MEDICAL LAKE, Wash. — Downtown Medical Lake is hoping to see a boom in business after years of empty storefronts.
The Covid-19 pandemic and the 2023 Gray Fire took their toll on Medical Lake, leaving many businesses struggling to stay afloat.
For the last few years, the downtown’s core was left with multiple vacant spaces and little hope for economic growth.
But in February 2024, the Medical Lake City Council passed an ordinance aimed at reinvigorating downtown, requiring all commercial properties in the central businesses district to be in use.
Encouraged by the ordinance, Kathleen Morse took a gamble and opened her own shop in the business district.
“I guess I go to the church of positivity,” Morse said. “I believe that, like in ‘Field of Dream,’ if you build it, they will come.”
She transformed a former veterinary clinic into The European Child, a baby clothing boutique.
Morse said she fell in love with the area over the years and knew she wanted her shop to be downtown.
“When I saw this building, it had been on the market for four years, and it’s the most beautiful building in town,” she said.
Morse invested a great deal in the space, building a rental unit behind her store.
She said she hopes her journey, and the city’s push for revitalization downtown, will push others to open businesses in the area.
If owners don’t abide by the ordinance and use their spaces, they will face fines.
“This ordinance is going to force the hand of people to open their business for business,” Morse said.
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