Seattle’s momentum is visible in both skyline and street life. Following the 2024 opening of the Aquarium’s Ocean Pavilion and Overlook Walk, fall 2025 brought the debut of Pier 62’s performance stage expansion and a revamped Colman Dock ferry terminal, smoothing daily transit while doubling as a cultural draw. Downtown logged more than 100 new ground- floor businesses in 2025, while South Lake Union is welcoming its latest mixed-use project: a 42-story tower blending 750 apartments with lab space for biotech tenants. Given all that, perhaps Seattle’s astonishing Top 3 global ranking for Economic Output isn’t surprising.
Hospitality is hot, too. The past few years have featured the 208-room InterContinental Bellevue, the 200-room AC Hotel Seattle Downtown, the Hotel Westland Pioneer Square and the Thompson Redmond, catering to both visitors and the growing Eastside corporate base. The city’s surging convention demand is sated by Seattle’s convention center expansion’s Summit addition in 2023. Connectivity drives it all. Sound Transit’s 2 Line extension linking Bellevue to Seattle’s core will open in 2026, slashing commutes (and protecting the city’s #4-ranked air quality). Sea-Tac’s Concourse C expansion, slated for 2026, will add 145,000 square feet and new gates, while Terminal 5’s $500-million modernization now positions Seattle as a Pacific freight powerhouse.