in to the area. The Northwest TeraLink project, along with the area public utilities, has brought tremendous new connectivity to the area including increased bandwidth and wireless capabilites. The area's wine industry has taken off with the addition of the Red Mountain area as an incubation center for fledgling wineries. Programs like Ready for Kindergarten and Success by Six are enhancing education and WSU Tri-Cities has become a four-year university. PNNL and WSU have partnered to bring the Bioproducts, Sciences and Engineering Laboratory and the Tri-Cities have once again embraced the river by lowering the levees and building new hotels, waterfront trails and restaurants. Growth is evident throughout the region with numerous road construction projects, housing starts and retail sites springing up everywhere.
The Next Step
Now that all of this has been achieved it begs the question: Where do we go from here?
The members of the Three Rivers Community Roundtable are seeking input from the community as to which direction to proceed. Please take a few minutes to answer the following three questions to help us decide where the future of the Tri-Cities lies.